I'm using an Old Country Brazos smoker. I have gaskets on the doors. I'm finding it a fair amount of work to maintain a consistent 250 degree temp. I can certainly do it, but it requires me to use small splits that I need to tend and feed pretty often - like 45 minutes or so.

If I use any bigger splits than maybe 10" x 3" then the temp jumps up over 300 and I end up fighting it back by propping the fire box lid, etc.

What says the outdoor board? Normal? Do I just need to feed the fire and shut up, get a pellet smoker if I don't like it?

Not sure what type of smoke box vent it has, but I would be adjusting that and the smoke stack restrictor first too see if you can get a consistent temp that way first

Thanks. I hadn't really played with that because the vids I've watched said leave it all wide open so as to avoid dirty smoke. But those vids don't really address my problem of the temp leaping up with anything bigger than a very small split.

At first I do that or did that and would damper down to keep a steady temp. Dont want to let the fire go down too low as when you ad a stick it will be dirty smoke. I use a billows with my thermoworks thermometer now for air flow. Trial and error. Every pit has its quirks

I have a Lone Star Grillz 20x42 backyard smoker. One of the first things that I learned is how little wood is necessary. I run it off of a bed of coals and two 11-16" splits. Maintaining temps has more to do with the thickness of the steel. So sounds like use less wood and to be honest youre doing pretty good if you are maintaining temps for 45 min on an old country pit.

Pit temp and smoke quality are definitely related. You can use bigger splits and cut back the airflow to reduce pit temp, but run the risk of producing lower quality smoke.

In my experience with a similar pit, you are dialed in if you can maintain 250F only adding wood every 45 minutes. I'm lucky to get 30 minutes without intervention. Adding wood/tending a fire is supposed to be enjoyable. Keep it up!

You are dialed in. This is why when smoking a Bluetooth speaker and a cooler of beer are necessities. If you want easier you can get a pellet oven or a BGE.

Brazos is quarter-inch which was important to me when shopping. It's not high end by any stretch but it's decent.

Thanks for the feedback. I'm relatively new at this so it's good to hear whether I'm far off the mark or in the zone.

Your stack should be wide open. Control your heat from the amount of inflow at your firebox.

Jack Cheese said:

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What says the outdoor board? Normal? Do I just need to feed the fire and shut up, get a pellet smoker if I don't like it?

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You nailed it, feed and shut up or get a pellet/ceramic. Offsets take some watching, even with fancy Bluetooth/wireless probes.

Smaller pits with thin metal like yours, feeding a log every 45 minutes means you're doing well, most require more maintenance. My stick burner is an old propane tank at 3/8 inch metal and I still rarely go an hour without messing with the fire, it's usually 30-45 minutes as well.

Use smaller splits to control your heat, don't choke off the fire as you'll burn with really dirty smoke and you don't want that. Always keep a good coal base in the bottom.

Sounds like you're right on track, keep at it.

Signals+Billows

Will check out the billows thing, any links/recommendations?

Brisket turned out pretty good yesterday! The lean was just what I wanted - probably best lean I've produced yet. Point was a little tough, not buttery as I would like. This was a choice brisket from HEB that I got 2-for-1 a couple of months ago and froze.

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What says the outdoor board? Normal? Do I just need to feed the fire and shut up, get a pellet smoker if I don't like it?

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This. My offset gives a much better smoke ring, but the constant need to maintain the fire/temp coupled with chasing 3 kids around and their activities means it gets used about once per year. I use a Kamado Joe for the fact that it's pretty much set it and forget it until it's time to wrap or take off. I've had 250* fires go for 12 hours without me having to do anything.