is this a bad idea or a REALLY bad idea?

Not a bad idea as long as you don't have it lit. But if you want to use it. REALLY BAD IDEA!!
 
Even with just 3 walls up...bad idea.
 
thats really what i figured...

so i then have a choice i suppose, no walls and get everything wet, but protect the smoker.
or
leave it out in the rain.
 
We've cooked comps where it has been pouring and the WSM's actually hold up pretty well in the rain with no protection (not that it's the optimal choice). You can always duct tape an umbrella handle to the side of your WSM, it won't provide the best shelter but it will help a little bit. What we ended up doing is buying the 10x20 carport with sidewalls to keep all of our supplies (and us) in, and then having a 10x10 pop-up canopy with no walls to keep the smokers under. The carport runs about $250 but it's worth every penny to stay dry.
 
somewhat on topic.... i was cooking one day when it was going to rain and i hadn't yet bought an umbrella and i was right in the middle of a long cook. i looked over at my never used chimney starter....

art003ah5.jpg



problem solved! it fit perfectly over the daisy wheel.
 
Cooking under the canopy with one side up should give you the protectin that you need and be safe. if you need more walls than that then you should not be cooking in the middle of a hurricane!


Big Mike
 
I would think you could do it if you had two walls up to provide protection from the rain and wind and a fan hung inside the tent blowing toward the smoker and toward the outside, assuming the smoker is just barely in under the canopy. The fan ought to move enough air and if you're on the opposite side you should be fine. That said, for a couple bucks you can buy a co detector from a hardware store and bring it with you and just set it on a table inside the popup. Then you'd know for sure.
 
A lit and functioning 22.5 inch WSM inside a canopy with the walls up personifies the Darwin Theory only if you elect to be inside at the same time. The Weber should burn upto 8 hours without attention and then you could vent the canopy for 15 minutes and it should then be ok to go in.

There will be a yellowish tint on the inside of the top and sides but better than in your lungs.
 
At a recent contest there were many cookers in 10x10's but they all had sufficient airflow. I think most people had only 2 walls up, we had 2.5 with the FEC venting out an open side and in hindsight we will only have 2 next time. Any smoker enclosed by 4 walls though is asking for trouble.
 
AZScott said:
At a recent contest there were many cookers in 10x10's but they all had sufficient airflow. I think most people had only 2 walls up, we had 2.5 with the FEC venting out an open side and in hindsight we will only have 2 next time. Any smoker enclosed by 4 walls though is asking for trouble.
Click to expand...

We had our WSMs sitting in the rain there. Took a little more fuel and the stoker was running more frequently than normal, but they worked fine.
 
thanks everyone.

i knew it would be a bad idea really, but thought it was possible the canopy wasn't all that airtight.

i'm working on a second canopy for the cookers.
 
I do way worse, I run 2 meadowcreek pr42 roasters and a bbq26 chicken cooker in a 10x20 with about 80% of the walls up....


that actually explains alot..:shock:
 
I just cant believe that a Caravan with all 4 sides up is going to be air tight enough for there to be an issue with ventilation, but it is not my life that is being put at risk.

You could set it up in your back yard, run it and put a Canary in and see what happens...
 
Bentley said:
I just cant believe that a Caravan with all 4 sides up is going to be air tight enough for there to be an issue with ventilation, but it is not my life that is being put at risk.
Click to expand...

Trial by death though seems a bit dramatic. There has to be a compromise here though that will make it work. I remember seeing a Pitmasters episode where Harry had his under his tent, but I don't know if he had any walls up.
 
Bullets don't mind rain...trust me...I cook in the chit year round! Just put up a barrier to block the wind...temps can get a little funky in a strong breeze...unless you cook hot-n-fast then it doesn't matter much.
 
Let's say you did have 4 walls up and you don't pass out, you are are still going to have the smoke to contend with. I know that with the FEC, not known for lots of smoke, that if the wind blows the wrong way your eyes start burning due to the buildup of smoke with only 2.5 walls up. You quickly scramble to get out of there or to open up another wall.
 
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