FIRE in the HOLE!

Yup, too much oxygen getting to the wood. Actually the wood does burn and if it gets too much, it will ignite instead of smoke.

How do I stop it? Door was tightly closed, wood was wet.

The wood in the CS should be dry not soaked. I do not know if the wet wood would result in a fire. Also 3 chunks seems to be more wood than needed.

I soaked them overnight. It was 3 small chunks.

Don't soak or even wet the wood.. as Smokin said.. DRY. If you are using the Lil Chief.. you dampen/soak the wood.. not so in the CS.

Don't open the box while it is smoking. The wood WILL catch on fire and can result in a fireball as the smoke gets enough oxygen to catch on fire. Any fats that have dropped on top of the firebox can also catch on fire.. but, assuming you are using a very lean meat for your jerky.. should not be an issue.

Hmmm, I thought I read here somewhere that you should soak to stop flare ups? I'd rather not soak just another step. I wouldn't have opened it if not for the differnt color smoke,It just didn't look right. In the future if that happens do you suggest to leave it closed and burn out?

you don't see much -- if any -- discussion about fires flaring up in the smokette... never happened to me in 4 or 5 yrs.

do not soak the wood. the only variable i can see. keep it dry.

Hmmm.. I don't have enough experience.. yet..
But consider burning wet wood in a fireplace. It causes a lot of creosote that burns a different color than dry/cured/aged wood. Is it possible that the first smoke you saw was steam "burning off"? Also, if smoke is back lit.. sun behind it.. It WILL look a different color than if the smoke is top or front lit. The light will reflect differently. In my prior comment.. I got curious and opened the CS before the wood was mostly consumed.. and I was fortunate I was wearing glasses and my face was a bit away from the whoosh of flame that came out of the box.

When you make charcoal.. you control the oxygen able to get at the wood. It is incomplete combustion. A similar thing happens in a smoker.. you are controlling the amount of oxygen entering the box causing the wood to smoulder/smoke rather than catch on fire.

I would think that unless you have a lot of door misalignment.. allowing excess O2 to enter the smoker.. you should simply let it go.. and not open it until the emission from the hole in the top is steam.. not smoke... 1.5 hrs or so.

I'm sure you will get a lot more professional answer shortly.

As a fireman knows, the only way to put out a fire is remove either the heat sourse, the fuel, or the oxygen. Opening the door would prove hazardous to your health, so that removing the heat source or the fuel is out of the question. I would have:

1) Turned off the thermostat.
2) Unplugged the unit.
3) Covered the "chimney" hole with something that would stay put and not allow smoke to excape.

Yes, the bottom hole would still be open, but a draft would not be allowed with the top home closed.

I have loaded up my 008 with a lot of meat and wood, but I have never had a fire in it.

Bob

About all I see different is Wet wood.

Try it again and don't wet it down. Use good dry wood and 3 oz. should be fine.

Smokin'

I think you were very alert to notice the color of the smoke had changed. You must be paying very close attention to what you are doing. I agree with cadillac...smother that fire, but I'd probably check it out like you did, curiosity killing the cat. In my instruction manual for the SM150, it said to use only dry wood. Maybe the moisture conducts heat more quickly.

By the way, what would happen to my smoker if I used a fire extinguisher in an emergency?

This got me more curious.
Thanks
Peggy

As far as fire extinguishers are concerned, get a sizable Co2 model for your trailer. Back it up if you wish with a dry chemical, but use the Co2 first in an emergency. It will put out most fires, and you can still use the food. The dry chem destroys all it touches, including fridge motors, electronics, etc.

I thought you trailer had a fire system? In any case, use it last unless you see giant flames. I bet your husband has seen the results of an Ansul discharge. It ain't pretty, but it beats a burned out kitchen, just barely.

I had a hood technician forget to put the system on safe when he went to change the links and fired the system off 30 minutes before open. Needless to say we were closed for the day. I had 15 people that cleaned for 8 hours to get it turned around for the next day and honestly we still didn't get it all. I concur with Todd. Reach for your Ansul trigger last. I would think that with 2greyhounds you will not be dealing with the kind of grease that most kitchens deal with (deep fryers, tilt skillets, etc.)and that cause most fires. But since you're in such a small space I would have your fire fighting plan/evacuation plan thought out in advance.

Todd, I have never had anyone mention CO2 extinguisers before. Are they very effective? Do you know what types of fires they are rated for?

One question for Smokin' or Tom? In the event of an internal grease flare up/fire, can the CS and FE models be left closed and allowed to burn themselves out (cutting the air draft as indicated in a previous post) without damaging the element/pellet auger, thermostat, or wiring?

Thanks,
Mark

I remembered this same discussion on the FE portion of the Forum and sure enough, here it is. Looks like a box of baking soda kept within arms reach could save the cooker & the food.

http://forum.cookshackamerica.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cg..._topic;f=23;t=000212

bob

My dear ole Pop had a knack for creating grease fires in his iron skillet on our electric range.......Mom kept Armour Hammer in business beck in those years because she could bank on Chef Pyro's antics.
LoL....he does a much better job in his retired years.

I've had a little fire in the woodbox, about what you'd get if you burned a marble-sized hunk of wood in your fireplsce, flames maybe an inch high. Closed the door and ignored. I wonder if you had more of a grease fire than anything, especially with the different smoke. Do you use foil to keep the woodbox top clean? Did you have an accumulation of grease from previous cookings?

CO2 extinguishers are often found around computer rooms and medical facilities - they're safe to use on valuable electronic equipment. Read more at http://www.fire-extinguisher101.com/

We have a fire system in the trailer consisting of a fire extinguisher and 2 alert cooks. I do remember using baking soda to throw on a fire on the range once and also throwing a lid over the flames. So, the CO2 won't damage the unit?
Thanks
Peggy

By the way, thank you very much for all this information. It's something I hadn't thought much about until this topic came up. We had fire extinguisher training briefly in almost every medical facility I've ever worked in. I think I'll stay close to the serving window. I can fit through there no problem! LOL
Peggy

Well, let's think this through. Different fires in different smokers. The little CS's you're most likely seeing the wood ignited and creating a fire. In the FE's because of higher temps, it might potentially be something ignited, like too much grease?

Can't stress enough, keep the smoker clean when you can. Don't overfill the smoke box. Change the foil. Don't let the grease build up in the bottom.

What to do.

Smother a fire first. I think in the CS's that there isn't enough wood and lower temps to create a huge fire and just unplug it and do NOT open the door. Cut off a fire's oxygen supply is rule #1. In the 150's or bigger you can get some high temps and the boxes are bigger so more wood.

In the FEC's there are higher temps that can cause problems.

Good post from the FE forum, always remember to clean your smoker. If there is a buildup of grease, doesn't matter which smoker you have, if it gets a fire in it...your smoker might be toast.

Mark to answer your question, once you have a fire, there are no guarantees about the potential damage. The smokers are built to handle "heat" but a fire is different, guess it would depend on where the fire was if it was close enough to damage any elements. Been cooking in them for about 5 years and haven't had a fire yet (he says thinking..did I clean the foil out after the last cook?)

CALL 9-1-1

Peggy - don't know whether or not CO2 would be effective on a smoker fire, but at least it wouldn't wet down the electrical system or leave residue everywhere. As Smokin' points out tho, the fire itself might burn up some of the electrical goodies from the hi temperatures.

Might check with your local firefighters about which extinguisher is right for your rig.

i printed this thread off to prove to some guys who were ragging me about my smoker shut down procedure that i was on the right track.
after every use we remove foil
use lemon juice to remove any grease traces
clean all the racks and vacuum out the hopper and burn pot.
burn pot is also run dry before all of this.
jack

quote:

... vacuum out the hopper and burn pot ...jack [/QB]

Jack, I think burning pot is illegal.

Donna

darn donna now you know my brisket secret
but all kidding aside i do it everytime using a small crevice attachment.
the navy taught me a healthy respect for fire and this forum taught me about pellet-crete which is what you get in florida from damp pellets and boy have we been damp this year!!!!
maybe one day peggy will teach me how to spell and type and you are right burnpot does not require a space!!!
jack
ps. thanks, had a bad day, and needed a good laugh!!! thats why i like this forum so much!!!

For Mark from above regarding Co2 extinguishers:
***pulled from net***

"CARBON DIOXIDE (CO�)
Carbon dioxide gives fast, safe and effective protection for fires involving electrical equipment and flammable liquids. They are generally suited for use indoors, making them ideal for office environments. They are highly effective, easy to use and leave no messy residue to clean up. They discharge liquid Co2 as a cloud of snow/ice crystals. Typically 15-B:C rating or better."

We had one at our restaurant in our outdoor wood pit and it was very effective on grease the couple of times we had to use it.

Todd,

Thanks for the info. I will definitely look into it.

Mark