How Does a Pellet Smoker Tube Work? (Smoking Guide)

A pellet tube smoker is simple once you’ve used it a couple of times, but there are a few different ways to run it depending on what you’re trying to do.

In this guide, I’m going to walk through how I use a smoke tube, what keeps it lit, and where it fits best on different grills and smokers.

I’ve been experimenting with pellet tube smoking for about 20 years, using it for both cold smoking and for adding extra smoke to hot cooks. It’s one of those tools that looks basic, yet it solves a lot of real problems once you understand how it behaves in different setups.

Before I bought my first tube, I spent time looking for the right kind of perforated metal so I could make one myself. After chasing down options and comparing designs, I ended up ordering one online instead, and I’ll explain what led me to that decision later in the guide.

How Does a Smoker Tube Work?

Fill the pellet tube with wood pellets or small wood chips, light one end with a butane torch, let it catch fire, then blow out the flame. Once it’s smoldering properly, you place the tube in the smoking area, and it produces steady smoke for roughly 2–5 hours, depending on the tube length and the fuel you’re using.

The key detail is that you’re not trying to keep an open flame going the whole time. You’re building a small bed of embers at the lit end so the fuel can smolder consistently as oxygen feeds through the perforations.

When it’s working well, you get a clean, steady stream of smoke with very little effort after the initial light. Most “it went out” issues come down to fuel size, how tightly the tube is packed, or blowing the flame out before the ember is properly established.

I also like how flexible a pellet tube is. I can run it as a dedicated smoke source for cold smoking, use it on a gas grill to add smoke to indirect cooks, or drop it into a pellet smoker when I want a stronger smoke profile than the grill is producing on its own.

The video below shows one of my real cold smoking sessions using a pellet tube, so you can see what the smoke output looks like in an actual setup.

Pellet Tube Smokers – In Detail

A pellet tube smoker is one of those tools I keep coming back to because it works in so many situations. It can be your main smoke source for cold smoking, or it can be a simple way to add more smoke to a hot cook when your main smoker is running clean and light.

If you’re new to cold smoking, it helps to understand the bigger process first. I’ve laid it out step by step in my cold smoking guide, but this post stays focused on the smoke tube itself and how to run it well.

How Do I Use a Pellet Tube Smoker?

I start by filling the tube with wood pellets or small wood chips. Smaller fuel tends to burn more consistently, but you still want enough structure that air can move through it.

I’ve tried all kinds of woods over the years. One example that surprised me was grape wood chips, which went out more often than I wanted, so I mixed them with apple wood pellets and the tube held a steady smolder much better.

For lighting, I use a butane torch. A standard lighter rarely delivers enough heat to the fuel fast enough to build a reliable ember, especially outdoors or when the fuel is a little stubborn.

I light the tube vertically at first so the flame can work through the top layer and start a proper ember bed. Once it’s burning confidently, I blow out the flame and lay the tube horizontally where I want it to smolder.

The learning curve is easy once you’ve done it a couple of times. These photos show the basic lighting and placement process.

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When I’ve run out of torch gas, I’ve used other heat sources in a pinch, but the torch method is simply the most controlled and repeatable. The goal is always the same: build a solid ember first, then let the tube smolder steadily.

I generally let the flame run long enough to establish a good bed of embers. The exact time depends on airflow, the wood, and how tightly you packed it, but once you see that ember glowing and holding, you’re ready to blow out the flame and let it do its job.

From there, I use the tube in three main ways. Most often I use it for cold smoking, but I also run it for low & slow indirect cooking on a gas grill, and I sometimes use it to boost smoke output inside a pellet smoker.

If you want a quick reference point for cold smoking conditions and how they affect your setup, I keep a practical reference in my cold smoking temperature and airflow tips post. It’s focused on technique and setup variables rather than the tube itself.

DIY Pellet Tube – How to Make a Pellet Smoker

Before buying, I seriously considered making my own. The design is simple on paper: a perforated metal tube that holds fuel while allowing airflow through the sides.

The closest thing I found was a motorcycle exhaust baffle. I went to a few motorcycle shops and got pointed toward exhaust and mechanic-type places that stocked similar parts.

The problem was sizing and perforations. Some options were too large in diameter, and others had perforations that were too widely spaced to achieve the airflow pattern I wanted for a steady smolder.

After spending more time than I wanted hunting down the perfect baffle, I ordered a purpose-built pellet tube online instead. Once I compared prices, I was surprised how reasonable most of them were, especially for something I planned to use regularly.

How Much Does a Tube Smoker Cost?

Most pellet tubes I’ve seen are under $20, with premium-branded options priced higher. I also like to check what the tube is made from, since better materials tend to handle repeated use and cleaning more comfortably over time.

Choosing a Pellet Tube Size and Shape

Even though it’s basically a perforated piece of metal, a couple of small design choices make a big difference in how easy a pellet tube is to use. The two things I look at first are shape and length.

Shape

The most common tubes I saw early on were round. Friends who owned them told me the same thing I later experienced: if you’re using a tube on a grill where the base matters, a round tube can roll when you least want it to.

A tube with a flat side sits more reliably and stays where you place it. That one small design tweak makes day-to-day use a lot less annoying.

Length

I’ve seen telescopic tubes and a bunch of different lengths. The most common sizes are 6-inch and 12-inch, and I’ve also seen 4-inch versions that are built for short bursts of smoke.

A 4-inch tube is more of a quick boost, and how long it runs depends on the wood and how densely it’s packed. Harder woods can smolder longer, but I’ve never found the ultra-long burn claims to be realistic in everyday use.

Different Types of Pellet Tube Smokers

If you want a simple starting point, I’d go with a 12-inch tube that has a flat side for stability. That style is widely available, tends to get consistent reviews, and it works well across different grills and smokers.

I put my top picks and the styles I’ve had the best results with on my pellet tube and maze smoker picks page. It’s where I send people when they want a quick, dependable option.

Pellet Tube in Smokers (Using Various Smokers)

I’ve used pellet tubes in all sorts of setups, and that’s part of why I like them. If you can control airflow and give the tube space to breathe, you can usually make it work whether you’re using a dedicated smoker or improvising with a grill.

DIY Cheap Kettle Grill Smoker

This photo shows a pellet tube running underneath an incredibly cheap kettle grill setup. It was one of my early prototypes, and even though it looks rough, it worked well once I had the tube positioned where it could smolder consistently.

That session produced some excellent results, including cold-smoked venison loin and cold-smoked pancetta. If you like experimenting, you’ll probably enjoy how adaptable a tube is inside DIY setups.

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A pellet tube is also an easy add-on for electric, gas, or pellet smokers. For cold smoking especially, a lot of people overcomplicate the process, but once you understand the setup variables, it becomes a straightforward repeatable routine.

If you’re building a setup from scratch, I’ve listed a bunch of practical approaches in my DIY cold smoker ideas guide. It pairs well with a pellet tube because you can use the tube as the smoke source while you experiment with different chambers.

What Food Can You Smoke in a Tube Smoker

A pellet tube smoker is often associated with smoking cheese, but it’s capable of far more than that. I’ve used it for vegetables, mushrooms, salt, spices, salami, whole muscle cured meat, and even some dairy-style projects.

Most of the time, people just copy the usual cheese approach, especially when they’re using dedicated cheese smokers. Once you’ve got the tube running consistently, you’ll find plenty of other foods that take smoke beautifully.

Maze Smokers Are Similar

A close alternative to the pellet tube is the maze smoker. It works on the same basic principle of a slow controlled smolder, but the fuel path is laid out in channels rather than a tube.

How you get it started varies by design. Some people use a small tea candle at the beginning of the maze, while other designs respond best to the same torch lighting approach that works so well with pellet tubes.

If you want a clear set of steps straight from a manufacturer-style instruction sheet, the A-MAZE-N lighting and usage instructions are a useful reference for the general method.

If you want a quick recommendation on a maze smoker, it’s on the same page as my tube recommendations here.

For a broader overview that ties the tube into the full method, I also have a complete walkthrough on how to cold smoke that explains how I think about smoke source, chamber, and results as one system.

FAQ

If you’ve been using a pellet tube for a while, what’s the one adjustment that made the biggest difference for you: fuel choice, lighting method, or where you place it in your setup?