All I want for Christmas is a small smokehouse!

Hook_Line_and_Sinker · Nov 20, 2012

Having lusted over cowgirls smokehouse for more years than I care to count, and seeing all the cold smoking, bacon , sausage, and jerky making threads, you brethren have posted over those years ......

The time has come for me to declare a goal of putting together a small wooden smokehouse ... Well more like a smoke closet. Yes that's right I'm going into the closet....

The planning is very sketchy and in need of some of your assistance but here are my current thoughts....

A five foot tall vertical smoke box, reverse flow, with a food chamber that fits 6 full sheet pan cooling racks 26 x 18 @ 36 inches tall. Giving me @ a foot above and below the food chamber to introduce and exhaust smoke. And two 3 inch by 20 inch channels on each side of the food chamber to carry the reverse flow smoke.

Fire box thoughts are a small drum or an ammo box (20 cal) that would be piped to the smokehouse with corrugated alum pipe 3 or 4 inch

Ok now the question is what do I need to be aware of ?
Are there issues with using an ammo box?
What fire issues will I have with pine construction?
I'd like to use it as a dehydrator as well, what allowances do I need to keep in mind.

cowgirl · Nov 20, 2012

Sounds like a great plan. Looking forward to seeing what you build!

:grin:

captndan · Nov 20, 2012

Stay away from any conifer wood. That sap really tastes nasty and when you heat it the sap starts to flow.

buccaneer · Nov 20, 2012

Make sure the ammo box is completely empty

gtr · Nov 20, 2012

Are you gonna have a way of mounting rods for the stuff you wanna hang rather than put on pans/racks?

I am seriously looking forward to your build - I've been wanting one of those myself! :clap2:

1FUNVET · Nov 20, 2012

buccaneer said:
Make sure the ammo box is completely empty

Some ammo in it could make things interesting:loco:

Hook_Line_and_Sinker · Nov 20, 2012

1FUNVET said:
Some ammo in it could make things interesting:loco:

The boxes seem empty, well no ammo in them but I can still smell the gunpowder! Is that bad? I was thinking a burn out would be fun and get rid of any nasties.

Hook_Line_and_Sinker · Nov 20, 2012

gtr said:
Are you gonna have a way of mounting rods for the stuff you wanna hang rather than put on pans/racks?

I am seriously looking forward to your build - I've been wanting one of those myself! :clap2:

I was going to use cowgirls drilled and ripped 2x4 method, after all it seems the perfect way to to accomplish the task.

Hook_Line_and_Sinker · Nov 20, 2012

captndan said:
Stay away from any conifer wood. That sap really tastes nasty and when you heat it the sap starts to flow.

I was hoping to get away with tongue and groove or ship lap clear white pine...
I've gotten it from this lumber yard before as the exposed side under my patio roof and 3 years in much heat, there is no sap. But I will be picky again when getting this lumber. The structural wood I was planning on using would be kiln dried 2x3s since they are generally nicer than any 2x4s I've seen, and cheaper too.

Will this conifer wood work well enough? I really can't think of doing this in hardwood, as it would definitely break the budget for this. I'm thinking in the $200 - $250 range complete.

I do intend to do only cold smoking and dehydrating in this box so I don't expect temperatures to ever exceed @200

since I haven't really cold smoked, please correct me on temps or other considerations

martyleach · Nov 20, 2012

When you say ammo box, are you talking military? If so, they do have a greenish finish on them that will definitely need to be burned off. I bagged a couple of them on the way back from 'Nam and have used them for all sorts of stuff.... but not a firebox!

Hook_Line_and_Sinker · Nov 21, 2012

martyleach said:
When you say ammo box, are you talking military? If so, they do have a greenish finish on them that will definitely need to be burned off. I bagged a couple of them on the way back from 'Nam and have used them for all sorts of stuff.... but not a firebox!

Yep one of those, a local surplus store has them for $20
I figure I'd build it upside down, with the lid as the bottom, a couple of rebar legs to keep it off the ground a few inches. An expanded metal charcoal basket ( will 1/2 inch expanded hold pellets ?). A 3/4 valve on one end with a 3 inch collar on the other end for the exhaust. It has a rubber gasket on the lid and I figure if I keep the basket 3 inches above it, I may be able to preserve the air tight seal of it.

Skidder · Nov 21, 2012

Why not just copy the one Jeanie has only smaller? Why mess with what obviously works?

captndan · Nov 21, 2012

White pine has less rosin than the others. The T&G will probable be OK. Since you're in CA have you looked at redwood?

Brauma · Nov 21, 2012

Sounds like a great project. Please take pics!

Hook_Line_and_Sinker · Nov 21, 2012

Skidder said:
Why not just copy the one Jeanie has only smaller? Why mess with what obviously works?

That's pretty much the plan, except I don't have the room to have it stationary over a block foundation. So it's going on wheels and mobile.

Cowgirl has become the Internet authority on smokehouses! Her smoke house is quoted and referred to all over the Internet.

neuyawk · Nov 21, 2012

Hook_Line_and_Sinker said:
The boxes seem empty, well no ammo in them but I can still smell the gunpowder! Is that bad? I was thinking a burn out would be fun and get rid of any nasties.

Please do film this

op2:

Hook_Line_and_Sinker · Nov 21, 2012

neuyawk said:
Please do film this op2:op2:

I guess you're right, I should be supervised and filmed for this sort of activity

Hook_Line_and_Sinker · Nov 24, 2012

Ok here is some planing for this build

Food chamber
@ 27" wide x 20" deep x 36" tall

ImageUploadedByTapatalk HD1353783473.894647.jpg

Smokehouse showing food chamber
@ 36" x20" x 60"
Smoke guide blocks in red

ImageUploadedByTapatalk HD1353783499.348172.jpg

Smoke flow in blue

ImageUploadedByTapatalk HD1353783528.016357.jpg

Ammo can fire pit / smoke generator

ImageUploadedByTapatalk HD1353783555.419646.jpg

Does this seem like it should work?
Ideas, comments, and critic, welcome.

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

mallorjc · Nov 24, 2012

Thanks, HL&S - I now have 2 reasons to live! 1) bookmark and watch this thread/your progress, and 2) what a great idea. I bookmarked Cowgirl long ago, for the same reason, and (WTF) it never occurred to me to do the same.

Does anyone think that interior (not structural) paneling (cedar?) would make any difference?
Where's the thermodynemic engineers? Seems the flow should work, once you start a draft, & I like it because, again, I never thought of it! A+, bro.

Wesman61 · Nov 25, 2012

I love this site. I was thinking about how cool it wood be to have a smokehouse in my yard so I searched it on here. I don't know much about cold smoking. I was just thinking about regular low & slow but Cowgirl's smokehouse is something I will pursue when the time comes. Now I need to get educated about cold smoking. Cowgirl for President!

All I want for Christmas is a small smokehouse!

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