Pine cones for my smoker?

FlexMedia.tv · March 21, 2016, 11:50:46 AM

(Never used my smoker)
I see some videos using pine needles, sticks and wood chips. Do pine cones work well? I've got a billion in my yard so I'll save them if they work well. If not, I'll rake them over to the neighbors yard. Ha! (JK)

Art

BeeMaster2 · March 21, 2016, 12:49:10 PM

I do not use them. A smoker needs to be packed tight. This makes for a good coal that is hard to put out. Pine cones are very airy.
Have you tried old jeans. They burn very slowly and the smoke is a lot easier on your lungs.
Jim

tjc1 · March 21, 2016, 12:49:42 PM

I haven't used them, but I imagine that they might pitch up your smoker pretty good in short order. If you know anyone who does woodworking, ask them for some shavings from their planer (hardwood shavings best - make sure they are not from pressure treated wood though!) - they make great smoker fuel.

FlexMedia.tv · March 21, 2016, 04:40:15 PM

I haven't tried anything yet. I guess you are right. It should be packed tight. I do have some jeans I have out grown! What about lint from a clothes dryer to start?

little john · March 21, 2016, 05:44:53 PM

When burning sawdust in a smoker, the sawdust can become quite difficult to keep smouldering - but a few pine cones inserted beneath the sawdust greatly assists with the passage of air. However, I don't think they'd be very useful on their own.
LJ

ggileau · March 21, 2016, 10:26:20 PM

On the other hand, where there are pine cones there is almost always pine NEEDLES. That's my favorite. Although I bet if you pack the needles tight around the ones it'll work well.

splitrock · March 22, 2016, 07:02:10 AM

I always use pine needles and an occasional cone gets in the mix when I am picking them up, and everything works just fine. I wouldn't use them exclusively though.

KeyLargoBees · March 22, 2016, 07:30:49 AM

I have a friend who's a woodworker who supplies me with hardwood shavings from his planer. Currently using Teak but have used oak, ash and poplar.....the shavings (not sawdust) are awesome and if you can lay hands on them are by far the best fuel out there IMHO.

indypartridge · March 22, 2016, 01:26:11 PM

Quote from: FlexMedia.tv on March 21, 2016, 11:50:46 AM
(Never used my smoker)

Get out there and practice!
Try different fuels - see what works best for you.
Practice lighting (and re-lighting) it.
See if you can set it down for 10-15 minutes (without puffing) and have it stay lit.
Don't wait until you have bees to learn how to use your smoker!

BeeMaster2 · March 22, 2016, 01:39:18 PM

A properly lit smoker should bee able to bee put down and stay lit for several hours. The key is to get it lit and then slowly start packing it in real tight.
Jim

GSF · March 22, 2016, 01:46:48 PM

Don't wait until you have bees to learn how to use your smoker!

Ditto, it ain't no fun having an open hive full of bees and the smoker's out.

D Coates · March 22, 2016, 06:43:15 PM

Quote from: GSF on March 22, 2016, 01:46:48 PM
Don't wait until you have bees to learn how to use your smoker!

Ditto, it ain't no fun having an open hive full of bees and the smoker's out.

And it will happen in the most inconvenient time. Old cotton clothing (T-shirts, blue jeans, rags) over newspaper over a tightly balled batch of grass and it's good to go for 2-3 hours no problem. As soon as you see sparks open it up shove another ball of grass in there and put more cloth on top of that and keep working. It's taken me a loooong time to figure out how to consistently (okay semi ;)) keep my smoker lit for long periods of time.

FlexMedia.tv · March 23, 2016, 12:08:29 AM

Ya! I want to start practicing as soon as I can. I get my bees this May. These pine cones come with the short needles, not the long ones that are easy to gather. I'm going to start with some crushed pine cones, sawdust, old jeans and twigs and see how that works.
Thanks for all the advice!
Art

PhilK · March 23, 2016, 01:02:23 AM

I use paper to start it off, then use short twigs and pieces of wood to get a roaring fire going with hot embers, then pack down my fuel on top of that. I have been using cardboard rolled up really tight into a cylinder the same size as the smoker canister, with the ridges inside the cardboard running up and down. This works a treat but cardboard smoke doesn't smell the best.
We have paperbark trees here (and I think they are now a pest in Florida too) and their bark works (and smells) great!

little john · March 23, 2016, 07:12:36 AM

Just want to add that there's a project here for somebody ....

The design of smokers hasn't changed for decades, yet there's a basic design flaw: they need to be lit at the bottom, and yet fuel is introduced via the top.

Sure - once lit (and going well), additional fuel can always be added to existing smouldering fuel - BUT - the hassle is getting them started in the first place, which invariably involves starting-off a fire from scratch.

I've often thought how handy it would be to have a smoker packed, ready-for-use - but just not lit. I even experimented with a hand-held canister-type gas torch with an extended copper tube nozzle which could be slipped into the air inlet hole whilst lit, to ignite the fuel from below. But sadly, even the slightest puff with the bellows was enough to extinguish the flame.

So - for me, it's been a case of going-back to dropping lighted paper into the can, and building-up from there. But - I reckon igniting fuel from below is well-worth experimenting with, if anyone is so minded.
LJ

hilltophermit · March 23, 2016, 09:44:38 AM

When the pine cones are good and dry, crush them up. You can do this with your hands, but you might want to ware gloves. By far, the red heads of the sumac tree make the best smoker fuel. I gather them in the fall let them dry all winter. Great stuff.

FlexMedia.tv · March 23, 2016, 09:48:15 AM

This is all good stuff, folks! Thanks for helping yet another new guy!

KeyLargoBees · March 23, 2016, 11:39:36 AM

Flex....I would suggest you practice with your smoker a few times before you get your bees....I know I did and it was certainly better to have the smoker die several times and have to be relit while I was practicing rather than in the middle of an inspection...took me 2-3 times to get it right and have it stay lit for 20-30 minutes at a time while not actively being used.

Michael Bush · March 23, 2016, 12:28:24 PM

>The design of smokers hasn't changed for decades, yet there's a basic design flaw: they need to be lit at the bottom, and yet fuel is introduced via the top.

I made this insert: http://www.bushfarms.com/beesmisc.htm#smokerinsert

You can light it from the bottom (and I do) and you can leave it out where the breeze feeds it until it's going well and then drop it in the smoker.

I've seen one that opened on the bottom (as well as the top). But I didn't find a picture of it.

PhilK · March 23, 2016, 07:13:56 PM

Quote from: little john on March 23, 2016, 07:12:36 AM
Just want to add that there's a project here for somebody ....

The design of smokers hasn't changed for decades, yet there's a basic design flaw: they need to be lit at the bottom, and yet fuel is introduced via the top.

Sure - once lit (and going well), additional fuel can always be added to existing smouldering fuel - BUT - the hassle is getting them started in the first place, which invariably involves starting-off a fire from scratch

Is that really that much of a hassle? Light some paper, drop it in, puff puff, drop some small fuel in, puff puff puff, drop more fuel in while puffing and pack it all down.. takes about 45 seconds or so generally.

I have also seen people use a propane torch - drop what you want in the bottom, apply the torch until you have embers, and then place in more fuel.

Would a propane torch through the air inlet work better than what you experienced?