Advice on wood size and placement

[srall]

I recently got a dyna-glo offset vertical for Christmas and have been trying to get a few things figured out with it. When I use it I get things going with a chimney of briquettes and then throw a few medium sized splits on top of that. I noticed that the splits only give off smoke for the first few minutes after being lit and then the smoke disappears. I’ve watched several videos of people talking about how you want thin blue smoke instead of thick white stuff, but all my smoke always seemed to completely disappear once the splits began to char on the outside. My dad has a very similar smoker and has always made some of the best brisket I’ve ever had with an incredible smoke ring. He always uses chips instead of splits and places them next the the charcoal where they just smolder instead of catching completely. I’ve thought about trying this approach, but haven’t seen it in any videos I’ve watched or any forums I’ve searched. Is there a particular reason why nobody takes this route. Or are there any others reasons why my smoke disappears?

 

[SmokinEdge]

Your smoke “disappears “ because the fire is clean. The TBS is there, trust me. You could increase smoke by closing the air intake just a bit but that may lower the pit temp. Just run your smoker where it is happy and you will have a good smoke ring.

 

[culpepersmoke]

Your smoke “disappears “ because the fire is clean. The TBS is there, trust me. You could increase smoke by closing the air intake just a bit but that may lower the pit temp. Just run your smoker where it is happy and you will have a good smoke ring.

What he said.

 

[gmc2003]

Yeah, what he said.

Give your exhaust a sniff. You should be able to smell the smoke if your getting any.

Chris

 

[JLeonard]

If the wood is smoldering/burning your getting smoke....

Jim

 

[civilsmoker]

Your smoke “disappears “ because the fire is clean. The TBS is there, trust me. You could increase smoke by closing the air intake just a bit but that may lower the pit temp. Just run your smoker where it is happy and you will have a good smoke ring.

Yup this!!!

 

[Hockeydudde]

Smoldering chips is very different than burning splits. I saw an explanation somewhere, but can't recall. Maybe someone else knows what I'm talking about. Both can produce good smoke flavor, even though the chips aren't burning clean. This is why smoke tubes and mazes work, even though it's counterintuitive to someone that does everything they can to prevent smouldering splits.

If your splits burn to clean, is it possible they are kiln dried? I think kiln dried wood burns very clean. Retired Spook posted recently what he does with kiln dried wood.

Looking for Hickory wood

I have a wood supplier that’s pretty good for different types of oak or almond wood splits in large quantities but they only sell hickory in 1.5 cf bags. Does anyone know of any suppliers in CA selling hickory splits in 1/2 chord or chord quantities?

www.smokingmeatforums.com

 

[Retired Spook]

Kiln dried wood will never impart the flavor that air-dried aged wood will - ever - and anytime you are buying wood in a bag or a box from a store, you are buying kiln dried wood. It can be used for grilling but will be disappointing for smoking, and in either case will never be as good as air-dried aged wood.

Soaking kiln dried wood chunks in water for a few days, and letting them dry for a day before use, and adding them to a fire, is only a cheap shortcut - but it is better than nothing. The "white smoke" you will get from the soaked wood is mostly steam, unless you have not mastered your fire skills.