Smoking in the winter

[roblox84]

Im planning on smoking a pork shoulder overnight today problem is it's supposed to be -8 tonight. Will the #2 be ok smoking in temps this low? If it is going to be an issue I can move the smoker into my garage which is detached.

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[swthorpe]

I have not smoked in such cold temps...I did a smoke once in 20F temps on my deck behind the house and my #2 worked fine.   Given your options, I think I would try the garage, or if you do go outside, try to avoid wind.   The SI is pretty well insulated so you should be OK.  Let's us know how you make out...the question of smoking in extreme cold has been raised several times on the forum!  Good luck.

[DivotMaker]

The coldest I've used my #1 is 9 degrees, and it performed great.  That's only a 350 watt element, but it maintained temp without any issues.  The 700 watt element in your #2 should handle it ok, at least according to many of my Northern brethren!  There's a lot of hardcore "COLD" smoking going on out there!!

[es1025]

I would use the garage if you can. Just make sure you have a fan to move the smoke out of the garage.    Once you get below 30 you really need to be out of the elements.  I have smoked multiple sets of ribs and one butt and they turned out great.  The wind is your biggest enemy. Btw, my garage smells like cherry wood as opposed to gasoline.

[NDKoze]

I'm in the same boat tonight but even colder. It is supposed to get down to -15F tonight.

Where are you from? I'm in Fargo, ND.

Here the link to my cold weather thread:
http://smokinitforums.com/index.php?topic=1515.0

I had good luck smoking at 0 degrees outside, so I'm hoping for similar results with colder weather. I'm starting about 4 hours earlier than the last time just in case.

The one thing I would keep an eye out for is the ice mound in your drip tray. In the morning I would either remove the ice mound or just slide the tray out a bit to give the mound more room.

[DivotMaker]

The one thing I would keep an eye out for is the ice mound in your drip tray. In the morning I would either remove the ice mound or just slide the tray out a bit to give the mound more room.

Wow.  Never thought of that!  Hope I never have to remove an ice mound!

[NDKoze]

During my last smoke my ice mound was close to the top of the drip pan. It looked like a volcano. 

[roblox84]

I'm in the same boat tonight but even colder. It is supposed to get down to -15F tonight.

Where are you from? I'm in Fargo, ND.

Here the link to my cold weather thread:
http://smokinitforums.com/index.php?topic=1515.0

I had good luck smoking at 0 degrees outside, so I'm hoping for similar results with colder weather. I'm starting about 4 hours earlier than the last time just in case.

The one thing I would keep an eye out for is the ice mound in your drip tray. In the morning I would either remove the ice mound or just slide the tray out a bit to give the mound more room.

I'm in Ashland, Ohio which is about an hour north of Columbus. It's been absolutely miserable here this winter.

[DivotMaker]

We've had more single-digit days, snow and ice than I've seen since the late 70's in NW Arkansas - it's been awful!  As bad as it's been here, it's nothing compared to what you boys have gone through this winter!  The trucking company I work for runs the I-70 corridor every day, and it's been terrible on our drivers.  We run refrigerated food, so it's not like we can just shut down.  But hey, people have to eat!  I'm not sure Spring is going to come this year.

[roblox84]

Ok so I put the 6 pound pork shoulder on last night at about 12:30am and checked the temp this afternoon at 12:30pm and it is at 181. Its been at 181 for half an hour now so I bumped up the temp to 250. Should I take it out or should I leave it in there? I'm a little worried because I don't want to burn the meat but then I'm thinking it was about 0 degrees out last night so it's taking longer then usual?

[NDKoze]

This is "The Stall" and is very typical. Stalls can last 2-3 hours in some cases depending on the meat. You may even see the temp go down a degree or two before it starts coming back up. Unless you are pressed for time, I would just leave it at 225 and let it work its way out of the stall. You should be good to go by supper time.

I put my my 7.15lb butt in last night at 9:00 and it was at 183 when I left for work this morning. I just got back at 12:00 and it was at 201. Perfect temp, so I turned the smoker down to 140 where it will set until I pull the butt out around 4:00, double-wrap in foil and into my cooler with towels on top for a two hour rest.

You won't burn your meat. You can use the "Texas Crutch" which is wrapping it in foil and placing back in the smoker. This will speed up the cook, but your bark with soften somewhat.

For me, I would just leave it at 225 and ride it out.

Let us know how it goes.

[roblox84]

This is "The Stall" and is very typical. Stalls can last 2-3 hours in some cases depending on the meat. You may even see the temp go down a degree or two before it starts coming back up. Unless you are pressed for time, I would just leave it at 225 and let it work its way out of the stall. You should be good to go by supper time.

I put my my 7.15lb butt in last night at 9:00 and it was at 183 when I left for work this morning. I just got back at 12:00 and it was at 201. Perfect temp, so I turned the smoker down to 140 where it will set until I pull the butt out around 4:00 for a two hour rest in my cooler with towels on top.

You won't burn your meat. You can use the "Texas Crutch" which is wrapping it in foil and placing back in the smoker. This will speed up the cook, but your bark with soften somewhat.

For me, I would just leave it at 225 and ride it out.

Let us know how it goes.

Thanks for the quick answer! I'll let it ride and see what happens, and I'll post some pics when it's done.

[NDKoze]

I forgot to mention to double-wrap in foil before you put it in the cooler. But you maybe already knew that.

[roblox84]

I forgot to mention to double-wrap in foil before you put it in the cooler. But you maybe already knew that.

Yes, do you put a towel on it also or no? I have a thick styrofoam cooler, do you think that will work just as good?

[NDKoze]

I have a mid-sized cooler that I put the double-wrapped butt in. Then I place a few towels in and around the butt to help maintain an even temp. Then close the lid for 1-2 hours.

A Styrofoam cooler will work just fine.