I dun went and built my own smoker!

[ThunderLund78]

I've kept it under wraps over the last few months; because, frankly, I was pretty sure I'd fail . Not because I doubted my abilities (well, not just that) but the old fridge that I chose for my vessel was in really rough shape.  However, it was FREE!  So I kept tinkering here and there and ended up persevering! 

I had wanted to do a project like this for a LONG time.  Store bought smokers are nice, but I ultimately want to do my own venison processing so I wanted a larger capacity and I also wanted something I wouldn't feel bad modifying as I get more versed in cold-smoking and curing.  This route gives me capacity and flexibility - plus, it's just plain fun.

Here's the whole story:

My wife, kids and I were taking fall pictures last year at her Grandma's old farm property.  In one of the outbuildings sat this old Kelvinator, rotting way on its side. After some inspection, it looked rough but had the metal interior that I was looking for and it seemed to be just the right size--so I got permission from Grandma-in-law. She was happy to get rid of it, so buddy of mine and I hauled it out of there. Pic above is the starting point.

 

Removed the coils, compressor/tank and freezer box as well as the only plastic, which was the inner door panel and the rack pegs.  Still a mess, almost wrote it off at this point. Couldn't believe I was actually thinking of cooking food in this thing. but kept going.

 

Using a piece of scrap wood, I poked, prodded and pried all the old, stale insulation out from between the inner and outer box.  Time consuming but worth it!  Happy to say I found no evidence of mice.  That might have been a game-stopper.  Shop vac'd out ALL of the remains and let it sit open for a few days to air out and ensure any dampness would dissipate.

 

Stuffed in fresh insulation tight all around the inner box and finally washed it out.  I was surprised how well it cleaned-up inside.  Any old musty smells were now gone.  I cut some Aluminum angle stock to make rack mounts and salvaged some old oven racks that I cut down to fit.  Ended up with a 5-rack capacity.  The element is just an aftermarket replacement burner for store-bought smokers that I picked up online for $40.  in the pic above, you can also see the two vents I cut in below the element on each side which I put standard household louvered vent covers on to control air flow. 

 

I put the dampered stack on for a classic look and it was time to fire it up.  I hooked the element to the control unit that I also bought online which is REALLY slick.  I wanted to heat it up good to burn out any bad smells and season the unit.  So I cranked it to 300 and continued to feed it Apple chips for a few hours.  It maintained temp to within a degree and generated smoke awesomely! For the second test I decided to see how low I could go and still get smoke. 180 deg with vents wide open seemed to be the temp where I could get good smoke could get it below that, but it was pretty weak.  Going to by a smoldering tube for anything that requires sustained temps below 180.  The best news is that there was absolutely no foul odors, the time I spent cleaning it out really paid off.

 

And finally, What's a home-built smoker without a cool name!  I gave it a good, fresh coat of BBQ black Hi-temp spray paint and made a stencil - goofy, I know, but it adds to the fun and that's what smoking is all about. That drippy paint was an accident, but ended up making it look even cooler!  All-in-all, I'm really happy with the outcome - but I can't claim total success because I haven't actually cooked anything yet!  Going to fire-up some ribs this weekend and that will be the true test. But there's no reason to think that it won't work after testing.  I'm sure there's a LOT of trial and error along with a many modifications to come.  I would urge anyone else out there that's thought of doing this to not hesitate.  It's a blast and you learn a lot - and the learning will only continue   I'll keep everyone posted if I discover flaws.

[JP Z]

Very Cool Thunder!

 

Lets see some Pork goodness picts from you smokes now

[Getanet]

That looks sweet! Can't tell from the before picks, but was it originally on wheels, or did you add them? Sure looks nice to have it "portable."

 

[ThunderLund78]

Thanks guys!  Gatanet - I did add the casters, one of the first steps, actually.  I only have a two car garage so when I wasn't working on it, it needed to be tucked away.  MUCH easier to wheel it in-and-out of it's tight storage spot!

[reinhard1]

Awesome!!!  It will only get better with aging when all that love of the smoke get's soaked in there.  Great job!!!.  good luck.

[leechlake]

projects like your make life fun and exciting.  Love it

[eyeguy 54]

dandy name. lol    now get to smokin!

[RebelSS]

Excellent!!!!! GREAT job!!! That will be the cat's meow for ya! I made one many moons ago out of a 'fridge, and they work great! Keep us informed!! 

[pushbutton]

It is even more awesome with the paint drips......

[prov1900]

I dig the name. Loved Apocalypse Now! Nice project. You definitely got skills!

[Mike89]

excellent job!

[leech~~]

"made a stencil - goofy"

Great job on the smoke box! Love the stencil! And the paint runs just make it look more "Apocalyptic"

I would copy write that now before someone steals it!

[ThunderLund78]

Thanks all, for the kind words. You're all making my blush !

The one thing that helped me throughout the whole process is just keeping in-mind that a smoker is a very simple device and not to over-complicate it.  After doing a little research on home-builds, you can use anything from a fridge, to an old industrial electrical box, to a cardboard box.  As long as you steer clear of plastics and toxins like non-heat treated chrome or galvanized metal (even though I found quite a few out there made out of garbage cans)  - you can use pretty much anything.  Just need heat, smoke and convection--and whatever form that takes is up to you.  I don't consider myself handy, just a weekend warrior - like a lot of things, below the facade you'll find some pretty crude hack-work.  But I will say that I'm handier for having done it and I learned a lot along the way.  Highly recommend anyone thinking of it to give it a try.

[chaffmj]

I agree with everybody else. Nice job.

[Boar]

love the name!! very cool! have fun. smoking is a blast.heres Puff the Majic Demon i built a few years back, use an old burner form the free list on the forum. Little tough to maintain constant temp. but sometimes, all I have to do is crak the door a bit. I hope to do some bear bacon this fall.

[reinhard1]

Lookin good Boar!!!  good luck.

[chaffmj]

Very nice boar!

[ThunderLund78]

Wow, I think you probably have double my capacity with that thing, nice work, indeed!  Like the stainless look.

[ThunderLund78]

Well, the first meal out of Apocalypse Sow is IN THE BOOKS!!! All I can say is that I couldn't be happier.  It worked perfectly and the ribs were phenomenal.  Since it was my first run, I wasn't going for anything extravagant. It was more just to make sure it worked with actual food.  I just put a simple rub on a couple of racks of spare ribs and used Sweet Baby Rays to finish'em off.  My wife was raving that they were the best I've ever made and my finicky kids both had seconds.

My only thing I need to figure out is either a better way to load/re-load wood chips or find a way to make the chips in the pan on my element burn slower - maybe cover them some type of perforated cover that would limit the air exposure and make them smolder more.  Basically the smoke is heavy and done in about 1/2-hour after adding chips.  Would like a slower, steadier release.  Have to noodle on that for a while.

Here's a couple of pics:

Good smoke coming out of the stack - used straight Apple for this first run.

 

Almost done... this was the "Mop phase"

 

The finished product!  They were fantastic... can't wait to get into the dozens of recipes/different meats I have lined up.

[reinhard1]

That does look real good!!!  Your own smoker and a great meal from your work.  Cant get better than that.  If you want to get away from the store bought sauces check out my two sauces I make up on my page/blog.  In the Smokin Hot page.  www.sausageheavenoutdoors.com   One I call my Butcher sauce which is very simple and good and the other one I call Reinhard Caught A Buzz sauce.  I think you will like them.  good luck.

Edited August 24, 2015 by reinhard1

[Boar]

I wnat some sauce reiny, do i have to make it or can you whip me up a batch and send it to me? ThunderLuund, how long did yu smoke em for, what was ur processe

[ThunderLund78]

Thanks RH!

I'm no stranger to your page!  I've checked it out multiple times and many of my "to-do's" are coming form there. Especially been wanting to do Buckboard Bacon for a long time.  Keep up the good work on that page!  I've seen your sauce ideas as well and I'll be giving them a try, for sure!

[ThunderLund78]

I wnat some sauce reiny, do i have to make it or can you whip me up a batch and send it to me? ThunderLuund, how long did yu smoke em for, what was ur processe

Boar,

I gave the ribs a nice smear coating of yellow mustard, applied the rub and wrapped them in plastic wrap and let the sit on the counter for a couple of hours before cooking.  Gave the flavors a little time to meld and got the meat to room temp.  6 hours in the smoker using the 3-2-1 method. 3 hours exposed with intermittent smoke, 2 hours wrapped in foil, then the last hour exposed again where you add your sauce (if you want it). My smoking experience is relatively small, but when I would do ribs on a grill, I'd do this way as well and it's never failed me.  These were better than anything I had ever grilled.  It's a little harder to maintain a consistent temp with gas or charcoal.  Love my new toy!

[leech~~]

Boar,

I gave the ribs a nice smear coating of yellow mustard, applied the rub and wrapped them in plastic wrap and let the sit on the counter for a couple of hours before cooking.  Gave the flavors a little time to meld and got the meat to room temp.  6 hours in the smoker using the 3-2-1 method. 3 hours exposed with intermittent smoke, 2 hours wrapped in foil, then the last hour exposed again where you add your sauce (if you want it). My smoking experience is relatively small, but when I would do ribs on a grill, I'd do this way as well and it's never failed me.  These were better than anything I had ever grilled.  It's a little harder to maintain a consistent temp with gas or charcoal.  Love my new toy!

Things are really looking good with the new smoker. I wonder if maybe it would be a good idea to try and seal the fiberglass insulation up with some sheet metal strips so you don't have that floating around in there every time you open and close the door?

[pushbutton]

Lol....he does have a good point.