Help!! Can't get my smoker above 170 Deg.

robio361 · Joined: 12 Sep 2010 Posts: 5

Hello everyone, I just got a Smoke Canyon Pro Smoker from Academy and I filled up two chimenys with coals until white hot. I then put the coals in the firebox with chunks of wood and kept the vent on the firebox wide open the fire is real hot and the smoke poors thru the entire smoker but the temp stays at 170 deg. I tried playing with the two other vents on either side of the lid but temp the same. I was wondering if the opening from the firebox to the chamber is too small, It's only about an inch and a half tall and about six inches wide. I would appreciate any help you could offer me as I am a first time user of a offset smoker.
Thanks again, Rob

mrcustomsteel · Posted: Sep 12 2010 Post subject:

Do you have any pics? Try putting some wood in it and getting a real fire in it and see what happens.
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whitey · Posted: Sep 12 2010 Post subject:

Open intakes full and exhaust full open.
If that dont work make more air intakes..
Bust out the drill motor..
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day_trippr · Posted: Sep 12 2010 Post subject:

Greetings, robio361! And welcome to the 'Ring!

Were you using the built-in thermometer to determine the temperature inside the cook chamber? I ask because there's a really good chance that it is way off - it's quite common across the whole realm of consumer-grade outdoor cooking appliances.

So before you do anything dramatic Wink

you might want to pick up an inexpensive (~$5) oven grate thermometer like this one

and use it dead-center on your main cooking grate the next time you fire up the cooker. Odds are you'll find the built-in was lying to you Laughing

Cheers!
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Jarhead · Posted: Sep 12 2010 Post subject:

X2 on what day_trippr said. Get yourself a good thermometer, calibrate it and you will see that the stock one is a POS....JM2C
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Wreckless · Posted: Sep 12 2010 Post subject:

robio361 · Joined: 12 Sep 2010 Posts: 5

Thanks to all, No I did not use a thermometer but I will. When you say get a good fire going I tried, when I put coals and wood there is a great fire but as soon as close the lid with the vent wide open the fire goes out now the coals are very hot and it smokes like crazy and the only way to keep flames is to open the firebox door about an inch or two and the fire will stay burning. here are some pics. Thanks again, Rob
P.S. sounds stupid but how do insert pics?[/img]

day_trippr · Posted: Sep 12 2010 Post subject:

Here's the "How To Post Pictures" tutorial thread:
http://www.thesmokering.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=4096

That's the most popular way, but if you already have your own web space and it allows "hot linking", you can push your pics up to that and link them here. That's how I do it...

Cheers!
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Jarhead · Posted: Sep 12 2010 Post subject:

robio361, just looked at a pic of it on their website. That is one good lookin' cooker.
If you are having air flow problems, check to make sure your fire grate is ABOVE the intake damper. If need be, raise it up.
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robio361 · Joined: 12 Sep 2010 Posts: 5

Here are some pics:

SoEzzy · Posted: Sep 12 2010 Post subject:

It looks like you have a duel purpose pit and the ability to grill as well as smoke with the ledge in the top of the fire box.

Go get yourself the thickest plate metal that you can and drop it onto the ledge, that will help drive the heat from the fire box inte the cooking chamber.

As you have a side fire box, I'd also plan on more exhaust on the other side of the pit, and close off the exhaust on the same side as the fire box, and I'd raise the charcoal grate as mentioned above by 2 or 2.5 inches.

There are other questions that I find wandering around in my mind... how long before you check the temperature have you been running the pit with the lid closed?

Does it seal lid against base pretty well or not well at all?

Do the handles on the front crank up the cooking grates or are there charcoal grates that raise and lower in there too?
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robio361 · Joined: 12 Sep 2010 Posts: 5

Thanks again, Yes this a dual purpose grill the main chamber has two charcoal grates that the cranks raise up and down to control heat when just grillin. the lid seems to close well but the smoke does come out the front of the grill. I also kept the lid closed for about two hours before checking the temp as I said before I only used the temp gauge that came with the grill on the lid there are two of them and they both showed the same temp. I will try the metal plate that makes sence, but is normal to have to put so much coal and wood to heat the chamber up? The grill is big about three feet wide and about two and a half feet tall. Also do you think from the picture that the baffle oppening is big enough?
thanks, Rob

SoEzzy · Posted: Sep 13 2010 Post subject:

It reminds me of the grill they had in Sams Club a year or two ago, I can't remember what the name was but Landmark or something like that rings a bell.

The opening is fairly punny, if you have the tools and ability is there room to tripple the size of the opening upwards, without doing major damage to the structure?

They looked like they were sturdily constructed and that you'd be able to create a good draw if your holes were big enough.

The other thing you could do would be to drop the charcoal grates insid the cooking chamber to the bottom stops, and put your "heat source" in the cooking chamber, you could then run the SFB as just the smoke source with a small fire with a piece of wood on it for the smoke! Wink

If you can find a plate for the SFB, I'd enlarge the connection till it meet the bottom side of the plate, close the right hand exhaust vent, double the holes in the left hand side by drilling at the same level as the bottom existing hole an additional 2 holes to tho rear and 2 holes to the front in the same 3/4 or 1" bore.

Then I'd test it again and see how it cooks that time, then come back with a new set of questions... what does everyone else think?
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robio361 · Joined: 12 Sep 2010 Posts: 5

Thanks SoEzzy, I will try all that and let ya'll know how it goes.
Thanks again for everyones help, Rob

ckone · Posted: Sep 13 2010 Post subject:

A little whlie back someone else on here bought the same cooker. if I remember correctly he ended up taking it back. A buddy of mine has a similar one that he gave up on cause of air flow issues, he ended up getting a WSM.
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feldon30 · Posted: Sep 13 2010 Post subject:

The intakes on that look like about half the intake of a WSM. I can certainly understand why you'd need to keep the door open just to keep a fire going.

If you've got the tools to bore out those intakes, or add whole new intakes, it might be worth the trouble.

Not sure about the rest of the air flow path. That might be a deal breaker.
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Alien BBQ · Posted: Sep 13 2010 Post subject:

First thing to discuss is do you really want it for a grill with just a little smoking on the side or as a smoker that can grill also? I ask this because it is a nice looking unit but you are going to have to mod it up fairly good to turn it into a suitable smoker. I would rather be honest with myself (while I can return it) than plan to fix it and never get to it. I know this inter-argument because I have gone thru it with myself often in the past.

Some of the mods you will need to do is exhaust stacks, firebox to cooking chamber inlet expansion, a baffle plate and possibly an additional air inlet hole or two.

While I have not seen this model, I know that the brinkman (which is similar) screws that raise and lower the grates have a tendency to strip and break. So look the unit over thoroughly band decide it it is worth the effort and whether it will last 3,5,7, years down the road.
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patruns · Posted: Sep 13 2010 Post subject:

The first thing that jumps out at me is that the opening between the firebox and the cooking area is way too small. Before you try and return it or cut it up, try using only logs and get a good fire going and keep the air intake open. I have a hunch this was made to use only logs in the firebox and to keep it stoked.
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SoEzzy · Posted: Sep 14 2010 Post subject:

Soapm · Posted: Sep 14 2010 Post subject:

From the angle of one of the pictures it doesn't appear the input damper is below the level of the fire.