AMNPS in the Smokin-It # 3, Hot Smoke

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smoke happens

Smoking Fanatic
Original poster
Nov 20, 2012
520
37
Arlington, WA
Lots of discussion on using the AMNPS in the Smokin-It # 3 (SI3), or any of the SI smokers for that matter due to how tight they are. So far I have not had any issues doing a cold smoke with the AMNPS or a hot smoke with an empty smoker during test runs, until last night.

I put on a 9lb butt at 11:30 last night, used a mixture of Cherry and Bourbon barrel pellets nuked for 1 minute prior to loading. I put the AMNPS towards the front of the smoker where the drain hole is, on the right side of the chip box, being sure to poke the foil at the drain hole. I placed the butt on the left side of smoker to prevent it from dripping onto the pellets. All was well and off to bed I went.

Here is the setup, AMNPS and butt placement


At 6:30 this morning, this is what I saw
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Looking at the burn, I'm guessing I got somewhere around 3 to 3.5 hours of smoke in the 7 hour period it was unattended. The pellets rounded the corner and fizzled out. I think it was further from the element and drain hole where it breathes from, causing it to go out. I did not have this problem with an empty smoker, so there must be just enough humidity from the steam coming off the butt to make the environment unsurvivable for the pellets as they burn into the 2nd row. You can also see here where I folded the foil up on the right side of the chip tray to act as a gutter to direct the juices away from the AMNPS. That worked well, when I looked over the pellets there was no drippings on the unburned pellets. I added 2 chunks of hickory when I saw this to the chip box for the remainder of the cook.

So now I need to decide weather I should drill a hole or 2 in the bottom of the SI3 or just hot smoke with chunks moving forward. I'll need to do some research on that, if you have done the drilling mods on a Smokin-It please chime in.
 
Possibly, just wonder if it will draw too much smoke out though and not leave enough in for flavor. I am still on the fence with drilling it, for now I just use chunk and it's all good.
 
I'm not sure I would drill a hole just to use the AMNPS unless the smoker, as is, cannot or will not produce smoke as designed; or for cold smoking if you cannot get good results with a cold smoke plate and a roasting pan full of ice.   If you get good food without the AMNPS, is it worth the trouble?
 
At this rate just call/email Steve and see what he says? When you're laying down foil are you just poking a pin hole, or making a hole the size of the drain hole? I just got my #2 and the drain hole is bigger than I thought it would be. I hadn't seen any pictures of it prior, and based on what people were saying here, I expected this tiny little hole. Mine's maybe 3/8" or so. Maybe the hole in the foil isn't big enough. *shrug*
 
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It's not necessary with the Smokin-IT. I use the tube/pellets since I had originally purchased the tube for use with my propane smoker, and I grew to like the Pitmaster's Blend pellets, so I just continued to use them with my Smokin-IT.
 
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