Hi everyone, about 3 weeks ago I was given a 6 rack digital by a friend that a friend had given to him because they said it didn't work. I cleaned it all up and got it to work so I ordered some biscuits and fired it up. Last week I attempted to smoke some ribs and they turned out just barely ok. I had a lot of trouble with getting it up to heat. After reading quite a few posts here I think I'm going to just go ahead and add a second element, get a PID and maybe add a fan. I read somewhere here where they added a fan and said it was around 32 cfm into a 4 rack system. How big of fan would I need to even out the temperature in my 6 rack. I'm looking forward to this experience, I've been wanting a smoker for a long time and now it's time to play
May I suggest that before you go to the added time and expense of a second element, PID and fan that first you find out if your unit works satisfactorily "as is".
Hi KyNola, I'm pretty sure that I want to go to a second element and from what I've read that means I have to have a PID also. When I used the unit last sunday I put in hot water and a couple of bricks like some have suggested but about 3 hours into my smoking it started to rain and my temps dropped off fast. When it was working good just before that I did hit 220 degrees but it took 3 hours to get there. I never got over 116 degrees after that according to the digital read out. I still have to get a good temp probe
Hi Dave,
When I added a second element and a PID controller it was like night and day compared to before. It sounds like this 6 rack isn't a new unit so modifying it wouldn't void any warranty or anything.
You can save some money on the PID if you like to tinker. The PID I installed in the pic below was around $45 from Auber Instruments. With adding a SSR, temp probe and a few odds and ends to make it all work the total cost was still around $70-$80. There are how-to articles that describe in detail how to do all this if you're interested.
(http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b355/roadijeff/Food/IMG_0594_zpsfd6577ea.jpg)
Hi Dave,
Welcome aboard, look around, get some information and experience at smoking under your belt before doing any mod, a few things to remember
1) smokers like the bradley are like a crock pot... low and slow... the more of a load the lower temp you will have until the meat starts getting close to being done
2) keep your top vent wide open at all times.. moisture in the cabinet will keep the temps down
3) be aware of ambient conditions, cooler temps, 30's compared to 70s winds, 3 mph compared to 30 mph, all will suck the heat out of the cabinet.
4) be prepared to have long smokes / cooks.. up to 24 hours in some cases
5) realize we cook by temp of the meat rather then by time... some cuts of meat take longer even if it both are a pork shoulder or beef roast.
6) start off with no more then 2 hours of smoke and adjust from there ...no more then 4 hours of smoke in a box of 225 f or higher.. it has been reported that meat stops accepting smoke flavour at around 140 f
enjoy and ask questions,.,, we are here to help
Hi dave01;
Welcome to the forum.
Since the smoker was free, and if you have the money, as TedEBear stated the mode really improves the performance. With the second element you will find your recovery times much faster which will reduce your overall cooking times; and if you don't want to, you don't have to use all the techniques of trying to improve the cabinet temperature. The 1000 watts and PID combination can easily handle acute drops in the ambient temperature, and also do a good job maintain temperatures in somewhat windy conditions.
Here is a link to some helpful tips:
Bradley FAQ's (http://www.susanminor.org/forums/showthread.php?481-Bradley-Smoker-FAQ-s&p=748#post748)