Smoker Design: Does Steel Thickness REALLY Matter

[@homevalueglass3809]

Thank you so much! My son and I are planning on building a insulated cabinet smoker and are parusing designes on the website. All this is so helpful

[@Bigkuntry5911]

I have had a Lang for years. Quarter inch steel throughout. I had to do a cook in cold rain, and it was rough. I am now going to build my first smoker using 1/8th inch steel. Excellent video!

[@SmokerBuilder]

Awesome! yep, my first one was 1/8 and I cooked a lot of grub!

[@RRaider]

Good video! I think you are the first person I've heard mention how much more energy it takes to heat 3/8' and up steel. I saw a video the other day where someone was bragging about having a chamber that was 1/2" thick, my only thought was "why?"

[@SmokerBuilder]

haha I know right? I recently had one of the doors on my big pit Bingo fall closed on my head. Let me tell ya, I fell to my knees in pain. that door is 1/4 inch thick. I couldn't imagine a ½ inch thick door closing on me!

[@dennisseeker36]

awesome bro, you are sharing such detail, thank you so much, so i just signed up for builder u also. i was glad to see your hexagon shape smoker since here in philippines i can not find a bigger propane tank, i will probably have to buy new steel and shape it

[@CoolJay77]

Great video. The myth in the BBQ community is that 1/4" is the gold standard. If I ever make the time to build my own, I'd invest in stainless steel sheets for the cooking chamber.

[@BullseyeMetalWerks]

Don't forget handling the material. I generally fool around with 3/16" and 1/4" got a deal on some 1/2" 24" diameter. Earned my keep that day 😂

[@sheff66666]

Just wondering not trying to necessarily get something for nothing but there is a link for free smoker plans in the description. Are there still free plans because the link is bad. Thanks

[@patrickmcgever2736]

Toss a 3/8" plate into the bottom of the fire box as a thermal mass.

[@courtneydowdell6196]

Is 3/8 thickness good for colder climates?

[@DusktillDawn2024]

Great video and very informative. Wanted to ask I'm in the uk where the weather is mostly dreadful to be honest. I heard you say about non insulated fireboxes. Would you say to keep it non in a cold rainy setting mostly or would it improve the overall design to insulate or partial in these type of conditions. Greatly appreciate it 🙏

[@leksraamat1722]

Very insightful, thanks for this. Im looking to build my second pit and this is a great resource. Also, I have a question: on my first build I made it from a 55 gallon steel drum. In fact you can see the design if you KZbin bbq on skis (it works as a smoker but the skis part was interrupted by Covid - maybe I’ll finish it someday). I had an idea to combat the fact that it’ll cool off quickly - add soapstone as a thermal battery. Maybe slabs on top of the tuning plates (it’s a reverse flow), or somewhere else perhaps? I did end up double walling the front end to keep the returning smoke warm. While stationary the temperature difference is at about 20 degrees, if memory serves. Any feedback on the build and the soapstone idea is appreciated.

[@SmokerBuilder]

Actually, the outside of the pit would be better place to combat the temperature loss. I recommend trying a welding blanket or canvas tarp laid over it first and see how it helps.

[@CoffeeAndSmoke23]

​@@SmokerBuilder What do you think of old country bbq pecos offset ? I have one that I lined the firebox with fire brick and I put four pieces of 1/2" thick pipe flange in the bottom of the cook chamber..Does this sound like a good idea or should I do something different?

[@SmokerBuilder]

@@CoffeeAndSmoke23 so it really depends on if yours is the thick wall version it the thin wall one. For the thin ones, Adding more steel can be a good thing for heat retention and firebrick would help in the firebox. I haven’t ran the numbers on that model but my impression seeing them at academy is the stack is too big of diameter and too short for the firebox volume. They do work great though as many people are cooking great food in them. In a nutshell great pit to start out with

[@CoffeeAndSmoke23]

@SmokerBuilder I was thinking of adding a stack extension to make it around 30"..Theres some good videos on here of people using 6" stove pipe and getting good results..If I could weld I'd be dangerous lol,but Im very limited in what I can do to the pit..

[@SmokerBuilder]

@@CoffeeAndSmoke23 yep that works too!

[@andrewgarza5195]

Hey bud, great information. I'm in the ideation phase of building my 1st smoker. I know you mention the cost of thicker material results in cost. I have 1/2 pipe that i got from a friend. Free. 24" by 48". Would that still be a negative on your experience. Even if it were free?

[@igotJesus88]

Thanks for this! I am building a 120 gallon air tank offset. The thickness is 3/16. I hope that’s going to work good. What you think?

[@nickdubois8218]

You'll be completely fine with this tank thickness.

[@SmokerBuilder]

Should be just fine. Thanks buddy

[@Trump985]

What about corrosion allowance? 1/4 inch steel won’t be 1/4” for long. It doesn’t take long for 1/4” to rot out. Not everyone is going to be able to store a barbecue pit indoors or spend countless hours painting or oiling it keep it from rusting.

[@davidcrumrine1165]

If you don't clean your ash out and let it set in the rain, it will rust out fast because ashes when wet turn acidic. Clean your ashes out every time, and I had a 1/8 firebox still 1/8 when I sold it after using it for 10 years after I built it.