CountryByNet.com Forums :: Great Outdoors Propane Smoker

I'm no expert, just a southern boy who likes his BBQ and has had a little practice and a whole lotta luck with various smokers...here are some of the things I have found out....maybe they will help

First thing I noticed with the GO smoker is that ya need to orient the bottom vent holes with the prevailin' wind...it doesn't seem to draft well on it's own...a breeze blowin' through really seem to help the wood to stay lit better....

On days that I decide to run the smoker, I pull the meat outta the fridge and set it on the counter to come up to or close to room temp....go out a couple of hours later and load the wood box and turn the flame without the water pan in the smoker to get everything warmed up and the smoke to rollin'...when the smoke goes from a "house on fire" dark color and starts to turn light gray, I load the meat and fill the water tray with BOILING water, using the hot water keeps the temp from dropping and having to bring the smoker back up to temp...

Check your thermometer that came with the smoker...put a pan of water on the stovetop and bring it to a boil...temp should read 212 degrees...my thermometer read 235 degrees, so to smoke at 220 degrees, I keep the temp near 240

Now I've not conducted any scientific experiments or nuthin' but I've been told that meat will only absorb smoke til it gets to 140 degrees...if ya start with near room temp meat, at 220 degrees smoker temp, it will reach 140 degrees in the first 90 minutes or so depending on thickness...any smokin after that time is pretty much for the operator's benefit

I gotta admit, I still throw a chunk or two in when the door is opened later in the "cook" probably don't help the meat, but it sure smells good when ya walk by the smoker

There has been volumes written about the wood ya should use to smoke with...I'm lucky in that I live in the country and have a steady supply from my own land and sawmill...I would however be extremely careful using scraps from kiln dried purchased lumber...ya never now what kinda ugly stuff has been sprayed on them boards to keep the bugs in check before ya bought it and sprayin with permethrin is fairly common practice to keep down the powder post beetle

when in doubt, light them scraps in a separate outdoor pit and when they are well charred transfer them to the smoker.

Sorry to be so long winded...but as ya could tell if ya could see the spare tire I lug around, smokin' is one of my passions

I hope some of these ideas help.

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