aluminum smoker build. please help!

kmart

Fire Starter

Original poster

Oct 22, 2014

33

10

oregon

• Oct 23, 2014

• #1

Hey guys! New to the forum. So much good info here. Any way I'm in the planning stages of starting my first smoker build. I will be constructing the interior with 1/8" aluminum with the dimensions of about 2 ft X 2 ft X 7 ft. I am gonna insulate that with 2" mineral wool with a plywood exterior. Any problems with this? Also i was planning on putting two air vents, one in the front one in the back. Then 2 exhaust vents, one on each side. Is this a good idea? I have seen some builds on here with just floor vents for exhaust and some that have stacks. Does it matter? Where do I put the exhaust vents? Some are on top some are coming from the sides near the top. How big?
Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

 

dirtsailor2003

Epic Pitmaster

OTBS Member

Oct 4, 2012

21,947

4,224

Bend Oregon

• Oct 23, 2014

• #2

My propane smoker lives outside, and has a top vent. Even when closed rain and other stuff can get in there. I vote for the exhaust vent being as high as possible on the side or the back. I never close my exhaust vent when smoking. For air intakes I like having it on the very bottom. In my mind there is less chance for wind to effect the flame. It is also easy to make a shroud that you can rotate to block the wind but does not block the intake. That's my two cents

 

mrbiggz

Newbie

Oct 16, 2014

5

10

Harlingen Texas

• Oct 23, 2014

• #3

kmart said:

Hey guys! New to the forum. So much good info here. Any way I'm in the planning stages of starting my first smoker build. I will be constructing the interior with 1/8" aluminum with the dimensions of about 2 ft X 2 ft X 7 ft. I am gonna insulate that with 2" mineral wool with a plywood exterior. Any problems with this? Also i was planning on putting two air vents, one in the front one in the back. Then 2 exhaust vents, one on each side. Is this a good idea? I have seen some builds on here with just floor vents for exhaust and some that have stacks. Does it matter? Where do I put the exhaust vents? Some are on top some are coming from the sides near the top. How big?
Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Click to expand...

 

mrbiggz

Newbie

Oct 16, 2014

5

10

Harlingen Texas

• Oct 23, 2014

• #4

Hello kmart... would reconsider your dimensions . I can already see that once you decide to hang any Jerky or sausages you will find your smoker starving for just a little more space. If indeed you believe in versatility now is the time to reconsider dimensions. As far as your top exhaust goes I did mine up as high but the actual top of the smoker has an overhang creating a shield so that I may still use it even through medium down pours.

 

kmart

Fire Starter

Original poster

Thread starter

Oct 22, 2014

33

10

oregon

• Oct 23, 2014

• #5

That is a good idea mrbiggz. What dimensions would you suggest? Do you think two vents for the exhaust and for the air flow vents is over doing it? I guess I should have posted this in the smoker build forum but I had a brain fart! I was thinking of using propane for my heat source.

 

mrbiggz

Newbie

Oct 16, 2014

5

10

Harlingen Texas

• Oct 23, 2014

• #6

Well here is what has been working for me , 33 wide 28 depth 6 foot tall. I have two of these that are mounted on a heavy duty wooden base for stability that is another 1 foot tall. So overall they are 7ft. In height. I have 3 exhaust holes on each side no bigger than 2.5 inches in diameter that I open and close as needed to achieve max air flow or a slow air control for higher temps. That over hang I talked about I have aprrox. 7.5 inches just over my exhaust port holes so rainy days don't ruin my smokes. And it is propane powered as well with a cast iron skillet used for heat deflection and for wood chips

 

kmart

Fire Starter

Original poster

Thread starter

Oct 22, 2014

33

10

oregon

• Oct 23, 2014

• #7

Sounds like an Awsome set up! How do you control the air flow with those holes? Those also sound like some good dimensions. Another question I had was how many btu propane burner should I use assuming I use the square footage you have With your dimension? Where did you place your air flow vents in the firebox?

 

mrbiggz

Newbie

Oct 16, 2014

5

10

Harlingen Texas

• Oct 23, 2014

• #8

Controlling air flow is no problem , since I have 3 holes on each side at the top as mentioned earlier I simply use corks to cover the port holes in any configuration I deem sufficient to maintain a steady box temperature. And really temp is more controlled through the pressure valve at the hose end that is closest to your propane tank. At the bottom of each side of the smoker I have 3 holes just like the top ones. These allow air in the smoker chamber and which in turn follows with the natural upward Draft created by the 58,000 BTU burner that is on an elevated stand. Hope my descriptive writing was clear and concise enough to portray an accurate visual of what you were asking.