JONESY
is one Smokin' Farker
- Joined
- Apr 20, 2009
- Messages
- 773
- Reaction score
- 244
- Points
- 0
- Location
- Oakland twp / Houghton Lake, MI
Well I used my new 22.5 WSM the other night for a short cook, and loved the way it cooked, but had trouble keeping my coals in one nice pile. So it got me to thinking, what if I made a smaller fire ring to contain the coals better? I think I can get better fuel utilization on shorter cooks with a more compact coal bed. I figured I’d start with 50% volume and see where that gets me. So I bought some expanded metal and…..
Original 22.5 fire ring volume
V=∏r^2h
V=∏*8.5^2*4.75 = 1078.30in^3
Half V = 539.15in^3
So bla, bla, bla and a bunch of math, I come up with….
V=∏*5.35^2*6 = 539.59in^3 Close enough to half original V.
Since I’m using flat stock expanded metal I need to come up with a circumference that will determine diameter.
C=∏/d
C=∏/10.7 = 33.61in
I took my expanded metal and made cut 6” tall by 33.61” long(or close there to), that when rolled into a circle will give me a 10.7”dia x 6” tall fire ring, that is half the volume of the original 22.5WSM fire ring.
I’m going to give this a try tomorrow on a short cook and see how it works. I don’t have an accurate enough scale, so I guess I will count briquettes to determine how much fuel I used. I would love to hear from any WSM owners, and what you think. Thanks.
Original 22.5 fire ring volume
V=∏r^2h
V=∏*8.5^2*4.75 = 1078.30in^3
Half V = 539.15in^3
So bla, bla, bla and a bunch of math, I come up with….
V=∏*5.35^2*6 = 539.59in^3 Close enough to half original V.
Since I’m using flat stock expanded metal I need to come up with a circumference that will determine diameter.
C=∏/d
C=∏/10.7 = 33.61in
I took my expanded metal and made cut 6” tall by 33.61” long(or close there to), that when rolled into a circle will give me a 10.7”dia x 6” tall fire ring, that is half the volume of the original 22.5WSM fire ring.
I’m going to give this a try tomorrow on a short cook and see how it works. I don’t have an accurate enough scale, so I guess I will count briquettes to determine how much fuel I used. I would love to hear from any WSM owners, and what you think. Thanks.
Last edited: