As many of you know I have modified the Smoke Vault I have to no end. One of the things that has always bothered me was the exhaust. It seemed way too small, even with the vent adjustment wide open. We had a previous thread; Smoker Chimney Height, where we discussed exhaust pipe size and length, and I decided to pull the trigger, cut the small vent out and put in a 3" exhaust pipe.
With the small vent I usually ran the ball valve between 1/3 and 1/2 open to get to 250. Keep in mind I have every other burner hole plugged with a screw. Today the temperature outside was in the mid-40's and I was running the ball valve widen open and only hitting 235. So, I used some foil for a make-shift damper.
With the make-shift damper mostly closed I was able to drive the temperature to 270 or so, and then backed down the ball valve to get in the 250 range.
In hindsight........In the previous thread the topic came up and the advice is start smaller an cut the hole bigger as you go. Folks thinking of doing this heed that advice. I should have started with a 3" exhaust pipe instead of a 4".
Things to change.................I'll start with removing the screws from the burner holes. Then I need to make some sort of an adjustable damper. I am thinking of a thin piece of aluminum on top of the exhaust pipe that I can slide left to right to allow more or less flow.
If all else fails I'll rivet a square piece of aluminum over the 4" hole, cut a 3" hole, and we'll try this all again.
As always your input and advice is welcome.
With the small vent I usually ran the ball valve between 1/3 and 1/2 open to get to 250. Keep in mind I have every other burner hole plugged with a screw. Today the temperature outside was in the mid-40's and I was running the ball valve widen open and only hitting 235. So, I used some foil for a make-shift damper.
With the make-shift damper mostly closed I was able to drive the temperature to 270 or so, and then backed down the ball valve to get in the 250 range.
In hindsight........In the previous thread the topic came up and the advice is start smaller an cut the hole bigger as you go. Folks thinking of doing this heed that advice. I should have started with a 3" exhaust pipe instead of a 4".
Things to change.................I'll start with removing the screws from the burner holes. Then I need to make some sort of an adjustable damper. I am thinking of a thin piece of aluminum on top of the exhaust pipe that I can slide left to right to allow more or less flow.
If all else fails I'll rivet a square piece of aluminum over the 4" hole, cut a 3" hole, and we'll try this all again.
As always your input and advice is welcome.
