Been smokin' on my WSM for a bunch of years now but lately I've been more interested in trying something with better control and lower temps. Especially for cold smokin'. I set up the Bradley and seasoned it like the directions said. Very nice unit, very impressed.
I've seen some pictures here for a cold smoke set up using cardboard boxes, plastic containers and such. I wanted to build something a little more permanent. What do you think about using oak plywood to build a stand and cold smoke box? Any problems with bacteria from using wood?
This forum is great. I appreciate all of you taking the time to keep it going with helpful tips.
-Brian
I can't help with your concerns, but welcome to the forum, and happy to hear you like your new purchase. Somebody will be along soon to help ya.
Welcome to the forum! I am not an expert in this matter, but I do not see how bacteria could ever be a problem unless the box got too wet and started rotting or something. Even then, I doubt you would get any germs since the wood would not be touching the food and smoke inhibits germ growth, but the taste might be kind of bad. I would imagine that if you keep it dry it would work fine. I am sure the more knowledgable folks will chime in later.
If I am not mistaken, there are a lot of smoke houses made from wood so I wouldn't think it a problem either. I use the cardboard box and it works great. Still using the same box for about 6 months now. Probably have 10 cold smokes on it and it is just like new (except for the amazing aroma :D).
Hi and welcome Stickbowcrafter, i also do quite a lot of cold smoking, and i've been thinking about a more permanent chamber, but the cardboard box set up is so cheap and easy, i don't know if it's worth upgrading?.
As regards for using wood, i can't see that being a problem, even the cardboard started out life as wood so i would think it'll be fine, i thought maybe give the wood a few coats of varnish or lacquer to seal it and help keep it clean.
I think the best idea would be to find a suitable sized allu tool box or similar, just cut the holes etc, and it's ready to go, and should last a lifetime.
Anyway let us know if you make something up ;)
LilSmoker(http://www.emotipad.com/newemoticons/Tip-Hat.gif)
Hi SBC
Over on this side of the pond I sold a BS to a very switched on lady who like you wanted somthing more solid than the cardboard box type configuration.
She went to her local scrap heap and crafted a box out of two old microwave oven casings (each one had vents in so she needed two). Unfortunatly she has not sent me any pictures yet, but as soon as she does I will pst them for you to have a look at.
It does make you wonder why when there seems to be a demand for this type of product why Bradley do not craft one for sale?
cheers WW
I'm planning on building a more permanent set up for cold smoking. I also am planning on using a plywood with a veneer coating; either birch or red oak. Mildew and mold does grow on wood, but smoke is an antimicrobial. Though smoke has antimicrobial properties, with the moisture produced during the smoke (from the bisquettes and water pan), the box being small, dark and closed most of the time with little air circulation; I still have some small concerns. I was planning on using a shellac or mineral oil to coat the inside of the box so I can easily wash and disinfect the walls periodically. I'm leaning more towards mineral oil, because I'm not sure if the shellac will stand up to the heat. Both shellac and mineral oil, are safe for incidental food contact. If the manufacturer has not added any other chemicals during production.
Click on the "smoking" link on this page and see how Len Poli uses his Bradley for cold smoking. I've never seen a set up like this before but it is interesting if you want to use wood not in a puck form.
http://lpoli.50webs.com/Tips.htm (http://lpoli.50webs.com/Tips.htm)
Tom
Like others I just stick to a cardboard box for cold smoking, to date each one has lasted about a year then it is replaced with a new model!! ;)
Any material such as plastic, plywood, metal etc would do IMHO as long as the gap between the puck heater plate and the material in question is sufficient enough to stop it burning (wood) / melting (plastic) / getting too hot (metal).
I think it was our now departed friend Tom G who had a good cold smoking set up utilising a plastic container?
I have never had a problem with the cardboard igniting so there is no reason to believe there would be problems in this area with other materials.
There is insufficient heat to affect the glue in the plywood or affect any glue or nails used in construction so it would remain inert.
Yes it may grow a bit of mold / mildew over time but this would be harmless in that it is not likely to be transferred to the food. Can''t see that there would be any problems with bacteria using plywood, all traditional smokehouses are wooden in any case and they NEVER get cleaned or disinfected.
My biggest concern would be treating the wood or knowing what the plywood had been treated with prior to construction because some such treatments continue to give off fumes for a good while after application....... HS's idea of a food safe mineral oil may be best if deciding to treat the wood.
Having said all this, if I was going down this road I would probably use a natural hardwood such as oak rather than a "man made" product such as plywood. Either that or follow up on the old microwave, small fridge, plastic canister idea.
Thanks everyone. I got the materials today and I'll post my set up once completed.
-Brian
3rensho
Thanks for posting that site! There's some great lookin' recipes there! Lots of sausage recipes.
Mike
Tom;
Thanks for the post. I saw a similar setup so that the person could use other woods to smoke with, while using the BS. A while back a member wanted to add a charcoal flavor, this look to be the ideal way to do this.
Building with plywood is alright and that is what I am going to make mine out of, but for me I'll still take the precautions of applying the mineral oil, and building it in a way to disinfect periodically. By disinfect, I mean using a water bleach solution and spraying the inside walls. Until I get it built I will continue to use the cardboard box.
OK, here's my first attempt at building a combo cold smoke box/stand for the Bradley. I have not tested it yet as it was just pouring down rain. I may not have enough length of pipe to dissipate the heat from the generator below. I'll let you know how it works out. I'm hoping the important thing is having the smoke generator outside of the Bradley. -Brian
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v85/halbleib/smoker.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v85/halbleib/smoker2.jpg)
I designed the stand to be just close enough for the power cord to reach from the generator to the Bradley. Probably won't be necessary for cold smoke but maybe when ambient temps are down in the winter. -Brian
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v85/halbleib/smoker3.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v85/halbleib/smoker4.jpg)
Might be better off removing the divider to help dissipate the heat. Looks like the rain stopped. We'll give it a test and see what the heat does. -Brian
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v85/halbleib/smoker5.jpg)
Now that I'm looking at the pictures, may be better off moving the generator to the other side of the box, like an offset. We'll see what the test run does first. -Brian
STC,
Very nice. I would actually use the other half to store my booze.... :D
Arcs_n_Sparks
Smoked Spirits ;D
Pretty impessive after the first hour. Plywood is cool to the touch all around. Smoke is pouring out of the top vent. Seems to be holding 75 F/25 C with an outside temp of 55 F/13 C. Will have to do more tests in higher temps during the day. But at least I know it will work with night temps here in Pennsylvania, usually when I have the time to do this.
This was a very easy build with only a half sheet of plywood, wood glue and some small nails. If it keeps working this well, may have to add a black "Bradley" finish to the outside to match ;D
I have some fresh feral pig parts in the fridge ready for the grinder. Hopefully will get to it this weekend. I will keep you posted. Thanks for all the help and input.
-Brian
Another hour and still holding the same temps. Plywood is still cool to the touch. This setup works nicely. I'll report back after the first food smoking session.
-Brian
Wow! That is almost as big as the cabinet I'm building for my BS. :)
Nice work. It serves two funtions.
Nice work Stickbowcrafter. ;)
Nicely done! (http://www.smileypad.com/v224/Happy/Big-Thumbs-Up.gif)
Stickbowcrafte
It's interesting that with the short run of metal pipe it is still able to disapate that much heat and maintain 75 degrees. I've been trying to decide what I'm going to build for my setup. I have mine in my heated garage with a range hood over it and I wanted to build a metal box for the generator and pipe the smoke to the box on a permanent basis. I felt the metal would disapate the heat a little more but your testing with plywood is very interesting. In the garage I don't have the wind to contend with so I have no problem maintaining temps with just the main heating element. I still like the idea of metal from a safety standpoint but it's very interesting that the wood box is not hot/warm. Keep us up to date on your setup.
Mike
Forgot to post some pics of the first run with my new Bradley. I like it a lot, very easy to maintain consistent, low temps. Here's some feral pork sausage with pepperoni type seasonings. Each fibrous casing is 1 1/2 inch X 12 inches. Cold smoked for 8 hours then slowly increased temp to 165 degrees to kill any of the bad stuff. Turned out real tasty. Not sure what is on the menu next but I'm looking forward to it.
-Brian
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v85/halbleib/pep.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v85/halbleib/pep-1.jpg)
Now that's smokin' on the wild side...........Oooooo Yea ! 8)
Nice work ! ,
Coyote
Sticks, those look awesome. Currious, did you find that 8 hours of smoke was too much smoke flavor? The most folks usually go is 4 hours so I had to ask that and I have yet to do sausage. :-\
Four is the most I've ever gone Gizmo , but I've done only venison summer sausage so far. That gave
plenty of smoke (hickory) flavor for me...............Coyote
Coyote,
Were you hot or cold smoking?
Thanks! The flavor was wonderful, attested by family and friends as well. Not one complaint of too heavy a smoke flavor. I thought it was just about right myself. I used hickory pucks and cold smoked so it seemed to take forever to get the internal temp over 140 F/60 C. Afterwards, I gave them a cold water bath until the internal temp dropped to around 100 F/38 C and hung them in the cool basement for about an hour or so to bloom.
Cold smoking for 6-8 hours is not uncommon in a lot of cured sausage recipes that I have.
-Brian
Thanks for the site. Great information on it.
Were all here to help.In all our owe ways.lOTS OF GOOD INFO here.And sauce see ice for that lol.Dont hesitate to ask someone here will help pretty quick.Thats just the kind of family this is.
(http://www.smileypad.com/v224/Happy/Crowd-Grin.gif)
Wow! My BS has not looked that shiney in a long time!
Stickbowcrafter,
Is that an emulsified sausage or just very fine grind? Also, did you use inedible casings then peel back?
Arcs_n_Sparks
Yep, it doesn't take long to lose that shine. The interior is very amber looking already, only after one long smoke.
Not emulsified, just double ground fine and mix throughly by hand. Non-edible fibrous casings. Cut a chunk off, peel and eat.
-Brian
Giz , I start smoking right off the bat. And since it's late Nov.thru Dec. it's cold. I start the smoke and
set the heat when I load the BS. Takes 3-4 hours to really get the heat rollin'. So I'd say 75% cold smoke.
Coyote
Quote from: Stickbowcrafter on May 16, 2007, 03:02:15 PM
OK, here's my first attempt at building a combo cold smoke box/stand for the Bradley. I have not tested it yet as it was just pouring down rain. I may not have enough length of pipe to dissipate the heat from the generator below. I'll let you know how it works out. I'm hoping the important thing is having the smoke generator outside of the Bradley.
Hi Brian/Everybody!
I have just got a BDS and have read various postings on how to set up an external smoke box to cold smoke...
In particular, I liked Brian's setup with a combined stand smoke box...but I could not find a posting on how it went...??
Questions:
- Is the real issue just getting the burner outside of the smoke tower?
- or do you need a longer vent pipe to keep it cool...? (eg 2-3m)
I am going to build something soon...and would appreciate any thoughts on this...
Cheers
Mark
Welcome to the forum. Although I am not the expert in cold smoking, based on what I have done and the postings of others on this forum that are experts, I would say that getting the generator out of the smoker is the primary objective for ease of cold smoking. You can cold smoke (to a point) as the BS is set up but if you take the heat out of the box, then it is easier. Obviously, the longer the vent pipe, the cooler the smoke will be, but if it is too far away you may run into problems like not enough draft. Generally speaking, the smoke is not really that hot, it is the burner plate that has enough heat to raise the box temp. Therefore, just getting the plate out of the box is all that is really needed IMHO.
Hi and welcome MarkW(UK)
I do a fair bit of cold smoking, and i use the cardboard box chamber, and alluminum ducting method, it works a treat!
Here's some info shown with plastic ducting:
http://www.johnwatkins.co.uk/personalpages/coldsmoking.htm
I was going to build a more permanent chamber, but the cardboard box lasts a fair while, so i'm happy with it.
I always try and stay below 80F for cold smoking, even if it means a bowl of ice in the bottom of the cabinet
LilSmoker (http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s62/Gitster59/Tip-Hat.gif)
Thanks Mark. I've cold smoked with my set up over a dozen times now and I still love it. Part of the reason it ended up the way it did because I had to take into account keeping the tower close enough to the generator so I could still plug them into each other. There are times in the winter when I will NEED heat from the tower heating element to get the temperature up into the 80s to cold smoke. I also installed a digital temperature switch to help regulate the temps better as well. Of course you could always cut and splice the cord if need be.
The box itself is simple to build and dissipates the heat well enough even to cold smoke in the summer time. I just cold smoked some almonds at 85 degrees when the ambient air temp was in the 80s. Plus by having the smoke generator below the tower, the warmer air naturally rises through the pipe and into the smoker, taking the smoke with it. Never had a drafting problem, smoke bellows out of the top vent during cold smoking.
I don't know if you looked at al the pictures on this thread but there are a lot. They should be pretty easy to follow. If you need measurements, I could get you some. Good luck!
-Brian
I built a box similar to Stickbowcrafter's after looking at his posts here. While the cord wont reach on my version I really was not concerned with that. I cold smoked some malt to make beer with at 65F on wednesday while brewing beer at the same time. ;D
(http://photos.eibner.dk/2007/08-26/08-26/.cache/640x480-IMG_1732.jpg)
Nice job Thomas!
-Brian
Didn't catch the picture till just now. Very clean set up ThomasMN.
Very neat job ThomasMN.
Also welcome to the forum to both you and MarkW(UK) :)
A few folks have contacted me about the dimensions of my cold smoke plywood box. I basically wanted to get a complete box out of a half sheet of plywood for economical reasons and have enough room on top for the Bradley and enough space for a pipe elbow. My box finished out around 31-1/2 inches long by 16-1/2 inches wide by 16-1/2 inches deep. I cut 3 pieces around 30-1/2 X 16 inches and 3 pieces around 16 X 16 inches and glued and nailed them together.
-Brian
Hey Brian,
Do you think this would work with pressboard as well or do you think that since the wood is glued together that the composition of the pressboard and smoke would do funky things? I've got a sheet of pressboard that doesn't have a use right now and can't think of anything better to do with it other than a cold smoke box.
Thanks!
Marc
Smoking Duck,
Pressboard has less strength then plywood, with more exposed glue holding things together.
Arcs_n_Sparks
Thanks Arcs! I'll probably run to Lowes and pick up a sheet of plywood and give myself a little project to get me out of the house and into the garage!
Hmm, not sure. I suppose you could use the particle board and maybe line the smoke chamber with foil or something. Can't say for sure, but the interior grade plywood has worked well for me. I'm hoping to pick up some water based black dyes one of these days just to match the box with the smoker. OCD on my OSB, LOL!
-Brian
Stickbowcrafter,
You were saying you get plenty of smoke flowing through the box. Do you use that same set up with heat? I am trying to design a permanent storage area for mine. I would like to have one set up that I could cold or hot smoke. Your plywood construction looks like you could hot smoke just as easy. That would be perfect if I could get your setup contained in a storage cabinet outside. It would make using the Bradley a lot more handy!! Thanks for all the pics earlier in the thread.
I put the generator back on the unit when hot smoking. I suppose the cabinet heating element could get it hot enough to hot smoke even in the cold smoke set up. Not sure though. Glad the pics helped.
-Brian
There have been many smokes where I needed the extra heat that the smoke generator provides; especially at the beginning when you have loaded the meat and lost most of your cabinet heat during loading. I would set it up so that you can hook up the smoke generator to the cabinet when you need it.
Hi Stickbowcrafter my friend just want to take the time to personnaly thank you for your cold smoke setup prototype and also to apologies cause i stole (took) your idea to build mine im a guy in wheel chair and your idea was from far the BEST!! and i really mean it man! easyer to move and to place the smoker on at the same time. Of course i had to adapted it for my handicap but i did. So thank you Stickbowcrafter as soon as i find how ill post couple of pic. Do you know how? just to show you how i did. It looks really great. Sorry for stealing your idea man. Hope youre not mad at me for it.
FRANK (toker)
thx it helped me to build mine easiest set up for a guy in wheelchair like me. The only difference that i made , i put 4 wheels under so i can move it easily and a little stand for the smoke generator to be at the same height cause of the 4 wheels. thx again for the idea set up. ;)
toker...he won't be mad at ya...trust me!! Quite flattered I would assume!! :)
LQ, you got your cold smoke set up, right? :P ;D
Just funnin ya. ;D ;D
Pens...you just keep pushin the envelope don't ya!!! I'll be all set up when you are under snow...sleet...rain...and muck...I'll be styin out here in the beautiful desert...cool...yet not cold...smoked cheese...here I come!!! ;D
Quote from: La Quinta on September 11, 2008, 11:45:44 PM
Pens...you just keep pushin the envelope don't ya!!!
If no one pushes the envelope, the mail stops.
:D
Sorry, been forever since I visited. Of course anyone is welcome to use my idea and plans. That's what this place is all about. I was able to make a smooth transition to smoking with a Bradley with a real short learning curve thanks to all the generosity here. Glad to see Bradley is keeping such deep archives.
-Brian
Brian
Great to see you kicking around the forum again!
How have ya been keeping anyway?
Mike
Hi Mike. Life is fantastic. The good Lord continues to bless me and my family well beyond our expectations. My only complaint is that time flies and the girls are growing up too fast. Other than that I'm still building bows on occasion, hunting and fishing as much as possible for a married fella with kids and a full time job, still trying to wear out my Bradley and just enjoying life in general. Looks like I missed a lot of good stuff around here and I'm looking forward to catching up. I hope all has been well with you and yours.
-Brian
Brian, great to see you back man. You taught me lots when I first started on this forum. I have passed your knowledge on to several folks. You've been gone way too long.
Quote from: Stickbowcrafter on November 01, 2011, 08:19:31 AM
Hi Mike. Life is fantastic. The good Lord continues to bless me and my family well beyond our expectations. My only complaint is that time flies and the girls are growing up too fast. Other than that I'm still building bows on occasion, hunting and fishing as much as possible for a married fella with kids and a full time job, still trying to wear out my Bradley and just enjoying life in general. Looks like I missed a lot of good stuff around here and I'm looking forward to catching up. I hope all has been well with you and yours.
-Brian
Great to hear Brian
Things have been great here too. Been a crazy busy year for sure but all is good. I'm officially a Grampa now to top it off! Ya gotta love that! ;) My son is getting married this winter in Mexico over New Years so there is 60 of us heading there. Should be a blast.
I didn't get out fishing this year as much as I usually do but what do you do. Family first, unfortunately work has to come second, followed closely by fishing! :D
Great to see ya back Brian!
Mike
Hello KyNola! Man it's great to see some of the old gang still hanging around. Ya, this forum helped me apply my limited smoking knowledge to a Bradley smoker and I'm way ahead of the game thanks to all the generous folks I met here. I'm glad I was able to give a little back.
Congrats Mike! Man that is big news Grampa! How cool is that. Have fun in Mexico, try to do some fishing down there.
-Brian
Hi Brian,
Good to see you posting again.
I've got a question for the more experienced smokers. I have a stainless steel insulated beer tub that I no longer use at my business. It has racks in it already and holds ice below. It also has a lock down lid of stainless steel that is airtight. I am thinking of using this with a smoke pistol as a cold smoker. My vision is to fill the bottom with ice to keep temperatures down. Is there a minimum temperature at which you can smoke cheese or can I keep my cold smoker well chilled with the ice?