Overnight lows projected at -15F But I am smoking anyway!

NDKoze

NDKoze

Moderator
I am going to be smoking a 7.15lb brined Boston Butt tonight even though the temps are going to be very cold.

I am going to put the Butt in the smoker at 10:00PM and the projected temp at that time is supposed to be -8.

Overnight low is projected at -15.

So, I'm going to really test the unit's cold weather capability tonight!

More updates as I go.

Any suggestions would be welcome.
 
About the only suggestion I can make is to get a insulated water heater jacket, trim it to size so that air flow is not restricted at the top or bottom and attach it with velcro or bungee cords.  I have seen this recommended on other sites and apparently it helps.  In fact, one company sells a jacket expressly for this purpose for their own line of smokers.  But it would be way too small for your application.
 
Thanks for the suggestions guys!

Luckily I don't think it is supposed to be too windy tonight and the deck that my smoker is on faces south and is up against the wall. It is just going to be darn cold and even colder tomorrow night.

If we are talking about the same smoker, I know of the cover that you are talking about Dave. I have one of those smokers, but made my own cover out of the same Reflectix material that their cover was made out of and was able to buy an entire roll of Reflectix for the price of what they wanted just for their cover.

My first smoke was done with temps in the 0-10F range and I had no troubles at all getting to temp. So, I am going to gamble and just run it like I did before and hope for similar results. I was amazed at how long it took after the element turned off to sink back down to the point where the element kicked on again. So, kudos to the insulation on the SI units.

If I have any problems, I think I will buy another roll of Reflectix and make a cover for the next cold weather smoke.

I have guys coming over for poker night to tomorrow and we usually play for quite a while. So if it isn't done by supper time, I won't be too worried.

The one thing I think I am going to change though is to start smoking at 8:00 instead of 10:00 as I originally had planned.
 
I need to get some reflectix material to make an insulate cover.

Tony, maybe an opportunity to have insulating covers for the SI products.
 
I've never heard of reflectix (probably seen it, but didn't know what it was called), but I'm looking it up for sure!  I'll definitely run the idea by the SI crew - great idea, Ed!
 
Ah!  Thanks for the link, Gregg.  Yes, I've seen it many times.  Lots of time in HD, Lowe's and other lumber yards when I was a builder.  What kind of tape would you use to fasten the panels?  I would think a little Gorilla tape might do the trick!  Bet I could redneck engineer one! ;)
 
I used gorilla glue to glue Velcro on the pieces. Then I could wrap tight and hookup with the Velcro.

I only did a wrap around the sides and left to top open. But if you really wanted to insulate it well you could do the top too.

It really made a difference with my Big Chief. Without it the Big Chief would only be considered a meat warmer at best.
 
I think the smoker will do fine.  I've done several smokes that were as cold as -20F with the #3.  Seemed to maintain just fine.  Granted I was using the Auber, but it shouldn't matter.  The thing seems so well insulated it seemed to keep temp as needed.  Still I'm curious if you get the same results...
Wik
 
Hehe...I was waiting for Wik to chime in!  I've seen pictures of him on at least ONE really cold smoking day!  lol.  He definitely knows how they perform in the cold.
 
Well, I witnessed my first belch tonight.

I got the butt in around 9:00 or so and went outside around 9:20 or so to smell the smoke (cold or not I love the smell).

It was smoking pretty hard and then I heard a woooosh and smoke poured through the vent. Kind of freaked me out a bit. ;) I didn't notice any from the door. I went inside and the temp had jumped from 195 or so up to 255. Then it rapidly went back down to 210 or so. Now I am back on my way up again. Currently at 235.
 
The first time I witnessed it I had that same reaction...  What the heck was that!  Not that it will hurt anything it just caught me off guard.  I experienced the same thing when using the auber until I started a slower warmup process.  I now set step 1 to raise to 140 for 0.5hr then continue to 225 after that, haven't seen it happen since I started doing that.  But then again when it is this damn cold out I don't seem to hover over it too closely either.  ;)
Well unless I'm catching some rays in the lawn chair with some tin foil while sippin' on a beer next to a snowbank.  This time I'll let you guys imagine that instead of burning an image into your mind via posting a pic.  ;D
 
Congratulations, Gregg! ;)  First time I experienced the belch, I was standing over it - about soiled myself.  I believe the belch extinguishes the brief combustion; that's why you saw the temp fall right away.  Keeping the door closed is the best approach.

And Wik - you really need to repost that pic!  That was the funniest thing I've seen on here yet!!  Glad I was one of the few that saw it before you pulled it down! ;) ;D ;D ;D
 
It is still smoking really nice, so I think my wood is back smoldering the way it should.

Thanks to my reading here I knew what it was and to leave the door closed. I would say this was more of a startle than a freak-out. But if I didn't know what it was I would have been more worried.

The nice thing is that I am definitely not having any problems getting to temp like SneakyZebra. It seems like I am going to settle into a 195-265 type swing like the last time I smoke a butt.

Yeah, Chad you opened the door on this now and I think are pretty much bound to posting that pic again. ;)
 
Well, no beer out my nose. But definitely a literal LOL.  ;D

I agree on the profile pick suggestion Tony.
 
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