New Member!

[cold hands]

Hello All,

Joined the forum today from snowy New Hampshire. I am diving into the world of smoking meat this year. Up until now I have used my grill and make shift smoke boxes to cook ribs, wings, etc. Very eager and excited to start using my MES 40 inch smoker (once the weather will cooperate).

Lots of questions, but the first I have is regarding the placement of my smoker. I have a deck that is somewhat crowded with my patio set and my gas grill. I think setting the smoker up there may be too congested - and dangerous as someone could accidentally touch the smoker and get burned.

My question is:

Does anyone position their smoker in the yard? Is this a fire hazard? I could position it in the driveway, but I would rather be able to sit in my back yard and hang out near the smoker. Should I purchase a stand to put the smoker on? Will this make it ok to position the unit in the yard?

Thanks a lot for any advice.

 

[leah elisheva]

Welcome indeed!

May I ask where in NH you are? (I'm on the coastal area). I think you can place your smoker anywhere but I'll stick to my food and let the mechanical experts answer your question properly.

Cheers!!!! - Leah

 

[hambone1950]

Hey sorry I missed this. Welcome to the group. I would post this in the general discussion section and you'll get a lot more feedback. People who don't belong to the group might read your post but can't comment.
Anyhoo!
So...you have an electric smoker ? Is that right?
My gut says that if you put it in the yard near the deck you'll be fine. I would go to walmart and get one of those oil drip trays. Looks like a big baking sheet pan and set it in that.
It would probably be ok on the deck too. But I wouldn't go too far away while it's turned on. Anything can catch fire. Post a pic of your setup and we can talk more , but good luck.

 

[bobc]

hi all from central mass where the weather changes every fifteen minutes one day its 50 out and the next there is 4 inches of snow

got to love new england

 

[lamar]

4" of snow??  You're not in New England....must be in the south somewhere.  We have 4+ feet here in southern Maine.  Have not smoked since yesterday.  I smoke at least once a week regardless of the weather.

Welcome aboard.

 

[bobc]

Hi lamar

I live in central mass  I have a total of 5ft all winter. Smoker was buried in on the back deck I have been lucky to get to my gas grill

to cook that sits right next to my slider in case we loose power so  I still can cook but I cook on it all year round anyway one snow storm drop 12" in one night

now for us that's a snowy winter. I go to Sebago Lake all the time winter and summer so I know you guys get a lot more snow than we do.

 

[bobank03]

Welcome to all our new members!

Cold Hands, I guess it all depends on the size of your yard etc. I would stay off of wooden porches (which is an illegal place to have a grill or smoker in most places, due to the fire hazard)  But I think anywhere else is fair game. 

I just started a new post on my cook of the day and I was thinking out loud that it would be nice to have something over the top of my grill and smoker to keep the rain/snow...etc off and let me use them more. 

There is a guy on either the NE or ECB group that built a nice covered area for his smoker... I don't recall who it was now, but I am pretty sure there are posted pics.

So getting back to the question at hand. Setup where ever works best for you! 

 

[bobank03]

My one requirement is someplace where the smoke doesn't blow back into the house. Not that I mind, but thats a seperate topic, lol.