UDS- fuel efficiency questions

Loptr · Newbie Joined: 05 Jul 2008 Posts: 30 Location: SLC, UTard

Hey gang,

I recently built a 55 gal UDS. I love it.

The charcoal basket is 15" round, 12" high with the grate 3" up from bottom giving 9" of capacity.

I have noticed this is a huge basket that can easily swallow a whole bag of Kingsford. Of late I have been putting an old chimney in the center and putting charcoal around it in a "donut" of coals.
I have been using a civilian grade flame thrower (weed burner) to light the entire top surface.

I have heard tales of UDS's burning for huge periods of time but mine started to peter out 5 hours into a rib Q and had to add more charcoal (the last 1/4 of a full bag).

So I have a couple questions:

1. Does chacoal basket size impact consumption? If so what is ideal?
2. Would a smaller basket be prudent:
3. Do I have to light the entire surface of the charcoal? Or simply light a portion and let it spread on its own?

I really want to hear all the opinnions, "facts" and idears you care to throw at me. Serious and/or light hearted are appreciated.

Loptr

Teleking · Posted: Mar 12 2010 Post subject: Re: UDS- fuel efficiency questions

12TH AV SMOKERS · Posted: Mar 12 2010 Post subject:

I agree with Teleking. No need to fire up the whole basket.
With the chimney in the middle that's similar to the minion "ring or donut" method I tried in my UDS. Some others will likely disagree but I thought it burned up my fuel faster and seemed to be less stable than when I load up the basket and start with the hot coals in the center.
Also you might want to give lump charcoal a try.
IMO it'll burn longer and steadier due to less ash buildup like you'll get with briquettes.
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chikenskin · Joined: 23 Jan 2010 Posts: 2

My fire basket is roughly the same size as yours.
I fill it up to start out.
I use the minion method with about 10 to 12 coals to start it up.
I can do a 12 hour cook and still have at least a half a basket of coals left for the next cook.

I have not been at this for long but some things I have noticed that effect the rate of burn are:

The brand of charcoal you use.
Whether it's lump or briqete.
The aritightness of your drum.
The amount of coal you use to start your fire.
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kylej · Joined: 02 Feb 2010 Posts: 7 Location: Elkton, MD

My basket is pretty close to yours, a little bigger diameter, but otherwise the same. I also use a weed burner to start mine, but I just lite a softball size spot in the middle of the basket. I start closing caps at around 190 to 200. If I start with a full basket I can go 12 hours and have anywhere from a 1/4 to 1/2 a basket left when I'm done. I use RO lump, but have had similar results with Kingsford briquetts. Also, I built my UDS this winter and have yet to cook with it when it was over 40 outside.
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SoEzzy · Posted: Mar 12 2010 Post subject:

Repost cause I'm too lazy to type it all out tonight...

dmike25 · Posted: Mar 12 2010 Post subject:

Loptr, My uds has a coal basket very close to the same size as yours. My last cook I loaded 6# of lump (don't remember if it was RO or KF) and made it look like a birds nest. Not even 1/2 full. Put a dozen lit briqs. in the middle. Cooked a rack of ribs 6 hrs. (3 2 1), let er keep burning while we ate. After cooking for 6 hrs. (opening it 4 times during the cook) it chugged along at 225 for another 5+ hrs. Temp had dropped to 200 right at 12 hrs. after I lit er, it was late and I was tired so I shut er down. Only had one vent open, so I probably could have kept er up aroud 225 for quite a bit longer. When I checked the next morning, it had only used about 3/4 of the lump! The weather that day was cold, snow, wind. 25-30, 2" of snow during the cook. Wind probably wasn't a factor cuz the uds was protected. Hope this helps,
I almost forgot, I used pellets from BBQ'Rs Delight and no wood chunks
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Loptr · Newbie Joined: 05 Jul 2008 Posts: 30 Location: SLC, UTard

Excellent responses folks. THANK YOU.

It would seem I need to take a page out of my brewing experinces and Relax, Dont Worry Have a Homebrew.

I will nix the donut approach and fill er up.

Minnion method = Lighting a chimney then spreading the coals around.

I did 4 racks of ribs + the flap trimmings and 1lb of sausage for chili.

Loptr

BryDog · Posted: Mar 13 2010 Post subject:

cityevader · Posted: Mar 15 2010 Post subject:

This weekend's cook of spare ribs used very little fuel. I counted handfulls of briquettes to fill my chimney at six handfuls. Added three more handlfuls to the coal basket along with a handful of hickory chunks. Another handful went into my teeny baby chimney starter. End result was dead close to two chimneys of fuel overall.

An hour for lighting, temp climbing and stabilizing and billowing smoke to subside, and 6 hours of cooking and and less than half of that fuel was burnt in a minimum 7 hours.
I once loaded the coal basket fully and had many many many cooks on it totalling over 40 hours snuffing and relighting each cook.

I also use the "donut" method, but out of necessity, as my intake pipe extends to the center of the drum and would choke on ash if i didn't keep a chili can in the middle to keep charcoal away from the center.
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killswitch505 · Posted: Mar 15 2010 Post subject:

you know I never really cared about fuel until recently I would dump a half bag 5# for my 5 hour cooks and a whole bag 10# for my long cooks and boy was I wasting money I found that I could go an easy 12 hours on 5# of good lump and 1 big handful of pecan using the donut method
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12TH AV SMOKERS · Posted: Mar 16 2010 Post subject:

I'll be posting some more results and pics from my cook this past weekend...but in short I used 8.8 lbs, one full bag of RO Steakhouse Lump.
When I shut it down I had 3 vents all open and still at 230 after 26 hrs !! Amazing!

edited: I did have at the start of the cook 2 lbs approx. left from a previous cook
_________________
FATTIE THROWDOWN CHAMP
(2) WBS- Wine Barrel Smokers
(2) BDS - Brick Drum Smokers
(1) UDS - Ugly Drum smoker
SMS - Vertical - wood / gasser

http://www.youngbergindustries.com/

Huntn247 · Newbie Joined: 15 Mar 2010 Posts: 73 Location: Albion NY

Can someone post some pics of each of the charcoal loading methods metioned here. I have an old uds and havent been happy with my fuel consumption.

12TH AV SMOKERS · Posted: Mar 16 2010 Post subject:

killswitch505 · Posted: Mar 16 2010 Post subject:

So..... 12TH AV SMOKERS I thought you used a cigar to smoke your food I don�t see any tobacco in that basket lol j/k
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12TH AV SMOKERS · Posted: Mar 16 2010 Post subject:

cityevader · Posted: Mar 19 2010 Post subject:

cityevader · Posted: Mar 20 2010 Post subject:

Forgot to add something for those with poor fuel consumption... cooker size seems important.

Kinda like how a humingbird will perish in a ridiculously short time if it doesn't refuel with sugar so often. Smaller means more surface area compared to volume, so heat is lost at a much greater rate. A moose can like vastly longer without refuelling because the ratio becomes so much less surface area per volume.

My 55 gallon UDS barely consumes "sugar" fuel, while my smaller 17 gal UDS chugs and chugs. Also the smaller one is harder to get to temp, leading me to believe that heat is drawn away fairly rapidly due to sides of drum so close to coals so heat wicks away?

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