So I purchased a Brinkman grill before the spring that had a built in horizontal propane smoker. Ive used it a couple of times and it has its pros and cons. I love how easily you can set the temp inside the smoker because of the propane, however the water basin is very small and runs out very quickly as well as the wood chip container so I am constantly opening the door to refil water and adding wood chips every half hour or so... Its perfectly fine if you just want to smoke a quick small peice of meat but cooking ribs for 10hours is interesting. I have fixed some of that by adding a alumnium lasagna pan for holding more water and getting a large coffee tin for adding more wood chips, it is better but I have very little room, only 2 smal racks. So I am limited to 1 small full rack of ribs and a brisket or only 2 whole chickens etc... So Im looking for a more legit smoker, but I am also not looking to spend $1000 bux on a commercial smoker. Any recomendations?
I have a smoke vault propane smoker. It looks like a gun safe and I can fit 2 twenty pound turkeys in it, or 4 briskets, or a ton of jerky. I've had it close to 10 years now and never had a single problem with it. Paid $200 for it when I bought it. I see they have changed styles a little over the years, this one is probably the closest: http://www.target.com/p/camp-chef-s...patio garden&ci_sku=12983407&ci_gpa=pla&ci_kw=
I have built them out of 55 gal drums and they work great. Build it like the Brinkman design except use a hinge on the top which is cut about 8 inches deep or so and use brackets or threaded rod to support some expanded metal for shelves. A small door at the bottom lets you toss in your wood and the spout hole lets you control the outgoing smoke and temp with a small piece of metal. The end of a smaller barrell can be used for the water well or you can use a disposable aluminum pan which is what I do. I have cooked 2, 80-100 pound wild hogs at once. The barrells last several years. Of course, be careful of any chemicals that were in the barrell. Its kind of ghetto but it works great for around 20.00 bucks. You can get as fancy as you want beyond that.
