fire temperature on a bbq smoker?

I am an experienced smoker. Not quite a pro but close.

You didn't say what thermometer you were relying on - the one stuck to your smoker or an internal probe type thermometer stuck in the meat.

A 15 lb brisket is a bit too much for a newbie. And you are one. Not an insult, just sayin'.

A smoker doesn't work like a grill per se - yes you are using the same elements, charcoal, fire wood etc but the cooking process is much longer.

Your smoker needs to be almost completely shut up with the exception of a small exhaust opening and a small damper opening.

You need to rely on an external thermometer and not the one on the grill. One temped in the meat.

Use a smaller cut of meat to practice on. Experiment with cheap meats like chicken thighs or chops. Smoking does take practice to get it right.

www.smokingmeatforums.com is an excellent source of info. They offer a free course in smoking meats. There are some heavy hitters including some competition BBQ folks with plenty of info.

Good luck - you will get hooked.

As far as temperature goes you should keep it between 200 and 250.

The ability to regulate the heat has a lot to with the quality of your smoker. If you are using a cheap off-set style smoker it can be very difficult. They have a very low thermal mass which lets the temp fluctuate a lot.

I find it is best to get a good fire going in the fire box by using a chimney starter with some natural charcoal and then adding that to the fire box. Then I add a couple pieces of good sized dry wood. Only use wood you can identify and never us conifer tree wood. Once you have a good fire going with a lot of coals make sure the temp is good and throw in the meat. Then you need to keep an eye on it. I keep both soaked and dry wood chunks and some charcoal nearby and add them when needed.

Beginning "smokers" typically add too much smoke to their meat. Use more coal than wood until you get a good idea of what your doing.

Also use the air vents to keep things going. Open the vents near the fire box to make it hotter and close them to cool things down.

If your fire goes out use the chimney starter and start over.

I have a horizontal barrel smoker with the fire box on the side. I like it, but the heat is uneven. The fire is on the left, so all the heat is on the left. The right side dosn't get as hot. When I get a new smoker I will look at a vertical smoker, where the fire is underneath and the smoke and heat rises to the food.

Temperature is a combination of fuel & air-flow.

So you need to get enough coals started to begin.

Ideally, you want 200F so as not to dry out meat.