Question about heat element placement.

[texbowhunter316]

Bottom door frame and register installed temporarily. It will be painted black.

 

[bill1]

...I may have trouble finding conduit that size but I’m on the hunt.
I did do a test this morning and the element did not get hot until after the two 90’s past the mounting tab. I sure time and radiant heat would get there...

2" or 3" EMT conduit would work too. I didn't really intend for you to have to buy a full 10' stick of it--just hoped you had some handy. Round steel fence post (for chain link fence) would work too. Any thin wall steel pipe >1.5" dia will do. A 2" EMT coupler would work too. But that's $3...didn't want you to have to pay that much.
But if they've "unwound" the filament inside as it goes into the mounting tab, so it's not getting that hot, this is all overkill. Try getting one of these for less than a buck:
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Steel-City-1-Gang-4-in-Utility-Metal-Box-Cover-58C30-25R/202590843
Cut it from a corner of the slot to a corner of an edge so you can temporarily bend it open and fit it around the element. Mount the tab to this and route everything through a generous hole in the wood and you should be fine.
Pics are looking good!

 

[texbowhunter316]

Works been crazy with the freeze so I’ve not been working on the smoker. There is a lot of reasons they build refineries on the gulf coast. #1 to me is that it doesn’t freeze often!!!
Bill, I was late reading your last post but I took your shield idea and went with it. Our box store had a piece of stainless so I’ve mangled it into a pretty thick shield.
Once again thanks.

 

[texbowhunter316]

A little heat protection.

 

[texbowhunter316]

Should I leave this the size it is or trace around the element?

 

[texbowhunter316]

Cord out the back.

 

[texbowhunter316]

Side ready for the PID, but not as ready as me.

 

[bill1]

Should I leave this the size it is or trace around the element?

For a heat shield, the bigger the better. Think of the element like a piece of water tubing with a million holes in it spraying water out all over. That's what the infrared radiation is like. The water shooting up is all good. The water that shoots down and hits that shield will bounce back up at an equal angle like a ball bouncing off the ground. The water that shoots down but at a steep angle so it misses the shield is wasted. So I'd have been even happier if the shield was wider...but what you've got is great!!!

 

[texbowhunter316]

The lid and trim.

 

[texbowhunter316]

Cabinet probe installed.
Recirculation fan shroud in its spot. It will have to come out tomorrow for a minute.

 

[texbowhunter316]

Had to redo a board. The cord for the fan wasn’t long enough. Poor planing on my part.

 

[texbowhunter316]

Done with the fan. This thing moves more air than I thought it would.

 

[texbowhunter316]

The PID shuts the fan on and off.
Thanks for the help kbarnes12

 

[texbowhunter316]

Took a break.
Taxidermist called and my Pronghorn is ready.

 

[texbowhunter316]

Both doors skinned. I have to cut out for the air vent.
I can see the light at the end of the tunnel now.

 

[JckDanls 07]

yup.. won't be long now.. looking good ...

 

[texbowhunter316]

No backing down now.

 

[texbowhunter316]

I’m firing it up for a test.
1st just the smoke tube and the fan.

 

[texbowhunter316]

1 hour with just the smoke tube and fan went up 12 degrees. Turned the setting to 100 degrees and was holding temp in 4 minutes and fanning the output of the element from 0 to about 25%

 

[texbowhunter316]

It starts fanning the output very early. The green dotted line is the element output. That’s ok with me but you would think it would stay 100 % until it got close.