How to make a smokehouse from a washing machine

smokehouse from washing machine There are probably very few people who don’t like smoked fish, chicken, pork tenderloin, and ribs. But buying such products in a store is, firstly, risky, it is not known what quality they are, and secondly, it is simply expensive. Many people think about preparing such delicacies at home, but this requires a rather expensive smokehouse, which not everyone can purchase. There is a way out - make a smokehouse with your own hands from an old washing machine.

What do we need?

It is quite difficult to determine a complete list of tools and materials, since, as practice shows, nothing ever works out smoothly in such a matter. In each specific case, we have to make some changes to the design, but in general, here are the tools we will need:

electric welding;
hammer;
a set of large and small, flat and Phillips screwdrivers;
pliers;
Bulgarian;
drill;
roulette, center punch.

As the main materials, we will fundamentally use recycled materials, in this case, used Soviet top-loading washing machines and old horizontal-loading automatic washing machines. From Soviet Oka-type washing machines we only need a tank and a lid; from horizontal-loading automatic machines we will take a drum. For the electric version of the smokehouse, you will also need to buy a heating element - an electric coil of at least 1 kW. You will also have to find a round grill somewhere, a round barbecue grill works well.

Note! Less powerful heating elements will not make the sawdust smolder, which means the smokehouse will not perform its function.

Converting a top-loading machine

smokehouse from washing machine The easiest way is to make a wood-burning version of the smokehouse yourself, since you do not need to buy and install an electric heating element. We take a tank from an Oka activator washing machine with vertical loading. Its tank is made of high-quality stainless steel, so the smokehouse will be reliable and durable. We perform the following manipulations with it.

Turn the machine upside down.
We remove the engine and other elements with our own hands; we don’t need them.
We take out all the plastic and rubber parts from the pan; from the fire they will melt, smoke and spoil the smoked product.
We take an electric welder and weld all the holes in the bottom of the tank with our own hands.

For your information! To seal the hole for the activator, cut a round patch from stainless steel sheet to size and weld it, thus closing the hole.

Next, we cut out a semicircular or rectangular hole in the wall of the tank below the bottom - this is an improvised firebox through which it will be convenient to throw firewood.
Now let's look inside the tank. About 40 cm above the bottom we will need to weld fasteners on which we will place the metal grate. The smoked product will be placed on this grill. The smokehouse will be much more functional if you also weld fasteners for the second grate, a couple of tens of centimeters higher than the first. The smokehouse is ready.

smokehouse from a washing machine Then we do the following. We make a small fire right on the ground somewhere in the yard with our own hands. We pour dry sawdust into the bottom of our smokehouse.It is better to take sawdust from non-resinous wood. Next, the smokehouse needs grates - we install them on pre-prepared mounts. We place the raw product that needs to be smoked on the grates, close the smokehouse from above, first with a clean cotton rag, and then with a standard metal lid from the Oka washing machine. Now for the final touch, carefully lift the smokehouse and place its bottom directly on the fire that is starting to burn out.

The disadvantage of the design is that you need to constantly ensure that the fire under the smokehouse does not go out. At the same time, you need to make sure that the fire does not get too hot, otherwise the product inside will be spoiled. The heat under the sawdust should be strong enough, and at the same time not excessive.

Important! Use this smokehouse, observing all the rules for handling open fire.

Not everyone agrees to operate a smokehouse from which one cannot leave for more than 5 minutes while the product is being prepared. But you can make some changes to the design that will make the smokehouse much more convenient to use. What should be done?

We take a large electric spiral with a power of at least 1 kW.
We attach it to the back of the bottom of the tank of the Oka washing machine, modified as described above. Only in this case there is no need to cut out the firebox, because the smokehouse will be electric.
We connect and bring out the network cable with a plug.

To put an electric smokehouse into operation, just like in the wood-burning version, you need to pour sawdust on the bottom, install the grate on the mounts, put in the product, close it with a rag and a lid.Next, plug in the power cord and wait for the coil to become red hot, the bottom of the smokehouse to become very hot, and the sawdust to begin to smolder, starting the process of smoking the product. Experienced DIYers advise wrapping the body of an electric smokehouse with non-flammable heat-insulating material, thus reducing heat loss and speeding up the process of heating it.

Remaking a machine with horizontal loading

One of our specialists offers an original idea for converting the drum of a horizontal-loading automatic washing machine into a very functional and compact electric smokehouse. How will we proceed? smokehouse from an automatic washing machine

We take a drum from an automatic washing machine, free it from unnecessary parts (we only need the drum body).
We find an old metal pan, the diameter corresponding to the diameter of the drum.
Using a grinder, saw off the bottom of the pan and remove it to the side.

Note! It is best to cut off the front part of the drum with a grinder in order to expand its hatch as much as possible.

We place the drum from the washing machine vertically, with the hatch facing up. Our task is to weld its bottom and the holes in the side walls. You can not weld the side holes, but simply then wrap the drum with non-flammable heat-insulating material.
We place the drum bottom in our pan and weld it tightly.
From the inside to the bottom of the drum, we install an electric spiral with a power of at least 1 kW with our own hands.
We weld fasteners inside the drum with our own hands to install gratings for food.
We install the grates and close our smokehouse with a lid on top.

This smokehouse works exactly like an electric smokehouse made from the tank of a Soviet Oka washing machine.Pour sawdust into the bottom of the drum. We put round grates for food and put in food. Next, we cover the top of the drum with a clean cotton rag and cover it with a lid, after which we turn on the smokehouse and wait for the sawdust to settle and the process of smoking the product to begin.

From a washing machine you can make not only a smokehouse, but also many interesting and useful things, for example, grain crusher.

To summarize, we note that there are many different options for making a smokehouse from an old washing machine. We threw out ideas in the article, but the choice of design, as they say, is yours. Good luck!