Howdy all!

Has anyone drilled extra bottom vent holes in their Smokey Joe Silver to improve airflow?
Anytime I put the lid on, (vents wide open, nothing blocking lower vents) the temp plunges...
gotta be insufficient makeup air from the bottom vent???

"Learn from the mistakes of others, you'll not live long enough to make them all yourself!"

Cheers, Darren.

i posted of this also, a while back. It finnally dawned on me that only the middle part of the charcoal (above the vent) was 'red'/hot. I havn't drilled mine. but bought a platinum.

I had the same problem. Placing the lid so it's ajar seemed to fix the issue. Though I thought about ordering another bottom vent plate and drilling out 4 more holes adjacent to the factory holes to double the air intake at the lower end. If the offset grill top did not fix the issue I would have considered the extra vents more seriously.

Thanks lads, good to know it's not just mine.

I think I'll pop 3 - 3/4 inch holes just outside the vent ring. I doubt that you can have too much vertical airflow.

Wonder if anyone has built a rig to use a small fan!

Will post pics when done.

Cheers, Darren

My SJS will not keep a good fire going. I'm going to have to do something to improve the airflow in it. I have one of the vents and will probably do it on the side so that at least two of the holes are below the charcoal grate. On a few occasions, the holes in the bottom vent have gotten clogged with ash or lump that has fallen through the charcoal grate.

I drilled 6 3/4 inch holes, just outside the stock vent...I'm on the road, so no pic's yet.

First cook, some of the Wife's experimental chicken burgers, initial results positive...

Hotter by far with the lid on, no data yet...

Cheers, Darren.

Second cook, burgers....

2/3 of a small chimney of lump, cooked the burgers first, then lid on to see results...

All temps taken from a piece of 1/8" steel plate, on the grill.

Open grill: 600 deg F+ (my infrared temp thing maxes out at 608 deg F.)

Lid on.

+ 10min: 600+
+ 20min: 575
+ 30min: 506
+ 40min: 475
+ 50min: 376
+ 1hr: 317
+ 1:10 285
+ 1:20 250

no extra char was added, and since the lid all but killed the heat before, I proclaim this experiment a success!

Cheers, DM

www.flickr.com/photos/29404203@N07/