Heard a pitmaster in Kansas City say he checks his fire every 20 minutes, and I stopped guessing after that
Last month I was waiting in line at a spot near Kansas City and got talking to a guy who runs his own offset smoker. He said he feeds his fire every 20 minutes for the first 4 hours, no matter what the thermometer says. I had been going by feel and always ended up with a dirty smoke taste. Since I tried his way, my last 3 cooks have had way cleaner smoke and better bark. How often do you all check your fire, or do you just trust your setup?
How big is your firebox though? That 20 minute thing works great on a big stick burner but my little Oklahoma Joe eats splits way faster than that. I got a guy near me who does the same thing, feeds it on a timer, and his brisket always has that thin blue smoke. What worked for me was getting a basket so the coal bed stays even, then I add one split every 30 to 40 minutes depending on wind. Wind is the thing nobody talks about, a breezy day will mess up your whole timeline. Are you running a water pan or anything to help even out the temp swings?