Easy to Make Cold Smoke Generator

[Hoggy]

Guess it works fine now. Have formatted it to Flash. Tell me it it is OK now.
Hoggy

[Hoggy]

Should work fine now, let me know.
Hoggy

[saucisson]

Not here...

I get a dark blue background, with the maple lumps text and something about a complete suite of ecommerce services, but no video (firefox and Flash player 9)

Dave

Edit: works fine in IE7

[allforumemail]

Should work fine now, let me know.
Hoggy

Hi Hoggy,
very neat setup
yes the video is working fine with me
Thanks Hoggy

[Hoggy]

SAUCISSON, have a question for you.

You probably saw my setup, and this weekend I want to do some new tests to see if I can make my burn longer in time, and less heat. To do that, I am thinking to try the solution as in the 2 pics. I want to place something like this in my can and will lite it on one side on the top. The dark part is a channel filled with charcoal.
The idea is, that it will burn down, burn the bridge under the block, and burn back up again ?

In that way I make my burning channel much longer and the volume of the charcoal is less, so I would generate less heat. You have some experience with burning from the top and probably did some extensive testing yourself.
What do you think ?
Of course the opinion from others is welcome also !

I could make this from maple, I heat my (wood) shop with maple and am well equipped to make something like this with a band saw. I could even insert a piece of oak or so, if I want a combination of flavor.
I could even decide when to smoke with a second flavor and how long, it would depend of the size of the other piece and where I would insert it.



Let me know what you think.

Hoggy

[saucisson]

Intriguing, presumably there would be air space around it so the pumped air could get to the top easily? My sneaking suspicion is it might go out but give it a go !! You may want to consider fluting or aerating the block, but it's all extra work.

Dave

[Hoggy]

Dave

You know the block is in a can with a lit on it, the charcoal channel will let air through also. And if the air goes through the non burning channel, it will pass over the top of the burning one.
I know it is all theory, but I saw on the forum a picture from your burning can, and I had the impression that there was a lot of space between the lump of charcoal and the side of the can ? You wrote it burned a long time....

For sure I am going to give it a try, but all thoughts and advise before is welcome, I now can still adjust.
I know one thing...if this works a lot of problems are solved. You can use it with every setup using a can.

Txs
Hoggy

[saucisson]

Ah... I was thinking you had a solid charcoal channel for some reason, silly of me. I have a block of pear tree about the right size, I might give that a go in a similar way. When are you planning to try? I need to smoke real soon

Dave

[Hoggy]

Dave,
I have planned a test tonigh, and I hope until tomorrow ?
Hoggy

[saucisson]

OOPS, I went ahead any way...

Dave

[saucisson]

This will be a long post with lots of edits as I get to grips with this as we go along through the night.

[saucisson]

I have a huge lump of plum tree, just the right size to fit in a 2kg can ( this one is the same size as my smoking can). As the log has been heavily drilled for shavings for previous smoking experiments, I thought might just cram a small charcoal disk in there (The small black disk)



I assembled it with the open end down and lit it, it smoked briefly then went out (Pulling it out to have a look just as it looked as if it was working might not have helped though ) Rather than admit I might have put it out myself...

I decided that...


As that didn't work too well I'd put a new charcoal disk in the solid end and flipp it over, so still trying to burn from the bottom.

up and smoking:





I got 3 hrs good smoking started from a small disk of charcoal, powered by the air pump. Then the two sides of the log collapsed inwards, within the can.

At this point each inner face of the log was a mass of self generated barely glowing charcoal, as I could see by looking in from the top.

Luckily the oxygen flow was just right, both through the can and across the top of it's open top within the largely sealed BBQ, so after all settled down only a perfect trickle of smoke came out of the top of the BBQ. (Less than in the photo above)

Then I opened the BBQ door for a photo and let the air in... and the inner faces of the log burst into flame.

All is quiet now after damping down with wood chips and closing the door on the BBQ

My thoughts are that charcoal supply isn't the problem, it's controlling the big lumps of wood and the airflow.

The Moral is:


Hoggy, don't let any excess air in

[saucisson]

it's still alight

I poured off the wood chips, which had done nothing other than to put the flames out, and we're back on existing plum tree.

If the bacon smells as nice as my clothes do I'm in for a treat

We're on 7 hours smoking (ignoring interventions )

[Hoggy]

Hi Dave,

Here it is 9.45 PM now, that's 3.45 AM your time. I only give you a small update now, because I need to go back to my test after the break
It is goibg VERY WELL, it is smoking for 4,5 hours now and still going strong. I cut the slots a bit bigger then on the picture,
Here are my findings in short.

* The charcoal makes the U-turn up-side-down wel. I measured the temp on the outside of the can, and it just starts to go up, so I guess it will go at least an other 2 hours
* Burning down goes slower and comes with a bit less temp.
* Have constant good amount of smoke, but less then in the movie, but that was too much for me anyway.
* I need a can like you, with full opening, mine is a paint can, the opening is smaller then the can itsself, I could put a bigger would in then.

I know I have to keep my smoker closed, that is one of the reasons I make a seperate system outside the smoker.

More tomorrow.

Hoggy

[saucisson]

I got to bed at 2:30am our time so I didn't get a chance to check it until this morning when it had gone out. Very nicely smoked meat, but the flame incident and I suspect the process itself ran rather too hot for a true cold smoke, so the base of some of my meat looks very slightly cooked. As a precaution I'm finishing it off in the kitchen oven to fully cook it all and a lovely smokey smell is permeating the house.

I suspect the drilled and aerated nature of my log let it burn a bit too fast (and hot), the paper burnt off the outside of my can which hasn't happened before. So if I try again this approach again I'll use a solid log with a single (to start with) ventilation hole drilled though the centre. I don't have the tools to make your channels very easily Hoggy, though I could try drilling some channels down the sides.

Dave