Cardboard barrel wind block source?

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Where to get? Knowing that my WSM delivery from Amazon will arrive in the unpredictably breezy Vegas weeks ahead, after reading the articles here, it seemed a tall cardboard barrel with top and bottom removed might provide the perfect wind screen for my WSM. Anybody know what kind of products are typically shipped in cardboard barrels and where they are easily available? Removing the barrel's top and bottom and surrounding my cooker might be the perfect thing in this Vegas apartment complex.
 
Dave,

Good idea.
You can get these at bakeries and milk processing plants.
They get all sorts of things shipped to them in these containers such as dry, malt extract, Mocha powder. Even nuts and dried fruits.

Jim C
 
They're not cardboard, and they're not round...so I guess they have nothing to do with this topic other than the fact that they're wind-breaks. ;-)

Yesterday I had two sheets of 1/2" plywood ripped into 2' x 4' sections, and bought an additional pre-cut piece to make a total of 9 2x4 panels. I also got a bunch of stainless steel hinges, some eye hooks and some rustoleum paint.

I have made three windbreaks from these panels, each windbreak has three sides (each panel connected together by two of the hinges) with a 270 degree range of motion at the joints (roughly). I use the eye hooks to tie them down to a cinder block on the wind side so that really strong gusts don't knock them onto the smokers. I figure if the wind is strong enough to blow away the cinder block, the smoker will be the least of my worries.

I'll be painting them this week after the storms and wind move through Kansas City, so they'll be ready for the North Kansas City BBQ contest. Hopefully the rustoleum will help keep too much moisture from getting in and warping the panels. I'll post some pics from the contest in 2 weeks, hopefully they'll help at least a little...
 
Cardboard sounds way too combustible. How would you anchor it? Wood would be a better choice. Best would be a metal enclosure. Some here propose a 50 gallon drum, top and bottom removed, and split lengthwise. Too much work for me.
Find a local sheet metal fabricator in your area that has a set of pyramid rolls. He/she can roll you a couple of half round pcs of heavey gauge carbon plate or aluminum for pretty cheap. $10 worth of hinges, handles, screws, and 20 minutes of your time and you're good to go. /infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif
 
Folks....

We're talking wind breaks here...not building a spaceship. Using large cardboard, simply place a large rock or planters on the bottom of it to hold it down. The WSM doesn't get nearly hot enough to burn the cardboard...even if it is lying directly against it.

Over many years I have used the following with much success.......my gas grill with cover, my wife's large potted planters(all you need is wind prtoection at the bottom), the house(when the wind blows a certain direction. Also, you can place these right up against the house without fear of warping the siding), place just inside the garage with door open, in the winter, my patio set which is covered, etc. Look around, there are several things that will work just fine.

I wouldn't think of spending one thin dime to shield the wind. And yes, we live in the flatlands(corn and bean fields) so our winds can be just as strong as anywhere in the US.

Just trying to save y'all some money! LOL
 
Thanks Kevin. I still have the box my smoker came in. Think it'll work? It just seemed to me that Webers' advice on not cooking near combustible surfaces, as well as having a fire extinguisher nearby, makes it sound unsafe. I must admit I can touch the top of my WSM with bare hands (briefly) without any harm.
If I folded the bottom portion out and secured with weight, taped the upper portion open so it does'nt fold back over the dome, I should be ok.
 
Last weekend I whipped up a quick-and-dirty windbreak from a couple of pieces of 1x3 lumber and a section of heavy-duty tarp. One end I secured to the post of my deck with two C-clamps. For the other I used a couple of tent pegs and staked it in place. It worked pretty well, and rolls up into a small cylinder for storing. I plan to expand it to a 3-sided, collapsable configuration.
 
I posted this topic taking full advantage of my "beginner" status and SINCERELY appreciate the experienced input above. Thank you! I just remember my few failed smoking trials in the past. Wind destroyed all my spirit in creating my own real barbecue; i.e, until I happened upon this site and its shared wisdom. I purchased a WSM from Amazon the same day I arrived here--the cooker should get here in two weeks. A cardboard barrel as a wind break seemed absolutely perfect until a few of you pointed out the obvious:

In the event of a grease fire the cardboard will ignite providing fine, windblown, grease-laden torches. A rare possibility, but still possible, especially if cantankerous neighbor kids fiddle with the hot cooker.

A steel barrel or hinged, heavy plywood are other options, but remember I live in an apartment complex so storage is an issue. Then again, hinged heavy plywood lies flat against a wall and takes little space--but don't mind me. I'm rambling. It's late Sunday night and I'm beat.
 
bob j....

Yes that will work just fine. I used it for the first time I had mine. We have major planters and they will hold the cardboard in place.

I'm glad you didn't take offense at my remarks, bob. I know many like to tinker and that is great. Me, I don't know how to hold a hammer! LOL So, I like people to realize sometimes we can go too far in what is a free and simple solution.

Dave...

I been cooking Q for over 25 years and have been to numerous contests and have never seen a grease fire in a WSM. For that to happen, the cooker would need to be tipped completely over(you can't really tip it enough to spill any grease and have it remain upright) and the grease spilled out.....and that will only happen to us sand users. The water will take care of any grease caught in it. I dare say, you would have more major problems than worrying about cardboard catching on fire.

Again....simple, easy and free solutions for this problem.
 
For what it's worth, my silver bullet jacket worked like a champ as a wind break (plus defeated the cold a bit---what a great, long cook, using less than half the fuel I burned the first time when I cooked without the jacket). Pretty snappy looking, too, but of course other solutions are certainly cheaper.
 
I would certainly consider trying to use something that is non-flammable for your wind break. I "had" a plywood wind break catch fire during a sudden wind gust that blew it over even though it was staked down. The meat was off and I was letting the coals go out(had been 4 or 5 hours since I closed the vents). The sudden burst of oxygen and the grease made for a pretty good fire from what I can tell. You see I was at the store getting some stuff for dinner when it happened. The only thing that saved my butt was the snow. It kept the fire from spreading out into the prairie and all that was ruined were some extension cords and the wind break. Now when I am done cooking the hot coals go in a metal trash can with a lid and the smoker goes in the garage to cool. If you do use wood make sure that it is staked down securely and that it can not knock your smoker over.
 
Okay, as a complete newbie reading the experienced posts here the following sounds reasonable to me:

I'm going to start my beginner's cooks with a cardboard barrel wind break given the rarity of grease fires in a WSM, especially since my initial, beginner's cooks won't render off lots of fat. I can't simply move the cooker to building-sheltered locations. This is an apartment complex and we are ONLY allowed to cook with charcoal in one breezy, open, common area.

I'll assess the amount of grease generated and fire potential, then consider other wind-controlling options.

When I graduate to cooking the mega-huge (uncooked) fatty butts y'all talk about with all that hot, flammable, liquid-cholesterol byproduct I'll reconsider fire-risk and wind protection. I think that's reasonable.

More, we have those mega barbecue grill things in our apartment common area, like the kind you find in US Forest Service campsites. I'm going to chain my WSM to one of those to keep bored teenage boys from boosting my WSM, especially after it's cooled down.

Dave
 
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