Advice on a tool... (Hot Knife)

[blume357]

I'm on the committee at my church that is in charge of coordinating the scattering of cremains in our memorial garden. We have one scheduled for the day before Christmas and it seems the person's ashes are sealed in a plastic case.... another guy on the team told me about this and was trying to figure out how to get the ashes out of the case and into our decorative wood box we use. I was thinking an electric heat knife would be best.... I have all kinds of powered cutting tools but they could tend to cause a bit of a mess.... So, I go on Amazon and discover there are hundreds of these hot knives.... and they run in cost all over the board..... any suggestions. Or even a better one for opening this guy up?

(Oh, and my own personal joke... usually after the family tosses a few scoops of their loved one's ashes I get to scatter the rest and rake them out... because I'm the most qualified for this having been a chimney sweep now for 41 years and spending most of my days stirring ashes. )

 

[41Dude]

You said tool and my mind immediately thought Newsom.

Would a small propane torch set to a needle flame work. Not making a joke here but the contents would not be hurt.

 

[arfmel]

Maybe drill a large hole (or several) in it at very low speed.

 

[eveled]

I like the drill idea. A hole saw would work. When we use one on vinyl siding we run it in reverse so it doesn’t grab.

 

[Watertender]

I think the holesaw idea is good. Maybe 2 holes in the top to allow the cremains to come out. They may be in a plastic bag inside the container so you may have to puncture that to do what you need to do

 

[Hvymax]

I would probably gently use a saw around the top just short of penetrating and finish with a knife or gently prying.

 

[Don Lovel]

I drilled a hole very slowly with a 3/4" wood bit so we could distribute my late wife and mom's ashes to family and friends who took them to beautiful places and flower gardens all over the country.

 

[nekvermont]

Is there a instruction sheet? Look under How To Get into the Plastic Case.

Seriously though, perhaps a hack saw blade would work.

 

[Dave P.]

Not knowing what the box looks like sorta limits my thought process,
Most plastic melt and cut easily. Whatever method I used I would "pre-open"
or prep before the ceremony. Fresh blade in a box cutter heated with a propane
torch will cut/melt with little mess other than the smell of melting plastic.
Even an abrasive cut off wheel will zip through plastic and if you're careful
can do a very clean job of it. I'd be inclined to get it almost open then finish
at the event or open and just tape it for the ceremony.
I'm thinking this is a temporary, relatively cheap shipping or transport box and
not something to survive for the next 1000 years.

 

[KIR]

Sign on the bomb bay doors of B-52's. When all else fails, HIGH EXPLOSIVES seem appropriate.

 

[blume357]

My partner in this enterprise called the crematorium and discovered that all you need is a screw driver or a thin bladed knife to pry the lid off... we were working off of hearsay.
Reminds me of a rule in my business... I don't trust what most customers tell me on the phone and I don't ask a lot of questions because the more information I get about their fireplace and chimney the more I assume I know what I'm going to and more often than not when I get there it is something entirely different.

 

[Joe Chartreuse]

Soldering iron will give you more control. Just clean the tip off with a wet sponge as you go, and when you finish. Clean no mess cut.