I’ve owned my unit since early 2020 as a newbie smoker getting the cheapest (meaning thin metal, bad joints and seams) smoker I could find and also being the lightest smoker for my elevated deck. After some shoring up of said seams, etc, I’ve kept it around and quite enjoy smoking meats.
Unlike more automated smokers, this smoker requires more attention whilst cooking. Here are some notes for my future reference and if it will help anyone.
Smoking in the winter/cold weather
- More fuel needed
- Longer cooking time (almost double or triple depending on the weather) because it’s a fight to increase temps
- Helpful to have something to help retain heat (e.g. thermal/ welding blanket, large sheets of metal or the like set around the unit to reflect heat back)
- Smaller charcoal pieces burns hotter and faster than larger pieces for quicker temp increases
Smoking in summer/hot weather
- Faster cooking time
- Less fuel needed
- Helpful to have shade over the unit like a patio umbrella to help with sun-driven temperature increases.
- More large chunk charcoal (slower burn so won’t drive temps high quickly) than small pieces (burn hot and fast)
Temperature control
- Closing inlet and outlet will starve the oxygen and decrease temperature
- Opening inlet and outlet will increase oxygen, increasing temperature
- Closing outlet and opening inlet can cause creosyte which makes food bitter
- Opening the outlet and minimizing the inlet causes a vacuum that draws more air through causing temp increase
- Fully closing all vents puts out charcoal (although that takes a long time)
- Opening of door or firebox decreases temperature
- Though not recommended, opening and leaving the door partially closed will keep the temperature from going too high (had to do because I put way too much charcoal in for the summer and I have nothing to store extra burning charcoal in. However, it changes the cooking and taste)
- Try not to freak out when the temperature goes too high or too low because opening and closing the doors will cause the temperature to be all over the place. Fiddling with the vents will allow the temps to rise and fall more gradually
General Notes
- Make sure to clean cooking grates often as leftover debris goes rancid, can mold, and affect not only safety of food (smokers operate at low temperatures creating ideal conditions for thermophilic bacteria) but taste of the food too (Blech, sadly, from experience).
- Lining the bottom of the smoker with foil helps catch drippings
- The floor of my firebox and under the soot tray are definitely rusty out from rain and moisture, despite use of Dyna-Glo’s cover
- Built-in thermometer is only an indicator and not accurate
- Using a water bath can be helpful to keep more moisture in the meat. I place a small foil loaf pan with water on the floor of the cooking side. You can add juice to it, just be careful because it can change the flavor of the meat. I used too much apple cider vinegar once from a recipe and it gave everything a sour taste/smell
- I also placed a fire brick on the floor of the cooking side because it supposedly helps with more constant heat dissipation? I’ve been using it since the beginning, so I can’t say if it is useful or not.
- Wood chips
- I’ve found through time that my family and I don’t like heavy smoke on the food. In my opinion, less is more.
- Some people rally against it, but I like to soak my chips before use. Has a side bonus of slightly reducing temperature when it’s wet
- Apple and Pecan have a nice, light flavor
- Cherry also has a nice flavor, but will give the meat a red color, too
- Hickory is strong, so less used the better
- Mesquite is very strong. Less is definitely better. I personally don’t like to use it.
- My favorite wood chips flavors (the ones I keep going to every time) are apple and pecan.
Useful Items
- Heat gloves
- Wireless thermometer with multiple probes
- Sunglasses/safety glasses (smoke in your eyes is not particularly fun)
- Foil loaf pan for water bath
- Weber lighter cubes
- Chimney starter
- Large chunk lump Kamado charcoal
- Normal lump charcoal that contains smaller pieces
- Metal pail with secure lid to responsibly place charcoal waste
- Fire bricks
- Grate scrubber and cleaner
- Wood chips
- My safety features:
- Protective mat under smoker (like an Ember Mat) especially if using on wood deck
- Heat shield on top of protective mat to protect deck from heat and reflect it back at the smoker
- Old pans to help catch tiny pieces of burning charcoal when pouring into firebox
- Mini, round, portable charcoal grill to hold chimney starter
- Safety glasses
- Heat gloves
- Long tongs