temp not getting over 200

[webowabo]

I have a question about getting the temp to rise? I got two racks of ribs in for about 1 hour now in a 30'' propane smoker, the  temp was at 225 when I was getting er ready, since Ive put the ribs in the temp hasn't gotten over 200, seem to plateau at 180. Its my first time to ever attempt to smoke anything. I have three vents, one top, one each side. Do those need to be open or close? its 65 degrees outside right now, and no wind in my back yard. or do I just cook longer with the lower temp?

 

[rw willy]

How close to the "cold" meat is your temp probe?  If nothing other then the meat addedf to your smoker!  Nothing should change.  the meat will absorb alot of heat at the begining.  hopefully things will stabilize for you.

Good luck

 

[webowabo]

well, the temp gauge is in the middle of the door, and there is a rack/shelve right behind it. I removed the water pan to see if that makes it rise. I have a digital gauge inside a rack in the middle shelve, its reading the meat at 133 about 1 1/2 hour in the smoker. If it doesnt rise, I still should just go until the meat temp reads done right? 

 

[richoso1]

 Do not trust a factory door therm, they have been known to be off by quite a bit. A full water pan with water or sand, usually will help to stabilize temps, and yes you should go by internal temp of the meat. If possible, put the gauge on the same rack as the meat, Another way to check rack temp is to put a meat probe through a chunk of potato that is on the same rack as the meat. Keep the top vent wide open, and try adjusting the bottom vents to help control the cabinet temp. I hope this helps you.

 

[webowabo]

well... its been three hours, I just wrapped in foil. my digital therm is saying that the meat temp is at 160? does that mean that they will cook too much if I let them go the rest of the 2-3 hours? 

 

[mballi3011]

I have to agree with Rich and ask that you not rely on the factory thermo-meter. Now we smoke our ribs by time and not temp on this one. Other then that I would check all of your connections on the gas lines. I have found one connection was a smig loss and the smoker won't get very hot at all. So check them before you do anything else for now. Then get back with us out here. 

 

[webowabo]

well, I ended up pulling the ribs about 45 mins after I wrapped them. They smoked for 3 hours and were wrapped for 45. The temp reading on the smoker door never got above 200, according to the gages, how ever the meat temp was about 180 when I pulled them out, and I didn't know if they would keep cooking and dry out. They had good flavor my family and I thought (i for sure need a different rub), and produced some good juices after I let them rest. Was this a fluke set of ribs that cooked faster? Or was my smoker cooking a lot more on a false readig high temperature? Anyways, thanks for the quick help. I imagine Ill have many more questions and problemS

s 

 

[richoso1]

well, I ended up pulling the ribs about 45 mins after I wrapped them. They smoked for 3 hours and were wrapped for 45. The temp reading on the smoker door never got above 200, according to the gages, how ever the meat temp was about 180 when I pulled them out, and I didn't know if they would keep cooking and dry out. They had good flavor my family and I thought (i for sure need a different rub), and produced some good juices after I let them rest. Was this a fluke set of ribs that cooked faster? Or was my smoker cooking a lot more on a false readig high temperature? Anyways, thanks for the quick help. I imagine Ill have many more questions and problemS

s 

Was the therm on the door calibrated before your smoke? If not, check it before your next smoke. If it's way off, consider a replacement or use a meat probe at rack level. Good luck my friend.

 

[ratchuck]

Like stated above. DO NOT TRUST THE FACTORY THERMO.. i made this mistake for about two weeks.. i finally got a stick thermo and a digital the double check just to make sure i was smoking at right temperature!