New to smoking, need help

[chet]

I am new to smoking; I bought a char-broil off set grill from Home Depot. After reading a lot of post’s here, I know I need to purchase some chunk wood and lump coal. However, in the mean time, I purchased a bunch of chips and all I have are briquettes. I like to use them up and not waste them. My problem is that my first two smokes came out horrible. One the first smoke I did not add enough briquettes, therefore added more and smoked some nasty chemical fumes in my food. The mistake was obvious.

On the second smoke I got a little confused after reading a few posts here. My questions are?

1) Do you wet/soak the chips? There seems to be mixed answers?
2) How many chips to use? Do you wrap them in tin foil or place them directly on the coals?
3) Do you add more chips after the first amount?

Any advice would be much appreciated. Also, does anyone know of any places to get wood/lump coal in Washington state? Particularly near Tacoma or Seattle?

-Thanks, Chet

[Mike Lawry]

I have a little info for ya.

Try wrapping your chips in tin foil 2-1 (wet-dry).

Poke a small hole in the foil.

Thats where Im at using chips when I do.


Mike Lawry

[KC_Bobby]

Another option would be to get a chip box. They sell them at HD too. It's a steal box with holes about 6 inches long, 4 inches wide and about an inch deep to put in the chips and they smoke while in the firebox. But that costs about $10 so it's probably not worth it if you don't intend on buying chips again.

Personally, I'd just mix in what you have left with your chips and brickettes in with the lump and chunks you go pick up before the next smoke.

Most lumps don't have all the nasty additives that the bricketts have added. And/or some of the nastiness could have been caused by the charcoal dust. One way to cut down is to dump the coals into a coffee can or a tray or even a coal chimney from the bag, then dump that into the firebox. If you use a chimney, you can tap most of the dust off/out then you won't have that going everywhere when dumping in the firebox.
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[Hoochie-Que]

Check out http://www.barbecuewood.com - They are in Yakima, WA... You also might want to make contact with WBBQA about sources for wood/lump...

If I use briquets and need to add more, I always fire 'em up in a chimney first before adding to any additional to existing coals... Cuts out a lot of that nasty taste you get by adding unlit briquets to lit coals... You don't generally have to do that with lump, though...

I, too, with wrap my chips in foil... I don't soak mine...

Best wishes...
_________________
Dr. Mike
Hoochie-Que BBQ Team / KCBS CBJ

"Jesus Loved Barbeque, Too" - Kinky Friedman

[SoEzzy]

Right in the middle between Tacoma and Seattle is http://www.applecreektimberinc.com/ in Edgewood.

http://www.pnwba.com/ are also up there in the Pacific North West.

You might give them a try too.
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Here's a change Robert.

I still work here!

[wnkt]

I use Kingsford briquettes a lot, you just have to make sure they are competely started burning( ashed over) before putting them in the smoker with the meat. The way to do that is buy a Chimney starter, you can get that at Home Depot as well.

And DONT USE MATCHLIGHT! but if thats all you have use the chimney starter first so ALL the lighter fluid is burned off.
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Electricity can be dangerous. My nephew tried to stick a penny into a plug. Whoever said a penny doesn't go far didn't see him shoot across that floor. I told him he was grounded. - Tim Allen

[Hoochie-Que]

[chet]

Thanks for all the info, you guys are a great help...

[rustyc]

Chet,

Personally I go with the wet chips or chunks, soaked OVERNIGHT (or longer). I do 8-12 hour smokes for hot-smoked salmon, so making sure there is no chemical taste and odor is very important to me. If the chunks are in the water long enough to sink, even better.

Start some coals (lump is better then briquettes if you want to get rid of the chemical flavor)... and when I say some, I mean a small pile (depending on the size of your smoker). I use my lighters to get them started (you can find them here [discount code - SPRBBQ-07) or follow the link in my signature ).
As stated by others, make sure they are going (very important), then add the chips or chunks. If you don't have good air control and a thermometer, the foil may be a good bet to get better control, though depending on the duration of your smoke, you will need to add chips as you go...

You want the coals to just keep the smoldering going... the real work should be done by the wood chips/chunks. If they catch fire, be careful of the temp... you can always pull them out with some tongs and put them back in the bucket of water... extinguish them, then re-add later.. if they just keep smoldering you will be good to go.

If you have to add charcoal during the smoke, add as little as possible and/or start some in a chimney before adding. Most of the time, I can go through the whole smoke with only charcoal at the begining to get things started, but it does take some practice, finesse, and in my case, some plain luck. If you get it dialed in, your chunks/chips should become coals to add fresh chips on top of throughout the smoke.

This way, you can use your coals to get things started, and your chips to do the work, and then nothing is wasted

Good luck,
Rusty
http://www.naturalflare.com