Quote:
Originally Posted by Higgledy
Well, what causes white smoke? I was using a mix of lump and regular, Kingsford in a snake pattern with a couple of hickory chunks dispersed in the first half of the circle. The hickory chunks are Weber brand.
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IMO, thick white nasty smoke is from poor/incomplete combustion, usually because the fire is being starved for air, but using green or wet (soaked) wood can also be a significant contributor. Speaking from the perspective of a stickburner, you can't avoid some white smoke when adding fuel, but if you are running a hot fire there really is no reason for more than 5-10 minutes of that followed by 1-2 hours of clean, thin blue. Somebody that uses a charcoal cooker needs to weigh in, but if it's belching thick white nasty stuff for more than a few minutes, then the fire needs more air.
Oh, yea, if you cram your firebox full of fuel then you are never going to get a clean burn. When I say adding fuel I mean 1-2 splits on a hot coal bed.