Building a Smoke House

Smoked fish tastes good and preserves well.

There's nothing like the taste of smoked turkey, meat, trout, salmon--smoked meats and fish are favorites for many people. A free weekend and a little elbow grease can help you build a smoke house in your own backyard. Even though you are not an experienced builder, the task can encourage your do-it-yourself spirit, giving your family a project to build together.

Things You'll Need

• Two 2-by-4-inch boards
• Chalk line
• Wood chips, soaked
• 18 pine boards, 1-1/2 inch by 1-1/2 inch
• Cast iron pan
• 1-5/8 inch deck screw
• Utility knife
• Sheet steel
• Five tongue-and-groove pine boards, 1 inch by 6 inch by 5 feet 9-inch
• Pencil
• Measuring tape
• Saw
• Two 4-inch strap hinges
• Screwdriver
• Fifteen tongue-and-groove pine boards, 1 inch by 6 inches by 6 feet
• Burner

Instructions

1. Get smoke house plans from the Louisiana State University Agricultural Center's smokehouse plans or some other source. Such plans are detailed and fairly easy to follow, giving you a reliable smoke house. You can also access books on designing a smoke house, such as Marianski's "Meat Smoking and Smokehouse Design."

2. Build your own smoke house. You will need 10 tongue and groove boards, 2 by 8-inch by 8-foot, with tongues removed for the sides--the same five boards for the back and another five pieces for the door. Also, you can use strap hinges for the door, additional boards for the framing, and sheet steel for the roof.

3. Clamp and fit the side pieces together, with the removed tongue facing the back. Snap a chalk line and ensure that the panel measures 6 inches at the front to 5 feet, 9 inches at the top back of the panel. Do the same with the other panel.

4. Cut down or rip the extra boards into 1½-by-1½-inch boards using a circular saw. Utilize them as framing pieces. Also, attach one piece to the bottom inside of the panel. Attach the other piece to the top inside. Attach the third piece along the inside back of the panel going from the top to the bottom.

5. Create the back panel likewise. It will be 5 feet, 9 inches in height. Fasten the back panel to the sides. Ensure that all the panels are square.

6. Rip brace pieces--3-1/8 inches wide--with a circular saw. Notch the top outer corners to accommodate the framing of the panel. Place another piece of wood of the same dimensions over it and make it appear seamless. Do the same with the bottom of the front opening.

7. Make 1-1/2 by 1-1/2-inch shelf supports. Set the first 18 inches from the floor, placing the next supports 14 inches apart.

8. Construct the door just as you did the panels. Make sure it fits snugly between the bottom and the top pieces framing the opening.

9. Attach the roof using screws, leaving a small gap all the way round the top.

10. Build shelves of expanded metal that are braced with angle pieces. Remove the oil from the metal with a solvent before you place food on them. Expanded metal is a metal slit, stretched so that it has diamond-shaped holes.

11. Start generating smoke. You can do this by putting a cast-iron pan on a propane burner and filling the pan with charcoal or hardwood.

References

• The Louisiana State University Agricultural Center: Smokehouse Plans
• "Meat Smoking and Smokehouse Design"; Stanley Marianski; 2009