Door sheet metal thickness help

[Mwinchel]

Hello,
I am building a smoker from a old fridge like many others have. I see where some have used 16 gauge stainless for the inside door skin. My question is will 18 gauge work just as good? I have a guy local that has a lot of cut offs for very little money compared to a new sheet of stainless in the 16 gauge. If it really will make a difference I will just suck it up and get the 16 if need be.

 

[Coreymacc]

14ga is gonna be a bit heavy, thats about all. As well it depends on your design, bending 14ga is not gonna be easy without a large brake.

Corey

 

[Mwinchel]

Hello,
Sorry In the post I meant to put 18 gauge is all i can get my hands on. A couple builds I have seen were 16. Will 18 be fine?

 

[realdocBBQ]

Will 18g work fine in terms of what?

It'll be easier to work with for bending and lighter in weight when it comes to moving the whole unit around. It won't hold as much heat, but let's face it, neither 16 nor 18 is going to be a strongly insulating material - you need something to hold in some heat if you're using this for hot smoking, especially if you're ever using it in a cold environment.

But will it work? Sure. It'll be slightly less dent/damage resistant, slightly less warp resistant and (very) slightly less insulating than the 16g.

But it'll work, yes.

As a comparison, several well known manufacturers make cabinet smokers with propane heat sources that are in the 20-24g steel range as far as walls and doors. Camp Chef Smoke Vault 24 and Great Outdoors Smoky Mountain are two that I have, also several others like the Masterbuilt, Char-Broil, etc., are essentially all the same. Much lighter materials than what you're describing, and still functional, if not spectacular.

I've used my lightweight cabinets for cold smoking, for hot smoking, and for holding ovens. They work in all three capacities.

 

[Mwinchel]

Will 18g work fine in terms of what?

It'll be easier to work with for bending and lighter in weight when it comes to moving the whole unit around. It won't hold as much heat, but let's face it, neither 16 nor 18 is going to be a strongly insulating material - you need something to hold in some heat if you're using this for hot smoking, especially if you're ever using it in a cold environment.

But will it work? Sure. It'll be slightly less dent/damage resistant, slightly less warp resistant and (very) slightly less insulating than the 16g.

But it'll work, yes.

As a comparison, several well known manufacturers make cabinet smokers with propane heat sources that are in the 20-24g steel range as far as walls and doors. Camp Chef Smoke Vault 24 and Great Outdoors Smoky Mountain are two that I have, also several others like the Masterbuilt, Char-Broil, etc., are essentially all the same. Much lighter materials than what you're describing, and still functional, if not spectacular.

I've used my lightweight cabinets for cold smoking, for hot smoking, and for holding ovens. They work in all three capacities.

Thanks for getting back to me. I updated my post. This is just for the inside door skin. I see most that do these old fridges use 16 gauge. the pc is only 21"x 43" just didnt know why everyone is stuck on that 16.

 

[Coreymacc]

I assume you are building the door then using the sheet as a skin. 18 will be fine.

Corey

 

[realdocBBQ]

I assume you are building the door then using the sheet as a skin. 18 will be fine.

Corey

He said he's using an old refrigerator - so my guess is he is pulling out the plastic lining and replacing it with sheet metal? I dunno, though...

 

[Mwinchel]

I assume you are building the door then using the sheet as a skin. 18 will be fine.

Corey

The door is the original 1950s door with the interior plastic taken off. This is just the flat sheeting to replace that.

 

[Coreymacc]

The door is the original 1950s door with the interior plastic taken off. This is just the flat sheeting to replace that.

Oh ya, that will be perfect then. I you want to get fancy, find someone to add some rolled beads into the material, stiffens it up. Plus you can make some cool designs.

Corey