Fire management help

[Smokin Okie]

You were right.... I placed my digital probe right next to my analog stem and ran with it there for the entire cook. I managed to keep within a range of 210 - 250f and when I placed the probe back in the middle as a test it was reading around 50f higher.

This means I've probably been running my cooks a little low on the temp, which probably explains why I've struggled to get good fat render on the last few Boston Butt's that I've done.....

I think a biscuit test would tell you a lot.

 

[SmokinBBQUK]

So, last Sunday I managed to burn a pretty good fire after using some of your advice.... I burned a smaller, denser coal bed, right up at the back of the firebox and managed to maintain it there with very little unburnt charcoal pieces at the end.

I'm in email exchanges with the smoker builder as it wasn't supplied with a grate however it seems to be the only way I can run a reliable fire. He is thinking that the cause could be the addition of a 2nd shelf. As standard he builds them with only 1 shelf however I asked for a 2nd shelf to be added, to increase capacity. I've asked him whether he factored this into his calculations for the smoker but I'm yet to hear back from him. Do any of you guys think that the addition of a 2nd shelf could disrupt airflow? Even when empty.....

Also, with a smaller smoker like this (94-gallon) where do you all stand on initially using charcoal to form a strong coal bed? This is something that I have never done however quite a few of the guys that post vids on YouTube do this.

Cheers,
Ben.

 

[SmokinBBQUK]

I think a biscuit test would tell you a lot.

Sorry, you're going to have to pardon my ignorance............ What's a biscuit test? Is it as obvious as it sounds? :-)

 

[Smokin Okie]

So, last Sunday I managed to burn a pretty good fire after using some of your advice.... I burned a smaller, denser coal bed, right up at the back of the firebox and managed to maintain it there with very little unburnt charcoal pieces at the end.

I'm in email exchanges with the smoker builder as it wasn't supplied with a grate however it seems to be the only way I can run a reliable fire. He is thinking that the cause could be the addition of a 2nd shelf. As standard he builds them with only 1 shelf however I asked for a 2nd shelf to be added, to increase capacity. I've asked him whether he factored this into his calculations for the smoker but I'm yet to hear back from him. Do any of you guys think that the addition of a 2nd shelf could disrupt airflow? Even when empty.....

Also, with a smaller smoker like this (94-gallon) where do you all stand on initially using charcoal to form a strong coal bed? This is something that I have never done however quite a few of the guys that post vids on YouTube do this.

Cheers,
Ben.

I start my fires with a chimney of lump.

 

[Smokin Okie]

Sorry, you're going to have to pardon my ignorance............ What's a biscuit test? Is it as obvious as it sounds? :-)

Its spreading biscuits out over the cooking grate and running an average fire for 15 to 20 minutes. Will be able to tell from the doneness and appearance of the biscuits where there's hot spots. Some also use white bread. There should be plenty on YouTube, I can't think of a good one, right off.

From what you've said about the middle of your cooking grate being hotter than the stack end, I'm wondering if your smoker has a baffle on the exchange between the firebox and the cook chamber. You posted a pic above looking into the firebox and I think I see a baffle, but maybe not. A baffle will direct air/heat down and then it rises in the middle of the cooking grate and creates a hot spot.

Some smokers have small baffles, some don't have any. My Franklin smoker has a shelf like yours, which makes me wonder why the builder would put in a baffle. I can't imagine he did that.

The hottest part of my smoker is right next to that shelf. Aaron Franklin designed it so heat would rise immediately inside the cook chamber, then hit that shelf and start to turn and tumble, which creates convection on the stack end of the cooker.

Here's a pic of a biscuit test I did on my Old Country Brazos, that I owned before I got the Franklin . I've flipped the biscuits over because the bottoms tell more than the tops. I did this test when I was playing around with tuning plates, which in the end, was a waste of time.

 

[Smokin Okie]

Here's a biscuit test on a Masterbuilt 560 Gravity Feed I bought a couple years ago, which has a very obvious hot spot .

 

[Dustin Dorsey]

I use a chimney of lump to start my fire as well. I think it just gets you going much quicker. It boggles my mind that some guys think using some charcoal to get started is cheating while a propane weed burner flame thrower is not. From then on out, I'm burning wood.

 

[Newglide]

I use a chimney of lump also, I usually put a split in lengthwise and put my coals along the split then add splits perpendicular to the first split

 

[SmokinBBQUK]

I use a chimney of lump to start my fire as well. I think it just gets you going much quicker. It boggles my mind that some guys think using some charcoal to get started is cheating while a propane weed burner flame thrower is not. From then on out, I'm burning wood.

:-) I'm one of those guys..... In all honesty, it's just never occurred to me. Through naivety I've just always ran it on 100% wood.

I think the issue is that there are a lot of YouTube vids out there with people using larger smokers and talking about fire management.... Which I'm now learning is very different to managing a fire on a small, backyard style smoker.

 

[Smokin Okie]

Said something above that I need to clarify about the biscuit test ............ I said the bottom of the biscuits tell a true story. That only applies to the OC Brazos or any other " bottom up " smoker. I've not done a biscuit test on my Franklin and since its a " top down " smoker, the bottoms may not be the gauge to use.

And appears to me, your smoker modeled after Franklin's .

 

[Welk]

I am looking at your firebox pic and see quite a bit of build up at the top and throat area. You had said you are running >20% oak. I would seriously consider drier wood. I have a 94 also and use only oak and cherry. I run a range of 5% to 15% depending on what I am looking to do. If I'm starting to lose my bed, I will drop in a 5% piece and get it to ignite and burn a little hot. If I want to incorporate a little more smoke to a good bed, I will get up into the 15% stuff. I also think once you start with a drier wood you will find that 8"x2" will be too small, and you'll quickly bump up to around a 11"x3" split. This of course depends on who makes your smoker and the length and diameter of your firebox. Another tip. For longer cooks, make sure to rake out spent ash every now and again to keep the hot coals out of that junky stuff.