Got Lang??

[Huskee]

I think I paid about $350 shipping from Kansas to Michigan for my Yoder. There was no way I was driving to KS & back for that, so the price was worth it. $750 is crazy.

Stickburners are fun fun fun. Who doesn't love building a real fire? Marauderer Barry I wouldn't worry too much about fuel use since you live in warm GA and especially if you burn firewood. They are charcoal hogs though for sure. I usually use just a chimney of charcoal to start the wood, then wood the rest of the cook. Some folks have reported better temp management with larger cooking chambers, for what it's worth. Just another thing to think about. I've only ever used the EOS I own so my expertise is valid but admittedly it's limited.

[Ernest]

I'd like to see DWCowles cook with Pellets

[DWCowles]

I with stick with the logs Ernest. You all can have the pellets and charcoal.

[Ernest]

HAHAHA!

[DWCowles]

Ernest I was thinking seriously about getting a pellet smoker just for small cooks but after watching CandySueQ seminar on them she talk me out it. Also don't get me wrong I have nothing against charcoal. I use charcoal only in my WSM and the Weber kettle just not in the Lang.

[Marauderer]

Barry I wouldn't worry too much about fuel use since you live in warm GA and especially if you burn firewood. They are charcoal hogs though for sure. I usually use just a chimney of charcoal to start the wood, then wood the rest of the cook. Some folks have reported better temp management with larger cooking chambers, for what it's worth. Just another thing to think about. I've only ever used the EOS I own so my expertise is valid but admittedly it's limited.

Huskee Ernest DWCowles I have been reading other forums, shame on me maybe, about stick burners and a lot of them are using fire bricks in the fire box and banking their fire accordingly. They also say to have a smaller fire box cuts down on their usage of wood. Also the size of your stick, both the length and diameter, for your particular stick burner is somewhat critical to your usage.

[Huskee]

I suppose that could be the case, if someone bothered to keep track and make notes of all those variables. I just load wood and balance my temp within a 25-50* boundary depending on what I cook. There are a few things a person could do to balance their temp out. Water pan being one (which I do), bricks, which I have done, and insulating the firebox (which I do as need be). I recommend a BBQ Dragon.

[David Parrish]

I don't have an offset, but just thinking through the physics I'm betting the welding blanket over the firebox technique will pay huge dividends in conserving fuel. Just don't cover up the holes or the handles.

[Powersmoke_80]

Marauderer

Huskee Ernest DWCowles I have been reading other forums, shame on me maybe, about stick burners and a lot of them are using fire bricks in the fire box and banking their fire accordingly. They also say to have a smaller fire box cuts down on their usage of wood. Also the size of your stick, both the length and diameter, for your particular stick burner is somewhat critical to your usage.

Barry I have been doing a lot of home work on building an offset and from what i have found, through pit builder calculator the fire box should be 1/3 of the cooking chamber size. So i'm not sure a smaller fire box would perform properly as I would think (and I am only assuming)Temps would fluctuate.
​I was going to go with a lang design but now leaning towords a Jambo Patoi style, And from what i have read it has a larger insulated fire box and uses a smaller fire due to the insulation and only small splits are needed to control heat.
thought i would share but not sure if it helps.

[Marauderer]

I am sure you you have a valid point PS80. What I read was a generic comment not pointed at a specific smoker or brand. I am sure some have to large a firebox and others??? I will have to evaluate mine when i get it. It will be a whole new world of cooking and learning. I am seeing that insulation of the firebox is something all that have stick burners should look at.

[Huskee]

I don't worry about it in the summer, and it was only this winter I started draping some unfaced 24" R-19 fiberglass over the firebox, and I was skeptical but it did make a noticeable difference when it's eleven thousand below zero outside. More heat energy is able to be carried with the airflow into the cooking chamber than escapes through the metal of the firebox. You'll use next to no fuel in the heat of summer. Your cooker will already be 180* inside if it's in the sun.

Marauderer Barry, I'm excited for you! I think you're going to love it!

[Powersmoke_80]

Huskee,@Marauderer, I have never cooked with charcoal I went from gas to pellets and now venturing into logs. In meatheads article Stickburning:
Smoking With Wood he stated
"There is a reason why they call them "pitmasters". Beginners should not try to smoke meats with logs. But if you have mastered smoke roasting with charcoal (not gas or pellets), you may be ready to go back to your roots. Fun and flavor await the patient and practiced"
Huskee, as you know Michigan weather changes faster than a rack ribs will last in the lunchroom at work.
I'm not exactly talking about having an insulated fire box for 11,000 below zero But if I may ask how much difference is there in tending a fire on an all day cook with it Starting out being a 55° Morning with the wind blowing 30 miles an hour out of the north and then switches to 70 and sunny with a light breeze by noon.
Wouldn't wind and rain during a cook dramatically Strip more heat off the firebox like the lovely Windchill we have had the last week?
I'm only asking since this is a new venture for me and welcome the knowledge from the more experienced pit masters.
Barry, I can't wait till you get yours so I may learn from the detailed information you will post as always

[DWCowles]

I got my Lang last July but I order it in March so right after I place the order I went to the woods and cut a rick (4x8) of hickory. I'm still using those logs now. They will gone within my next two cooks. I don't use charcoal to get the logs started I have a bush burner.

[Huskee]

Powersmoke_80 yes wind and rain will make a difference, rain is the worst with any cooker and EOS are no exception. Wind not so much because you can actually use it to your advantage. If you start out in the 50s with a nasty wind, the best thing you can do is face your smoker so the wind is blowing in the firebox, always take advantage of the wind that way. If your firebox is facing opposite the wind, it can impede exhaust flow and therefore your overall temps and performance. Wind by itself, on 600-800lbs of well sealed thick steel, makes little difference. Wind & air temp on a kettle, a WSM or a gas grill makes a big difference though.

50-70 temp change will make very little difference, ambient air temp on an EOS is really a negligible difference unless it's extreme cold, especially if you have some form of insulated firebox, even if it's makeshift like what I do. I've run mine well into the negatives before, and it really didn't use that much more wood. I'm sure it DID, but it wasn't a "oh my goodness I'm using SO much wood right now" kind of thing. Once I got convinced to drape insulation over the firebox things really were much easier. A welding blanket is a popular choice, but I gurantee you a welding blanket isn't an R-value of 19. My 24" fiberglass insulation batt isnt' pretty but it works great and dirt cheap if you can find any. If I were to do welding blankets I would probably double them up.

What you need to worry about the most is when you start an all day smoke on some ribs or butts, and it's 70 and sunny in the morning. Then about 2-3pm it gets cloudy, dark, windy, temp drops to 55 and it begins downpouring. THAT is where you're in trouble. You can watch your cooker temp drop nearly by the second when a cold rain falls. Nothing will sap the temp like rain. Rain is always cold to a 250* cooker. I've had that happen, in fact it happens a lot in summer. An EOS in these circumstances will drop temp faster than you can build it up usually. It is hard to just fire the temp up real quick like you could with a gas burner, so you have to learn to be prepared. Keep a good supply of small seasoned splits for when you need quick BTUs. Keep larger seasoned firewood sized pieces to help with longer controlled burns. I recommend highly a BBQ Dragon for these times as well as those windless days when you're just getting no extra help with airflow and you need a little oomph. I also preburn logs, but that is a topic for another time

When you get yours, it's helpful to jot down notes on ambient temp, how long it takes you to get to your favorite cooking temp. How long x-amount of wood holds you there, how much wood you use once you're up to temp (one split, 4 splits), how long between refills, etc. I take a lot of pictures of the fire and how I start out. Then you have the pics on your computer and your notes to go back to when you're planning a cook you don't wanna screw up, like an expensive brisket. THEN all you have to worry about is how the meat will cook which as we all know can be enough of a pain, not how to work your smoker also...

After a while it's all second nature and you won't need the notes, in fact you may chuckle at how you used to do all that when you first started....but it's helpful to attack the learning process head on and be proactive, like anything new. You don't wanna waste good meat or wait until 9pm to eat dinner. After all, that's why we learn our equipment and techniques, for the meat!

[Powersmoke_80]

Thanks for the info, that's y we luv this place!

[Beefchop]

Great post! That's some good advice for any new cooker - keep a journal and take pictures. This will certainly help you make the most of your learning curve and fine tune your process.

I especially appreciate the info. on using an EOS. I'm going to buy one, I think, as soon as we get settled. Our lease is up in Sept. so we should be moving into our own home by then. I'm thinking that a nice smoker would be a great housewarming present to myself? I'd like to cook under cover if possible - a lot of the homes here have cement pads for porches and are covered.

Thanks again for all of the information, Huskee! Maybe I can buy you a Bell's if I'm ever back in Michigan. : )

[Huskee]

You bet guys Powersmoke_80 and Beefchop, i hope my ramblings help a bit when you get your up & running. Oh and Beefchop- deal!