Hunting Washington Forum

Community => Butchering, Cooking, Recipes => Topic started by: lokidog on February 13, 2011, 10:41:11 PM

Title: Smoker too hot! What to do?
Post by: lokidog on February 13, 2011, 10:41:11 PM: I have a smoke vault that I cannot get under about 250 degrees. I have lowered the chip pan to cover the burner hole so it is as close as possible. When in its original rack, if I turned the heat really low, it would not smoke. It still seems to get hotter than I would like for jerky. Smokes a turkey perfectly in about four hours though.

Thanks.
Title: Re: Smoker too hot! What to do?
Post by: NWBREW on February 13, 2011, 11:15:50 PM: Pictures?
Title: Re: Smoker too hot! What to do?
Post by: whitey on February 14, 2011, 12:55:51 PM: Check your thermometer..
Make sure its reading correct.Most likely it isnt.
That would be the first place I would look.
Title: Re: Smoker too hot! What to do?
Post by: NRA4LIFE on February 14, 2011, 01:02:18 PM: Are you using sawdust or chips? When I want to smoke at low temps, I use sawdust as it will smoke better.
Title: Re: Smoker too hot! What to do?
Post by: chrisb on February 14, 2011, 01:09:16 PM: close your air in/out ports almost if not all the way.
Title: Re: Smoker too hot! What to do?
Post by: dirty24d on February 14, 2011, 01:11:53 PM: Quote from: chrisb on February 14, 2011, 01:09:16 PM
close your air in/out ports almost if not all the way.

:yeah:

Would be my best guess.
Title: Re: Smoker too hot! What to do?
Post by: carpsniperg2 on February 14, 2011, 01:46:06 PM: Yeah, play with the vent. + you can always stick something in the door to keep it open a little. I had to do this with one of our old big cheif smokers.
Title: Re: Smoker too hot! What to do?
Post by: Jason on February 14, 2011, 04:14:58 PM: My buddy has a smoke vault propane and he's always complaing of the hight temps, says he can never get it below 270.
Title: Re: Smoker too hot! What to do?
Post by: lokidog on February 14, 2011, 08:06:10 PM: I've tried stopping down the vents, closing the top increases the heat. Closing the bottom ones stopped the chips from smoking. I have not tried closing the bottom vents since I lowered the chip pan. I will have to try that.

I use a mix of fine stuff, larger chips and pellets. My last batch I ran out of chips so ran some apple branches from a neighbor through my planer, thye should smoke at a pretty low temp.

Thanks again for the ideas.
Title: Re: Smoker too hot! What to do?
Post by: TeacherMan on February 14, 2011, 08:10:54 PM: Where is my mind? When I read the post I was thinking you found a hot woman that was a smoker and you didn't know if you should go out with her or not :chuckle:
Title: Re: Smoker too hot! What to do?
Post by: lokidog on February 14, 2011, 08:12:57 PM: Quote from: TeacherMan on February 14, 2011, 08:10:54 PM
Where is my mind? When I read the post I was thinking you found a hot woman that was a smoker and you didn't know if you should go out with her or not :chuckle:

:chuckle: I am a happily married man! And, I would never date aq smoker, no matter how hot.
Title: Re: Smoker too hot! What to do?
Post by: jeepster on February 14, 2011, 08:37:52 PM: i use a charcoal verticle bbq/smoker combo.... its what i got... but ive gotten good results... not great... but good...

ive smoked a few times on it, and tried a few things....ive been keeping a metal bucket with a few brequettes in it seperatley, and just putting one or two coals on the chips at a time to keep the temperature down but you need to poke at it like every 15 minutes.

i found a map-gas or oxy/accetelyne torch is a good way to get coals hot if you need em asap
i also use a spray bottle and mist the coals if they are burning too hot... along with an infared mechanics thermometer

but it still gets just a wee too hot, so tomorrow im going to go dig a hole about a foot and a half deep maybe 2 feet and place the coal pan in the bottom, and dig a an airvent hole that i will control with a chunk of plywood... im also going to line the main hole with foil to keep the dirt-taste out and then take the legs off the smoker and just put it directly over the hole.... the lowest rack should be 2+ feet above the coals.....

simple.... cheap.... pretty damn close to how the indians did it...
Title: Re: Smoker too hot! What to do?
Post by: lokidog on February 14, 2011, 08:41:34 PM: Sorry, should have included that the smoke vault is propane fired.