Step 7: Making the food grates
Posted: Mon Feb 17, 2025 10:28 am
The doors were set in place and then the 1/8" x 1" bent stock was bent and welded in place. This creates a really smooth and secure intake.
The bottom of the tank that sits on the floor was very rusty in some places, so I bent and welded about 14 sheets of metal in place. Then about a 1" corner was welded to the bottom of the tank for the feet.
Since the tank is round, it makes it interesting to make the car owner data that will hold the smoked food.
Ideally, a ring caster would be useful for this project, as it involves bending a rod and a round piece of stock into arcs. To build the food grate, I used 1/4″ round stock and bent it around the tank, then bent it inside the tank to measure the outer ring, one inch at a time, until the ring was the right size, this would be the frame of the grate. I left about 1/4″ of space between the outside of the frame and the inside of the tank.
The actual grate was made from 1/8″ x 1″ chicken wire. What I like about this material is that after some use, it will eventually get a nice seasoning because it is a soft carbon steel. The wire mesh was welded to a 1/4" steel ring, this takes a while as each piece of wire mesh was welded to the ring. Although it is not necessary to weld each wire I did this as it removes the sharp ends, this will make the grates easier to clean when wiping them down with a cleaning sponge.
Depending on what you want to smoke, determine how many grates to make. I use one to hold the fire, one to hold the water bowl and at least 3 for the grates. I also made a few extra in case I needed to smoke a lot of small stuff.
Keep the posts in place about 1/8" x 1"
Step 8: Finishing and Painting
The inside and outside of the smoker were washed with plenty of soap and water. Once dry, a coat of high temperature paint was applied to the surface.
The thermostat was mounted on the door, about halfway up the smoker where most of the food would be placed, to get the most consistent readings. Ideally, several more thermostats would be mounted in different locations.
The bottom of the tank that sits on the floor was very rusty in some places, so I bent and welded about 14 sheets of metal in place. Then about a 1" corner was welded to the bottom of the tank for the feet.
Since the tank is round, it makes it interesting to make the car owner data that will hold the smoked food.
Ideally, a ring caster would be useful for this project, as it involves bending a rod and a round piece of stock into arcs. To build the food grate, I used 1/4″ round stock and bent it around the tank, then bent it inside the tank to measure the outer ring, one inch at a time, until the ring was the right size, this would be the frame of the grate. I left about 1/4″ of space between the outside of the frame and the inside of the tank.
The actual grate was made from 1/8″ x 1″ chicken wire. What I like about this material is that after some use, it will eventually get a nice seasoning because it is a soft carbon steel. The wire mesh was welded to a 1/4" steel ring, this takes a while as each piece of wire mesh was welded to the ring. Although it is not necessary to weld each wire I did this as it removes the sharp ends, this will make the grates easier to clean when wiping them down with a cleaning sponge.
Depending on what you want to smoke, determine how many grates to make. I use one to hold the fire, one to hold the water bowl and at least 3 for the grates. I also made a few extra in case I needed to smoke a lot of small stuff.
Keep the posts in place about 1/8" x 1"
Step 8: Finishing and Painting
The inside and outside of the smoker were washed with plenty of soap and water. Once dry, a coat of high temperature paint was applied to the surface.
The thermostat was mounted on the door, about halfway up the smoker where most of the food would be placed, to get the most consistent readings. Ideally, several more thermostats would be mounted in different locations.