A standing smoker cabinet with gas in the name
The product photo shows a black cuboid on four splayed legs. Two doors sit one above the other, and the upper one carries a round dial that looks like a dial thermometer. A pipe sticks out at the top, and below, between the legs, there is a small round knob that we cannot place. We only read what the picture shows: whether the dial is a thermometer and whether it is in the box remains open.
The Amazon title calls the unit a gas smoker and a table smoker. Both fit only halfway with what we see and read. The catalogue lists a height of 120 cm, and a unit of that height stands on the floor or a high platform, not on a table. In the photo there is no gas hose, regulator or burner to be seen. That proves nothing against gas, because the picture only shows the outside. We list the smoker as a gas unit because the title says so, and leave everything else open.
In our catalogue it sits alongside offset smokers and water smokers from the Smokers category. Our price box lists approx. €135 (as of September 2026), at Amazon.
Dimensions, weight and material
The catalogue gives 44 x 40 x 120 cm: length 44 cm, width 40 cm, height 120 cm, plus the colour Smokey Black. These are outer dimensions. Legs, pipe and the side handle shown in the photo are included, so the figures say nothing about the interior. We do not calculate an area or a volume from them.
On weight, two places agree: 22.05 pounds in the catalogue, 10 kg in the seller’s text. That is the same thing in a different unit. In our assessment, 10 kg at a height of 120 cm means thin sheet metal. The Tepro Wichita from our catalogue weighs approx. 21 kg according to its instructions, so twice as much. Thin sheet metal heats up quickly and gives the heat off just as quickly; in wind and cool weather the burner would therefore probably have to work harder than in a heavy housing. This is an inference from the weight, as nobody knows the wall thickness.
The material given is “robust, alloyed steel” in the title, nothing more. Alloyed means that elements such as chromium or nickel are added to the steel. Stainless steel is alloyed, but not every alloyed steel is stainless, so the term does not settle it. The black colour in the photo may be paint or a coating; the catalogue says nothing about that either.
On assembly, the seller says: assembly is easy, setting it up is child’s play. Time and tools are missing. According to the bullet point, the places of use are garden and camping.
In detail: gas heats, something else has to make the smoke
A smoker has two jobs. It has to keep the food warm, and it has to produce smoke. In a charcoal smoker one fire does both. A gas burner supplies only heat. A second source has to add the smoke: wood chips or smoking dust smouldering in a tray over the flame. Gas cabinets are therefore usually built with the burner at the bottom and the tray and grates above it. The two doors in the photo fit this design. Whether the ACTIVA is built like this cannot be read from the catalogue.
The pipe at the top is the flue. Warm air rises, escapes through the pipe and draws fresh air in from below. That has two consequences: a burner needs air, and the smoke stays in the cooking chamber only as long as the draught allows. On many cabinets the flue can be adjusted with a damper. Whether this pipe has one cannot be seen in the photo.
The usual classification knows three ranges. Cold smoking runs below about 30 °C, warm smoking roughly between 50 and 80 °C, hot smoking above that up to about 100 °C. A burning gas burner always heats the interior. Cold smoking, for example for cheese, which melts when warm, therefore does not suit this design, unless the smoke came from outside. Fish and smaller pieces of meat, which are warm or hot smoked, are the natural territory. The earlier version of this review mentioned cheese; after this consideration we think that was unfortunate.
A thermometer in the door measures the air at a single point, usually at the top and near the door. At grate height it can be noticeably different. How done the food is can only be told by a probe thermometer placed in the thickest part. If you want to read more on this, the guide Smoking on the grill covers the basics, and the grill thermometer buying guide explains what matters with probes.
Can a gas smoker go on the balcony?
There is no manufacturer information on this, and we would not do it. An open flame in a closed steel housing, dense smoke and carbon monoxide speak against it, and your tenancy agreement or house rules may prohibit gas appliances anyway.
The general rule for any gas appliance: only outdoors, with a distance from combustible materials, never in a garage, tent or garden shed. How large this distance must be for the ACTIVA can only be said by the manufacturer, and we have nothing from them. We do not invent a figure. The same applies to bottle size, regulator and hose. What to bear in mind about gas bottles in general is covered in the guide Gas bottle for the grill. On the legal position on the balcony there is a guide of its own.
Smoking is also the opposite of low smoke. The smoke is wanted here, and it goes out of the pipe at the top straight in front of your neighbours’ windows.
Cleaning: what demountable can mean
The seller writes that the smoker is demountable, which makes uncomplicated and quick cleaning of the individual parts possible, and that the large door additionally simplifies cleaning the inside. Which of the two doors in the photo is meant is not stated there.
We have nothing more. Dishwasher, water, washing-up liquid, wire brush: for each of these points the wording of instructions is missing, and we therefore do not present any care advice as a manufacturer statement. The earlier version advised running water; there was no source for that.
In general, fat and smoke condensate build up on the inner walls of a smoker cabinet, and they are easier to remove as long as they have not been sitting for long. Here a large opening does help. Whether the individual parts fit into a box, a cupboard or the garage after dismantling depends on dimensions that nobody states.
What the manufacturer does not state, and what comes on top
A manufacturer page for the model is missing. activa-grills.de, operated according to its homepage by DACETO Trading GmbH in Selb, has charcoal grills, gas grills, patio heaters and accessories in its range, but you will look in vain for a smoker there; activa-grill.de was not reachable. All product information in this review therefore comes from the Amazon catalogue. We could not find an instruction manual or a data sheet anywhere.
The following is therefore missing: gas type and connection pressure, hose and regulator, the question of cartridge or bottle, output in kW, number of burners and the ignition. Added to that are interior dimensions, number of grates, grate dimensions, capacity, maximum and operating temperature, heat-up time and gas consumption. The material of the individual parts and the scope of delivery are also unknown. The warranty terms, spare parts and country of origin complete the list.
For your budget this means: on top of the approx. €135 (as of September 2026) come a gas bottle or cartridge, regulator, smoking dust or chips and possibly a probe thermometer. We have no prices for these, and we do not include them.
The seller promises money back within 30 days; the conditions are missing. With a gas unit that has become sooty after a smoking session, it is worth asking whether the return also applies after use.
What else comes into question?
| Model | The difference | Price | Our rating | Choose this one if |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ACTIVA Premium Gas Smoker (this one) | Standing cabinet, gas according to the title, approx. 10 kg | approx. €135 | 8.0 | you need a light unit and will clear up the open points |
| Tepro Wichita | Charcoal offset with two chambers, approx. 21 kg according to the instructions | approx. €133.76 | 7.5 | you also want to grill directly and accept charcoal |
| tepro Biloxi | Offset with side firebox, 126 x 63.5 x 126 cm, stationary | approx. €195.69 | 8.0 | you have a fixed spot and smoke for more than two to three people |
| Weber Smokey Mountain 57 | Charcoal water smoker, two grate levels, Ø 57 cm | approx. €599 | 9.5 | you want to smoke regularly and for long sessions |
The prices are guide values from our price box as of September 2026 and change. The rating is our editorial assessment, not a measurement result, and it says nothing about capacity or consumption.
When this smoker, when another?
The price gap to the alternatives does not run in one direction. In our price boxes the Wichita costs approx. €134, the Biloxi approx. €196, the Weber Smokey Mountain approx. €599 and the ACTIVA approx. €135. With the Wichita you get two chambers and charcoal for almost the same price. In return it weighs twice as much and is less mobile.
Time and fuel: a charcoal smoker requires lighting and tending the embers, but delivers the smoke from the fuel itself. Gas saves the lighting and in return needs a second smoke source. If you are smoking for the first time and just want to know what separates gas and charcoal, you will find it in the guide Gas or charcoal, and the Grill finder narrows the selection according to your answers.
Quantity: the interior is unknown. For two people and a handful of trout a small cabinet probably suffices, for a party it does not. Then the Biloxi with its larger footprint or the Weber with two grate levels counts.
Mobility: here the ACTIVA wins, if the seller is right about the demountability. 10 kg can be carried, the stationary Biloxi cannot.
We would only plan on camping once the gas connection is clarified. That also applies to the balcony.
Who is it suitable for?
If you want to smoke fish or sausages hanging, you need hooks or a hanging device. Whether there is one is open; none can be seen in the photo, and behind the doors you cannot see anything anyway. The same goes for guests in larger numbers: without grate dimensions no portion quantity can be estimated.
For two groups the ACTIVA is the wrong choice. One wants to read instructions with clearance information and gas data before buying, and no such instructions could be found. The other wants to cold smoke cheese. It would suit one person in the garden with space on the ground, who warm smokes in small quantities, sorts out their own regulator and bottle, and uses the 30-day return period to check the assembly and dimensions at leisure.
