Too Much Baffle in SNP ??

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bunky

Smoke Blower
Original poster
Aug 17, 2007
92
10
Battle Creek,MI
Is it possible to have too much baffle?

I'm not sure if it's the problem or not but I started out with a layer of lump and a full chimney of hot lump, things went great for about an hour or so then the heat started dying down (200 degrees), I added more charcoal and got it back up (220-230 degree's) but then it went down after an hour or so.. and if I opened the fire box vent it didn't seem like it helped much..... I was using what I had left of My Kingsford charwood and then used BGE lump..
 
Unless you start with a chimney of unlit lump in the firebox that you then put a lit chimney on top of when you first start (minion method), you will need to add some lump about each hour. When I do as I just described I go about 2 1/2 hours before the temps drop and I need to add more lump.

I don't think it has anything to do with the baffle, rather lack of fuel.

Hope this helps.


Take care, have fun, and do good!

Regards,

Meowey
 
I think your OK Bunky. If I put only a chimney at a time in my Chargriller Pro, about every hour seems to be the norm. I usually start out with 2 unlit chimney's topped with 1 lit chimney. But again, that's good for about 2.5-3 hours.

What kind of cooker are you using? Is your top damper open full (it should be)? Are you using a water pan? Is there anything blocking the flow air in the cooking chamber?
 
I have a Brinkmann smoke N pit proffessional with a side fire box, My stack was wide open and I put some not a lot of unlit lump on the bottom of my tray.. then I put a lit Chimney on top, So I'm thinking you guys are right I didn't have enough fuel... I am using a fil pan with water in it approx. 2 quarts

here's some pictures of my unit and the Baffle I made after one I saw on SMF So i figured it was ok I will have to try more charcoal and more often next time...
5535404a_vbattach14683.jpg

0c578172_vbattach14684.jpg

35e19f7e_vbattach14682.jpg
 
I can't really tell if that baffle plate is more vertical than horizontal. I thinking vertical. I would adjust it so that it is more horizontal than vertical. You want the heat to move across the smoker and then circulate up around all the edges of the baffle. It looks as if it is blocking the fire box and not allowing the heat to go from the fire box to the smoking chamber. Hope this makes sense to you. Good luck. The pics helped.

Take care, have fun, and do good!

Regards,

Meowey
 
Yes, good advice here Bunky. I have a CharGriller with sfb and have a baffle installed also. I start out with a chimney of unlit, topped with a chimney of lit and some wood chunks of choice. I usually go about 1 1/2 to 2 hours between refuels.

It ain't the baffle, it's the fuel... yer fine!
PDT_Armataz_01_34.gif
 
Bunky, your baffle could be a little obstructing, maybe just bend it up a bit, i like your coal box, try filling the right half with unlit and then add the lit to the other side and play with your damper, should be able to carry temps for at least a couple hrs.
P.S. KF charwood is JUNK, might be part of your problem!
PDT_Armataz_01_29.gif
 
I agree I picked it up at our grocery store because I couldn't find anything else now I find the lump all over the place...
 
This one appears to be more horizontal the the one in your smoker. It also does not cover the entire opening. I can't tell from your pic if you have your baffle mounted at the top of your opening. Some heat and smoke needs to enter at the opening. The baffle allows that and also shunts some heat across the chamber before it rises. I hope I'm making sense to you!

Take care, have fun, and do good!

Regards,

Meowey
 
i think i see the problem but i could be wrong. there's actually snp versions- the wally world that i have 2 of & the "pro"- which had a recall. thanx to all the chargrill owners for trying to help but the snp actually has a lighter gauge lid which will warp a bit if ya get the sfb too hot so ya may have lost some there. as far as the baffle- on mine i baffle 1/2 way from the top of the entrance to the main chamber down..(closing the 1/2 top 1/2 of the hole & adding a water pan under the main grates & using the 1st grat as a tuning plate..but i burn wood so that may be the difference in my heat control. the way i have it set i go from 230-250-even to 300(for poultry) on the hot side to 220-225 on the stack side.not sure if it helped...
 
Im no pro, but im close to it when it comes to errors. I see a possible airflow problem. Maybe drill some more holes in ur coal pan in the firebox. Looks like u might have some ash buildup and could result in suffocating your fire. At least thats what was happening to me. I experienced similar effects u mentioned earlier
 
Hi Bunky!...

Ditto what Meowey said in both of his posts!...

Please take a look at This Post, as I feel it will help you understand the
proper relationship of the 'S.F.B.' outlet to the 'Baffle Plate' to the
'Tuning Plates'...(that is, if you ever wanted to use T.P.'s)...

In the 1st photo you can kinda get an idea of the 'more horizontal than vertical'
angle of the baffle...and in the graphic just underneath the photo you can see
the more or less proper setup of these items relative to each other and the
floor of the cooking chamber...

Even though the photo and graphics are illustrating a 'Propane Tank' type horizontal,
there are simalarities on a smaller scale in your smoker...

Others will be along shortly to help also, I'm sure...

Hope this may be of help...
PDT_Armataz_01_22.gif
...


Until later...
 
Thanks to all for the replies, I think I might have a couple of issues, My main problem is The Charcoal, Brand and Lack of (Me not putting in enough, often enough).. The other problem is my baffle is too Vertical.. As far as my smoker mine is a SnP PRO and there is some loss of heat around the sfb door, I think I might want to seal this up too..
 
Here's a picture of my Charcoal basket if you want to call it that I made it mainly as a grate but wanted it to have sides.. After the last post I got to thinking maybe the holes are too small and maybe it could use some slots for the Ash to fall through easier...
c3fee8fd_vbattach14696.jpg
 
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