Gas Grill to Smoker

I'm taking an old cheap gas grill that the bottom and burners have basically burnt out and would like to convert it into a full time smoker...on a low budget of course. I cut out what was left of the bottom and removed all the burners, tubing and hoses etc. I put an old oven broiler pan in the bottom as a fire box for a quick test run to see if it would come up to temp and hold heat, see pics below.

It came up to 200* pretty quickly with a small fire and held temp nicely. There are a few vent holes I'll need to close off with some thin sheet metal or tin which should allow for higher temperatures and hold the heat better.

Any BBQ smokemasters pro's out there??? Let me know what u think and if you have any tips or ideas.

I would like to take the side burner, which still works, and mount on the very bottom of the grill below the fire box and use it to crank up the fire. Hole already in place where the propane tank sat.

Thanks

The cabinet in the bottom of the grill is not designed to hold heat. You would be better served by just finding a weber charcoal grill and using a technique called indirect smoking. You can also get upright smokers in the shape of a small barrel cheap as well. Both will do a great job.

Good idea, but that metal at the bottom is usually pretty flimsy.

Interesting idea but I don't see this working out very well.

The bottom has absolutely no properties that make it suitable to being transformed into a smoker. Buy a Traeger or another high quality, inexpensive smoker. Your house will probably be happy that you did.

just get an Orion cooker. it cooks food phenomenally and is only like $160. you'll spend more than that trying to convert this thing that won't work anyway

Thanks for the input, I've already smoked with it using one of those little smoke boxes on top of the burners, And it worked fine.
Now With the fire in the bottom, All the heat and smoke should work directly up into the top of the grill, which it did nicely during a test run. I've seen old file cabinets turned into smokers so I thought a grill would have a fighting chance., is the only concern that it won't hold heat?????
I'm firing it up again tomorrow and will smoke some meats using hardwood and some charcoal.

One word.....dump.

If you want a smoker, get a smoker, there are many options.

If you need a grill, get a new one.

You can buy an inexpensive smoker that works well under $80 shipped on Amazon. There's several options actually. Did you check what type of paint the bottom is painted with? Can't be healthy to ingest.

I'm a frugal guy too, but damn. C'mon man.

If you want a smoker, buy an inexpensive one. Just don't buy a Brinkmann or Char Broil, unless you want to replace it every year.

If you want to MAKE one, that is cool too - check out an ugly drum smoker. The approach you are trying is going to be a hell of a lot of work with disappointing reaults.

[quote name='RookieBlue7' timestamp='1388250515' post='8359283']
You can buy an inexpensive smoker that works well under $80 shipped on Amazon. There's several options actually. Did you check what type of paint the bottom is painted with? Can't be healthy to ingest.
[/quote]
My thoughts for the bottom was to use an old round charcoal grill for the fire box and as for the paint it should be fine with the fire inside the old grill raised a few inches of the bottom and the heat rising up
Good question and point about the paint....I would think its a high temp paint as well being part of a grill.???
I'll keep an eye on it when I fire it up for another test run
Thanks for reply

Sounds like a lot of time and effort. My Old Smokey cost $80 delivered.

I was gifted a CharBroil Oil-less Turkey Fryer for Christmas and that thing is AWESOME!. I've yet to cook a turkey but it'll do chickens and porkers just fine.

[quote name='thug the bunny' timestamp='1388416824' post='8367275']
Sounds like a lot of time and effort. My Old Smokey cost $80 delivered.
[/quote]
is that a smoker or a charcoal grill?

[quote name='CHARGERS' timestamp='1388423153' post='8367909']
[quote name='thug the bunny' timestamp='1388416824' post='8367275']
Sounds like a lot of time and effort. My Old Smokey cost $80 delivered.
[/quote]
is that a smoker or a charcoal grill?
[/quote]

Both. At 22", it is big enough to put the coals and chips off to one side for indirect cooking, and of course you can pile them up in the center for grilling. The thing looks like a couple garbage pails stacked on top of each other, and maybe it doesn't perform like a Big Green Expense, but at $80, it is less than the price of a replacement grill for a BGE. I would recommend the extended legs unless you have a bench or table..

Gotcha Thank-you
Not a fan of the whole indirect heat and smoking technique, it works ok for smaller portions but doesn't allow for multiple racks of ribs, etc.

[quote name='CHARGERS' timestamp='1388432254' post='8368737']
Gotcha Thank-you
Not a fan of the whole indirect heat and smoking technique, it works ok for smaller portions but doesn't allow for multiple racks of ribs, etc.
[/quote]

I got a rib rack and smoked 4 racks (wait, a rib rack is for racking racks of ribs...) to perfection a few weeks ago..

You mentioned you were on a tight budget. How tight are we talking? If you have roughly $100, you can create one of the best smokers called a UDS (Ugly Drum Smoker). It is made from an old 55 gallon drum. Incredibly easy to hold temperature, incredibly easy to create fantastic meals with. Here is a picture of mine.

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Yes Thanks Ive seen those on the web