Author Topic: Airflow  (Read 24084 times)

FunkedOut

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Re: Airflow
« Reply #30 on: July 04, 2015, 08:59:34 PM »
I hear what you're saying about the dripping at the rear hole, but it just doesn't happen.
Joe, in FL
Smoking It #3, Auber PID WSD-1500GPH, 23cfm of boost

Trip

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Re: Airflow
« Reply #31 on: July 05, 2015, 01:26:00 PM »
Has this effected the speed of your smokes?

FunkedOut

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Re: Airflow
« Reply #32 on: July 06, 2015, 01:47:03 AM »
negative
Joe, in FL
Smoking It #3, Auber PID WSD-1500GPH, 23cfm of boost

gmannel

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Re: Airflow
« Reply #33 on: July 17, 2015, 03:44:03 PM »
Updates on your mods - effects?
George - Seguin, TX
Brinkman Trailmaster LE horizontal w/ many mods
6/2015 - SI #3, ET-732 w/ extra meat probe, drain hole enlarged to 1/2"

FunkedOut

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Re: Airflow
« Reply #34 on: July 17, 2015, 05:13:30 PM »
I bit the bullet and bought an Auber; WSD-1500GPH.
Got the wall-mount probe installed.  I've done some tuning.
No airflow changes yet.

Made some skin-on, bone-in chicken breasts the other day that were real good, as expected.  Skin was rubber is my only complaint.
Cold chicken, cold smoker, set temp to 350F.
Just under 1 hour, chicken hit 165F but the smoker was only at 318F.
I've got more tuning to do.

The dampening of the PID certainly makes the box take longer to reach set temp to avoid overshoot.
Without PID control, just plugging the bypassed SI3 to power, it can reach 400F in 40 minutes.

Boneless pork chops going in the smoker in a few...
Joe, in FL
Smoking It #3, Auber PID WSD-1500GPH, 23cfm of boost

gmannel

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Re: Airflow
« Reply #35 on: July 17, 2015, 06:30:05 PM »
Keep posting! I enlarged drain hole to 1/2 " and can already tell a diff
George - Seguin, TX
Brinkman Trailmaster LE horizontal w/ many mods
6/2015 - SI #3, ET-732 w/ extra meat probe, drain hole enlarged to 1/2"

FunkedOut

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Re: Airflow
« Reply #36 on: July 27, 2015, 09:45:31 PM »
Not much to report other than having enlarged the air inlet port on my SI3 to 5/8" (drip hole still at 3/8").
Just did that today and have retuned the auber to match.
Those tune values are posted here for those interested:
http://smokinitforums.com/index.php?topic=1285.msg31112#msg31112

Now to smoke some meat and see how she does!

edit:  I also drilled a 1/2" hole in the bottom of the firebox directly above the rear air inlet port.  All of the holes in the firebox are real close to 1/2".  I'm trying to see if this helps even out the wood burning from front to rear without covering up the opening on the front of the firebox.
I'll post results as soon as I run out of BBQ!
« Last Edit: July 29, 2015, 12:07:27 AM by FunkedOut »
Joe, in FL
Smoking It #3, Auber PID WSD-1500GPH, 23cfm of boost

TmanEater

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Re: Airflow
« Reply #37 on: July 31, 2015, 09:42:21 PM »
Smokin Newbie starting Dec. 2014... Learning Lazy-Q As Fast as I can!
Smokin-It 2, HeaterMeter PID
Monitor my live smokes at http://bbq.tonylyne.com

Tony from Marion, IA

FunkedOut

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Re: Airflow
« Reply #38 on: August 02, 2015, 10:30:59 PM »
Tman, I know your pain.  If only there was a forum where we could learn from each other's experiences.   ::)
Actually looks like I was erring as you were feeling the effects of your errors.
At least we put it out there for others to read.

Chickens came home with me today.  They will be going in the smoker this week.  I'll post up the results...
Joe, in FL
Smoking It #3, Auber PID WSD-1500GPH, 23cfm of boost

FunkedOut

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Update
« Reply #39 on: August 04, 2015, 09:28:52 PM »
a pair of 5 pound chickens got 5 hours in brine.
i then rinsed them off well, pat dry completely and placed each in their own pan, uncovered in the fridge for 12 hours to let the skin dry out.
i then pat them dry completely again, and back in the fridge they went for another 6 hours.
olive oil and a light rub all over with a little extra salt on the skin.

cold chicken, cold smoker; in they went, probe in the breast.
a small chunk of cherry and a small chunk of mesquite.
set the auber to 350F until IT hit 140F, then 140F for hours...

results:
1.2 hours into the smoke, chicken hit 140F.  smoker was only at 325F.
i pulled the chicken after a total cook time of 1.6 hours.
chicken was at 170F and the smoker was only down to 233F.
skin was not crispy.
chicken was delicious and juicy as a peach.

without the auber, this box hits 400F in 40 minutes.
I need to find auber settings that allow a quicker ramp time.
I may just give up on that and program the first step of each cook to 999F for as long as it takes to reach the desired temp.
For this cook, it would have looked like this:

C1 - 999F for 35 minutes
C2 - 350F until IT = 140F
C3 - 140F for many hours (hold warm)

maybe scratch the hold warm option for chicken, babysit the smoker after 1 hour and pull at temp.
even with the 3/8" drip hole and the 5/8" air inlet port, this box does not cool quickly at all.
I'm thinking this was the last naturally aspirated smoke I do.
I'm going Pro Modified and adding a blower.

pics in a few...
« Last Edit: August 04, 2015, 09:38:17 PM by FunkedOut »
Joe, in FL
Smoking It #3, Auber PID WSD-1500GPH, 23cfm of boost

BedouinBob

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Re: Airflow
« Reply #40 on: August 05, 2015, 10:45:02 AM »
Hey Funked Out, the 999F idea may be a cool idea to get around the overshoot prevention in the Auber. What are your thoughts on the 140 deg hold? Finish on the gasser or do you think because of the previous box temp the chicken will end up about 165?
Bob - Colorado Springs
NRA & USN

allmann

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Re: Airflow
« Reply #41 on: August 05, 2015, 12:34:03 PM »
do you crisp up the skin on the grill afterwards and does that dry it out?
Kevin
Lacey NJ

FunkedOut

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Re: Airflow
« Reply #42 on: August 05, 2015, 02:07:01 PM »
I am on the quest for great skin without having to resort to the grill or oven.  I'm sure that would work, but I would like to use just the smoker.  I have thought about hitting the skin with a torch to crisp it up.  That should have minimal impact on the meat.

I feel the same way about slow cookers.  If I have to sweat aromatics, or brown meat in a pan/pot, I'll just turn the heat down and finish it there.  Not many things I use a slow cooker for.  Beans are good.

My thoughts on the 140F hold...
This box holds heat too well to use a 140F hold on chicken.  A blower will help it cool down quicker, but probably not enough.  For this last smoke, I killed the heat 25F shy of target temp and the box was still to hot to keep the chicken in there without overshooting the target temp.
I'll keep trying to get it right with a butt or brisket from a lower temp, but temp sensitive cooks will be watched and pulled on time.
Joe, in FL
Smoking It #3, Auber PID WSD-1500GPH, 23cfm of boost

DivotMaker

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Re: Airflow
« Reply #43 on: August 05, 2015, 08:21:02 PM »
Funk, you just experienced what I said might happen about reaching 350 before the chicken was done.  You have a long post, and a lot of issues.  I'm going to throw my 2¢ in, and then let you mod and tweak away, seeking the mythical crispy chicken skin in an electric smoker.

If you want to increase the ramp up speed of the Auber, go to YouTube and study how a P.I.D. controller works.  You'll find a number of good (but long) videos on what each value does, and how they effect each other.  I believe what you will find, in trying to achieve this, is a controller that will overshoot set temp and be hard to stabilize....but that's just my guess, as I would never attempt to super-charge my Auber (too expensive to burn up).

Using the 140 hold temp, for something like chicken, is a mistake - not what it's for.  Chicken cooks way too fast, and (as you now know), these boxes don't cool very fast!  If I use the 140 hold, on a large butt or brisket, I set my IT trigger 5° below target, and open the door for awhile when it hits it (to let the smoker cool to 140).  When I close it back up, it has to maintain 140, not cool down to it.

I could be wrong, but it appears you are trying to modify your Auber and smoker to achieve crispy chicken skin, above all else.  Is that the only thing you smoke?  All the drilling, fans, reprogramming, could lead to a smoker that really doesn't do anything else very well.  But, sounds like it will be a chicken smoking monster! 

I, too, was once obsessed with crispy chicken skin, so I feel your pain.  Here's my day of enlightenment, and I'm better now...

Day of Enlightenment
Tony from NW Arkansas
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FunkedOut

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Re: Airflow
« Reply #44 on: August 05, 2015, 08:45:37 PM »
great post, Dave, and great link.  appreciate the help.
I love the title of "chicken smoking monster!"   ;D

I've got a good handle on the PID.  I managed to get through school with an electrical engineering degree where I studied them intensively and implemented them for control of various lab projects. 
Best settings for a fast initial rise would be to max out P and zero out I and D, but then the temp swings would be just like with the original controller.  My reason for the auber is to hold a consistent temp and the programming steps, based on time and/or temp.  Best plan for me will be to leave the PID tuned to the system and use a set temp for the initial rise that is out of reach of the PID's interference (like I described above).

Agree with you on the 140F hold.  A keep warm oven is useful.  I was hoping to be able to figure out a trigger temp so that I could smoke a butt or brisket while away from the house and not overshoot the temp.  I may have to give up on that.  Although, I think that with a low smoking temp (220F) and a large piece of meat, it may be possible.  Example would be to smoke a butt overnight, go to work, and come home to the SI3 holding the butt at 140F with the butt having reached a max temp of 195F (or whatever you wish).

I have one more crispy skin attempt left in me.  With a fan, a quick temp rise, and leaving it there until IT hits 165F, I will either get there, or get my day of enlightenment!  ;)

But trust me, everything I have done, has made this box more to my liking for chicken, ribs, butt and brisket.  The closer I move toward crispy skin, the happier I get with the bark on all the other cuts.

You haven't changed my mind, but that doesn't mean I don't appreciate your thoughts.  That's why I post here.  To share and listen.

As far as the fan goes, I am hoping to use it in place of a jerky fan.  My thoughts are to push clean air in, rather than pull smoke out.  They both accomplish the same thing, only pushing clean, cold air will be easier on the fan that pulling hot smoke.
Once I get that installed, my smoked peppers should be easier to cold smoke.  I haven't posted about the hot sauce yet...
Joe, in FL
Smoking It #3, Auber PID WSD-1500GPH, 23cfm of boost