Does size of smoker matter?

T

tractoman

Got Wood.
Joined
May 3, 2016
Location
Sonoma, CA
Is it feasible to cook for 4-6 people in a smoker that could handle up to 50-60 people. As long as the fire is right and the temp is good is there any reason not to have too big of a smoker? I have some buddies with a deli and they have a nice size smoker (not sure what type) but I want to be sure I am first in line if they plan to replace or get rid of it. Not sure they use it a lot and want to be sure it would not be too big for our family of 4 or if it is just too large for our use. If I had to guess the smoke box is probably 5 feet long and 24" diameter. Has maybe a 24" square firebox.
 
You never know

when you will want to cook for 30 or 40. I only have 4 and 3-half people (2 and under) at my house to cook for. Last weekend I cooked for 50 to take to a party. Several times a year, I cook for 20-30. If the fuel is too much different in use, then go for the big one as long as you have room and $$ and it is in good enough shape to last a while.
 
I think it only really matters on a stick burner that requires significantly more fuel. Insulated verticals IMO seem to be pretty much the same in fuel/effort no matter in size.

Go big
 
Sure you can cook 2 racks of ribs in a cooker that can hold 20...but I just don't see the point of having a cooker that large unless you're going to need that capacity on a regular basis. I had 30 people over for my daughters party this past weekend. I made about 30 pounds of port butt (raw weight) and 6 chickens. Was more than enough food, had a little of each leftover.....I have an 18" wsm and a weber kettle.....I didn't even use the kettle. Yes I put the butts on Friday night and let them cook overnight, pulled them around noon, and while they rested I hung the chickens and cooked them. Really wasn't stressed for capacity or time. I fall into the mentality of wanting a bigger cooker sometimes but then I realize how much food I can make on what I already have and I can't justify it. I may get a 26" kettle eventually, just because I want one and someday I may decide I really need more capacity at which point I may flirt with different cookers but I'd probably be best served by getting a second wsm. When I start thinking about the price, footprint and fuel useage of a large cooker it just doesn't make sense to me unless I were cooking big competitions or catering regularly....anyways that's my .02
 
A big pit will cook a small meal just fine. A lot better than the other way around.
The 3 challenges that come to mind are price, fuel, and transportation/storage. The first two are obvious: a bigger cooker usually costs more and uses more fuel. But how and where you plan to use it factors into the size too. If you want to park it on your porch or deck to make it convenient for quick evening meals or tending during the game, something with 15 inch wheels and a trailer hitch may not be ideal.
 
In Texas it does bby
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Ive heard it said that full cookers cook better, that there is more humidity in the cook chamber.

That's what ive heard but cant verify it.
 
The main problem I see is like with most things in life, the food to be cooked will inevitably expand to fill the space available.

It takes very little extra work to run a pit with eight briskets compared to one, so you put eight in there and fill a chest freezer full of vacuum sealed meat for winter. This is not the worst thing to deal with, but there are costs and benefits compared to cooking them one at a time.

The large pit takes extra fuel for hot smoking but not proportionally more.

For cold smoking, it doesn't take any more fuel and is easier to keep from over heating.
 
I like big smokers.. to Me 250 gallon is small and efficient enough to where it doesn't consume as much charcoal as lets say a Wsm I might burn an 8th of a bag.. And cook all day long feeding it sticks that I got for FREE. so I think if you put it in that prospective you see that 250 gallon that runs on free fuel instead of a wsm or kettle running on fuel you have to Pay for it gets more feasible to fire up the 250 gallon 8 times per bag of charcoal than to fire up that wsm with less than a 1/4 of the capacity burning just as much if not a little more.. this is my thinking on it. I like Big pits and I cannot lie
 
DownHomeQue said:
I like big smokers.. to Me 250 gallon is small and efficient enough to where it doesn't consume as much charcoal as lets say a Wsm I might burn an 8th of a bag.. And cook all day long feeding it sticks that I got for FREE. so I think if you put it in that prospective you see that 250 gallon that runs on free fuel instead of a wsm or kettle running on fuel you have to Pay for it gets more feasible to fire up the 250 gallon 8 times per bag of charcoal than to fire up that wsm with less than a 1/4 of the capacity burning just as much if not a little more.. this is my thinking on it. I like Big pits and I cannot lie
Click to expand...

I guess it all comes down to perspective...I've been heating my home for years with wood that I get for free...but I never considered it free heat when I factor in the time and energy I spend to split, stack and haul it and maintain my wood processing equipment Not to mention the yard space all that wood takes up lol
 
I don't use wood to heat my home.. I don't own much wood processing equipment and have plenty of space in my yard.. I own an Axe, and A Chainsaw.. Get most of my free wood from my neighbor who has an abundance of Hickory trees he wants cut down.. so I haul it about .25 miles lol And I don't mind putting sweat equity into what I want.. Hence me building a smoker instead of buying one
 
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