How to make a home smokehouse with a water seal?

Home smokehouse with a water seal will greatly simplify the process of cooking smoked fish or tasty meat. Cooking does not even require special skills in this area of ​​cooking. Try to build the unit yourself, using our tips.

Smokehouse with hydraulic lock is an excellent device that can be adapted for the preparation of various products. These designs have long been appreciated by lovers of picnics and country parties. In such a device, hot smoked products are prepared in home cooking.

To understand what a smokehouse is, you need to pay attention to some features of its structure.

• Externally, the design is a box. Inside the box there are brackets that allow you to hold special grids. On the grille fit products intended for cooking.

• The box is equipped with a lid, in which there is a hole for exhaust smoke. A tube is welded to this hole, which is intended for connecting hoses. If the design is used in the home kitchen or in the summerhouse, the hose is taken out of the window.
• Special sawdust (chips) are stacked on the bottom of the smokehouse. So that the fuel does not get fat, set the pallet, suitable for its collection. For ease of use of the smokehouse over the fire or stove, it is equipped with comfortable feet. The so-called water lock or lock is at the top of the unit.

The oil lock of the oil lamp is a horizontal groove in the form of a U-shaped profile of a closed configuration. A water lock is needed to prevent smoke from escaping through the holes between the edge of the case and the cover. Also, due to the water trap, air will not get inside, and without oxygen, the chips cannot ignite.

In some cases, if thin iron is used, the water seal can play the role of additional ribs. It reduces the possibility of iron deformation due to high temperatures.

Smokehouse with water lock can be of several varieties:

• home;
• Finnish;
• vertical;
• two-tier.

Home smokehouse is equipped with thin hoses, with which you can bring smoke to the street through the window. If the device is made by itself, then as such hoses can be used extenders from the medical dropper.

Finnish versions are different in design: inside the unit, products can not be laid on the grid, but hung on special hooks. Hangers for hanging are equipped with special notches, due to which sliding of products is excluded.This allows you to smoke at the same time several products.

The vertical design is similar in principle to Finnish: inside it is also possible to hang products on a hanger. However, the vertical structure can be varied grids for laying meat and fish. Geometry vertical options are round or square. The choice of one form or another is important in the independent production of the unit: it is faster to produce a circular smokehouse, as there are fewer welds.

Two-tier smokehouse allows you to place products on several grids. Such designs can be both horizontal and vertical type. The grilles inside should be positioned so that there is enough space for product placement.

In the manufacture of smokehouse with his own hands, it is important to focus on the typical sizes of popular options.

A popular vertical smokehouse with a water seal is characterized by the following parameters:

• height - 40 cm;
• diameter - 25 cm
• volume - 20 liters.
• diameter of pallets - 23.5 cm;
• distance between pallets - 4 cm;
• pallet thickness - 1 mm.

Let us consider in more detail the parameters of a horizontal smokehouse, since this option is more often made by hand. To determine the parameters you need to know whether you will smoke fish in the unit. It is worth paying attention to this particular product, since a small device with dimensions of 450 * 250 * 250 mm is also suitable for cooking chickens, fat or meat.

Three parameters are included in the standard dimensions:

• length;
• width;
• height.

It is the length of the unit must match the length of the fish that you plan to smoke. For this product, focus on the large parameters - 500-600 mm. At the same time, laid fish must lie at some distance from each other. The space between them is needed for a better smoked product from all sides. As recommended by experts, the best width for the smokehouse is 250 mm.

Now about the height. If it is planned to install several tiers of grids inside the unit, consider the distance between them, which should be at least 80-100 mm. For a better view, imagine the same fish arranged on the shelves.

When choosing sources, it should be taken into account that the unit will be installed on an open fire and become very hot at the same time, therefore there is a risk of deformation of the product. Moreover, the larger the size of the unit, the greater the likelihood of distortion of the initial state of the product. For this reason, responsibly approach the choice of stainless steel for the walls. The larger the size of the unit, the thicker it should have walls. This will extend the life of the device.

The rigidity of the design will provide a water seal and a cover of a gable or round shape. In the dual-slope version, a stiffener passes in the center, which will reduce the risk of distortion of the product.

If the unit is to be used only at home, consider the size of the hob available. Smokehouse horizontal execution can be put both along the length and the width of the plate.

If we consider the design of the purchase options, then all of them are manufactured according to a similar principle and equipped with standard accessories that allow using it even on an electric stove. Some of them affect the functionality of the smokehouse, and some do not. For example, the thermostat affects the uniformity of temperature distribution during smoking. It will automatically distribute heat to the internal space and eliminate the need for tracking the process.

Such accessories have a very small impact on the functionality:

• removable legs;
• thermometers;
• forceps;
• hooks of various configurations and lattices;
• smoke generator;
• asbestos cord.

Atand ingredients can facilitate the process of smoking. Using these or other accessories, you can be sure that homemade smoked products will meet all the requirements and get tasty.

Often, as a smokehouse lid with a water seal, you can use not the standard version of the direct form, but the “house” design. The powerful stiffener on the lid provides serious protection against all sorts of deformations and bending of the structure during strong heating.

If you have the necessary materials and tools to manufacture the unit yourself is not so difficult. Competent drawing will facilitate the process of manufacturing the unit with their own hands.

To create stainless steel blanks, use the grinder. Next, connect the two blanks so that between the sheets get a right angle. Use a welding machine and a special joinery angle, which will allow to achieve precise straightness. Connect all parts of the case, checking the accuracy of the angles. Then attach the bottom.

Make a cover that should fit exactly to the manufactured unit. Provide a pipe in the lid. Drill a hole, insert the tube and scald it in a circle. Inside the case, provide handles on which the grille will be installed. Attach the U-shaped handles to the weld inside.The grid can be made of steel strips or rods, which can be used as cleaned electrodes.

The hydraulic lock is made of sheets of steel bent into rectangles (approximately 360 * 90 mm). Weld these parts to the top of the base of a domestic smokehouse. The top of the channels should match the top of the device.

Provide a pallet that should be slightly smaller than the body. It is made of steel sheet, to which legs are welded. The edges of the sheet should be bent upwards.

Experience a hand-made machine right away. In the case of seam leakage, you can correct the flaw. To start, calcine the product over low heat. If you decide to cook a chicken or fish, please note that it should be marinated. Products need to be dried from brine. Not dried products turn out boiled, but not smoked. Place chips on the bottom of the smokehouse. If the device is used at home on a gas stove, place the chips in front of the burners. Install the pallet and the grill above it. Experts advise laying thin twigs from the fruit tree between the bars of the lattice: they will prevent the product from sticking to the lattice.

Opinions of owners of different versions of devices are divided. If there is an opportunity and appropriate skills, then it is better to make a smokehouse with your own hands. If the unit is supposed to be used frequently, then a stationary powerful unit is advised; if you smoke rarely, make a metal structure according to tested schemes. In the absence of skills of the welder, the unit can be made of the body of the old refrigerator.

A small portable version of the device may be more convenient to buy in the store. Presented on the shelves of many options, they vary in price, performance and appearance. Still purchased smokehouses can work on coal, electricity, gas or open fire. Reviews show that electrical options have become very common in home use.

It is undesirable to move the smokehouse from place to place until the smoking process is completed.

Experts advise to stand about 30 minutes after cooking. Thus, you can prevent the ingress of smoke into the room and protect yourself from burns. Products during this time will absorb more smoke and get the desired condition.

Some experts advise you to wash the smokehouse immediately after cooking. So the device will be clean and prepared for the next procedure.

If the device is supposed to be used in nature, then it is not recommended to place the unit removed from fire on damp grass or earth.

The photo shows one of the successful examples of the smokehouse with water lock, which can be used both in the apartment and on the street.

And on this photo is a vertical type device. It can also be used in nature and at home.

To learn how to prepare for the operation of the smokehouse with the water lock, see the video below.