- May 28, 2010
- 1
- 10
So...I recently got into smoking...like a month ago :) Tried smoking a pork butt on the weber kettle. It turned out fine, but as I'm sure you are aware was a PITA to maintain temps. So I got a Brinkmann Gourmet Charcoal smoker off of craigslist. Brand new for $40...did some mods (charcoal grate, damper on bottom vent, holes/damper on lid, proper thermometer). Smoked a couple of racks of spare ribs and they turned out great, although temps were still a pain to manage on this thing because it's so leaky.
In all fairness, I don't think it was the smoker's fault though... It seems all the lump charcoal in my area has gone trough a torture test and is mainly comprised of tiny bits of coal. These obviously clog the air ways and smother the fire. Also, I was using wood chips because that's all I had. I think they kept catching on fire and made the temps climb.
But anyway, I've decided to do another 'mod' to the ECB. I made it a propane smoker. Actually, It didn't even require any modding. I just plopped it on top of a turkey fryer burner. I plan to run some bolts down through the charcoal pan to provide a barrier so the pan doesn't slide around when sitting on the burner.
So does this seam like a viable approach? If I just put some wood chunks in the charcoal pan (remove the grate), will I get some good smoke from this? Pics attached!
In all fairness, I don't think it was the smoker's fault though... It seems all the lump charcoal in my area has gone trough a torture test and is mainly comprised of tiny bits of coal. These obviously clog the air ways and smother the fire. Also, I was using wood chips because that's all I had. I think they kept catching on fire and made the temps climb.
But anyway, I've decided to do another 'mod' to the ECB. I made it a propane smoker. Actually, It didn't even require any modding. I just plopped it on top of a turkey fryer burner. I plan to run some bolts down through the charcoal pan to provide a barrier so the pan doesn't slide around when sitting on the burner.
So does this seam like a viable approach? If I just put some wood chunks in the charcoal pan (remove the grate), will I get some good smoke from this? Pics attached!
