Smokehouse from the refrigerator, DIY technique

Despite the fact that recently a huge number of different devices for smoking factory-made products have appeared on sale, many home craftsmen are in no hurry to purchase them, preferring to make a smokehouse with their own hands. Some of them weld the body of the smokehouse from sheet iron, obtaining a metal box in which the smoking process subsequently takes place. And someone, in a creative search, goes even further, adapting, sometimes, quite unexpected objects for this purpose. One of these non-standard solutions is a DIY refrigerator smokehouse.

Smokehouse from the refrigerator - nothing could be easier

On the technical side, a DIY smokehouse made from an old refrigerator is a fairly simple device.
To implement this idea, you will need a few tools that every home craftsman has. Most of the manufacturing process takes place in the creative phase, where you will need to decide how many grates and hooks will be installed, where to install the smokehouse, and the like. How to make a smokehouse from a refrigerator, and what are its main features?

Design Features

In order not to make mistakes in the process of making a smokehouse with your own hands from a refrigerator, you need to decide what technology you plan to use to smoke products with its help: cold or hot smoking, since the difference in technology makes some differences in the design of the device.

Also, when making a smokehouse from a refrigerator with your own hands, you need to decide: it will be used indoors or outdoors, which also makes certain differences in the design.

Hot smoking

When hot smoking products, the source of smoke (wood chips) is located inside the smokehouse body. In the process of heating it, slowly smoldering begins without the formation of a flame, during which the temperature of the smoke in the smoking box can be 80-120 ° C, and may differ slightly depending on the product being smoked. Using a home-made refrigerator smokehouse for this type of smoking, you get a large capacity container, which will allow you to easily set the required temperature for the process.

Cold smoking

With cold smoking, the smoke source is located outside the smokehouse, so you will need to figure out how to connect them together.
You can come up with your own unique design or use a ready-made version from the Internet, where you will find many inventions of your fellow “Kulibins”. For cold smoking, it is very important to maintain the process temperature within a narrower range than for hot smoking. Recommended value is 27-30°C. Since cold smoking lasts much longer (the process takes several hours), at a higher temperature the smoked product will “burn”, and if it is insufficient, it will go rotten.

While losing in the complexity of the technological process, this type of smoking benefits in that the product obtained with its help has a long shelf life, during which its taste is not lost.

How to make a hot smoked smokehouse from a refrigerator with your own hands (step by step, instructions)

With the hot method, products are smoked at a temperature of at least 100 degrees. Accordingly, the process occurs quickly - two hours is the maximum that may be required to prepare the products. It is believed that with such a smokehouse from the refrigerator for fish, meat and other products, some of the vitamins are lost. In addition, there is a risk of the formation of carcinogens.

The taste of products using the cold and hot smoking methods differs, so when making the unit you need to rely on your preferences. In the second case, it is easier to make a cabinet than for cold smoking. You don’t have to dig a trench and experiment with a four-meter pipe. The instructions will contain only a couple of points:

Install a refrigerator.
Place the electric stove down and place a container with wood chips on it.

Attention! For a hot smoking cabinet, it is important to understand at what mode to heat the stove. Under no circumstances should the fuel ignite; it must smolder; in order to increase the amount of smoke and minimize the risk of ignition, the wood chips must be moistened.

During hot smoking there will be a lot of fat in any case. Therefore, it is worth putting a tray under it. A chimney vent is required on top of the cabinet.

You can also make a smokehouse from a refrigerator with a smoke generator with your own hands. This will improve the taste of the food and speed up the cooking process. The device is sold ready-made or you can assemble it yourself. It will require an aquarium compressor (optimal power 60 l/h).

We make a smokehouse for cold smoking

How to make a cold smoked smokehouse from a refrigerator with your own hands? What tool will be needed, distinctive features and possible nuances.

Required tools and materials

To make a smokehouse from a refrigerator with your own hands, you will need the following tool:

Drill with drills. With their help, holes are drilled for self-tapping screws, and a contour is outlined for cutting holes in the walls of the refrigerator.

Metal scissors. Necessary for giving the refrigerator parts the required dimensions.
A hacksaw with a blade for metal or a side grinder (popularly “grinder”) with a disc for metal. With their help, you can saw a metal pipe to obtain a chimney of the required size.
Screwdriver and self-tapping screws for attaching elements to the smokehouse body.

The materials you need to make a smokehouse are:

Old refrigerator. Any model will do, the main thing is that its body is not rotten and there is no rust.

Refractory brick for arranging the combustion chamber. For this purpose, you can also use ordinary bricks, if it is impossible to purchase refractory bricks, but in this case you need to be prepared for the fact that the firebox will last much less.
Metal lid for the firebox. Necessary for loading a smoke source into the combustion chamber, as well as for regulating the process of smoldering and smoke production.
A set of pipes and angles for creating a chimney. It is recommended to use a metal pipe with an internal diameter of 100-150mm.
Hook for creating a refrigerator door lock.
Several grates and hooks on which the product will be laid or hung.
Exhaust fan to create a stream of cold smoke.
Container for collecting drained fat.

Design Features

Before you make a smokehouse from an old refrigerator without much effort using improvised means and simple tools, you should decide on the type of smoking and location. There is an option for outdoor use, but such a device can also be made for indoor use. Let's consider the possible options.

Hot smoking

To make a smokehouse of this type from an old refrigerator, you will need the following materials:

heating elements (electric stove with open or closed heating elements);
thick-walled container with a lid for heating wood chips;
grates and hooks for laying out or hanging processed products;
smoke exhaust pipe;
elements for locking refrigerator doors;
tray for collecting fat.

Cold smoking

To ensure the technology of preparing dishes using this method requires:

refrigerator (preference is given to Soviet models without plastic filling inside);
refractory bricks for fireboxes;
pipe 4 - 5 meters long, 100 -150 mm in diameter;
iron firebox cover;
grates and hooks for laying out or hanging processed products;
corner pipe element for comfortable connection of a structure located at a slope to the surface;
tray for collecting fat;
exhaust fan.

To make a smokehouse from a refrigerator yourself for use in the yard, you need to decide on the installation location. The design feature depends on this. If the terrain allows, the structure is installed on a slope without additional manipulations. It is important that the refrigerator converted into a smokehouse is installed above the smoke generator (furnace). If the place is flat, then a hole is dug under the firebox, or the smoking cabinet is installed on a stand.

Smoke generator assembly

Diagram of a smokehouse firebox from an old refrigerator.
A firebox is installed at a distance of approximately 2-3 m from the refrigerator. To ensure a free flow of smoke in the desired direction (from the firebox to the smoking chamber), the firebox must be positioned lower in level than the chamber. If you have a flat area or its natural slope is not enough, a hole is dug in the ground for the firebox and a trench for the chimney.

The firebox will act as a smoke generator; the best option for its manufacture is masonry made of refractory bricks. If you don’t have a brick, but have an unnecessary metal box, then it can also be used as a firebox. If you don’t have any of the above, then you can even get by with a piece of sheet metal laid at the bottom of the firebox pit. The main condition is that the firebox with a smoke generator must have a lid for loading the material, cleaning it from used raw materials, and also adjusting the flow and temperature of the smoke.

Preparing the body

The lining and all plastic elements are removed from the inside of the refrigerator. The magnetic strip on the refrigerator doors does not need to be removed. The cracks that appear during dismantling will serve as exhaust openings in the future smokehouse.
Holes of the required diameter are drilled in the required places and gratings and hooks are installed using self-tapping screws.
A hole is made in the lower part of the refrigerator body for the chimney pipe. To do this, a circle is marked on the bottom with a diameter corresponding to the pipe used. Next, using a drill, marking holes are drilled along the contour, after which a hole is cut out using metal scissors.
A similar procedure must be performed in the upper part of the refrigerator body to install the exhaust fan. The size of this hole is selected according to the diameter of your fan.
A locking device (hook) is installed on the door, ensuring its tight fit to the refrigerator body when closed.

Considering that when creating a cold smoked smokehouse from a refrigerator with your own hands, the design has a relatively long chimney between the combustion and smoking chambers, and they are also located at different heights, then the need for an exhaust fan may disappear.

You can initially skip step 4 and try to operate the smokehouse without an exhaust fan; if the smoke flow is sufficient, you can leave the structure as is. If the flow is weak, you can always add an additional hood.

Chimney installation

After the firebox and the refrigerator body are installed in the places where they will stand in the future, they are connected using a metal pipe (chimney). If it is necessary to bend the pipe, use corners with the required angle. The connections must be made airtight so that the cold smoke required for smoking does not escape outside the smoking chamber, reducing the efficiency of the device.

Manufacturing of gratings

When making a smokehouse from a refrigerator with your own hands, you will definitely need grates on which the product being processed will be placed.
Of course, the best option is to use stainless steel grates. However, if it is difficult to obtain such a grill, then you can use a ferrous metal grill. For smoking small pieces, a wire grid with a diameter of 2 mm is sufficient; for heavier pieces, the thickness of the wire should be greater. One of the main requirements for the grill when making a smokehouse from a refrigerator with your own hands is the absence of paint on its surface. Therefore, you can use the grill that comes with the refrigerator itself. To get rid of paint, you can beat it off with a hammer or burn it over an open fire.

Making a pallet

Any unpainted metal container can be used as a tray for collecting fat. Its dimensions must be selected in such a way that the fat dripping from above does not fall past the pan.

Option for cold

A homemade cold smoked smokehouse should be arranged in such a way that the firebox is located at a decent distance from the smoking box. Unfortunately, the exact distance cannot be specified, since everything depends on surrounding factors. The essence of the smokehouse is that the smoke produced by burning wood must cool before entering the smoking chamber.

Essentially, you need to build two devices: a smoking box and a firebox. Regardless of how the structure is constructed, its general layout will be the same.

The firebox should be located below the lowest tier of the smokehouse. Warm smoke will rise upward due to natural convection, and if the pipe is horizontal or with a reverse slope, then the smoke will escape through the stove into the atmosphere. If the landscape of a country house allows, you can build a cold smoked smokehouse on a hillock. Otherwise, you will have to make a pit to lay the pipe. The firebox itself is made of refractory brick. A recess is dug and the walls are lined with bricks. There should be a lid on top so that firewood can be placed. The chimney starts horizontally and then slopes upward towards the smoking box.

Difficulties arise with the length of the chimney, because the temperature in the smokehouse depends on it. Considering that products should be smoked in this way at a temperature of 27 to 30°C degrees, you will have to do a couple of test runs to measure the temperature without products.

A round hole is made in the bottom of the refrigerator for the pipe inlet. To turn the pipe, you can use an elbow, but it is most convenient to use aluminum corrugation, which is used in gas boilers or water heaters. Unlike a hot smoker, there is no need to make a drainage hole. Smoke will escape from the box due to natural cracks when installing the pipe. Despite the fact that the smoke temperature is not so high, the plastic from the walls of the refrigerator must be removed.

There are two more types of smokehouses from an old refrigerator, which we will touch on.

The first model for hot smoking contains a firebox in the lower part in which wood burns. The design of such a smokehouse is quite simple. It is necessary to install a shelf above the firebox on which sawdust or wood chips will be poured. However, to monitor the condition of the fire or the condition of the sawdust, you will have to open the refrigerator door. This risks the influx of oxygen causing a fire. The second negative phenomenon is a drop in smoke density and humidity. Although this design is carried out in stages, like a device with an electric heater, it has not gained much popularity due to the listed disadvantages.
Another model is a smokehouse for cold smoking, in which the source is a smoke generator. This device is quite expensive, so craftsmen prefer to make it themselves. The smoke generator consists of a container with a heating element. Air is pumped through a special hole. Smoke under pressure comes out of the pipe, which is introduced into the smoking box. A compressor from the same refrigerator can pump air, but it is necessary to install a reducer to reduce the pressure. This model is unlikely to appeal to beginners, since they will have to devote more time to the smoke generator than to the smokehouse itself.

Rules for using the smokehouse

When smoking food in a smokehouse from the refrigerator, you should use the following simple rules:

It is necessary to prepare in advance a supply of wood chips or sawdust in quantities sufficient to ensure continuity of the process throughout the entire smoking period.
Light a fire in the firebox and warm up the smokehouse.
Place the product on a grid or hang it on hooks. Try to avoid contact between pieces of product to ensure maximum quality smoke treatment on all sides.
Close the smokehouse and wait for the smoking time according to the recipe. Please note that it is not recommended to open the chamber at the time of smoking, this violates the temperature regime.
During the process, it is necessary to ensure that the wood chips do not ignite; it is necessary to maintain only its smoldering. Add wood chips if necessary.
It is also necessary to maintain the fire to ensure smoldering of the wood chips. When working with open flame, follow fire safety requirements.

Design features of different types of smokehouses

You can make homemade smokehouses of different types from an old refrigerator.

Smoking cabinet from the refrigerator

The main part of a cold smoked smokehouse is the smoking chamber, or smoking cabinet. It can be made from a refrigerator with minimal modifications. Step-by-step instructions for reconstructing the device consist of the following points:

Remove the shelves.
Remove the freezer compartment, compressor and wires going inside the housing.
Close the resulting holes with wooden plugs.
Cut a Ø100mm hole in the ceiling of the chamber.
Install a chimney from a plastic sewer pipe in this hole.
Cut a smoke supply hole in the lower part of the body.
If the shelves are made of galvanized wire, then they must be installed back into the grooves located in the walls.

The size and correct position of the smoke supply hole depend on the type of smoke source:

apparatus with a smoke generator - in the lower part of the side or rear wall;
when installing with a chimney in the ground, a 30x30cm hole is cut in the bottom of the smoking chamber.

The operating principle of such installations is similar to smokehouses of other designs.

This installation can only be used at low temperatures, or in cold smoking mode.

If there is space and materials, instead of a simple smoking cabinet, a barbecue with a smokehouse and a brick cauldron can be built.

Smokehouse from a two-chamber refrigerator

You can make a smokehouse with your own hands from a two-chamber refrigerator in the same way as making an apparatus from a single-chamber refrigerator. To make fuller use of the available volume, the partition between the chambers must be removed, leaving a 5cm edge. This will allow you to place a grill with meat or fish on the resulting hole.

Smokehouse with smoke generator

The most convenient way to produce smoke for cold smoking is a smoke generator with an ejector and a compressor.

The smokehouse from the refrigerator is assembled with your own hands into one unit with these elements. They are mounted on the back or side wall and connected to the chamber with a steel or PVC pipe Ø16-20mm. Assembly is carried out using bolts or self-tapping screws.

Smokehouse from a refrigerator and a fire extinguisher

Another method of producing smoke is a “cartridge” that is heated with a blowtorch or fire. You can make it from a small carbon dioxide or foam fire extinguisher in a metal case:

Discharge the fire extinguisher.
Unscrew the valve.
Wash the inside of the container.
Pour sawdust into the “chuck”.
Through the adapter, screw a 1/2″ pipe 1.5-2 meters long into the neck of the fire extinguisher.
Insert the pipe into the hole at the bottom of the side wall of the refrigerator.
Place the “cartridge” in the fire or point a blowtorch at it.
The fire heats the sawdust to the smoke emission temperature, the smoke will flow through the pipe to the products, while cooling to the required temperature.

When making a smoking installation yourself, it is also interesting to learn how to make a smokehouse from a gas cylinder.

Small tricks

Use old Soviet-made refrigerators, they contain very little plastic.
You can cut a rectangular hole in the refrigerator door and stick heat-resistant glass on it, in this case you can observe the smoking process without opening the door.
Use well-dried wood chips or sawdust, otherwise excess moisture in them may lead to condensation on the product.
Do not use softwood wood chips or sawdust as this will cause a bitter taste in your product.
To save on fuel for the fire, install the smokehouse in an area where there are no drafts.

Electric smokers

Fire is not the only way to produce smoke. Electricity is also used for this. A do-it-yourself electric smokehouse is made with hot or cold smoking.

From an electric stove

When smoking in a device with an electric stove, the inside of the smoking chamber heats up to high temperatures, so in these devices only hot smoking is possible.

To make such a smokehouse, you need to perform the following steps step by step:

Remove the freezer and compressor.
Remove the inner lining, insulation and sealing rubber.
Seal the resulting holes with wooden plugs or metal patches.
In the upper part of the body, cut a Ø100mm hole for the chimney.
Attach brackets for grilles to the side walls.
Make grates for food and grease collection trays from wooden blocks or stainless steel tubes.
Instead of sealing rubber, attach wooden blocks and strips of felt to the doors.
Place an electric stove on the bottom of the smoking cabinet.
Place an old cast iron frying pan with sawdust on it.

It is advisable to make a damper in the chimney to regulate the temperature and density of the smoke.

Automatic smoker

To equip a home smokehouse from an old refrigerator with automation systems, you need to install a temperature sensor in the upper part of the housing and connect it together with a timer to the heating system.

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It is also advisable to equip the smokehouse with a convection and exhaust fan, and the device for cold smoking with a heating system for the smoking chamber.

From a soldering iron

To heat sawdust, a soldering iron can be used instead of a heating element or electric stove:

A brick is placed at the bottom of the smoking chamber.
Sawdust in a tin can.
A soldering iron is inserted into the sawdust through a hole in the wall of the can.
The container with sawdust is placed on the bottom of the refrigerator and the soldering iron is plugged into the outlet.

Due to the fact that the power of the soldering iron is not enough to heat the inside of the refrigeration chamber to a high temperature, these elements will form a cold smoking apparatus.

Electrostatic smoker

In conventional cold smoked smokehouses, the products are saturated with smoke for several days. This reduces the productivity of the unit and leads to drying out of the finished smoked meats. But there is a way to speed up this process. For this, a voltage multiplier, an electronic ignition for a car or another low-power DC voltage source of 10-20 kV is used:

A metal mesh with 5x5mm cells is installed above the smoke supply hole.
The positive terminal (anode) of the voltage multiplier is connected to the grid.
The smoke passes through the mesh and acquires a positive charge.
The grids and hooks are connected to the negative terminal (cathode) of the multiplier.
Products placed on the grates acquire a negative charge.
Smoke, with the help of potential differences, is attracted to the products, which speeds up the smoking process.

For such an installation to work, it is necessary that the products and the mesh are isolated from each other and the smokehouse body.

Developing the topic of homemade smokehouses, it is impossible to miss such questions as types of smoking. The structure and design principle of the future apparatus depend on them. It is important to understand the essence of the smoking process, otherwise even strict adherence to a certain algorithm will not give positive results.

For example, we want to make a smokehouse from a refrigerator, naturally old, to be recycled. Refrigerators differ from each other in dimensions, internal shelf equipment, and interior finishing material. Considering these factors, step-by-step instructions for making a smokehouse with your own hands cannot be universal.

Every master, first of all, must be aware of every step he takes. Only in this case will he be able to take the initiative, improvise, and realize his ideas. But for competent modeling, you need to thoroughly know the smoking process. You can, of course, use ready-made drawings, but that’s where the courage lies in creating your own brainchild. First, let's pay a little attention to the smoking process itself.

Hot smoking device

Let's look at the easiest way to make a smokehouse from the refrigerator. The future model is suitable for hot smoking. First you will have to prepare the necessary tools and devices, although some of them can be replaced with analogues. The list will be approximate, because everything depends on the flight of thought of the master.

First of all, you will need the refrigerator itself; it does not have to be in working condition. The most important thing is that its body is solid.
Electric heater. Note that a refrigerator smokehouse, in particular a hot smoker, cannot use a fire flame to heat the material. If you heat sawdust from below, the problem will be the large mass of the structure. It will not be very convenient to turn it over. It will also not be possible to make a fire inside the refrigerator, because to add firewood you will need to open the door, and this is not advisable. We will heat the sawdust on the electric stove.
Container for wood chips. Any tray with thick walls will do. It will be installed on an electric stove, but for uniform heating it is advisable to select the appropriate bottom diameter.
Sieve. Products will be placed on sieves or hung on special hooks. You can use the racks that were in the refrigerator, but this will require some provision. All internal plastic lining will be dismantled, so new holders may have to be made for the sieves. The paint from the sieves must be removed. The best thing is to burn it.
A tray in which fat will be collected.

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When assembling the smokehouse, you should take into account that the smoke must come out of the box. To do this, a hole is made in the upper part of the body.

The principle of operation of such a smokehouse is that the product is laid out on sieves or hung on hooks. A tray with wood chips is installed on top of the heating element. Above it you need to build a homemade container from foil in which the fat will accumulate.