New from Louisiana

[courspanis]

Hi all,
I've lurked on the forums before and am still very new with smoking.  My experience is mostly from using propane grills and rigging to smoke, but I grew frustrated with temperature control and losing too much smoke from too much venting, and also having to keep changing my chips.  Stuff I did like butts, one brisket, and some ribs ended up okay but I basically felt like I was using a lot of chips and wasting time not getting much of a penetrating flavor.  To that end I've decided to invest in both a dedicated electric smoker and some of the A-MAZE-N stuff I've seen you guys raving about.

I've been searching, browsing, and creeping browsing boards trying to choose a smoker under/around $300.  I was close to pulling the trigger on a MES until reading about the problems with the newer generation, so I began also looking at other options like the SmokinIt 1 and 2, and others.  Quick question here- are the 800 watt heating element of MES30 and 350 watt element of Smokin It 1 considered to be woefully under powered?  Is there a minimum wattage size heating element should I be looking for in a smaller smoker, or does it really depend on the size of the box and the 800 W and 350 W are fine for those smaller boxes?  Thanks!

 

[themule69]

Glad you joined the group. The search bar at the top of any page is your best friend.
About anything you wanna know about smoking/grilling/curing/brining/cutting or slicing
and the list goes on has probably been posted. Remember to post a QVIEW of your smokes.
We are all smoke junkies here and we have to get our fix. If you have questions Post it
and you will probably get 10 replies with 11 different answers. That is because their
are so many different ways to make great Q We all have our own taste.

Happy smoken.

David

 

[raastros2]

welcome couyon!

 

[raastros2]

i cant answer that but someone who can will be along shortly iam sure....what i can say is i have a MES40 and have had no problems other than chip loader handle breaking off

 

[kathrynn]

to SMF!  We are so glad you joined us! Go to the Electric Smoker section of SMF...and ask your question to the folks that own them.  They should be able to give you some sound advise.

Also check out ”Jeff's Free 5 day E-Course”, it will teach you bunches no matter your experience level!

We love to see pictures of what you are cooking (or what we call q-views here at SMF).  To "upload the q-views" just follow the directions here and it will be easier. If you are using a cell phone, an IPad or a kindle, go to the main SMF page and click the Mobile button. Will make the uploads a bit faster too.

If you didn't read the "Terms of Service" notes.....please do.  There are a few things that everyone should know about those pesky little rules before plunging into the forums and some guidelines of how to interact within the forums. Off site links are not allowed here at SMF per Jeff. Not that you have done anything wrong....just a little bit of FYI for new members!

If you need any help roaming around the forums....just holler!  Happy to help out!

Kat