Ugly Drum Smoker

akarpf said:
Ok, i got my hands on two food-grade drums(54gals) saturday.
I'm looking for alot of help.

# of air intake & size
# of holes on the lid for exhaust?
What size grate do i need to fit in the drum?
How far does the grate need to be from the fire basket?

I measured the drum and the i.d. Is 21 15/16 inches & 34 inches high. Where do i need to put the thermometer?

Do i need a water pan?
Click to expand...

Start at the top of the thread and everything you will need to know is in here. Trust us it's something that needs to be done to help understand why the UDS works the way it does.

Best of luck and take plenty of pictures or everything you have a question about.
 
Awesome!!!

Read all the pages and decided I need one of these UDS. Went through my first build and did a "seasoning" fire last week. Yesterday I did 2 whole chickens then filled in the rack with wings. The result was wonderful. What impressed me was the ease of temp. control. This is going to be nothing but fun to work with. Thanks to everyone who posted ideas and advice on the build. This forum is great!
 
akarpf said:
Ok, i got my hands on two food-grade drums(54gals) saturday. I'm looking for alot of help. # of air intake & size , # of holes on the lid for exhaust? What size grate do i need to fit in the drum? How far does the grate need to be from the fire basket? I measured the drum and the i.d. Is 21 15/16 inches & 34 inches high. Where do i need to put the thermometer? Do i need a water pan?
Click to expand...

You got some reading to do.

No shortcuts here. :roll:
 
I just wanted to post that today I cut into a 55-gallon drum to make a cooking rack soaker out of one end, and I measured the wall thickness as 19 gauge steel. That's .042" thick. This is handy info for anyone planning to weld to this material. I don't know if all drums are made from the same gauge sheet, however.

seattlepitboss
 
seattlepitboss said:
I just wanted to post that today I cut into a 55-gallon drum to make a cooking rack soaker out of one end, and I measured the wall thickness as 19 gauge steel. That's .042" thick. This is handy info for anyone planning to weld to this material. I don't know if all drums are made from the same gauge sheet, however.
Click to expand...

After a little more research, I have found out that drums come in 19, 18 or 16 gauge steel. The 16 ga. has nearly 50% more steel than the 19 ga. drum. Maybe that's why some drums hold temp better than others?

seattlepitboss
 
Good thinking!!!
It all depends on the manufacturer.
Same goes for the diameter of the top lip,
they can vary by as much as 3/8".
That is why I say, get your lid first!
Take it with ya when you go to purchase a drum.

Weiser


seattlepitboss said:
After a little more research, I have found out that drums come in 19, 18 or 16 gauge steel. The 16 ga. has nearly 50% more steel than the 19 ga. drum. Maybe that's why some drums hold temp better than others?

seattlepitboss
Click to expand...
 
DOT drums have a code on them that denotes thickness and style of end attachment. It tells someone in the know what is allowed in them.


UN1A2/Y425/S; UN1A2/Y1.2/100
 
Norcoredneck said:
DOT drums have a code on them that denotes thickness and style of end attachment. It tells someone in the know what is allowed in them.


UN1A2/Y425/S; UN1A2/Y1.2/100
Click to expand...


The drum I have has the codes stamped in it.
Is there somewhere to find a decoding chart???
 
OK. I get sum parts today to build my UDS. I have been reading the threads and i've seen a few people who have the air intake 1" thur 3" off the bottom of the drum. My charcoal basket is 12" high and I do not want the cooking grate right on top of the coals. So may drum has a flat top. How far down should the cooking grate be form the top?

P.S. I take sum pics. go to http://s606.photobucket.com/albums/tt149/akarpf/
 
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