New member question: wood stove to smokehouse distance

[patchencindy]

We raise our own meat, so we're used to curing, but now we'd like to try cold smoking some bacon. We have a board and batten well house (6x8', 8' peaked roof) with lots of natural ventilation. Our plan is to set up a woodstove a distance away and run the stovepipe to the well house. How far from the well house do you think the stove needs to be for cold smoking, what measures do we need to take to ensure no sparks get sucked into the well house, and does overnight seem a reasonable amount of time to smoke the meat without overdoing the smoky flavor? Any tips for success — that is, coming out with a tasty product and not burning down the well house — would sure be welcome.

 

[JckDanls 07]

Myself.. I use a pellet tube cold smoker made specifically for this application... Would probably use two for the size smokehouse you have... Don't have to tend a fire all day/night.... puts out minimum heat.. Many of pellet flavors to chose from.... search the site ... https://amazenproducts.com/

 

[patchencindy]

Thanks, JckDanls. I like this idea. It seems like it'd be a lot more straightforward than rigging up the wood stove, though also a bit more expensive since we have the wood stove and the wood. I couldn't pull up the link, but I did do a search on Amazon for pellet tube cold smoker and read about this one: . Do you know what brand/model yours is? If we go with one of these, do we just set a small grill (or smoker) inside the well house, with the pellet tube in the grill?

 

[JckDanls 07]

I edited the link in my post... https://amazenproducts.com/ ... Search this site for the expandable 12-18" tube ... Todd (owner) is a sponsor (or was) of this forum... members here helped him test and develop all his cold smokers...

They don't need a grill or anything.. You just light the pellets at one end of the tube.. let them burn for a few minutes and then blow the flame out... get a nice glowing head (think cigar) and it will put out perfect TBS (thin blue smoke) for up to 8 - 10 hours ...

 

[patchencindy]

Cool! Thanks for the working link.

 

[dernektambura]

Temp of the smoke, coming through the pipe depends on lenght of the pipe.... you can install fresh air intake flap mid way on the pipe... this fresh air intake will chill hot smoke from the stove and improve circulation through smokehouse...

 

[patchencindy]

Thanks, dernektambura. Air intake midway sounds good. So, how far from the smokehouse is far enough? Also, will adding angles to the pipe reduce the heat? Is there any reason to run the pipe at a slight slope, either up or down? We'll be using a 6" pipe.

 

[daveomak]

Get one of the Amazn products... Add smoke on and off for a week or so... anywhere from 6-12 hours per day...

My recent bacon.....

 

[patchencindy]

Looks DEE-vine, davomak! The pellet tubes seem to do a great job, but I talked to my partner last night and he said he'd prefer to use the woodstove/wood we already have, so ... back to the questions about stove to smokehouse distance, etc.

 

[dernektambura]

Thanks, dernektambura. Air intake midway sounds good. So, how far from the smokehouse is far enough? Also, will adding angles to the pipe reduce the heat? Is there any reason to run the pipe at a slight slope, either up or down? We'll be using a 6" pipe.

It all comes down to basic physics...
longer stove to smoker pipe requires longer chimney pipe to get good air/smoke movement...
shorter stove to smoker pipe means hotter smoke and variable temp inside smoker..
you want smoke to "pass over" meat, not linger around meat for to long...
Ideally, to make it perfect setup you would need to install 3 inch fresh air intake pipe inside 6 inch smoke pipe at midway point as smoke intake booster....
it may sound complicated but it will work on your stove setup...

 

[patchencindy]

Will do it, thanks.