UDS Cruise Control

Im new to this but what Ive found is that my setting depend on how cold it is outside. Ive been smoking in about 15 degree weather for the most part, but yesterday I did a cook for my work and was able to put the smokers in the shop. I had to cut down the air intake by quit a bit since the ambient temp was warmer.

It can be that simplistic but you have to adjust for conditions. Air temperature, wind, precipitation, amount of meat etc can affect performance. I adjust the amount of lit coals that I start with along with the air flow to help hit the desired temp based on the conditions. On a typical summer day, I cruise along with 1 and 1/4 vents open, but in the snow and wind have held 250 for 7 hrs with all 3 open.

On the pig candy, I might never have had any make it to 170..that stuff goes fast, but I probably have it on there a couple of hours at the lower temps.

I'm not organized enough to remember what I did last time! ...that being said, all UDS's are different. Go with what you went last time, and see how it goes! as a fellow brethren said..."ain't experimenting fun"

Fatty, I go to 160* Wrap it, than leave it on for about an hour...some do it like ribs, 3-2-1...

I actually had a cool experience with just that. I had my first butt on the uds, and I figured with a 14 hour cook ahead of me i needed more lump. What I didn't figure, a lot more lump created more heat. So it was gettin really late in the night, i couldn't get the temp down below 300-325. I leveled out the firebox with the amount of lump I always use, opened up one vent (which I always use for 225) and set it in faith, and went to sleep. Woke up the next morning with my UDS sittin at 225. I'm pretty sure that it did that all night long. I was very excited. So an answer to your question - maybe, if all of your variables stay the same.

There are days when the UDS will run @225 with one vent ¼ open and then the next weekend I need all 4 vents wide open and struggle to keep it @225.

Each cook seems to be different or me.

Cheers:wink:

I cook about 220 on the gauge outside, which is about 250 center grate. I usually need one 3/4" ball valve a smidge over half open to maintain this temp in the summer. But I recently did a smoke where it was about 10 deg outside and needed one valve wide open, and another not quite one quarter open.

So yeah it depends on the temperature outside with these things(UDS). I find that for me it works best to pour about 3/4 a chimney of lit into my basket with 3 of my 4 vents open. Leave the lid off while I go grab my meat that I am gonna cook. I then come back and put my meat on the cooker, and put the lid on. Again I still have all three vents open. I then catch my cooker on the way up from there to get my temp.

I find it is a lot easier to just bring the cooker up to temp with the meat that you are gonna cook in it. I do this for two reasons: 1.) I feel I get a better smoke ring in my meat, and 2.) It's easier, you don't have as many temp swings bringing the cooker up to temp.

That's what I do and that's my $.02.

Brandon

There are a couple of other factors, like humidity and barometric pressure, but basically you can start it as you've said and you'll be within 20* of your target, easy enough to control once you are running.