Brinkmann Vertical help needed

He needs to make sure that his fuel is appropriately elevated (a good 3") in the charcoal bowl (assuming that's what he has). After doing that he should also consider more intake holes. I think I drilled 10+ holes in my old Brinkman vertical. Does the unit have an exhaust? - If not, that's another mod.

I have a newer one that is similar to that. It has five holes in the bottom, 4 large and 1 small.

1)[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]Block off all the holes in the bottom (I welded plates over mine) except one. Get a metal plate for the other hole and fashion a slide cover to control airflow.
2)[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]Weld up the side and bottom around the seams. They leak like a you know what.
3)[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]Throw away the little chimney cover and make a pipe with a sliding cover. If it is like mine there is a small nipple the current chimney cover slips onto. I was able to find a piece of pipe that fit snuggly on this.
4)[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]Throw away the fire bowl and make a basket out of expanded metal.
5)[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]Line the bottom with fire brick.
6)[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]And the hardest one for me. Get a gasket from a stove that looks like a figure 8 from the end. It will have a heat resistant coating with a heat resistant inside mesh to hold its shape. Attach this all the way around the door. I drilled holes about every 6 inches and used some bailing wire to hold it in place.
7)[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]Don’t trust the thermometer, use a probe inside.

I will take some picks of mine for you tonight. Sorry I don’t have any now.

Brinkman Verticle Mods

1) Bottom holes sealed off with one adjustable. You can also see the part of one of the seams I welded up on the side.

2) Replacement charcoal basket. I made this out of expanded metal but it burned to fast so I inserted a sheet of steel around it on the inside.

3,4,5) Oven gasket attached to door.

6) Chimney mod

Good luck! Let me know if you have any questions.