How big should a chimney be?

[Rugbynut]

Hi all

I am glad I found this forum. I am new to smoking and attempting to build myself a unit in the UK using a catering fridge a standard smoke generator in my shed. As such it would appear that I have no draw to suck the smoke in to the chamber much like a lot of other posts!! I was therefore considering attaching a small chimney to the outside. My worry is that I will create too much draw and just lose all of the smoke! I was contemplating a 4inch pipe and it will be about 2 foot long. Do you think this would be ok? Any help would be gratefully received and I must say some of the set ups I have seen here are amazing!!

Thank you

Rugbynut

[ArnieM]

Hi RN and welcome to the forum!

I don't think you'll have any problems with what you described.  Some members have put an inline fan in the stack to help move out the smoke and moisture.

[beefmann]

i would run a 4 inch vent , you  would want it larger then the  top vent of the Bradley, If you are venting from inside the  garage or Simular structure i would  take the vent pipe above the  roof  line to avoid any discolorations  to your  home and put a rain cap on the top to help  with weather conditions and keep birds out

[ArnieM]

Mine simply vents out of the garage door.  That's 6 inch material.

[Rugbynut]

Cheers guys. I will try the chimney with put the fan and see what happens.

Rugbynut

[RAF128]

Mine is a 4" vent too but here it gets too cold to vent it out the door and leave it open so I did this

[Jsouthco]

Hi RAF128,

That chimney attachment is exactly what I need to do here in the UK to vent my DBS4 out through the garage wall also. A few questions:
How have you connected it to the top of the smoker box?
How do you control the top vent (or do you just leave it half open or all the way open?
What have you attached on the outside to keep rain/birds out etc?

Many Thanks,
John.

[BuyLowSellHigh]

Here area a few links that may help you out.

http://www.wedlinydomowe.com/smokehouse-plans/smokehouse-draft

http://www.thesmokering.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=20871

http://www.thesmokering.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=30501&sid=a29bf5c03f1bcf71e728b9c42ebe6f49


An option to consider is to place an adjustable damper in the stack at the outlet - that would allow you the ability to control the draft.

[muebe]

Mine simply vents out of the garage door.  That's 6 inch material.

Arnie does you setup have a vent fan outside to help draw out the smoke? I would think it has a hard time drafting with the pipe going downward like that...

[RAF128]

Hi John.    I replied to your PM and will repeat it here for the benefit of others.   
When I bought the pipe I bought flange the same size as a pipe.   I used some sheet metal screws to fasten it to the top of the of the Bradley.    For the vent I just cut the flange with a narrow slot to allow for the movement to the vent handle.   
I don't vent it through the wall.   I vent it through a window.    I cut a piece of plywood to the right size and vented it through the plywood.    I removed the screen from the window and have the pipe stick through to the out side.   When not in use, I remove the plywood and close the window.

[ArnieM]

muebe - I didn't use a vent fan and had no problem. 

My one thought, that I never tried, was to wrap insulation on the top part of the pipe to reduce condensation.  It's amazing how much water collects at the bottom of the pipe.

I didn't bring the smoker in this winter (my bad, no room in the garage) and it's currently covered in snow.  >:(