Dyna-Glo DGY784BDP 36" Vertical LP Gas Smoker, Black powder coat

I've had this smoker about three weeks now and it's been used twice for chicken(spatchcock) at 325 degrees and ribs at 230 degrees. Yesterday started out at 60 degrees and breezy and a wet cold front moved in with temps dropping to low 40s. Ribs cooked low and slow and came out perfect. I used 8 ounces of apple chunks for a milder flavor and got a nice low smoke burn during most of the 6 hours of cooking. I'm not a fan of the smaller chips as they burn up too quickly. Despite the breezy conditions the smoker did a good job of holding temps at 225-230 with the high humidity. I did very little adjusting of the knobs and left all dampers in the closed position. With wood smokers air flow is critical for temps. I'm not really sure yet why there are adjustable vents and a top adjustable smoke vent. Adjusting the gas flow changes temps on this Dyna_Glo. Not the amount of air flow. After selling my previous smoker(WSM) I really love the convenience of gas. Especially since I modified this smoker to NG! Much less clean up and an endless source of fuel. The NG mod takes little time. Remove 10 screws in the burner unit and remove the venturis. A 1/16 inch drill bit to open up the venturi is all it takes and the burners work perfectly now with NG. Just remember you'll need new hoses for NG. Just take your time doing the work otherwise you may be buying a whole new burner unit. Other than the NG mod I've sealed a top weld seam with high temp caulk where I can see daylight coming through. Easy. I tried mounting the smoker on casters. Not a good idea. The thin gauge metal is not thick enough to support casters. I ended up makings a simple cart out of birch plywood and 2x4 lumber and 4 locking castors. Easy. Now I can position it with no problem. I did a fair amount of research before deciding on the Dyna-Glo. All the smokers in this price range are of similar quality and I can't speak for the others. One thing I really like about the Dyna-Glo that most of the others don't have? Nice door seals. On both doors. Really keeps the smoke in the chamber and helps with holding temps. Most other smokers you have to install yourself. I like the looks of the smoker. I was really interested in the Smoke Vault at first but for less money this has more space and the aforementioned door seals. The Smoke Vault has no seals. I do not care for the looks of the Smoke Vault either.. I want a smoker that looks like a smoker. Not a bank safe haha. Just my preference is all.This smoker gets knocked for a smoker box with a lid that slides off easily. I fixed that with four small brass screws and nuts near each corner. Easy fix. Getting this smoker up to temp is quick and easy. One thing I discovered is it's very easy to snuff out the flames when they are set too low. Open or close either door too quickly and the flames will go out. Not a problem really if the flames are set higher. Just double check as you're closing the doors. When I've got the temp up to 240-250 all it takes is little taps on the knobs to move the temp down or up. And the temps change quickly which I like. No waiting like electric smokers. My smoker arrived in good shape overall with only a minor ding in the top corner. Not worth worrying about. The bottom side vents were a little warped but can easily be flattened to seal better. This smoker is sturdy on it's legs. No shake or wobble when opening the doors. It weighs about 90 pounds. It has 1900 plus square inches of cooking space despite what the Amazon page says. The 6 grates are heavy enough to smoke big cuts of meat or 20 pound turkeys with no problem. You really can cook a lot in this smoker. As in most smokers the temp gauge is an ornamental add on lol. It's nowhere near what my Maverick is reading. Invest in a good digital thermometer. Well that's pretty much it! I give this smoker 5 stars because it works very well and is reasonably priced.It's not a Lang nor does it claim to be. Yes you get what you pay for but in this instance the Wide body 43 inch is a pretty well built unit for the price and should last a good while with proper care. Invest in the cover. It looks great and fits very well. Happy smoking!! BK

I don't write many of these, but thought it needs to be said that this is a great smoker!! Wish it were insulated but knew that it wasn't at the time of purchase, no surprise there. I had many questions about the unit before I jumped in and the folks at (GHP) DayGlow could not have been more helpful X10. There is a lady I think her name was Susan that helped with my 2 problems which did not stop the unit from working out of the box, this was all shipping problems. (I don't know what they are paying her but it is not enough I'm sure) She is most polite and knows her products well, very well. I had a dent in the side from shipping and they replaced the main body it's self, she could not have said "i'm sorry" more than she did. I'm just like you I hate to sit on hold forever, well I can say from experience that over 10-15 calls to them I think the longest hold time I had might have been 7 mins. a couple of times I was asked "can I call you back" and sure enough they do call back very soon after. I have waited to review this Dayglow smoker till now to see how it really worked. I have been smoking meats and even cheese for some 40 yrs. In this Dayglow Smoker unit we have made some of the best BBQ. We have done Brisket, Chickens, Turkey, Pork Ribs, Loins, Butts, Bacon, and Sausage. All has come out perfect! temp is easy to control as is the amount of smoke, that being said I should tell you the gaskets on the doors work as intended, they seal the unit very tight. The only smoke you see is from the vents (4) and the chimney(1) I get a perfect smoke ring every time as well as the food being very moist, that is due to the water pan that sits above the smoke box. (BTW) Both the water pan and chip box are big enough to smoke anything you can put in this monster size unit.!!! Notice I said chips Not CHUNKS, NOT LOGS, Chips!!! This is very important that you use what some might call large chain saw chips. Some say they burn up to fast, that is true if you get to hot and don't wet them. But that i mean put a small amount of water, beer, or wine to the chips. This will slow down the burn and the smoke will become a perfect clear smoke. (not white or back/blue) that smoke will make your food bitter and dry as well. Even commercial outfits use sawdust, been there and seen it in use. That's what changed my way of smoking. The way I see it if I wanted to, I could put 20 racks of whole spare ribs, just buying more rib racks. You should know that all shelve brackets are adjustable by maybe 3 inches per move. I can say safely I have not found a smoker with the flexible options this unit has. You Get 6 shelves 1 rib rack for 5/6 slabs and 8 hooks at the top for sausage or like me I've done bacon as well, now understand the the bacon hooks themselves I bought separate, but you do get 8 hooks to hang them on. In total I am very happy with this unit, I know I can light my cast iron burners put a big pile if chips in and cook some of the best BBQ my wife and I have ever made. Now when your wife who BTW is an Executive Chef says that's some of the best Q. She has had to date. You can get a big head for a job well done, believe me. Hell she even does the dish's after I worked so hard to make perfect BBQ (LOL) For those who are reading this I need tell you I have not been asked to write this by (GHP)/ DayGlow) or anyone. This is my smoker and my experience with it. It works the cost was fair and the company service was way better that most these days. Also I DO NOT WORK for or Have ANY Interest in this Company! I'm just giving them their due for a good product & great service! The only thing I can say if they ever build an insulated model I will be 1st in line. Here in Mi. it gets cold in the winters and we cook on our grill and smoke foods all winter, for now I will build a small covering to keep some heat in during the snowy months. Hope this helps! Enjoy, Wayne.

So far I've smoked a couple of pork butts and ribs and am impressed. The smoker seems fairly sturdy, racks are very nice and solid, and I love the seals on the doors. I also like the deeper, solid wood tray. At first I used wood chips soaked in water and the results weren't great - most of them would just sit in the box and not burn - but I've started using chunks instead of chips and that works really well. Chunks are a lot cheaper and last longer with more consistent smoke. The water pan is laughably small. I don't know why they designed it like that, because it's too shallow so you'll run out on a long cook, and it only covers roughly half the bottom so all your drippings will end up in the bottom of the smoker. I solved this by using a full-size foil steam table tray. It covers most of the bottom, so it catches all the drippings and keeps the smoker cleaner. It holds close to two gallons, so can go most of a cook without refilling, and best of all, it's disposable! I set a rack up in the lowest setting and put the pan on that - you can also just set it on the water/wood holder, but it's harder to access that way. For a smaller cook, you can put a half-size tray right in where the water pan is supposed to go - it fits fine and holds enough water for something small. There's some minor rusting on one of the burners, so I'm a little concerned about that, but we'll see how it does long term. Over all, I'm very happy with the smoker - it's got a large capacity (you can do 6 pork butts, tight, but they'll fit) and seems pretty stable temp wise. Price was great.

So far so good. I have a 7 yr old Grillpro that is still working but grates are rusting and I wanted a bigger unit. Also, I've ducted my old unit with 4 inch duct into the side of an old grill so I can smoke a turkey on a spit (I'm a big fan of spit cooking to keep meat moist). As I write I am smoking 4 racks of baby back ribs (mesquite). Unit came with no damage, 2 days as promised. Assembly was a snap - unlike my Grillpro, the box was already assembled so that was nice. Nice to have the nuts welded in to no messing with that. Holes for bolts lined up perfectly. This midsize unit isn't really that heavy, I had no problem lifting it. It is at least twice as large as my old unit, could do 8+ racks at a time if I wanted, so unless you are smoking for a big crowd I wouldn't go for their biggest unit (and there is the extra weight). Even this one is too big for my winter storage shed I keep on my deck so it will have to have it out in the winter (bought the Dyna-Glo cover specified for this unit). I personally don't think "seasoning" is really needed,b ut you do want to crank it up to high heat to burn off any gunk from manufacturing (about 40 min). As with all units of this type, there is a learning curve for controlling temperature. After running at full/both burners to get chips/blocks smoking - I did this with the lower door open to keep temp from spiking, running with one burner at lowest setting (70 deg outside), one lower vent full open, the other fully closed and the top vent fully open, temperature stable at 190 degrees, more or less perfect. Most of the time I suspect those will be the only two settings I use (depending on outside temp and wind). With my single burner/old unit keeping the temp low enough was tricky. A tip for newbies: I use a combination of wood chips and wood blocks. Chips are going to burn up fast and you are going to be adding more almost every 20 minutes. You will be going through them fast. I personally don't like real heavy smoke and that is what you will get if you add a lot of chips. Wood chunks will burn slower and you will only need to add more about every hour. I typically smoke for about 4 hours. My daughter lives in southern New Mexico (I'm in Minnesota) so I collect my own Mesquite when I'm down there. A few more notes: I just noticed a slight dent in one of the doors, hardly noticeable. These units do have flexible seals on outer edges of both doors, no leakage! Lastly imho, soaking wood in water first is utter rubbish.

NOTE: buy the black or clear "LavaLock RTV 650 F BBQ grill smoker sealer Hi Temp Silicon adhesive 3 oz". If the red one sticks out like a sore thumb. SUGGESTED: multi-probe digital thermometer like Inkbird Wi-Fi & Bluetooth Grill Meat Thermometer IBBQ-4BW. PACKAGING: undamaged, all parts were straight and flat. SUGGESTION: wash it before you assemble it. I used Dawn PowerWash. ASSEMBLY: super easy and fast, I didn't even need my Dewalt screwdriver. I put the LavaLock on any parts that attached to the smoker with an opening to the inside, like screw holes. OPTIONAL: I replaced the nut and screw on the round adjustable vents near the bottom of both sides. The original ones didn't tighten all the way so the vent could easily be opened or closed accidentally. BREAK-IN ("seasoning"): follow instructions. I didn't cover the inside with oil but I bought an oil sprayer so I can when I re-season it. I just put some wet mesquite chunks in and filled the water tray. Start at the lowest gas knob setting and wait for the temperature to stabilize. Then turn the gas to 50% and let it stabilize. Finally, set to 100%. (If you blast it at 100% from the get go, some parts might heat up quicker and cause some warping.) Once the wood starts to smoke, lower the temp but make sure the wood is still smoking. Set the gas knobs until the internal temperature is at your smoking temperature. I used 225F. Then check the built-in thermometer and make note of the position of the needle. Mine was just a tick above the lowest smoking temperature range. FIRST SMOKE: two racks of pork ribs with St. Louis dry rub and two racks of beef ribs from Costco. Rubbed the beef with light salt and pepper. I used the 3-2-1 method for ribs: 3 hours with dry rub, 2 hours wrapped in butcher paper, 1 hour with BBQ sauce. Step 1: Make sure your propane tank is full and you have a backup tank. Prep meats. Soak the wood for 20 minutes. Close the vents. Step 2: warm it up like you're seasoning it, lowest - stabilize - med - stabilize - high. Step 3: add the wet wood and wait. Adjust the vents until you see smoke coming out of the top vent. Step 4: Lower the temp to the smoking temperature. Put in your meats and insert the thermometer probes. Make sure you don't poke it all the way through! For ribs, I smoked it for 3 hours at 225F and until the meat hit 185F. Step 5: (the rest of the steps are for ribs) Take the ribs out and wrap them with pink butcher paper. Make sure the paper is folded so any juices don't leak out. Put the ribs back in for 2 hours. Watch the temperature, don't let the meat get too much above 185F. Step 6: Take out the meat and unwrap. Slather with BBQ sauce. I used Sweet Baby Ray's for my first smoke, no use using the fancy stuff while I get to know my smoker. Put the meat back in the smoker and let it go for another hour. Step 7: take out the meat and let it rest. The meat on ribs are thin so you don't have to rest it much. Turned out perfect, see picture.

This is the 3rd time I have bought this smoker, I have cooked 20 + years as a competition cooker . I travel for business in a Fifth Wheel Trailer. This unit is the best one for its compact size, Easy and lighter wgt. for traveling. I add a heat gasket to the doors which minimizes any smoke loss. This is the only one which has a smoke stack catching for a full draft for smoke movement. Has a large wood tray(i use Chunks and chips and and large water pan. set up time before a cook is less than 5 minutes, add wood and liquid to trays, Turn it on and you at at 225 degrees 5 to 7 min average. This unit holds temp in cold and windy weather , has a covered chimney so no rain into interior. I have done well over 100 8 hours smokes with these units. double doors to add wood is easy to use. The stainless racks will outlast the smoker. I get a 3 to 4 years use from this smoker especially if you add a cover for it and sets outside in weather. The unit eventually rusts in the bottom but could be repaired if needed. , but for $200 bucks and with its features, None better for similar size and style. I add a side shelf that folds down when not in use. 1/4/inch brisket smoke rings are normal. bottom rack is slighter hotter then upper 3 others. If you want dependable consistent results , this one has everything you need when it comes to smoking foods.

This is a fantastic smoker, hands down. Have been using different smokers (propane) for 25 plus years. Last 2 smokers have been Masterbuilt. They were good. My last Masterbuilt smoker actually started on fire while smoking a brisket. Have never had this happen before. So, checked out reviews and went with the Dyna-Glo 36" Vertical. Yesterday, smoked two racks of ribs and whole chicken. Had neighbors and family over for late lunch. Huge hit with all. The chip pan and water pan are extra large. No adding chips or water necessary. Beside the temperature control knob, there are 3 dampers to control temp. 2 on each side and the chimney vent on top. I was able to maintain an even 225 degrees through 5 hours of smoking. So easy. My only recommendation for improving this smoker: The double doors leak smoke. Purchase a BBQ smoker self-stick gasket for both doors. It worked great and the smoke flavor was fantastic. Clean up is very easy. Make sure you line the water tray with aluminum foil. This makes for near effortlessly clean up. Overall, this is a great smoker for $200. Highly recommend.

Received today,first impressions; On the plus side, the unit went together relatively easily. Most of the nuts were already welded to the body, the only time anything other than a screwdriver was required was putting the bottom vents on. Assembly took something over an hour, from unboxing to turn-on. On the not-so-plus side; The box appears to have been roughly handled, not unexpected given that it's a fairly heavy thing and probably handled by only a single person each time. Upon opening, the box appears to have been opened previously as the plastic wrapping was loose and several of the foam dividers were broken, and the unit was packed in the box upside down. The top was bent and the back panel broken away from it, I was able to repair them but, the coating is cracked so rust will be inevitable. The loose packing seems to have allowed the smoker to shift as the paint/coating was worn away from edges and corners, again a future rust issue. several pieces or parts were bent, the mounting ears on the burner, the previously mentioned top/back, and one handle. The fourth mounting screw hole for the gas burner is inside the burner box directly behind the burner. My hands would not fit inside to start the screw nor did I have an offset screwdriver to have tightened it down, so I have a leftover part (usually a good thing in my world). Finally the battery (for the igniter) was unpackaged and crushed. I don't mean to bash this smoker, there are things I like about it, the way the door handles work, the draft and vents, the wood chip tray seems ample . Most however are not well executed, fit and finish leave something to be desired and the sheet metal is a bit thinnish. But, it took about ten minutes to go from turn-on to over 300 degrees, it finally topped out in my environment at 368 degrees with the vents and draft wide open. I'm burning it in tonight to burn out the solvents, oils, and mold releases used in manufacture and will do a dry run tomorrow with wood chips to get cooking temps approximated. I bought this unit based on recommendations previously posted, I agree with the first poster who summed it up nicely 'this is not a professional piece of equipment" I agree. He goes on to state that he has won competitions with it, I'm not inclined to compete with anyone except the neighbors for braggin' rights, if it does that, I'll be happy. I paid $169.00 for this unit and give it three to three and a half stars at that price point, however I've also seem it at $269.00 it only give it maybe 2 stars there. For the extra $100 i would expect much more in the quality department.

Good sturdy construction, yet light weight enough to move by myself. Does not need hydro which is perfect for our off grid cottage. Clean up is easy shelves wash right up as does the water tray. Can hold lots of product to smoke. 4 shelves are large and nicely spaced. Door seals are perfect. Water pan is nice and large as is the smoke tray. It is easy to run. It adjust easily with the 3 vents (2 sides and one top) to allow for temperature/smoke control. I have done a pork loin, beef tenderloin and brisket as well as a couple of salmon flanks and pork ribs. All turned out to be a success. I have paired it with the meater plus thermometer and am thoroughly satisfied with the results. I would highly recommend this smoker.

Liked: Holds cooking/smoking temperature @ -20C or +/- 18F with 20,000 BTU; Disliked: Lack of auto temperature control with the gas....this would reduce the amount of attention required. I will have to add one. I am looking at a Robertshaw dial control. I would have 1 burner on a low setting to get the smoking chips at or near 700deg F for best smoke type. Disliked: The unit could have had insulation with internal covering thereby saving gas during cooking; Liked: Easily comfortable can handle full length rib rack flat down on grates and big briskets. Great size of grates; Disliked: Initially liked the shape, size, especially length of the rib rack grate. But when I put the rib on it, the pyramid/triangular design separators, should have been higher by 1.5"-2" and these separators holders should finish on the edges at the top and bottom so that ribs don't flop down. St-Louis style ribs flop down too much. I suspect it will be better with baby back cut ribs. Liked: Generates clean smoke. Note that clearing circular hole in center of chips is necessary for air movement in wood chip pan. Better still would be to make the bottom partially with fine stainless mesh and the top in full fine mesh with metal picture frame. Liked: location of water over the wood chip pan. The fact that no grease/fat gets into the smoker wood chip pan and either falls into the water (this could improve with redirection baffles plate) or off to the sides and outside into 2 mini-pans. All fat should be directed to the outside - this would be a major improvement. Getting the best smoke and deeper smoke ring would require that some charcoal(preferably with the wood chips) be put somewhere with the wood albeit a small amount. In rapid cook sessions---over 325deg. these falling juices on hot chip coals may provide a better flavour spectrum, but not in low and slow cook offs. In all smokers, I dislike opening the door of the smoker to spray the meat with a favorite juice. No smoker I have seen has an externally activated sprayer (must have nozel protection to avoid clogging). I wish there was a way to incorporate this in a future smoker. No: 1 priority would be to have an insulated model No: 2 priority would be to improve the wood chip box as indicated above, albeit maybe on one side of the box and not the other so flame and temperature could be controlled. No: 3 priority would be to fix the design of that rib rack so St-Louis style ribs do not flop at ends and in middle. No: 4 priority would be to get all the falling grease to the outside of the box to minimize cleaning and further reduce risk of fire with excessive rendered fat as in porc bellies. No: 5 priority would be to add a 3-4 speed air circulating fan to minimize hot spots at both sides-left-right. Written by a never happy and not-so-retired product designer.

Upgraded from a bullet-style charcoal smoker to this. WOW. Had so many problems keeping the charcoal smoker at a consistent temperature - with even the slightest wind or chill, forget about it. So based on a recommendation went propane and with this model. Great size for the amateur smoker. Runs very consistently - excellent for long duration. I am averaging about 24-30 hours of smoking (@225f) on a standard 10lb. propane tank. So overall I find that very cost effective. I do find that wood chunks work better than chips - get more out of them - in this smoker.

The quality for price is pretty good on this product, assembly was easy and it makes great meals, could be a bit more air tight as temp is hard to keep stable if it is cold or windy at all. But overall I'm satisfied. One issue was a welded door support fell off during assembly,but it doesn't affect the performance.

Good solid construction, assembly was easy, instructions well written. After doing a few batches of smoked peppers, I got this thing figured out...... fill up the wood tray, fill up the water tray, crank both burners on full. As soon as you see smoke, turn off one burner, and turn the other down to minimum, with all the dampers stopped down. The smoker will maintain 210-240F for at least 3.5 hours, depending how much wood you used in the tray. Did my first pork shoulder roast last week, turned out unbelievable! Used a cheap digital meat probe, and once the internal temperature hit 155F, after 4.5 hours, I pulled it out and let it rest for a half hour. Perfect medium pork roast.