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Wicky · Post by **Wicky** » October 27th, 2018, 8:26 pm

Hi, everyone. Going to be building a reverse flow smoker out of a 500 gallon lp tank. Looking to cut it down to 400 gallons for the build. I live in Wisconsin so going to insulate the fire box and add a warming box. Won't really get going intell spring do to storage in my shop for winter. I would like to get materials and plans ready for the build during the down time. Couple of questions to start off is 1" insulation enough for the FB? I'll be using 1/4" steel on both sides of the insulation. Another question is should the BP be the same size as the throat? I'm looking to angle the BP for drainage. Is this a good idea or will leaving it flat be better? I'm sure I'll have a few more questions as I go. Thanks

Post by **Big T** » October 27th, 2018, 8:32 pm

Welcome aboard!! I would use 2'' minimum thickness for the FB insulation. The BP gap is the same as the throat or up to 25% smaller, I use the same as the throat and haven't had any issues. I build the BP level front to back and end to end, the majority of the grease will cook off.

Wicky · Post by **Wicky** » October 27th, 2018, 8:42 pm

Thanks for the advice. Will 1/4 steel plate be a good thickness for the BP and FB walls?

Post by **Big T** » October 27th, 2018, 8:50 pm

Yes 1/4'' will work fine.

Dirtytires · Post by **Dirtytires** » October 27th, 2018, 9:08 pm

No disrespect to BigT, but I built my firebox with 0.25 inside, a 1 inch ceramic insulation (with R factor rating than 2 inch rock wool) and skinned the outside with 12 g. Couldn’t be happier.

At the end of an 8 hour cook, I measured the inside wall of my smoker (with a laser probe) at almost 750 degrees and the outside skin was only 225. It’s gonna burn you but not cause an instant trip to the ER.

Ditto on the flat baffle plate. Some try to angle it or run a trough thru the middle but it’s just not needed and could be argued to actually interfere with airflow. You will be surprised with how little grease you have at the end of a cook as most of it vaporizes.

Wicky · Post by **Wicky** » October 27th, 2018, 9:26 pm

Should I insulate the bottom of the FB?

ajfoxy · Post by **ajfoxy** » October 27th, 2018, 11:11 pm

Generally you won't need to.

Post by **Pete Mazz** » October 28th, 2018, 3:21 am

Welcome

mp4 · Post by **mp4** » October 28th, 2018, 6:26 am

Ditto on the level baffle plate. One of the benefits of a reverse flow is having the drippings re-flavor the meat and it works best if they don't drain to one end and pool leaving the other end to burn.

Bricklayer2 · Post by **Bricklayer2** » October 28th, 2018, 7:08 am

Look forward to watching your build, ditto on the plat thickness.

Dirtytires · Post by **Dirtytires** » October 28th, 2018, 11:54 am

I insulated all 6 sides of mine...including a double walled and insulated door. I did mine more from a safety point rather than heat loss/fuel efficiency. Figured a person (or my younger son) could just as easily get a foot or hand under the firebox and get burned so it was cheap insurance for me.

Post by **Rodcrafter** » October 31st, 2018, 8:13 am

Welcome to the crew!

Wicky · Post by **Wicky** » October 31st, 2018, 7:59 pm

Wicky · Post by **Wicky** » October 31st, 2018, 8:17 pm

Just seeing how to download pics. Been using this for 6 years. Me and a buddy through this together and are ready to upgrade. We have a 250 gallon tank and a 500 gallon tank. He's going to be building the 250 and I'm taking the 500. It's nice to have the info of this site to help out. Thanks

Dirtytires · Post by **Dirtytires** » November 1st, 2018, 12:37 am

Oh boy....I see 2 new projects!

Welcome.

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