Extremely simple and reliable: a hot smoking smokehouse from a barrel
A smokehouse made from a barrel is one of the best solutions for preparing hot smoked products.
Do it's enough Just, and all the necessary materials are inexpensive and are often junk. You just need to want to build such a helper and try a little.
Content
What is good about a smokehouse made from a metal or oak barrel with a capacity of 200 liters?
A metal barrel is a product that easy to find or buy. It is in the arsenal of many practical homeowners and gardeners. A container of any size will do for the smokehouse, but the traditional choice is 200-liter.
This is a very impressive barrel in size, which will allow you to load a significant amount of productsThe advantages of the smokehouse include the simplicity of its construction.
The owner will not need super-complex and expensive tools. It is enough Angle grinders (Bulgarians) with a metal disc, drill or screwdriver, set screwdrivers and pliers.
A smokehouse made from a barrel will take up very little space, and the productivity of this homemade equipment is high. You can make it as stationary, and mobile design.
Important! In any case, the smokehouse should be installed away from buildings and plants.
How to Make a Hot Smoking Device with Your Own Hands
Before you start working, carefully inspect the future smokehouse. There is only one requirement for the barrel: it should not have holes in the walls. It is also desirable that it is not painted. But, if necessary, the paint can be annealed.
What you will need for a homemade product
In addition to the main element of the smokehouse (the barrel itself), you will need:
- bolts diameter 10 or 12 mm — 4 pcs.;
- metal rods, the length of which exceeds the diameter of the barrel by 30-40 cm — 4 pcs.;
- metal plates with a hinged connection (you can use a door hinge of a suitable size) - 2 pcs.;
- bricks — 6-8 pcs.;
- sheet metal, which will be used as pallet for collecting fat.
Particular attention should be paid basis, on which the barrel will be installed.
Recommended to use metal sheet thickness not less than 2 mm. Optimally — 4-5 mm.
A more durable base will not bend during heating and will prevent the smokehouse from accidentally tipping over.
The dimensions of the metal sheet must be such that the barrel can be freely installed on it.
Available for sale metal braziers on legs. For the smokehouse device, those whose diameter slightly exceeds the chamber cross-section are suitable. Massive braziers have a solid weight and therefore are maximally stable. This is an excellent solution for a stationary smokehouse.
Choosing a location: measure two meters from the house
Since the smokehouse being constructed is a structure heated by an open fire, it is necessary to comply fire safety rulesEven though the firebox will be covered with bricks on all sides, it is extremely important to find a place for the smokehouse that is protected from the wind.
But that's not the biggest problem that needs to be solved. The location not only needs to be windless, it needs to be at a distance of 2-3 m from buildings any type of flammable materials, trees with dry branches or dry leaves.
A good choice would be a place in close proximity to a metal fence or any building made of non-flammable material. You can also choose a location for the smokehouse near stone or brick walls.
Step-by-step instructions for making a smokehouse from a 200-liter barrel
To ensure that the resulting structure functions properly, you should understand the instructions before starting work.
Step 1. Preparing the barrel.
If the container is new, there will be no hassle in processing it. With old ones, you will have to tinker. First of all, you need to clean off dirt (if any) and remove rust.
During heating, the metal will expand and slightly deform, which will inevitably cause rust or paint particles to fly off. They will inevitably stick to the fat-spilling food, so a clean barrel is the key to getting clean food.
Step 2: Removing the bottom.
You need to make a hollow cylinder from the barrel, open on both sides. Armed with a grinder with a metal disk, cut off the bottom. But this must be done in such a way that the rim edging the bottom of the container remains intact.
If the barrel has a bottom and a lid with holes soldered into it, the upper part capacity cut off. This needs to be done. at a distance of 5-7 cm from the upper plane. This is how you get a ready-made lid for the smoking chamber. If the barrel has only one bottom, don't despair. A lid of no less quality can be made later.
Step 3. Processing the cut bottom.
The cut off bottom will serve as a tray to collect fat, so this metal sheet needs to be finished at the edges.
After cutting with a grinder, there are always some marks left on the metal serrations, which can cause injury. They need to be delete using the same grinder with a grinding disc.
Before starting this work, you need to make sure that the cut off bottom fits into the cavity of the container freely enough. If this is not the case, the bottom is trimmed, dents are smoothed out or in some other way achieve the desired result.
Step 4. Drilling holes for metal rods.
In order to install a grate in the smokehouse for laying out products (or hanging them on hooks), a removable structure made of rods is used. It consists of two tiers, each of which represents two installed in parallel rod.
Optimal distance between in tiers 25-30 cm, but the choice depends on what products are most often planned to be smoked. If these are large pieces of meat or fish, the distance between the tiers can be increased.
Using a drill or screwdriver drill holes in the barrel so that the arrangement of the rods corresponds to the required two-tiered structure. The drill should be of a larger diameter than the cross-section of the metal rods. They should fit freely into the drilled holes.
Step 5. Marking the smokehouse door.
At the bottom of the barrel, stepping back upwards 3-5 cm, draw with a felt-tip pen (marker, pencil) outline of the future door. Her length should be not less than 30 cmThe easiest way to accomplish this task is as follows:
- measure out with a ruler or tape measure 3-5 cm from the bottom in an upward direction, put a mark;
- are shifting right or left and repeat the process;
- pull a thin rope (twine, fishing line, thread) between two marks and a line is drawn along it;
- retreat upwards 15-20 cm (door width) and repeat marking process;
- connect the top and bottom lines vertical on both sides.
You get an even rectangle of the required size.
Step 6: Cutting the smoker door.
They choose for themselves which side the door will open from. The traditional direction is from left to right, but for left-handers it will be more convenient to use the direction from right to left. Using a grinder with a metal disk, make cuts on three sides of the rectangle drawn on the barrel. Slightly bend the door inward and make the fourth cut.
Step 7. Processing the edges of the door.
It is carried out in the same way as processing bottoms.
Step 8. Fixing the hinge to the door.
The loop is applied to the cut door in the place where it (the hinge) will be located, mark the location of the screws. Drill holes of the appropriate diameter, apply the loop again and screw in the screws.
Step 9. Attaching the door to the barrel.
A door with a hinge fixed to it apply to the barrel and mark the places where the screws will be screwed in. Drill holes and fasten them the door.
Step 10. Installing pallet supports.
At a distance of 25-30 cm from the lower plane of the smoking chamber make a mark with a felt-tip pen. In this place will be installed bolt cross-section 10-12 mm. Three such supports should be evenly spaced around the circumference of the container so that they are at the same height. The fat collection plate will rest on these bolts.
Important! The location of the bolts is chosen so that the object resting on them pallet was located above the door not less than by 5 cm.
Step 11. Making a “handle” for the tray.
They find center the bottom of the barrel is cut off and drilled out hole for bolt with cross-section of 10-12 mm and screw in the bolt.
Step 12. Construction of the smokehouse base.
To ensure that the structure is stable, you need a solid foundation that will not sag from rain.
A concrete foundation is not required, but compact the soil will not be superfluous. Then any suitable one is placed on this platform material:
- bricks;
- flat stones;
- paving slabs.
Step 13. Making the fireplace.
The hearth for a hot smoking smokehouse from a barrel should be designed so that there were elevations on both sides of it, on which a metal plate will be installed, which is a stand for the barrel. To do this, lay out 2-4 rows of bricks.
1st row: they lay out with each of them 4 sides two bricks laid flat (on a bed).
2nd row: build up any of the two opposite walls of the hearth with similarly laid bricks. If necessary, repeat this step in 3rd row and so on.
If a brazier on legs is used instead of a metal stand, it is enough to cover the firebox on both sides with bricks placed on their edges.
Step 14. Assembling and installing the smokehouse.
The smokehouse body is firmly installed on the base and checked. sustainability constructions.
Photos of finished structures with and without a smoke generator
Photo 1. How to smoke fish in a homemade smokehouse made from a 200-liter metal barrel.
Photo 2. A professional smoke generator made of stainless steel has been added to the design, which allows you to smoke products faster.
Photo 3. A smokehouse made from an oak barrel with a folding top looks great and performs its function perfectly.
Recommendations for the use of a 200-liter smokehouse
To ensure that the products are not boiled, but smoked, you need to constantly monitor the fire strength. To obtain smoke with a pleasant smell use sawdust or shavings from fruit trees and berry bushes.
Useful video
Check out the video, which shows a homemade smokehouse from a 200-liter barrel: appearance, internal structure, use for smoking mackerel.
Comments
And by the way, a little advice: when my father-in-law smokes sawdust, he adds berries. If the sawdust is apple, he adds pieces of dried apples (a little, a pinch), if it is cherries, he adds dried cherries. He also adds a pinch of herbs. He just doesn't say which ones or why. But the taste, especially the meat, is simply amazing. Maybe someone has an idea about the herbs?