Smokes dies out after a couple of hours


 
P

Paul Kneipp

New member
Hi, probably not new anymore, but that doesn't stop me having problems!

I'm usually use 5 chunks of Hickory wood, about 3 or 4 inches across and I get great smoke for the first two hours and then it dies out. If I open the door the wood seems to be completely charcoal, but if I gently move them about and close the door again, I get really good smoke (and more heat) for another 10 mins before it dies again.

Is this normal? Am I burning the wood too quickly?

Thanks for your help.

PK
 
Nope you are fine, but make sure you soak the wood in water for a good 30 minutes to an hour, I only add wood when the WSM is up to temp and only then do I add the meat. Too much smoke is not a good thing as the meat can only absorb so much.. it gets bad when the crust becomes bitter
 
soaking the wood is not required in my opinion... and not seeing smoke coming from the WSM after two hours is not a problem.
just keep doing what you're doing and forget about opening the door or lid to check on them... it's all good.
 
Soaking the wood is counter productive. It adds moisture to your fire and robs heat for no reason. Soaking a chunk doesn't saturate the wood either. Just gets the surface wet. Soak one and cut it open, you'll see. Plus, it doesn't allow for a clean smoke.

Just because use you don't visually see smoke rolling out of the top vent doesn't mean it's not there. Everything sounds normal to me.
 
Yep, you want to get out of that white smoke and into the thin blue smoke that we all love. For that amount of chunks a few hrs of highly visible smoke seems about right.
Normally I don't soak my chunks cause I buy smokewood with the right moisture content from Smokinlicious. But there are two different schools of thought on that area.
http://www.smokinlicious.com/index.php?Moist%20Table
If you like the smoke flavor that you're getting now then stick with what's working for you.:wsm:
Tim
 
I never soak the wood - and do not worry if you do not see the smoke. It is still providing flavor.
Ray
 
timothy said:
If you like the smoke flavor that you're getting now then stick with what's working for you.:wsm:
Click to expand...

^^That is how I see it.^^

Paul - don't worry about what's right or what's normal. Ask yourself one basic question - do I like what I'm eating. Personally, if I used as much smoke wood as you indicated, I would think that cook would end up to smokey - for me. For you, if it works, go with it. I guess it is implied in your post that you don't think your food tastes smokey enough. If that's the case, add more wood in the beginning or even add a chunk or two throughout the cook. Be careful though because different meats take smoke differently. Chicken takes on smoke much more than pork in my opinion.

Also, as has been said, the blue invisible is the good stuff. Since I like a very light smoke, I've at times waited until the initial white smoke subsides before I put my meat on. Trust me, there's flavor there even if you don't see it billowing out of the top vent.
 
My name is John, and I was an oversmoker! I started what they call a "12 cook program". After much therapy, trial and error, and other people telling me it was too much smoke, I was able to leave "rehab". It can be a tough habit to kick, but well worth it! Use no smoke next time and see the difference. Taste the meat and then the smoke. Good luck with your "rehab".
 
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