# How much fuel do you burn?



## ryanbc (Apr 5, 2010)

Hi Guys and Girls,

I have searched the posts and haven't really been able to find any info on how much fuel people use in their mid-sized to larger offsets. I am looking at firing mine up in the next couple weeks and am at a loss as to how much charcoal and wood I am going to need to run this thing. My smoker is about the same size as a Lang 60 (from what I can tell). Here is link to my build so you get an idea of what I am running.

http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/for...ad.php?t=91612

Thanks for your help!
Ryan


----------



## graybeard (Apr 5, 2010)

I burn all wood and use about 40 to 50 pounds for a 12 hour smoke.
PS, good question!


beard


----------



## mballi3011 (Apr 5, 2010)

I have seen your smoker on the opther post and everyone I know that has a smker that big uses wood and wood only. But I don't know I'm a gasser.


----------



## qndave (Apr 5, 2010)

I use 1 chimney of lump to get things started and about 50 lbs of wood for a 6 hour smoke

David


----------



## hogfan40 (Apr 5, 2010)

I have a Lang 60, and all i use in it is wood from start to finish, i start with 6 splits of wood about 16" long stacked, and start it with a weed burner, and when it gets going good and a good bed of coals, i'll add 1-2 piece's per hour to hour and half to hold temps where i need them. Depends alot on the weather also from what i have learned.

Hope this help's


----------



## mnola917 (Apr 6, 2010)

I smoke out of a modified garbage pail and I use about one bag of royal oak per 10 hours.  I add one chimney every 1.5 hours.  

What kind of wood do you guys use?  The same stuff I can buy at a hardware store for fireplace firewood?  Or is it a specially dried wood?


----------



## tsywake (Apr 6, 2010)

Large smokers basically need wood only to maintain their temps.  I get hardwood slabs from the local lumber yard and use 23-30 lbs per smoke.


----------



## jdt (Apr 6, 2010)

I usually figure one split for every thirty minutes of cooking, so for a 12 hour cook I would want at least 24 splits on hand.


----------



## bayouchilehead (Apr 6, 2010)

I'm not a wood burner.....yet, but I have to ask a stupid question. When you say a split of wood, you are talking about one piece of split wood or a certain number of pieces???


----------



## jdt (Apr 7, 2010)

one piece of split wood, usually 12-16 inches long, 2-3 inches round, pie shaped or some even come off looking like rough 2 x 4s. Wood volume is usually measured in 
RIC-pile four feet high, eight feet long one split wide-this is sometimes called a Face Cord, sometimes alledged to be half a cord but not really unless you are getting 2 foot wide splits, around this neck of the woods a cord is three times a ric as most cutters cut to 14-18 inches, 16 x 3 is the four foot wide so you would get three ric looking rows to your cord in my experience
CORD-a cord of wood is 4ft x 4ft x 8 foot


----------



## coyote-1 (Apr 7, 2010)

I do my best to maximize my burns.

A typical rib smoke is 5 hours; in summer it takes 1 basket of RoyakOak and perhaps 3 small splits of maple/cherry/whatever. In wintertime, it takes a bit more.

I fill up the smoker, and freeze whatever does not get eaten within a couple of days. So I'm not smoking every weekend, but I can eat smoked food every week  :)


----------



## mnola917 (Apr 8, 2010)

So do you use splits, then add your flavored wood such as apple, hickory, or pecan?


----------



## jdt (Apr 8, 2010)

my splits are flavor woods, cherry mainly, some apple, pear and hickory. If a pit draws right you can burn flavor woods all day long without adding to much smoke flavor, I don't like mesquite at all so hickory is the strongest wood I use, the cherry is nice because its a little less powerful than the hickory but gives a very nice tint/hue to the meat. I want pecan of course but won't pay that much locally(1.69 lb!) next time me or my buddy goes to the ozarks I am going to try and pre arrange a load of pecan.


----------

