Aluminium foil burning


 
M

Mark R-S

TVWBB Fan
When I use wood chips for smoke I wrap them in a heavy duty foil pouch and punch a few holes, and put it on top of the coals - Nothing unusual there.
However, I've noticed that quite often the foil has burnt in places and turned to a white powdery ash. I wondered if this is releasing harmful vapours which would contaminate the food, as I understand that aluminium isn't too good for you.

-Mark.
 
In order to melt aluminum, your smoker would have to be so hot that your food would be inedible. (we're talking 1000F'ish) Most likely that ash is from the wood chips or your heat source.
 
It is quite possible that with foil laying directly on a burning briquette, that at that small point of contact, the temp is easily high enough to melt foil.
That is quite different from foil melting while laying on up on the grill.
 
before I started cooking on charcoal I found a metal box @ lowes or hd that i'd put over the fire with wood chips in it. I avoid aluminum as much as possible even though it's safe for lots of uses.
 
I've got one of the cast iron boxes for wood chips. Of course I had it before I got my WSM. The box would never get hot enough to char the chips(of course,it might have been the grill
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). I drilled some holes in the bottom of it,and never had anymore problems with it. I haven't had a chance to use it yet with the Genesis I got last week. I'll let you know how it works.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Craig C:
Hi Mark, what are the advantages to foiling the smoke wood? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Foil is used for wood chips and pellets to stop them burning up so fast. There's no need to use foil on wood chunks:

http://www.virtualweberbullet.com/woods.html
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Bill_W:
It is quite possible that with foil laying directly on a burning briquette, that at that small point of contact, the temp is easily high enough to melt foil.
That is quite different from foil melting while laying on up on the grill. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

There must be extremely hot spots on the coals, like a mini blast furnace effect. Charcoal used to be used to fuel blast furnaces for smelting iron, so it can certainly get hot.
I don't see that the foil has burnt every time, but it's easy to see when it has because it produces large holes. Next time it happens I'll post some pictures.

-Mark.
 
I've pulled out more than a few half incinerated foil pouches before. Could of been a bad choice off HD foil on my part, I dunno.
Now I just use a SS smoker box, or using a tip that I read here, just layer in your chips with your coals. Works well and no worries.
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Tim
 
I have had the foil burn holes in it before. The last time I used chips in foil I used multiple layers rolled up into a ball with holes poked in them. This seemed to work better. Here is a picture in the smoker.

abtsturkeychickensalsa011.jpg
 
Charcoal can be used to produce temps up to 3750F. Easily within the melt bits of aluminum foil range.
 
Just a few more pennies on this one...

YES.. charcoal CAN get very hot. If you poured tonnes of oxygen on it then certainly you could expect huge temps. But that's not what we are doing.

I think it's a matter of the foil being thin and often brittle so your pouches can sometimes seem to "fall apart". Personally I don't see any reason to be alarmed.
 
Eh has been UsinG lumiiun foils like daT way four YEars & I hAz no pRomlems wid it!
eyE dOnt t |-| ink iz b@d Fer you At aLL!hAY looK - A bIrd!!!
 
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