Can anybody help me with plans to make an smoker out of an old refridgerator please use a lot of details?!
http://www.askthemeatman.com/how_to_make...
I hope it helps! Have fun!
Your main piece of equipment..... just an old, simple refrigerator. It doesn't need to work, or still have the compressor. It just needs to have a door that still closes pretty tightly, (but if the door doesn't close tightly, you can still smoke meats or fish, you just need to improvise some kind of closure, such as a piece of tin and some duct tape if that's all that is available.)
Here's what needs to be done:
1. Cut a hole, about the size of your fist on one side of the refrigerator, close to the floor of the inside of the frig as possible. You can use a coping saw to start, or even a chisel. It doesn't have to be any certain shape, whatever is easiest. This will be for the draw of the smoke.
2. Cut a hole in the top of the frig, a little bit bigger than your fist. This will be the flue. (This is assuming this frig is the old style, that doesn't have a separate door freezer at the top or bottom. If it does, just make another hole in the freezer compartment floor, if it's a top freezer type, so that the smoke can flow up and out the floor. You can even take the freezer floor out completely if you want.)
3. Next, the best way to set up this smoker is if you can get a hotplate, one like you cook with on a counter top. This way you have a constant source of heat (to help "cook" the meat and to provide heat for the wood to smoke).
If you don't have access to a hot plate, then you will need to make some sort of firebox out of some type of metal. You might be able to find a small metal barrel of some type that you can fit in the bottom of the frig. Just make sure you set this firebox on some bricks or rocks, so the heat from the firebox doesn't melt the bottom of the refrigerator.
4. That's the basic setup. To use it, set a large metal pan or box on top of the hotplate or firebox, add Hickory Sawdust to the metal pan or box, and sprinkle a little water on the Hickory Sawdust (Don't fill the pan up with water and then add the Hickory Sawdust).
( The smaller the pieces of wood, the better smoke you will get. We always use Hickory Sawdust in our smokehouses, because it produces more smoke than wood chips.)
Next, make some sort of damper for draw (hole) in the bottom and the flue (hole) at the top of the frig. A piece of tin or wood would work for this. When you first start smoking, leave the draw opening and flue completely open. After 2 or 3 hours like this, close the draw to about one third open and the flue to one third open.
Now you are ready to start smokin'!! .
Answers: Here's where I found this...
http://www.askthemeatman.com/how_to_make...
I hope it helps! Have fun!
Your main piece of equipment..... just an old, simple refrigerator. It doesn't need to work, or still have the compressor. It just needs to have a door that still closes pretty tightly, (but if the door doesn't close tightly, you can still smoke meats or fish, you just need to improvise some kind of closure, such as a piece of tin and some duct tape if that's all that is available.)
Here's what needs to be done:
1. Cut a hole, about the size of your fist on one side of the refrigerator, close to the floor of the inside of the frig as possible. You can use a coping saw to start, or even a chisel. It doesn't have to be any certain shape, whatever is easiest. This will be for the draw of the smoke.
2. Cut a hole in the top of the frig, a little bit bigger than your fist. This will be the flue. (This is assuming this frig is the old style, that doesn't have a separate door freezer at the top or bottom. If it does, just make another hole in the freezer compartment floor, if it's a top freezer type, so that the smoke can flow up and out the floor. You can even take the freezer floor out completely if you want.)
3. Next, the best way to set up this smoker is if you can get a hotplate, one like you cook with on a counter top. This way you have a constant source of heat (to help "cook" the meat and to provide heat for the wood to smoke).
If you don't have access to a hot plate, then you will need to make some sort of firebox out of some type of metal. You might be able to find a small metal barrel of some type that you can fit in the bottom of the frig. Just make sure you set this firebox on some bricks or rocks, so the heat from the firebox doesn't melt the bottom of the refrigerator.
4. That's the basic setup. To use it, set a large metal pan or box on top of the hotplate or firebox, add Hickory Sawdust to the metal pan or box, and sprinkle a little water on the Hickory Sawdust (Don't fill the pan up with water and then add the Hickory Sawdust).
( The smaller the pieces of wood, the better smoke you will get. We always use Hickory Sawdust in our smokehouses, because it produces more smoke than wood chips.)
Next, make some sort of damper for draw (hole) in the bottom and the flue (hole) at the top of the frig. A piece of tin or wood would work for this. When you first start smoking, leave the draw opening and flue completely open. After 2 or 3 hours like this, close the draw to about one third open and the flue to one third open.
Now you are ready to start smokin'!! .
I made a simple hot box smoker out of an old frige and all I did was have a appliance store remove the compressor, coils and other electronics, cost me a 20 dollar bill. I took it home and added 3 more shelves using eye bolts to hold up the shelves. and took the heating element and smoker pan from an old Smokey Joe smoker I got from the flea market, cost $5. I put the heating element in the bottom with the pan, and put a 1/2 sheet pan over the bottom rack to keep the smoke chips dry. Wash all the racks, spray with pam and follow brine recipe and smoke away! I also made the racks removable so I can hang large roasts, etc. I also made a cold box by leaving the compressor in tact and used an external box with duct work to the fridge and a fan to suck the smoke to the fridge. Plug it all in and I cam smoke cheese and make Jewish Lox!
Good Luck!