# For anyone curious how to prep and run your offset smoker using strait wood



## mark in the pit (Aug 14, 2017)

I like oak.  I have lots of oak laying around.  I burn it in the winter in my wood stove to heat my house.  Sometimes I’ll add apple or pecan or peach to the mix but that’s usually just chunks that come from Walmart or the hardware store.  Oak that has been cured for about a year seems to work best for me in my smoker.  It’s very mild but very tasty.  After some time burning strait wood in your smoker you will find what works best for you.

Small fire equals small heat. If you want to keep a steady 250F you need a tiny fire with a good bed of coals.  Think like you are making a camp fire for elves that will make your meats more desirable if you keep them consistently warm.  You need actual flame on that fire or you will get lots of thick dirty smoke, the bad smoke, not the good clean smoke that is desired like that from an active flame.

Small wood helps make for a small fire for small heat.  Whatever you think looks right, chop it in half.  The smaller the better.  Yes, it’s more work, yes you will be in and out of the fire box a lot for the first few hours until you have a great bed of coals built up but that is the cost of success.  Once you have a good bed of hot active coals you can gradually start putting in wood that is a little larger to buy you more free time if needed.  The more coals the easier it is to keep a flame on a fresh piece of wood.

If you start getting the bad smoke just open your firebox lid and wait for the wood to re catch on fire. Than if needed adjust your vent for a more appropriate flow.  I just leave my firebox door wide open so the fire can burn naturally.  I don't try to smolder the fire to control temp.  I control the size of the fire to control temp.

Don’t worry too much about losing heat in the chamber during this time.  You won’t lose it that fast and I’d rather lose a little heat than eat a lot of foul smoke.


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