2 questions - briquettes quantity and temperature

1. can i put half the amount of coal because i am only doing 1 rack of ribs or do i still have to use the full quantity at the bottom of the wsm? will i still get 250 degrees if i use just a small quantity to account for the small amount of meat?
2. when do you put your meat on? right at the biginnning or do you wait until target temp is reached? why or why not?
Thanks!

Once your WSM is seasoned and relatively leak free, you will be able to save the unused coal by simply closing all vents. For the next cook, just place your new coals on top of the these.

So the question should be... Is it worth guessing how many coals your individual cooks are going to take and maybe turning up shy ?

I would fill up the charcoal ring as Bob mentions. After you get some experience, you might want to go a little light if the cook is short, but I would never try to have "just enough". Not worth it when you can use the unburned charcoal in the next cook.

However, I believe if you use 1/2 a charcoal ring for a single rack of ribs, you would be fine. And, yes, it will hit 250 with no problem.

As for meat going on, most put the meat on once the smoker is lit. Why? Because that's how I learned to do it. The only logic I've seen for waiting is to get rid of some of the "bad" smoke (the white billowy smoke at the beginning of the cook), but I never subscribed to that theory. I think it's just something you'll have to try for yourself to see if it makes a difference to you.

Good advice from Bob. I always just load a bit to the heavy side of what I think I'll need and just shut the cooker down when I finish. Then whatever coals are left I just reuse.

I have always appreciated consistency. So, regardless of what I am cooking (ribs, a couple of Boston Butts, or whatever), I fill the charcoal to the top (with chunks of smoke wood, of course). When the cook is finished, I simply close all vents after removing the meat. Then, after the smoker cools down, I shake down the charcoal and put the used coals in one of my grills.

That way, my reasoning, is that I always know what I have and never run out (by starting with all new coals in the smoker). The grill never notices the difference. There is no waste and I never run out.Since I have several grills there is always one available for the used coals.

FWIW
Dale53

The amount of charcoal is based on cooking temps, outdoor temps and if you use water. One rack of ribs takes the same amount of time as three racks and the same is true with butts.
You don't double or triple the amount of time or charcoal when doing multiple same meats and you don't minus the time or charcoal when doing just one.
Waiting for an empty WSM to come up to temp is a waste of time and charcoal IMHO. Whatever you have gained is quickly lost after opening the lid and adding a piece of cold meat.
OBTW welcome to the board!
Tim

Sam, i think the guys ahead of me are right on spot!

as for the amount of charcoal, cooks can run long and finish later than expected, for the few briq's you might save by cutting back, ah, it simply is not worth the risk. shut down your cooker and save the un-burnt briq's if you have any.

heating to box up prior to putting the meat on, i'm not one to burn off the grill or heat the grate, once i smell a good drift of my smoking wood i put the meat on. i guess there might have been a time or two over my smoking times that per-cook smoke might have been an issue, however, those few times have never caused a problem with health or the finished meal.

Timothy mentioned his cook times run pretty much the same, and with over 5000 posts, he is much further along in this than i. however, i will say, at least for me, i have seen 10 to 20% more time when meat is added. as he said, maybe not ribs or another shoulder, yet, again, for me, doing 1 butt for some friends and a meal vs 2-3 butts and 2-3 racks for a party, i see the time extend. only something to consider... good luck.

Good point Bruce and I'm glad you added that. Once up to temp, cooking times stay the same for 1 or more meats.
What takes a little longer is coming up to temp when doing multiple meats doing a Minion start.

Tim

If your WSM kills the fire quickly when you shut off the vents there is certainly nothing wrong with starting with a full load every time. I used to do it that way and FWIW I never had any issues reusing the left over fuel from short cooks for the next overnight low/slow cook.
What I found was that after doing a low/slow overnight brisket that take 15+ hours there was never enough left over fuel to worry about and after starting with a full load for cooking ribs or a chicken I still had to dump ashes (but now I had to mess with a partially loaded charcoal ring) and I had to add briquettes for an overnight cook (but now I never really knew how much I was starting with).... I just didn't see any benefits.
For me, a full chimney started with 15-20 additional briquettes is plenty to cook ribs <250 for ~5 hours or chicken running wide open for ~2-3 hours.
There's really no right/wrong way to do it, try different things and do it the way you like the best.

Or what I try to do is make my cooks worth all the time and effort by cooking as much meat as possible with each event. If I want to cook a tri tip or a chicken I will do my best to find other meats or more of the same to cook at one time and just freeze the extra to eat at another time. If possible throw on some chicken or another couple of racks of ribs instead of just the one.
As far as when to put the meat on, I always give my cookers approximately one hour to come up to temp and for the fire to settle down. Thats just my way.