Newbie in a ditch!

[hotfoot]

Greetings everyone,
I have been peeking in on SMF for a while now and recently joined. Hoping to get some thoughts on a proposed smoker build. I am looking to build a patio sized smoker - mostly cook for me and the wife these days, and I would like to do something in the vain of Squiggles Wombat:





and the Shirley 24x36.




Here is a sketch of the tank I am working with:






And here is the direction I would like to take it:




I find myself stuck in a bit of a "chicken or the egg" situation, I can't determine the volume of the cooking chamber until I know how much of the tank has to be devoted to the area beneath the baffle plate which cant be determined until you know the volume of your cooking chamber. So, how do i get a design and start making sparks??

Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Ranch House]

hotfoot Google feldons pit caculator it will give you some good information.

 

[JLeonard]

daveomak is the answer guy. He might can help ya.
jim

 

[hotfoot]

ok- I started from scratch going back through my numbers - I ran them through Feldon's, Smoker Builder and the SMF calculators. i figured the CC volume based on Pete Mazz who has done one tailored to this style of cooker. I used those volume calculations for all 3 calculators. All the key values came out in the same ball park except for the throat opening in the SMF calculator which was around 25% larger than the other 2. Not sure whether this is a difference in design philosophy or if the square shape skews the numbers. Probably a question for Daveomak since he knows what makes this thing tick.

 

[SmokinAl]

Yep I would definitely PM daveomak !
Al

 

[daveomak]

The larger opening was introduced from testing.... It was a restriction and contributed to the FB overheating a bit and uneven temps across the food grate...
The numbers are connected back to design philosophy... Unrestricted air flow makes for even temps across the food grate and reduced fuel consumption.... AND it's all connected to having upper air inlets in the FB, directly across from the FB/CC opening....

 

[hotfoot]

Thanks for the response Daveomak. In reading back through many old build threads, I can tell a lot of work has been put into refining your calculations. It is a great resource for guys trying to get their feet wet. I think I am confident enough to tighten up my measurements, mark up the tank, and round up material after the holidays. Speaking of which, Merry Christmas to everyone and good luck with your holiday cooks. I will try to update as I build and will no doubt have more questions.

 

[daveomak]

H hotfoot , Thank you for taking the time to research the history of this project.... That, in itself, is very unusual.... Many folks just ask question after question wanting us to do the research for them.....
It is appreciated and I'm sure you learned more than you probably wanted... But, you will build a better smoker, for the work you did... You probably noted the downfalls, miscalculations, and AH-HA moments that were encountered.... BRAVO !!!

Dave