Finally was able to dial in my TMLE to where I wanted it. I smoked some meatloaf yesterday in high winds, and I had great success with the temperatures across the entire cooking chamber. Going to post some pics as soon as the phone stops screwing up, but here's a rundown of what I did that worked:
Baffle Plate - I cut a baffle to fit across the opening from the firebox, routing the flow down at a 45-degree angle and reflecting the radiant heat away from the contents of the cooking chamber.
Lava Rock - I lined the bottom of the chamber with a layer of enough lava rock to fit under the charcoal grates of the smoking chamber, piling high on the smokestack side, and tapering off to nothing in front of the baffle. I found that rocks too close to the baffle plate tended to hold the temps far too high on that end of the chamber, so having less on the firebox side prevented too much stored heat from radiating into the chamber. The lava rock definitely helps with the recovery of the the smoker after opening the cooking chamber door, and it seemed to smooth the temperature fluctuations that I was seeing in the firebox from the higher winds that day.
Stack Extension (90-Degree Oval Boot) - This little gem enabled me to lower the stack without sacrificing a lot of space. I cut the flange on the oval side to shorten it to cooking grate height and removed the flange that attaches to the round side. I then punched out four holes, passed M6 bolts through the inside of the vent and ran them through the smoking chamber wall and out to the smokestack. I tightened the bolts on the outside of the stack. I'll probably replace them later, as this is not as aesthetically pleasing.
Rope Gasket - I added a rope gasket to the firebox. I originally glued it on with gasket cement, but it cracked. RTV sealant is holding it on right now, but I may try the cement again and try to tuck the gasket into the seam around the firebox with a small screwdriver.
RTV Sealant - Put it EVERYWHERE. Even the stack leaked at the junction to the cooking chamber.
Grate Level Dial Thermos - Yes, dial thermometers are inaccurate, but the left to right view of two boiling water calibrated dial thermometers helped me see what was happening inside from end to end of the cooking chamber. Nothing beats a digital probe at dead center, but by drilling two holes at the bottom of the door and adding two thermos with three inch probes, I gave myself a good approximation of what is happening inside.
End result...during windy conditions yesterday, I still had no more than a 7-degree difference when measured 6" from the left and right side of the cooking chamber.
I will add pics later (and a little Q-view of my first smoked meatloaf). Thanks to all who posted advice on here. It's been a real blast so far.
Baffle Plate - I cut a baffle to fit across the opening from the firebox, routing the flow down at a 45-degree angle and reflecting the radiant heat away from the contents of the cooking chamber.
Lava Rock - I lined the bottom of the chamber with a layer of enough lava rock to fit under the charcoal grates of the smoking chamber, piling high on the smokestack side, and tapering off to nothing in front of the baffle. I found that rocks too close to the baffle plate tended to hold the temps far too high on that end of the chamber, so having less on the firebox side prevented too much stored heat from radiating into the chamber. The lava rock definitely helps with the recovery of the the smoker after opening the cooking chamber door, and it seemed to smooth the temperature fluctuations that I was seeing in the firebox from the higher winds that day.
Stack Extension (90-Degree Oval Boot) - This little gem enabled me to lower the stack without sacrificing a lot of space. I cut the flange on the oval side to shorten it to cooking grate height and removed the flange that attaches to the round side. I then punched out four holes, passed M6 bolts through the inside of the vent and ran them through the smoking chamber wall and out to the smokestack. I tightened the bolts on the outside of the stack. I'll probably replace them later, as this is not as aesthetically pleasing.
Rope Gasket - I added a rope gasket to the firebox. I originally glued it on with gasket cement, but it cracked. RTV sealant is holding it on right now, but I may try the cement again and try to tuck the gasket into the seam around the firebox with a small screwdriver.
RTV Sealant - Put it EVERYWHERE. Even the stack leaked at the junction to the cooking chamber.
Grate Level Dial Thermos - Yes, dial thermometers are inaccurate, but the left to right view of two boiling water calibrated dial thermometers helped me see what was happening inside from end to end of the cooking chamber. Nothing beats a digital probe at dead center, but by drilling two holes at the bottom of the door and adding two thermos with three inch probes, I gave myself a good approximation of what is happening inside.
End result...during windy conditions yesterday, I still had no more than a 7-degree difference when measured 6" from the left and right side of the cooking chamber.
I will add pics later (and a little Q-view of my first smoked meatloaf). Thanks to all who posted advice on here. It's been a real blast so far.
