No smoke coming from my UDS??

[kindollbbq]

Hello everybody. Just finished building my UDS on Sunday, and am seasoning it as we speak. I will say that I am blown away by how well these cookers maintain temperature. WOW! These things are a completely different world than offsets.

Anyways my question is this; I have been running my UDS for 3.5 hours now. Loaded the basket with 5 pounds of Kingsford Comp. Briquettes, and then poured a 1/2 chimney on top of the unlit in the basket. The 1/2 chimney was lit of course. BAsically when loading the basket I poured a layer of charcoal on the bottom of the basket. Then 2 cherry chunks, then another layer of charcoal, then 1 cherry chunk on top. These were fist sized chunks. I then got my UDS up to temp very easily, catching it on the way up. My UDS is out fitted with 4- 3/4" ball valves. To run at 250 deg. I only have one valve open 3/4 of the way.

Anyways when I started the UDS up I was getting a nice small thin stream of smoke coming out of the lid, just like I wanted, but now I am not getting any!! The thermometer I have is functioning, meaning it reacts to what I do, i.e opening lid, temps go down, opening valve temps go up. Now as far as the accuracy, gonna be honest not positive it's right but I have a feeling it is.

It looks to me like the wood chinks aren't even burning. I mean I can clearly see the wood chunk sitting on top of the charcoal, and it doesn't look to me like it's burning at all. What am I doing wrong?

Thanks


Brandon

[BluDawg]

You don't want it to spontaneously ignite just smolder and give up its smokey goodness. With a UDS remember that you are going to get a lot of smoke flavor from the drippings hitting the coals that is the beauty of the beast; that old time grand pa cooked style of BBQ. But I would Calibrate the thermo to be sure, can't hurt to check it.

[JamesB]

Is the chunk of wood sitting on the burning coals?

Let this cook proceed as it is. Maintain your temps and when you take the food off, see if you taste any smoke flavor. You can always adjust the amount of wood etc. next cook.

[OSD]

Sounds like it's doing ok. Sometimes you only see a little light smoke when the chunk first starts burning and the nothing after that because all the moisture is gone from the chunk. Remember it's a small controlled fire, not like a bigger controlled fire in a regular smokers firebox. So you may not see the flames or smoke of a bigger fire.

[Pony Express]

I just gota ask here for clairification. You say its just smoldering. I was under the impression that smoldering creates soot and as Alton Brown says, thats not good eats ! Am I missing something here?

[OSD]

Once a chunk of wood quits out-gassing and all the moisture is gone from it, it does not flame or smoke unless it has a large amount of air. Basically it has turned into a piece of lump charcoal and burns and reacts the same as lump you buy.

[BluDawg]

I just gota ask here for clairification. You say its just smoldering. I was under the impression that smoldering creates soot and as Alton Brown says, thats not good eats ! Am I missing something here?

I'm not as eloquent as some folks and you are right OSD nailed it as to what I was eluding to sorry for the confusion.

[kindollbbq]

James, One of the chunks I poured the lit chimney on top of, and the other two were positioned within the basket. So I would think that's what I should be doing right? And I am not actually cooking anything right now, just seasoning the cooker.

And Pony Express, no I am not saying that the wood is smoldering. Even if the wood was smoldering, I would still be getting smoke, so that is not it. I am saying that I am not getting any smoke at all.

I am leaning towards the assumption by OSD that the fire is burning very clean, and small. Which is a good thing right? I guess you can still a good smoke flavor and ring without actually seeing a lot of smoke right?

Thanks everyone.

Brandon

[Pony Express]

Well the reason I wanted clairification is because my briskets, ribs and butts have always finished with a black bark, which have a somewhat bitter taste, reguardless of wood, and I believe that its because I was starving the fire box for air. The reason I tended to starve the fire box for air is to keep the temps at 225-250, and I was also choking the chimney down.
I have read and learned so much here in 2 months but have yet to put into practice. Just want to be sure that my next low and slow turns out fantastic.
Im also using a offset smoker.

[OSD]

James, One of the chunks I poured the lit chimney on top of, and the other two were positioned within the basket. So I would think that's what I should be doing right? And I am not actually cooking anything right now, just seasoning the cooker.

And Pony Express, no I am not saying that the wood is smoldering. Even if the wood was smoldering, I would still be getting smoke, so that is not it. I am saying that I am not getting any smoke at all.

I am leaning towards the assumption by OSD that the fire is burning very clean, and small. Which is a good thing right? I guess you can still a good smoke flavor and ring without actually seeing a lot of smoke right?

Thanks everyone.

Brandon

Yes.

In fact, If you read Some of DATs's posts, he seldom even adds wood chunks, he just uses the type of lump charcoal for flavor and gets good smoke flavor in his cooks.

[OSD]

In most cases and styles of smokers, a small, hot, clean burning fire, with the exhaust wide open ( unless wind or something else requires it to be closed a little ), and the heat regulated by the air intakes will produce the best results.

JWWFM=YMMV

[Pony Express]

by jove, I think I've got it!

[JamesB]

In most cases and styles of smokers, a small, hot, clean burning fire, with the exhaust wide open ( unless wind or something else requires it to be closed a little ), and the heat regulated by the air intakes will produce the best results.

JWWFM=YMMV

Lots of info in that single statement!

[kindollbbq]

Just incase anyone was wondering, I got 9.5 hours!! of burn time > 200 deg. with 5-6 pounds of Kingsford Competition Briquettes. I have never seen anything like it. I read a lot of stories of guys talking about ridiculous burn times with these things but I was skeptical that mine would do it. But it did. And I am glad!


Brandon

[OSD]

Inexpensive and easy to build, cook great, that's why they have become so popular.