Fabricated roof for offset smoker

SmoothBoarBBQ

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Hey All,

So I bought an offset smoker on a trailer a few months ago and its been sitting at my house under a tent. I've gone through 2 tents over the last ~6 months due to rain / wind and I'm ready to move to something more permanent. So I'm looking at having a roof built on onto my smoker so I won't have to worry about it anymore. I have almost ZERO fabrication / DIY skills so I am looking at hiring the job out to a local welder / fabricator. This forum seems to have a good amount of metal workers so I'm wondering if someone can take a look at the following pics and see if they can give me a ballpark figure of what the project should cost so I'm not going into it blind.

Here's what I have :
http://www.johnsonsmokers.com/wp-content/gallery/ultimate-chargrill-trl/ult-chargrill-trl-1-1.JPG

And here's kind of the idea of a roof I'm looking into :
http://www.johnsonsmokers.com/wp-content/gallery/large-14-ft-roof/large-14-ft-roof-1.jpg

For what it's worth, were I anywhere near Texas I would just take it back to Johnson Smokers and ask Chad to modify the trailer, but it's a 2400 mile round trip. haha

Thanks for any advice / comments / etc. Cheers all!
 
How long and wide is your trailer?
How tall do you want the verticals off the top of the frame?
 
You should get the fold down sides that raise when parked for extra shade.......
 
I would think a couple retractable umbrellas would be better then the metal roof structure in that on pic. A couple tubes could be welded on each end of your rig so they could be dropped in or out as needed and easy to transport and fold down when not in use . Plus the umbrellas could be positioned outbound so you would actually be out of the sun completely unlike the roof structure on that pic which is really only covering the Pit. That would be an inexpensive fix imo. My .02
 
Found this on google images . Not my pic!!!!!

I would personally weld longer tubes on the trailer to support the umbrellas better though. You could even get all fancy and get the umbrellas that articulate manually at the top so you could follow the sun through its arc and keep you out of the sun all day.
 

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Do you need the roof to protect you or the cooker?

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My estimate: about $1700- $1900

$935.00 in materials.

4" x 4" x 1/8" square tube: 61' x $12.00 ft: $732.00
10' 2" x 2" x 1/8" tube: 10' : $53.00
Corrugated aluminum roof: $100.00
Misc. Hardware: $50.00

Cut, Weld Labor: $600-$700?

DIY Paint: $100.00

*Will add about 390 lbs to the trailer

it could be a few hundred less if you use smaller tubing, 4" is overkill, but you said you wanted it like the one in the picture.
 
Last edited:
Check out this solution for temporary umbrella mounting without welding...been considering buying one for my Lang.

[ame]https://www.amazon.com/Railhookz-UPM2-Umbrella-Mount/dp/B002ZNED44[/ame]
 
pjtexas1 said:
Do you need the roof to protect you or the cooker?

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Click to expand...

Looking to protect the cooker. The air out here near the ocean is quite corrosive so I'd a permanent solution to protect the cooker everywhere I go. I cater with this cooker and it would be nice to not have to deal with tents everywhere I go because of the rain.
 
SmittyJonz said:
You should get the fold down sides that raise when parked for extra shade.......
Click to expand...

I'd love to but my budget isn't as swollen as I'd like it to be right now. haha Just had a pretty solid wind / rainstorm come through here over the last week or so and it destroyed my 2nd tent. I realize tents aren't really meant to be a permanent type solution, so I figured it's time to upgrade.

I have a nice little 10' x 10' tent for myself, but I want something more substantial and reliable for my cooker. It's what I use for my business and I want to take care of it as best as I can. I had a Yoder which rusted over (even with the cover) pretty aggressively within 6 months. So far my Johnson Smoker is doing much better and I'd like to keep it that way.
 
seems like you are in a no-win situation. if one rusted with a cover i don't see how a roof is going to stop that. i use a tarp on mine and i hate it but that's the best i can do until it cools down enough to start on a carport. even with a carport mine will still get wet when it rains sideways. i would love to build a garage but like you i am doing the best i can until i can do better. good luck on getting your baby out of the elements.
 
pjtexas1 said:
seems like you are in a no-win situation. if one rusted with a cover i don't see how a roof is going to stop that. i use a tarp on mine and i hate it but that's the best i can do until it cools down enough to start on a carport. even with a carport mine will still get wet when it rains sideways. i would love to build a garage but like you i am doing the best i can until i can do better. good luck on getting your baby out of the elements.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I certainly feel that way in a sense. Keeping it out of the rain is good though for when I'm cooking to keep the temps up. It does OK in a light rain or a quick burst, but when it starts pouring I just can't cook on it. Since this is my business I need to be able to cook on it all times, and that's why I ended up going with the tents. They have done OK but the wind has killed 2 of them and I'm sick of dealing with it. I was close to buying a metal carport, which would have worked fine, unless I'm away from my house cooking and then I'm back at square one again. So I figure put some money into it so it's not such a hassle. Just need to know a ballpark figure before I end up getting screwed which is why I posted.
 
[ame]https://youtu.be/PRpKdZNTF_g[/ame]

[ame]https://youtu.be/YOJyB5H99H8[/ame]
 
I bet with enough over hang you can add the "wings" later

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pjtexas1 said:
I bet with enough over hang you can add the "wings" later

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Click to expand...

Yup, if he decides to the top cover first, just need to let the fabricator know that in advance. Should be easy to add them later.
 
I thought about a roof but I'm thinking instead of umbrella mounts for use and a cover when not in use
 
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