Creosote?

SmokinRoo

SmokinRoo

Knows what a fatty is.
Joined
Jul 10, 2007
Messages
68
Reaction score
1
Points
0
Location
Melbourne Australia
Hey there - I posted recently on whether my charcoal was any good and it was suggested that creosote is what's giving my cooking a bitter, tarry taste.

I opened the lid of the kettle the other day and found that there was a clear yellowish, brittle substance settled in water pan that took some chipping off with a screwdriver...

Could this be the creosite?

Also, regarding process, I usually get the charcoal going under the lid and bring the temp up to desired. I usually only throw in a chunk of hickory when i place the meat in (so as to not waste smoke...). Could this be part of the problem?

DSC01284.jpg


DSC01285.jpg


DSC01287.jpg
 
If you still have or can get some more to test. Try lighting it on fire. If it is creosote, it will easily ignite and puff up as it burns.
 
My only thoughts are:

1.) are you sure that the wood is hickory, not pine? (yellowish stuff, pine tar resins?)

2.) is the wood seasoned, not green?

3.) Your not using that Pinion wood they sell for chimineas are you?

I'm with Pat though, yellowish stuff looks kinda like grease......but it should be
soft enough just to scrape up with a spoon and not require chipping.
 
The wood is hickory - have to buy the Charcoal Companion pre packs, cos we dont have hickory growing here.

I ran a cigarette lighter over the "stuff" and it fizzled and left a crusty ash.
It burned pretty easily.

With the chunks, I'm wondering how others do it - am i in danger of getting some nasty flavour from placing the chunks in at the same time as the food?
I wouldnt have thought so, but I'm thinking, just maybe this could have something to do with it.
 
How about some close up pictures of this "Hickory".
 
That is definitely creosote. You will get this built up because the wood is not buring clean. You need one or more of more air, more heat or less fuel. A small clean burning fire can give you the same temps of a large smoldering fire, but with less gunk coming off in the smoke.
 
bigabyte said:
That is definitely creosote. You will get this built up because the wood is not buring clean. You need one or more of more air, more heat or less fuel. A small clean burning fire can give you the same temps of a large smoldering fire, but with less gunk coming off in the smoke.
Click to expand...

Thats great, thanks for that.

So, so you think the creosote would be coming from the wood or the charcoal?
As i posted, I usually put the chunks in when i put the food in so as not to waste the smoke. I find I usually get about an hour per chunk of hickory (or thereabouts) and I usually throw another chunk in when theere's no more smoke.
Do you think I should let it smoke a while before I put the food in?
What about replenishing chunks? How many pieces all up is a good amount to use per cook (say for a butt)?
 
Most likely the wood, but it could come from the charcoal, epsecially if the charcoal was not fully cooked.
How big is your firebox? I have an offset Brinkmann Smoke N Pit Deluxe which I have to refuel and when I refuel I add about 3 or 4 fist sized chunks.
 
SmokinRoo said:
. I find I usually get about an hour per chunk of hickory (or thereabouts) and I usually throw another chunk in when theere's no more smoke.
Click to expand...

I think this may be your problem. You don't actually want to see a lot of smoke -- especially white or yellowish smoke. What you want is "sweet blue smoke" which is not all that perceptible.

I think your chunks are too big and/or your fire is too small if they last an hour. Try smaller chunks and a hotter fire. Also, don't soak the chunks in water if you are doing that.
 
Thanks so much - this is making sense now.

When I first get it going the smoke billows out, spilling under the lid.
I'm using a kettle at this stage just to get it right.

I'm thinking that I should throw in 2-3 chunks and let 'em smoke down and then put the food in
 
I had this very same problem three weeks ago with Pecan.
Nasty build up of black crap that actually dripped in places.
It was my first smoke with Pecan and I wasn't happy at all.
I normally burn Post Oak or Hickory and never have had a problem like this.

After reading this thread... maybe my temp (190*) was too low for this species of wood.
I did have good smoke after awhile but in the beginning it was horrible!

The rest of this crap is going into the fireplace!

Weiser
 
Weiser said:
I had this very same problem three weeks ago with Pecan.
Nasty build up of black crap that actually dripped in places.
It was my first smoke with Pecan and I wasn't happy at all.
I normally burn Post Oak or Hickory and never have had a problem like this.

After reading this thread... maybe my temp (190*) was too low for this species of wood.
I did have good smoke after awhile but in the beginning it was horrible!

The rest of this crap is going into the fireplace!

Weiser
Click to expand...

Pecan is usually great to smoke with. Sounds like your might be on the green side if you were getting bad creosote.

Good luck!
 
If you have cresote building up in your cooker, it will adhere to any metal and be a thick tarry substance after a while. Cresote is unburnt carbon buildup. If you see this on your smoker, grill, build you a hot fire in your grill and do away with it. It is unburnt fuel and that adheres to your grill.
 
The next day the cresote was hard as a rock. I threw in a chimney full to warm it up then scrapped the insides of the entire thing.
Took almost 3hrs with a beer break or two.
Rubbed the inside with Crisco and built another 225* fire to re-season.

The following week I did a Butt using PO without a problem.

I have heard many good things about Pecan and had my hopes up.
The ends of the wood are dried and checked but it was giving off a bunch of white smoke early on. That should have been the clue I guess.

Thanks for the advice Gentlemen!

Weiser


Damar12 said:
If you have cresote building up in your cooker, it will adhere to any metal and be a thick tarry substance after a while. Cresote is unburnt carbon buildup. If you see this on your smoker, grill, build you a hot fire in your grill and do away with it. It is unburnt fuel and that adheres to your grill.
Click to expand...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Headgear
I May Have Ruined Some Wood!
Replies
19
Views
1K
Headgear
Headgear
T
Buying a new smoker/grill. Which one?
Replies
1
Views
651
bschoen
B
K
wet wood or dry
Replies
2
Views
421
sandro
sandro
L
Salted Caramels
Replies
17
Views
872
cowgirl
cowgirl
S
Do you let your neighbors throw something on?
Replies
9
Views
3K
WilliamKY
WilliamKY
Back
Top