1st big meat smoke, having trouble hitting temp of 270 F

[Gman74]

Here's the situation:

I've got a brand new DBS4 which is in my shed vented to the outside, therefore wind & external temp shouldn't play too much of a roll with the oven temp.

Here's a pic of my set-up -


I've got 11 pounds of ribs spread across the 4 racks.

I admit I forgot to pre-heat the smoker to the required temp of 270 F, however I have the temp maxed @ 320 F and the door kept shut and having a hard time hitting achieving the required temp of 270, it's holding around 240 F.

Why do you think this would be?  Too much meet in the smoker? or simply cause I didn't pre-heat it?

As I only ran the smoker for 80mins once that was done I closed the vent at the top hoping the temp would reach 270 but no.

Any thought or feedback is appreciated.

Here's the recipe I've got going right now for those who are interested -
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Sweet-Smoked-Pork-Ribs/Detail.aspx

Cheers,
G

[NePaSmoKer]

Here's the situation:

I've got a brand new DBS4 which is in my shed vented to the outside, therefore wind & external temp should play too much of a roll with the oven temp.

I've got 11 pounds of ribs spread across the 4 racks.

I admit I forgot to pre-heat the smoker to the required temp of 270 F, however I have the temp maxed @ 320 F and the door kept shut and having a hard time hitting achieving the required temp of 270, it's holding around 240 F.

Why do you think this would be?  Too much meet in the smoker? or simply cause I didn't pre-heat it?

As I only ran the smoker for 80mins once that was done I closed the vent at the top hoping the temp would reach 270 but no.

Any thought or feedback is appreciated.

Here's the recipe I've got going right now for those who are interested -
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Sweet-Smoked-Pork-Ribs/Detail.aspx

Cheers,
G

Caution

Never close the vent off. Doing so will result in smoke and moisture backing up into the smoke generator and may cause a short on the board. This will also cause moisture to drip from the door and down the inside back onto the element.

nepas

[Gman74]

Thx, just ran and checked the vent, I thought it was closed all the way but it wasn't. I know I thought about closing it completly but appears I decided against it and left it half open!

Temp is still holding @ 240F while oven temp is set for 320 F

Cheers,
G

[Wildcat]

There are a lot of recipes out there for smoking and the vast majority of them are designed for smokers other than the Bradley.  The Bradley does not "burn" wood.  It simply smolders wood bisquetes specifically designed for the Bradley.  Also the Bradley is designed to cook low and slow.  Cooking in the Bradley is a little different and there is a slight learning curve.  I would suggest that you take your recipes that you want to try and then do the cooking portion according to recipes that you find on this and the Recipes Site.  IMHO you should not need to go beyond 220 cabinet temp with your ribs.

[KyNola]

Gman,
I read your post several times to make sure what I thought I read is correct.  The only reason to preheat the smoker to 270 is to compensate for the heat loss you encounter when you open the door and put 11 pounds of cold ribs in the smoker.  Your box temp of 240 in my opinion is too high for ribs. 200-225 is where my ribs smoke.  I'm fearful you may dry your ribs out.  Also, make sure that vent is adequately open.

You have a great set up!

KyNola

[Ka Honu]

Add me to the "that vent hose is probably too long to work without assistance" and "270^o preheat and 240^o box temp is too hot" crowd.

[Habanero Smoker]

Hi Gman74;

Welcome to the forum.

The next time you use your smoker, look around the area the generator attaches to the cabinet. If you see smoke backing out of the cabinet in that area, you have a vent problem. If no smoke is backing out, then your smoke may be venting correctly, but as UIP pointed out the moisture may not be escaping. The moisture could be condensing and dripping back down into the smoker.

Have you thought about venting it out the wall behind the smoker.

[bsheger]

I'm with Ka Huno.

[Gman74]

Thanks for all your input and suggestions everyone, despite my worries of my BDS4 not hitting temp of 270 F my inaugural big meat rib smoke turned out perfect   I think someone mentioned it above, it's goes to speak for how the Bradley smoker works, slow and low.

I'll hope to be doing some salmon or steelhead in the next few days therefore will keep you posted on temps; if I was able to hit the other temps of the temps of other recipes.  I know the next few recipes will  be from the Bradley book of recipes.

Here's a shot of ribs from last night -



Thanks.

Cheers G.