I've been reading this forum on and off for awhile and finally joined. There is a lot of great information here, and alot of very friendly folks.
I'm in Colorado Springs, CO. I've been smoking on a Brinkmann Gourmet Charcoal Smoker that my work gave me as an anniversary gift a couple years ago, and man, what a pita. You spend more time tending to the temperature than anything.
A couple months ago I picked up a Members Mark Professional Stainless Steel Propane Smoker on a too good too pass up deal, it is made by Grand Hall, it is insulated and big, too big if you ask my wife. It has a tendency to run hot after everything heats up, so I've made quite a few mods to it.
So far I've reworked the burner to put out less flame, modified the chip drawers as almost 1/4 of them weren't even over the flame, I've also made some covers for them, previously the chips/chunks would just ignite and burn out quickly, now I get a decent amount of good smoke time from them. My latest mod is I installed a needle valve in the propane line, and man, talk about temperature control, so much nicer to control the temp, and now I can get it nice and low.
I've been reading up on the sand vs water lately and I may try that just for consistency sake. I was going to install some plumbing so I didn't have open the door to refill my water pan, but I think I'll fill it with sand, and still put a water pan under the meat so I can use the drippings if need be, and since the water pan will be farther from the flame, I shouldn't need to refill it but every 3-4 hours, if at all.
I've also been eyeing the AMNPS too, I think that would definately come in handy for overnight smokes, not to mention cold smoking, I do love me some smoked cheese. :-)
I enjoy cooking, inside or outside, and really enjoy having other folks enjoy the fruits of my labor. I have 3 small kids, and the last time they had my ribs, they all 3 just loved them, which is a rare thing, so hopefully they will go on the menu regularly now.
Happy smoking all, and see you on the boards.
Robert (aka Bluto)
I'm in Colorado Springs, CO. I've been smoking on a Brinkmann Gourmet Charcoal Smoker that my work gave me as an anniversary gift a couple years ago, and man, what a pita. You spend more time tending to the temperature than anything.
A couple months ago I picked up a Members Mark Professional Stainless Steel Propane Smoker on a too good too pass up deal, it is made by Grand Hall, it is insulated and big, too big if you ask my wife. It has a tendency to run hot after everything heats up, so I've made quite a few mods to it.
So far I've reworked the burner to put out less flame, modified the chip drawers as almost 1/4 of them weren't even over the flame, I've also made some covers for them, previously the chips/chunks would just ignite and burn out quickly, now I get a decent amount of good smoke time from them. My latest mod is I installed a needle valve in the propane line, and man, talk about temperature control, so much nicer to control the temp, and now I can get it nice and low.
I've been reading up on the sand vs water lately and I may try that just for consistency sake. I was going to install some plumbing so I didn't have open the door to refill my water pan, but I think I'll fill it with sand, and still put a water pan under the meat so I can use the drippings if need be, and since the water pan will be farther from the flame, I shouldn't need to refill it but every 3-4 hours, if at all.
I've also been eyeing the AMNPS too, I think that would definately come in handy for overnight smokes, not to mention cold smoking, I do love me some smoked cheese. :-)
I enjoy cooking, inside or outside, and really enjoy having other folks enjoy the fruits of my labor. I have 3 small kids, and the last time they had my ribs, they all 3 just loved them, which is a rare thing, so hopefully they will go on the menu regularly now.
Happy smoking all, and see you on the boards.
Robert (aka Bluto)