Smokerduino

I had made a Sous Vide controller and thought it might work well for my smoker too. All I really had to do was change the sensor form a Dallas 18B20 to a thermocouple. The Dallas sensor tops out at about 250 degrees Fahrenheit. This particular smoker is electric but the controller will work on charcoal fired ones too. You just use the relay to run a fan and motorized damper instead of the heating element.

Step 1: Assembly

I had an old Serial Port Switch box lying around. I didn't bother to repaint the front panel and make it look nice like I usually do. I was probably too distracted form thinking about the smoked ribs I was gonna have this weekend....

I 3D printed a Bezel for the LCD display like on my other projects. It helps if you a bit off on your cutout's.

Step 2: BIG Solid State Relay

I have a bunch of these lying around from my mainframe service days. Same relay I used in the 3 Sous Vide Controllers I built. The only difference is this time it had to drive a 12.5A heating element. I grabbed a server CPU heat sink from an old chassis and used that. I also used a standard duplex outlet.

That pretty much filled the back panel.

Step 3: Arduino Compatible Controller

I made a custom Atmega 328P / MC 23017 controller board for the Sous Vide controllers. I used the same board here. I just used a wall wart clamped down for the power supply.

If you don't want to make your own controller the software is 100% compatible with the Adafruit RGB LCD Backpack mounted to an Arduino or Genuino Uno.

The software can be downloaded from here.

Step 4: Something to Smoke

RIBS. That's all I really wanted. I added a Turkey Breast to distract others while I gobble up the Ribs....

I used a simple dry rub of brown sugar and spices but they really don't even need that.

The Turkey got a Bourbon & Butter injection and a little of the leftover dry rub. I lost one soldier on that round. Luckily his big brother was on hand....

Step 5: The Hardest Part

The hardest part is the waiting. Just set the thermostat on the factory controller to Max and the SmokerDuino does the rest.....

After 3 hours I did open the box to refill the tray with more Apple Juice and bourbon...

I made a little Turkey gravy too. I'm still amazed at how long that blazed for.......

Step 6: Need Better Airflow

One of the many complaints about my smoker I read on the forums is it has poor airflow. I went to the local True Value and found a stove damper really cheap.

I could have just used a piece of 3 in stove pipe but I had these old side pipes on the scrap pile. Just had to slice em up enough to to get the nice chromed tip off.

The damper was a perfect fit. I drilled a hole for the shaft in the side of the pipe and then used a punch to locate the far side hole. That way I know it wont bind up.

Just have to drill a hole in the top and stuff it in......

Step 7: Whats Next ?

I will try the Charcoal smoker with this controller too. Just have to find a suitable fan to use.

I also want to try to make Bacon. There were some good instructables here during the Bacon Contest on how to make Bacon at home. As soon as I get some Prague powder and a pork belly look out....