First run on new reverse flow

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May want to do this while at the welders, some type of slide or something you can open and close vents as necessary  You will want to be able to control the air flow, Just a thought

Gary
 
RG,

Gary and I were messing around with Feldons calculations through PM this morning, and Feldons suggests a 4"x15" stack.  I'll request a 16" given the slight bend, and that would be 16" height from top of CC.  When I entered my pit dimensions, I sized the firebox to 100%...  And to your point, the idea is to get rid of as much bend as I can.
I also plan to have the stack entrance halfway between the grate level and top of CC.

I have considered adding some additional intake openings on the pit, but will make the decision once I get the stack modified and have a chance to check everything out.  Process of elimination and trial and error.  My thoughts are that I could *maybe* benefit from having openings both under the grate as well as further up the FB.  But we'll see if those are necessary.  Those are at least something I can do myself later on without having to weld.

Thanks guys.

Below is from Feldon's calculator.... Take it for what it's worth.... There are also links, in that calculator, you may read for further information..


Chimney Size
Enter the diameter of your chimney pipe to find out how long it should be.
• A chimney that is too short may produce insufficient draft (drawing of air). A chimney that is too long may cause the air to cool before it exits, reducing effective draft and worse, dripping of exhaust materials onto food!
• Many horizontal smokers have an exhaust between 30-40 inches in length, but there is no hard and fast formula.
• If you are building a horizontal smoker with a vertical cooking cabinet, realize that the cabinet partly acts as an exhaust, thus you may greatly shorten the chimney
 
I dropped the pit off earlier this evening and gave him my order.  Decided for a 20"x4" stack with an approx. 45 degree bend.

By the way, for those interested - I posted the link below to the craigslist posting for the original builder of my pit.  He has several other smokers for sale right now.  They're all a different designs than my unit and are hybrid smoker/grills.  But it looks like all of his pits have small stacks relative to the smokers' sizes........  I didn't know any better when I bought the pit, and then I joined this forum and it looks like I will hopefully be able to right the wrong thanks to everyone on here.

http://cincinnati.craigslist.org/bfs/4324578259.html
 
Pit is back, and I am happy with the new stack. 4" od and 23" tall measured from top of CC. The wider diameter and 45 degree bend vs 90 degrees seemed to help when I fired it up this afternoon. I was able to get to 340 degrees, but it stalled there and didn't get any hotter. I was using wood that isn't seasoned very well, so I'm not sure if that is why it didn't get any hotter.

From here, would adding additional inlets help get more heat flow? An inlet further up the firebox and also under the grate? I'm definitely making progress, because 340 is the hottest my pit has even reached.

Also, I measured temp on both sides of the CC and have about a 15-20 degree difference with the FB side getting hotter. Would increasing the RF opening help even the heat out more?

Thanks!




 
Turned out great and you don't have an arm and leg invested. I think now all you need to do is smoke something,  Be sure and used some good seasoned wood though.

Gary
 
Thanks guys. I'm glad to have it back. I think I'll add a couple of 1" holes on the FB door right under the grate to see what that does for my fire. Maybe will help fuel it with more oxygen.

Either way, the bigger stack really seemed to help the smoker breathe a lot better. Night vs day!

James
 
Is the weather still pretty crappy up there ?  was in the 70's here yesterday again today with rain and temp drops later on then Monday night or Tuesday night supposed to drop back down in the 20's Crazy weather here But at least not a bunch of Ice and snow

Gary
 
We're getting freezing rain right now and an expected 4"-5" of snow tonight. Rough winter everywhere... Ready for some sunshine.
 
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