I have a vertical(ex gas) smoker that I now use as my charcoal smoker. Been having trouble adjusting the heat. Every1 has been talking about a charcoal basket. Well I found a round deep fryer basket for a home fryer and it works great. Fits right down in the hole where the gas element used to be. Temps now stay @225-230 for quite some time. Just thought I would share. Will try to get a pic of the basket tomorrow when I do my pork butt.

Is it aluminum? If so... watch it ;{) Especially with lump.

Good to hear sizzlnchef! Will be excited to see this mod,poi-nts for getting creative!

Ok today I cant seem to get the smoker temp above 212 I have the water pan in with water in it should I take it out? Help me out guys please

212? Kinda ironic eh... yeah, remove pan, replace with some foil for drippage.

how s your airflow..does yours basket have holes or spaces for for the airflow if so try taking the water pan out and see what it does...post a pic of the basket and how it is in the smoker might help

And...I assume you DO have enough airflow for the coals?

yes enough air flow and holes

OK try the foil, and yeah...*some pix of the pan and the fit in the smoker would be helpful if that don't do it.

here is the basket
http://i543.photobucket.com/albums/gg478/sizzlnchef/102_0786.jpg

here is where the basket goes
http://i543.photobucket.com/albums/gg478/sizzlnchef/102_0785-1.jpg

what are you using lump or briquttes....i kinda of think that your holes are not big enough and the ash is kinda of smothering possibly...is there any air obstruction where the pan sits in the smoker....maybe someone else can chime in on this...

have you used this basket yet or is this the first time

Looks like there would be enough airflow to the basket, as long as your getting good airflow into the bottom of the smoker you should be ok. One of the things you will come across is when you add a thermal mass i.e. the water bath, or a bunch of meat is that it will take a long time for the temps to come up and stabilize. Make sure to check your thermometer on those box units as well. My experiance with them is that they were affected by outside influences such as direct sunlight or extreme cold. Get a digital and poke the therm through a small block of wood, or a potato and put it at grill level to see what your temps are at the meat level. Good luck!

I am using briquettes this is the first smoke with the basket trial yesterday worked great no meat.I took out the water from the pan and now holding @ 225 so I guess I'm ok thanks for all the help

Looks like there would be enough airflow to the basket, as long as your getting good airflow into the bottom of the smoker you should be ok. One of the things you will come across is when you add a thermal mass i.e. the water bath, or a bunch of meat is that it will take a long time for the temps to come up and stabilize. Make sure to check your thermometer on those box units as well. My experiance with them is that they were affected by outside influences such as direct sunlight or extreme cold. Get a digital and poke the therm through a small block of wood, or a potato and put it at grill level to see what your temps are at the meat level. Good luck!

good idea FW on the therms and the thermal mass....makes good sense

I am using briquettes this is the first smoke with the basket trial yesterday worked great no meat.I took out the water from the pan and now holding @ 225 so I guess I'm ok thanks for all the help

good you are good for now but i would use lump just because it burns hotter and if the smoker is loaded the thermal mass FW was talking about does make a difference....

Ahhh... you might consider opening up the bottom a bit for more air. You can fab a hunk of sheetmetal outta a coffee can or something to fit INSIDE and block off some of the air if you need to in the future.