Uds question
 

I am building my UDS soon and i have a question. How long of a price of pipe do I need to bring the ball valve up to a higher level instead of right off the miller on the bottom. This old fat boy don't want to bend over all the time. :D
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I'd say pull a tape to your desired height and get that length. But it can't be higher than your exhuast, and I'm not sure how high you can get away with without causing problems with airflow.

Use your foot. That's what I do.

Yep. Me too. Works fine!

Make Big Drum Smoker clones, and you won't need no steenking ball valves, pipe cap nipples or a length of pipe.

http://www.bigdrumsmokers.com/smokers.htm

What their all saying is, is an up-tube intake isn't necessarily required on your UDS.

I however liked the look and added one to mine.

I think I measured out 2/3 the height of the barrel, and did that. Still have to bend down every now and then to regulate the other capped holes at the bottom. Unless your thinking one single intake vent....

Dude, those things are crazy expensive. Why would someone pay that much? Are they stainless?



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I believe they have one model that's stainless. The rest are regular barrels though. You can build one just as good yourself. And for a fraction of the price too. You can google " redneck uds". I built mine the redneck style. Great design.

We just extended the valve handle, not the pipe.

http://i1117.photobucket.com/albums/...s/IMG_3583.jpg

Mine is 12 ":roll:

http://i968.photobucket.com/albums/a...S/uds009-1.jpg

If I had it to do over, I would do something like Bludaug's. You can look inside the valve to see exactly how far open it is.

Mine you have to stick your finger in the valve hole to feel how far open it is.

I use a 3/4" ball valve to regulate air. I can tell exactly where the ball opening is by the angle of the handle. After a few cooks, I know within a degree or two (of arc, not temp) where to put the handle to get 225F. Don't know why you'd need any more than that.

To the OP, I totally concur with the sentiment of extend the handle, not the intake pipe. I wouldn't want my air intake vertical anyway, lots of times I smoke in the rain and wouldn't want rain falling down the intake. Or BBQ sauce. Or chunks of charcoal. Or anything.

seattlepitboss

I went with the extended handle instead of extended intake after reading about the troubles people had with them (extended intakes that is) in the Mother of all UDS thread, works like a charm!

With any ball type valve, you have to remember they are quite restrictive over open holes. And that little bit can be a pain in the Butt sometimes.

On my UDS with three (3) 3/4" capped intakes and one (1) upright 24" tube ball valve, I definitely miss a temperature range between the fully open ball valve with no caps off...and the ball valve completely closed and one cap off.

My UDS wants to run an ideal low & slow 225-250ish grate temp somewhere between the single open ball valve and/or a single open capped intake. Therefore I'm always playing with the intakes and can't let it go either way for more than an hour.

http://i1183.photobucket.com/albums/...1/IMG_3647.jpg

Suggest you put another valve on another one of your inputs? Sounds like two capped one cracked a little and the 3rd open would do ya.

BTW I'm guessing you put in 1/2" pipe air intakes. I just punch 1" holes in 3 places. Two of them I cover with credit-card-sized flexible magnets (I got a huge pile of them free once) and the 3rd has a 3/4" ball valve. On my drum, I have no trouble exceeding 225F with just the 3/4" ball valve, but if I did, I'd just slide one of my magnets a little to crack open a side vent.

metalmagpie

My UDS also needs more than the ball valve to run in 240 range. Tried the magnet trick but the nipples used are stanless so that didn't work. Looked around the shop and found that the cap off a WD 40 can fits perfect, drilled an eighth of an inch hole in the cap, placed over nipple and hit it just right. Runs 240-250 all day with cap on and ball valve open. Doesn't solve the problem of bending over though.