Horizonal Offset Smoker Mods

[d burbank]

I can't seem to open this great work book you referred to. Could you repost it please?

Thanks

D Burbank

 

[chard]

Im thinking about getting and SnP from Home Depot.. Does seem a little ehhh..  What about the holes in the cover that allow for a rotisserie? DO you block those off some how? SHould I save my money up and get a new braunfels smoker?

 

[g0bez]

I just picked up a SnP from Home Depot and assembled it tonight. If I had an option for something a bit better (both in terms of cost and my available options in this area) I probably would've waited... but all things considered, after I got it assembled I actually think this $170 is going to do fairly well as a first Smoker/Grill.

I also picked up a chicken and some ribs to smoke, and a variety of my normal grill favorites to play a bit.

In terms of mods... I'll probably be replacing some of the grates, but beyond that it'll be a trial/error (hopefully more trial than error) to fine-tune it.
 

Im thinking about getting and SnP from Home Depot.. Does seem a little ehhh..  What about the holes in the cover that allow for a rotisserie? DO you block those off some how? SHould I save my money up and get a new braunfels smoker?

 

[cajun a]

I have done almost the exact same thing, great minds do think alike. The temps. did get better, but still about 50 deg. difference end to end.  What i did different was cap off the top exaust and had my local exaust shop bend a 90 deg. to the bottom of a 6 ft. peice of 3 in. pipe. i attached to the end just below the rack level. temps now 30 deg. diffrent. Problem is getting pit over 250 deg.  Thought about going 4 in. and relocating 3 in. higher. Dont get me wrong, i can make a pork butt while i sleep. The basket i use for the minnion method last 8 hours, best if i insulate cook chamber with a welding blanket. Any other ideas you folks think of please let me know before i move fire box. May just need a better pit ?

 

[aussiepete]

These mods are great!  I was having major problems with temperature control and uneven cooking from one end of the grill to the other in my horizontal smoker.  I made a charcoal basket, increased the size of the original baffle and put in some tuning plates.  Still have some fine tuning to do but can now maintain temperature and have a difference of only 10 degrees from one end of the grill to the other.

Above - Before mods. Note how this pork roast is burning on the firebox side, even though it's in the middle of the grill 12-14 inches away from the firebox.

Below - My first smoke after making the mods.  These pork ribs are in exactly the same spot on the grill as the above roast but you can see they all cooked evenly.

Very happy with the results!

 

[toekneemac]

Anyone have luck without a baffel and/or tuning plates?  

I am going to try smoking without these mods because:

1)  They did not seem to work for me so good.
2)  It seems like a large fire in the box, which actually heated up so hot that the steel expanded to the point that the door would not close all the way. I have massive heat in the box, and little in the chamber. 
3)  I reached 250 degrees near the fire box and 150 at the opposite end.
4)  I tried 20ga. steel for tuning plates AND ceramic tile, and neither one worked for me.
5)  I still had a massive heat inequality.  And not only from end to end, but from front to back.  I used a digital thermometer in the center if the first half of the smoker chamber and my dial thermometers in the chamber cover.  All at grate level. the digital read 200 and the dials read 250.  We are talking like 6-7 inches apart.  With that much difference, I may as well lose the mods and just learn how the smoker works by itself and adjust the meat accordingly.

This is relatively new to me, and I have a Bar-B-Chef.  Does anyone else NOT use internal mods with success?  Thanks

 

 

[chef jimmyj]

I would suggest posting some pics of your Equipment and your fire set up...I don't have any mods to my Horiz.NB but the temp difference from end to end is 25*F not 100*F! Show your Mods as well maybe we can tweek what you have. Describe how you get your fire going and which type of fuel you use...Stop by Roll Call and introduce your self, with your experience level and location. Then start a new thread about these problems. This thread is old...JJ

 

[toekneemac]

Chef Jimmy,

Thanks!  I will followw your instructions.

 

[goofus]

I just got a Char Griller and it has several leaks. I used wood burner stove door gasket material to seal up the lid. Works like a champ. I used aluminum brackets and high temp silicon.

This thing holds temp for hours!! Real easy to use!! Wind??/ No worries!

I also extended the stack and put in some flashing to block direct heat.

 

[mater]

That's what my grate looks like. I have got to do something about that soon. Your smoker is just like mine except for the chimney.

 

[pvillecomp]

Quick question. 

I got a deflector and tuning plates for my Trailmaster this afternoon and put them in after a quick cleaning and a spray of Pam to season. I loaded a full chimney and change of Lump into the basket and went to town. Man what a difference. Before the right side, nearest the firebox was way too hot, but tonight it seemed like I could not get up to temp no mater what. The deflector is what I believe to be close to a 45 degree angle to the opening, I have 5 2" strips after the baffle, then 1/4" or so gap then an 4 2" inch strips and a 1/2" gap and then 3 2" strips and open to the end of the grill. (I was shooting for the 10", 8", 6" formula in the OP)

The hottest I ever saw it, with the baffles open full, was 210 on the fire box side and 150 on the chimney side. It seems like I'm not getting enough draw through the chamber to bring the heat in. 

Here is a pic of the baffle. 

And the plates

It's dark so I'll get better pics in the morning, 

I''m not sure where I should remove plates to increase the airflow. Each plate is 2" x 14 1/2 10 gage cold rolled steel and the baffle is 6" x 14 1/2 10 gage cold rolled steel.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. 

Updated with better pic.

 

[chef jimmyj]

Make sure there is a sufficient Gap at the bottom of your Baffle. 4-5 inches seems to provide sufficient heat from the Fire Box to the Smoke Chamber...JJ

 

[pvillecomp]

Thanks Chef - 

I found this morning, now that the unit is cool, that there was more space between the top of the fire hole and the top of the baffle. I moved it down and increased the angle so that the top of the baffle is at the top of the hole. I measured and found that the distance is almost exactly 5". 

Here is a picture looking into the smoke chamber from the fire box. As you can see I have the baffle and tuning plates resting on the lower grill itself and the bottom half of the fire hole is unobstructed. I'll try again tonight and see if I get a better draw and heat distribution. 

 

[jbird]

@Goofus What size stove rope did you use? I want to try all your mods, i have the brinkman offset and has a lot of leaks!

 

[schaydu]

ive been looking for a thread like this for a loooooong time!!! very informative thanks!!

 

[coyote-1]

As a baffle I use a large baking sheet set on bricks. Works well. I keep a small bit of a gap at the firebox end, with a much larger gap at the other end. A bit of temp difference from end to end can actually work for you in many instances, while a hard baffle will actually prevent much of the heat from even making it into the smoke chamber. It will instead be lost out the top of the firebox.

I don't seal the grill. My rationale: everyone is making chimney mods to bring it down to grate level. So then... what exactly is the difference between a bit of the smoke leaking out the sides at grate level or not? If cold wind were blowing in those side gaps I could see it being a problem, but that mostly does not occur; mostly it is smoke coming out. Which is fine by me.

IMO the single most valuable mod is to get the chimney down to grate level.

 

[tasunkawitko]

>>>I don't seal the grill. My rationale: everyone is making chimney mods to bring it down to grate level. So then... what exactly is the difference between a bit of the smoke leaking out the sides at grate level or not? If cold wind were blowing in those side gaps I could see it being a problem, but that mostly does not occur; mostly it is smoke coming out. Which is fine by me.

IMO the single most valuable mod is to get the chimney down to grate level.<<<

BINGO - once i brought the chimney down to grate level, the vastly-improved draw eliminated the "leaking" smoke, making the gaskets/seals/etc completely unnecessary. having said that., i did address this:

>>>What about the holes in the cover that allow for a rotisserie? DO you block those off some how?<<< 

very easily, and at very little cost. at first, i used dryer-vent tape, but this looked a little cheesy, so instead i bought two small screws (machine screws, i think, the kind with a flat tip and a slotted screwdriver head), two locking nuts to fit the screws and four flat washers (the kind with very small holes in the middle - just big enough for the screws to go in). then i covered the rotisserie holes with a washer on each side of the hole secured by the screw - repeat for the other side and that's it. if they are the zinc-plated hardware, be sure to burn the coating off, and once they are on teh smoker, give them a spray of PAM-type cooking spray now and then to keep them "seasoned;" that's it.

 

[jbird]

Thanks guys i'm going to extend my chimney tonight

 

[chappy4o]

what angle was the stack extension cut at?? and how long is the pipe? i really like that design using exhaust tubing.

i too am curious about the charcoal basket . . . sound interesting.

last question - do you have any links to some good thermos analog and digital?? for analog i think a 3" face with 4" stem would be the ticket

thanks

Chappy

 

[vichi lobo]

I realize that it has been quite some time since this thread was active, but i do have a followup question.  Does anyone see a problem with making the tuning plates and the deflector out of quarry tile; the same tile that many people use for their pizza stones?