New Smoker Project

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I have a question for you builders out there. I found this Dryer from a Hospital it is made by Sybron Castle. It has a thermostat that has a range from 150 deg to 550 deg. I am thinking that the insulation is good to go. Also I am going to make it a charcoal burner. I will make a charcoal baskets and a smoke stack and seal the bottom and it should be ready to cook with. Is any reason to be worried about any hazzards.
 
If that thing goes up to 550°, or even half that, it seems to me that you have the perfect set up for an electric! If it were me, I'd find something else to convert to a charcoal burner.
 
Yep!  I agree.  150- 500; why make work for your self?  You have a smoker ready built.  Add the AMPS, intake and exhaust and you are away.  Maybe a mailbox mod and a stack.  Just my humble opinion.  Good luck.

Danny
 
Yep, You guys make a very good argument. I like to take my smokers with me. Also I would like to try some competition BBQ
 
George,

Did you end up going with charcoal? If so it looks like you have a perfect setup to weld in a nice water pan above the firebox. Leave gaps around the edges for smoke and heat. Similar to Myron's H2O smokers. As far as exaust goes. If that rectangular pipe is the exaust from the cabinet I would weld on a 90* elbow and extend it up a little bit. Also right at the elbow you can put in a sliding damper to control the flow. I dont know what type of budget you are on but I just put a BBQ guru setup on my fridge and I couldn't be happier. It is actually running right now. I started it at 8AM and I have only added a handful of unlit charcoal at 10AM. The temp has stayed between 260-265 the whole time. Take a look at my setup in a post I'm going to do about today's cook.
 
GolfPro2301, Yes I am going charcoal, For the water pan I am going to use spacers and bolt it to the bottom piece that on top of the charcoal basket, Also I have the IC110 pitmaster, I would like to get the guru set up. On the exhaust pipe I am going to make a piece that will slide in and make a 90 deg and go about a foot higher than the smoker.
Here is the bottom piece that will be over the top of the charcoal basket. The water pan will bolt to this piece.
 
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I like the baffle. Even Heat distribution. With the water pan that close to fire box make sure it is deep enough as the water will boil and evaporate sooner. It would be awesome if you can attach an automatic water system through the side. weld a 1" pipe through the side and weld it to the top of the water pan. Then on the outside attach a hose valve. Open it when you need water and close it when the pan is full. On the firebox I would recommend leaving at least 2" under the basket for airflow.
 
If you referring to under the basket I would say it depends on how you are doing your air flow. I have 2" and it provides plenty of airflow with the Guru hooked up to it. The only downside is cleaning out the ash during long cooks. If I had it to do all over again I would do 3.5". That way I can get a long spatula under the basket during the cook and drag out the ash. 
 
I would put the gap under the water pan at least 1.5" but no more than 2.5". You just need to give yourself enough space for heat and smoke to move around the pan and up through the cooking chamber. Anything more then 2.5"-3" is just wasting space. I would leave 1.5" around the sides. This will allow plenty of heat and smoke space. I had a buddy do a firebox under a propane tank. He did the same setup without the diffuser plate. One thing he did that I really liked was he tacked on the thinnest steel mesh he could find around the openings at the top of the firebox. One thing you get with your firebox directly underneath is ash going into cooking chamber when you throw on new logs. Very Thin steel mesh will prevent that. 
 
 
I would put the gap under the water pan at least 1.5" but no more than 2.5". You just need to give yourself enough space for heat and smoke to move around the pan and up through the cooking chamber. Anything more then 2.5"-3" is just wasting space. I would leave 1.5" around the sides. This will allow plenty of heat and smoke space. I had a buddy do a firebox under a propane tank. He did the same setup without the diffuser plate. One thing he did that I really liked was he tacked on the thinnest steel mesh he could find around the openings at the top of the firebox. One thing you get with your firebox directly underneath is ash going into cooking chamber when you throw on new logs. Very Thin steel mesh will prevent that. 
Thanks for the Info. I didn't think about the ash, I will look into that, Thanks again.
 
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