Help, I do not like this Smoker, what to do?

[Kloset BBQR]

Chalk it up to experience and get a WSM (Weber Smoky Mountain). You won't regret it!

[Bruce B]

Well I've never seen that smoker before, so I'll just ask you some general questions and comments:

1. Are there any vents on the smoker (near the bottom and/or near the top) that allow you to control air in and out? Looks like you may have one on the top side where the wire is going in.

2. Fire and Temperature control is a matter of controlling the amount of air that reaches the fire, the more air the hotter the fire the less air the lower the temperature. Control air in with bottom vents, air out with top vents (top vent should remain open entire cook)

3. Your charcoal must be able to breathe, that is, your vessel that you dump the charcoal into must be ventilated in some way to allow air to get to the coals and to allow ash to fall from them so as not to smother the fire.

4. Pictures of the interior of the smoker would be helpful!! Is there a water pan inside above the fire box?

5. How much charcoal are you using? Are you putting all lit charcoal into the unit or are you using the Minion Method (method where you start with unlit charcoal and dump small amount of lit on top of unlit and control your temps on their way up)

6. How much air/smoke leakage is there from the unit when you cook?

7. I wouldn't rely on the thermometer on the door unless you have tested it. Most therms on lower end smokers are unreliable, and that's being kind.

8. Bradley smokers use wood pucks that are proprietary and fairly expensive, not your best choice for the money.

Hopefully others will chime in, but this should get you started...don't worry we'll figure this out.

[Pigs On The Wing BBQ]

Put in the front yard and put a sign on it "Take me, I'm yours" and get a WSM. I was lucky enough to get a WSM from a member here. Now my wife can't cook for beans, BUT she can cook on the WSM. In fact that's what she is getting for Christmas. There like tater chips, no one can have just one.

[oompappy]

I'll bet that the charcoal pan isn't allowing enough air-flow or the ash build-up has no place to go and chokes the fire.

Here's the manual... http://www.brinkmann.net/Docs/Pdf/810-5502-S.pdf

[Bruce B]

That's my bet, the charcoal pan is their solid pan so the ash has now where to go and no air can get to the coals.

[Div]

If u can keep 135-150 keep the thing and use it for Beef Jerky man and just buy a new one for other stuff

[Finney]

Drill a few big ass holes in that charcoal pan. That's what I did to my ECB years ago and it helped.

[Unity]

Even a $59 Brinkmann should come up to temperature as long as there's a reasonable mix of fuel and draft. It sounds like it's starving for air.

The advice several others have given is good -- save up a couple hundred bucks and get a Weber Smokey Mountain Cooker. A WSM will work for you.

--John
(And use the BBQ Central link to Amazon.com at the top of this forum page -- it helps pay for the site's upkeep.)

[Smokey_Joe]

Just pick it up and toss it in that little boat in the background
and I'll be by tomorrow to take both of them useless things out
of your way

[Thom Emery]

I saw one at the clovis cook off
The team said it was only good for a warming station
They got it on close out for $39 the summer before
more than that would have been a rip
Buy a Pro Q, WSM or BDS all are easy to use

[Bruce B]

Originally Posted by Thom Emery

I saw one at the clovis cook off
The team said it was only good for a warming station
They got it on close out for $39 the summer before
more than that would have been a rip
Buy a Pro Q, WSM or BDS all are easy to use

Easier than a Spicewine?

[Uncle Bubba]

Originally Posted by nhra1256

I bought this unit on sale at my local Home depot.



I am a Newb to smoking but not cooking in general. I wanted to give this a try since there is a great BBQ joint not too far away, that has great BBQ...but i wanted to be able to do my own....

My issue here is after killing two racks of ribs, the unit does not get hot enough. I put a digital thermometer in the top with its probe end right near the ribs on the top rack, and it never went over 150 degrees. I was afraid i wasted the meat on that try. I read where you can change out the Chrcoal Pan with a perforated steel tray. I did that and that helped to get the temps up to about 180 degrees, but they would not stay there and kept fluctuating as I had to keep adding charcoal. And if i did not get the new charcoal under the old, they would take a long time to get burning. So then i started to light the new coals in a chimney, but every time I would open the lower door to remove and add the Charcoal, the temp would drop a bit, then go up over 220, then back down again. Anyway, there has to be an easier way to keep the temps high for longer periods of time.

Any ideas? i would return this thing, but i lost my receipt. I saw a Bradley unit that uses wood pucks....and is electric fired,,,maybe thats the direction I should go in. I dont mind paying attention to the unit as it does its job, but this one just dont seem to do it right...or is it me? ha!

any info appreciated....

Sell it to Dallas. He hasn't bought a pit in hell....well over a month. He's due.

[wittdog]

That is one he doesn't have...one of the few....