Ugly Drum Smoker

moda253 said:
I am so confused by this UDS. Not ripping it but I live in MN and cook when it's -10* and have never seen a difference. I've cooked in the rain. In high winds and have never shielded or insulated my UDS.
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It was an experiment. I met a guy at a comp. that had a double drum like this but had insulated it with rock wool. He said that he used only 4 or 5 lbs of lump for a 12 hour burn and that the insulation really helped to steady temps.

That particular comp we were turning in Brisket with Tornado sirens going off. He took home at least two calls out of that one (and a GC later in the year).

Since I had been fighting to get my ProQ temps up over 200 the entire night, I had pretty much had it with wind and rain temperature loss.

I built my first drum KISS method and it worked great, but I just couldn't shake that "I need one 'dem insulated drum thingies..." feeling. So when I was able to pick up a couple of free drums - one of which was an 85 gal. one - I couldn't resist.

I does hold temps better in inclement weather and I did a few other mods too that makes it my favorite cooker in my stable.
 
I use the barrel lid and not a webber. Last time I smoked I was curing jerky (and actively trying to find how low I could go. I use a BBQ guru to control draft. Lowest I could maintain is 160 - anything lower and the fire was sucking enough through the cracks.

Anyway, it rained during that burn, and I managed to get 1/2" of standing water on the lid - really glad I had not drilled holes in the lid, but simply screwed my smoke stack into the bung hole. fwiw, the UDS functioned flawlessly, even with 1/2" of water on the lid.
 
I need to comment on this older post.

I don't undertand the infatuation with the statement of having to put your cooking grate at 24" above the coal grate.

First of all it seems that there is some variance between the height of the coal in each persons basket. We dump the hot coals on the top of the charcoal which is completely variable from system to system. The height of each persons charcoal basket and how much charcoal we put in our baskets makes the distance between the hot coals and the cooking grate a variable.

So when I read someone that is concerned about their cooking grate only being 22" above the bottom of their coal basket I have to wonder... does it really matter?

Now sure you don't want the meat right on top of the coals but I highly doubt that it's going to matter one way or the other here.

Unfathomable Bastid said:
Hey all,

Another question for you.

The barrel I bought is a bit shorter (34" height) than most. Consequently I don't have as much usable space in the drum. I built my cooking level at 7 inches below the lip, but after I had the fire basket fabricated -- I realized that the difference between the bottom of the fire basket is only 22" from the cooking grate. It seems that the experts maintain I need a minimum of 24" separation. So, I'm two inches short (insert joke here). This is further exacerbated if I'm using 15 lbs of charcoal that are 4-5 inches of height in the basket.

Will the missing two inches cause significant adverse effect? I wouldn't think 22 inches would be so much different than 24.

Thoughts?

-Bastid
Click to expand...
 
:confused: I have been looking but am having some trouble locating a 55 gallon, open head, food grade drum. Does anyone know of somewhere in North Carolina that I can pick up a couple?
 
moda253 said:
I need to comment on this older post.

I don't undertand the infatuation with the statement of having to put your cooking grate at 24" above the coal grate.

First of all it seems that there is some variance between the height of the coal in each persons basket. We dump the hot coals on the top of the charcoal which is completely variable from system to system. The height of each persons charcoal basket and how much charcoal we put in our baskets makes the distance between the hot coals and the cooking grate a variable.

So when I read someone that is concerned about their cooking grate only being 22" above the bottom of their coal basket I have to wonder... does it really matter?

Now sure you don't want the meat right on top of the coals but I highly doubt that it's going to matter one way or the other here.
Click to expand...

Amen, Moda253, It doesn't matter, Many think the dimensions are carved in stone. As for me, I just wanted 7" between my top and bottom grate. My charcoal basket has an adjustable bottom that I raise or lower depending on what I'm cooking. I can actually grill on my bottom grate if I need to.
 
+1 for the who cares about the "golden" 24 inches.

There is no scientific reason behind this from what I can tell. It seemed to work for one person and everyone else took it as gospel. The truth is if you can maintain the right temp at the grate you're good.
 
smokeyw said:
Thanks, I'll give them a call if I can't find something soon. I'm new here and have become intrigued with the UDS. It seems like the best of both worlds.
Click to expand...


WARNING !
Do not build a UDS because you will be hooked for the rest of your life :laugh:
 
just bought a new unlined drum for $20 as a second from a drum manufacturer, had a small dent but already hammered it out. i'm on my way... i could only find 1" galvanized washers to use as spacers on the air intakes. these washers will be on the outside of the drum. should this cause me any problems?
 
Last edited by a moderator:
deer slayer said:
just bought a new unlined drum for $20 as a second from a drum manufacturer, had a small dent but already hammered it out. i'm on my way... i could only find 1" galvanized washers to use as spacers on the air intakes. these washers will be on the outside of the drum. should this cause me any problems?
Click to expand...


What are the spacers for ?
 
The bolded part is the important part.

Southern Home Boy said:
It was an experiment. I met a guy at a comp. that had a double drum like this but had insulated it with rock wool. He said that he used only 4 or 5 lbs of lump for a 12 hour burn and that the insulation really helped to steady temps.

That particular comp we were turning in Brisket with Tornado sirens going off. He took home at least two calls out of that one (and a GC later in the year).

Since I had been fighting to get my ProQ temps up over 200 the entire night, I had pretty much had it with wind and rain temperature loss.

I built my first drum KISS method and it worked great, but I just couldn't shake that "I need one 'dem insulated drum thingies..." feeling. So when I was able to pick up a couple of free drums - one of which was an 85 gal. one - I couldn't resist.

I does hold temps better in inclement weather and I did a few other mods too that makes it my favorite cooker in my stable.[/QUOTE]
Click to expand...
 
i was going to use the flat washer over the outside of a close steel nipple with a conduit nut then screw the cap on
 
SkinnyVinny said:
I was told it was used for tomato paste, although there is a sticker outside that says something about toulene :confused:

Might just get it sandblasted for the heck of it.
Click to expand...

What did it smell like? Toluene is quite toxic, but it is also quite volatile and doesn't leave much residue.

http://www.jtbaker.com/msds/englishhtml/t3913.htm

Your choice, but an unlined barrel of automatic transmission fluid is virtually non toxic, and very safe after a burnout or two. Any large volume truck service center should have them for the asking.

Sterling
 
i've been thinking of using an aluminum fryer basket as a charcoal basket. would one with 11.25" diameter and 7" tall be a good consideration for $20 instead of using a grate and expanded metal to fabricate one?
 
deer slayer said:
i've been thinking of using an aluminum fryer basket as a charcoal basket. would one with 11.25" diameter and 7" tall be a good consideration for $20 instead of using a grate and expanded metal to fabricate one?
Click to expand...

I used one out of my 15 gallon pot today. Worked perfect with chunk charcoal.

I'm actually having trouble getting the temps down at this moment because of how my lid fitting. Fired it up with four 1" intakes open and both bungholes open. Hit and held at 400 degrees for half an hour. Removed the lid and soared above 550 above my thermometers reading ability.

Got it back down to 350 and grilled some chicken breasts. Little finnicky on temps still but came out tasty.

Right now I have one 1" intake open 1/8th of the way and I'm holding at 275 with just the little bung hole open. I'm going to mess with the lid this week to see about a better fit.
 
Okay, I have been bitten with the UDS sickness. I scored 4 drums today with removable lids. They were used to store food grade grease. I am anxious to get started! I will take some pics as I go.
 
Wait!!!

SkinnyVinny said:
I was told it was used for tomato paste, although there is a sticker outside that says something about toulene :confused:

Might just get it sandblasted for the heck of it.
Click to expand...


Sorry i did not post for a while. WAIT do not use!! Toulene is very harmfull. We use it to thin paint at work and if you do not use thick rubber gloves it will dry out your hands to almost white. I would suggest finding a food grade drum (with painted inside) and burn a couple of pallets in it.

Then wire wheel it clean and spray with Pam and season it a couple of times at 350`. That is what I did and have not looked back since.

Beware Toulene is a thinner, but stronger than your normal thinner you buy at HD.

Just my $.01
 
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