Hot smoking preserves foods in 3 ways: Heat kills microbes; chemicals found in the smoke -- together with formaldehyde and alcohols -- act as preservatives; and the meals dries out so there's less moist space for bacteria to develop. Smoking is likely one of the oldest strategies of preserving meat merchandise. One off the top of my head is chicago Bears 1985 Bulls 1996 White sox 2005 Blackhawks 2009 That may be a span of 24 years. Step 7: Hammer the nail into the board about one half inch deep.