# First smoking experience help



## sdewitt (Oct 25, 2021)

Hi All,

So we smoked (charcoal) a 5lb brisket this weekend. Here’s the grill we used:



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Didnt go badly at all, but just had a few questions:

A- I thought I read somewhere that it takes 30 minutes -1hour per pound to smoke something (this took 8 hours).  Part of why -I think-is because the temperature kept fluctuating..between 250-190 (smoker not meat).. just a matter of me not putting in enough coal? Or something else? I’ve heard ppl sleeping for hours and coming back to check out meat and temperature is still relatively the same..what am I missing?

b- so we used charcoal-partially  because we didn’t have anything to put the wood chips k .  I was told we needed a certain box etc to Put in the smoker to hold them?

c- based off thesmoker I have (see above) anything else, a cessories wise I need to buy?


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## urbanfarmer (Oct 26, 2021)

Hello and welcome to SMF. There are lots of great people and information here. As a preface to trying to answer your questions: I am fairly new to smoking and have never used the type of smoker you have. But here we go…
A - when you read how long it takes to smoke something that is just a rough estimate and you should always go with internal temperature to know when it is done. I would say that the temperature fluctuation definitely played a role in how long your brisket took to cook, 60 degrees is a big difference…. A steady supply of fuel, whether it is charcoal or wood or propane, etc , makes for a more steady supply of heat. Depending on the outside conditions as well if it is raining or windy that can cause your heat to dissipate quicker causing temperature fluctuations. 
B - charcoal is a great source of heat and you need heat to be able to use wood chips, you want the wood chips to smoulder and not fully ignite. I have never used one of the smoker boxes or tubes but I have used wood chips wrapped in aluminum foil with holes poked in the top on my bbq grill… it keeps them from burning up quickly. 
C - again I am not familiar with the type of smoker you have ( I did click on the link and read about it though) so I do not know what would be the best accessories to go with it. But the best things I have purchased are temperature probes and a meat injector. 
I hope I helped you out some and hopefully some more knowledgeable members comment for you. Good luck!


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## unclebubbas bbq (Oct 26, 2021)

The smoker you purchased is probably the most difficult for a beginner to learn on. There are modifications that can be made but as you noticed that there are severe temperature swings and the fire needs constant attention. Temp swings make it very difficult to get a consistent product. There are several posts on this site regarding modifications to offset smokers like yours

As far as timing, it's done when it's done. I would cook a brisket at 250 until the bark sets and then wrap in butchers paper. When you can take a toothpick and have it easily slide into the meat then you take it off and let it rest for a minimum of 30 minutes before slicing. When you pull it off the smoker the temperature should read between 200 and 210 degrees

Your smoker actually runs on charcoal as a main fuel source, you then add a couple of fist sized chunks of your favorite hardwood, each type of wood will impart a different flavor. Fruit woods are mild as is nut wood. Hickory, Cherry & mesquite have a heavier smoke flavor.  NEVER use any soft woods for this this!!!  Brisket some say is the most difficult to cook on a smoker, start with some ribs or chicken and have fun learning


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## JLeonard (Oct 26, 2021)

Welcome to the forums from Mississippi! We like pictures here. Look forward to more post.
jim


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## SmokinAl (Oct 26, 2021)

Welcome to SMF!
Believe me it will get easier, just take’s  a few smokes!
Al


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## larroyo101 (Oct 26, 2021)

sdewitt said:


> Hi All,
> 
> So we smoked (charcoal) a 5lb brisket this weekend. Here’s the grill we used:
> 
> ...


I have the chargriller version of your grill and yes it takes alot of fire management. I start with a layer of charcoal then start with about ten coals and a baseball size chunk of wood then add coals and wood as needed to keep the temp that i'm looking for which about every  20 min. you will get to know your grill with practice it took about 3 cooks to figure it all out.  But it's been fun.


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## sdewitt (Oct 29, 2021)

A client of mine said there are traegars (sic) that’ll feed pellets to your smoker pellets automatically. So I.E. if I turn my smoker on-sleep for 8 hours- fear not, because of the temp goes low, it’ll feed it for me. Any idea as to what this is, and if this comes with a regualr grill combo, or if this is a stand alone?


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## mike243 (Oct 30, 2021)

There are a lot of pellet smokers out there, don't give up on what you have there as it can work well it just takes a lot more of your time, on big chunks of meat you can always run it for 4-5 hours then into a oven foiled or not. no shame finishing any way you want, taste is what you are after. If I smoke a turkey I give it a couple hours of good smoke and then into a cooking bag, stuff it into the oven. works really well for me. have fun keep a eye on your temps both the meat and grate temp and food will come out fine. Don't make huge changes from cook to cook as its hard to tell what made food taste a certain way, try to write down temps rubs ect , never had no bad food but some has been out standing at times. a good digital thermometer with high and low alarms can help a lot, Inkbird has several styles and you can use them in the kitchen also, I have the 6x and can run 5 meat temps and 1 grate temp, I set high and low alerts so I can catch a nap lol.


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