Estimated burn time on a WSM 14

[jumbo7676]

I never really had interest in a cooker this size, but found one in good condition for a good price and figured a WSM 14 inch for $75 was worth the money, especially since I can always resell it if/when I find a bigger one for the right price. Seems like it could be a nice little smoker for a couple of chuckies or to make some bacon.

Does anyone have any experience with the 14 inch Weber Smokey Mountain? I'm trying to get an idea of how long it can go without needing to be reloaded with charcoal given the fuel capacity that comes with the smaller size. I figure at the very least, I can smoke something for several hours and finish wrapped in the oven rather than opening it up to refuel and letting all that air in to spike the temp. I know type of charcoal, outside temp, etc... will be factors, but I'm just looking for a ballpark figure since this will be my first experience with a charcoal smoker.

[JeffJ]

I have one and have used it extensively. Burn times vary quite a bit depending on weather conditions, type of charcoal you are using, how hot it's running, etc. With KBB using "Soo's Doughnut" for as the lighting method I typically get about 8 hours with the ring completely full. 2 years ago on a warm, muggy day in July I got 11 hours. You can probably extend your time a bit if you use Weber briquettes.

[jumbo7676]

This is very helpful. Thank you!

[DanMancuso]

How open do you set the dampers for the first few hours of the cook. I'm using a lot of charcoal and wonder if it's the damper setting.

[RobertC]

How many pounds of charcoal is "completely full?"

[JeffJ]

DanMancuso When I do low/slow in mine I fill the water bowl about halfway and I have the bottom dampers open about 3/4 and the top open all of the way. I do this so I have good airflow for the wood to produce clean smoke. The one thing I don't like about the 14.5 WSM (and this may be true of the bigger ones) is it takes a long time - about 45 minutes - for the wood smoke to go from white to blue. After a couple of hours the water will have evaporated and temps will begin to rise. At this point I'll close the top vent to about 1/4 open. It usually holds steady from there. Typically I can get about 8 hours out of a full ring of charcoal. With the door adding a few unlit coals to prolong the cook is easy enough.

[JeffJ]

RobertC I don't know the weight. The charcoal ring is pretty small. It's an efficient little cooker.

At the beginning of this video you can get a visual for how much charcoal it holds:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ur2Shg_5bE4

[RobertC]

What's the diameter and depth of the ring?

[JeffJ]

The ring is 3-4 inches high and the diameter is roughly 12 inches. RobertC

[RobertC]

Thanks. The charcoal basket on my 14" diameter BHC is 10-1/2" in diameter and 4-1/2" high and holds 6 lbs of KBB. At around 275 deg F. and depending on ambient conditions, the burn rate is close to 1 pound per hour, give or take. This seems consistent with your observation of 8 hours on your WSM 14 with its basket.