Pics of WSM Piedmont Double Water Pan Mod and Detailed How to Instructions.


 
Mike I just put on 4 strip of baby backs for my first Piedmont run. So far, no surprises, I did the Minion method except I used about 1/4 less charcoal. It's been about 1/2 hour and lid temp is holding steady @ 250. with grill level @ 238. Rock solid so far.

I even had to move it from the front porch to the back porch because the wind started to kick up. This would have been a pain with water in the pan. It was a breeze with no water.





Temperature went up a little but I think its due being a little windy.

The only thing different I would have to do is adjust bottom vents to 1/4 because I normally run at 1/3 bottom and tops all the way open.

Temperate is VERY steady and solid though. No big swings.

I'll post more later.

Merry Christmas everyone!
 
I have a question. Why bolt them both together. Since the bolts are long enough and there are holes in the bottom one why not just sit it on top with the bolts secured to the top one going through the holes in the bottom one. This way you do not have to mess with wing nuts and lock washers etc when you take them apart. Just lift the top one out. If the bolts are spread out evenly it should be enough support to hold the top pan steady.
 
Your idea would work too. For me bolting makes the whole setup secure and solid so I don't have to line up the holes everytime I lift the top pan.

You could probably not drill any holes but put a few balls of foil in the bottom pan and just the set the top on in it and it would work too.

I willing to bet one could try a triple pan with smaller spaces in between the pan. The possibilities are endless. I was pretty much mimicing the original idea that someone else came up with.

Whichever way you decide good luck. One thing is for sure the double pan does work. I just tried it yesterday and I had steady temps all day long.
 
Did you notice it cook faster with no water in the pan? I read another thread that someone cooked a pork butt in "record time" using this method. thanks.
 
Cesar,

I didn't notice that much faster of a cook time maybe 45 minutes, but I did use about 1/4 less fuel. It was even a cold and windy day. I attribute the less fuel because I ended up running my bottom vents only 1/4 open than the usual half to keep my temps around 250 dome.

It make sense since one isn't using energy to heat the water.
 
D Howell,

Contrary to popular belief water in the pain does not make the meat any more moist. The water acts as a temperature control more than anything.

No, I did not notice any difference in my ribs being less moist. If you want a more moist product, foil with apple juice or other liquid or mop. I use a spray bottle of apple juice and bourbon to keep my smoked meat moist.
 
After reading your post I went over to Ray Basso's forum and found an old experiment I did a few years ago. It might be of intrest to you.
"I did an experiment last month...
Five brisket flats, each cut in half and trimmed to weigh the same. The 10 chunks were then mixed to even out any advantage that a difference in marbling might make in the test. The idea was to cook five brisket halves with sand and five with water in the wsm pan to determine the difference between a dry and a wet cook in the wsm. The five flats were cut in half to amplify the results (more surface area exposed). Each group had a total weight of 10 lb. The dry cook had 48% shrinkage, the wet cook had 46% shrinkage. For a ten pound brisket, that's about two ounces of moisture. Which might be around 1/4 cup of liquid. The internal texture from both cooks were similar. Slices from both oozed juice when I squeezed them. The main difference was the bark on the dry cook was a little drier and chewier as well as being a little darker in color."

I've got two slabs of spares for tomorrow. It might be fun to repeat the experiment using ribs.
db
 
DB,

If you could try your experiment with ribs it would be great. I do have a question though, were your test done with similar conditions as far as temperature, wind etc?

Also, if in fact a "dry" cook produces more bark and less moisture would/does mops/sprays circumvent the difference between a dry and wet water pan?

Thanks for your input!
 
Jonny,
If I remember correctly, the brisket cook was on two bullets at the same time.
I'll do the ribs tomorrow the same way. I believe you slow down the evaporation of moisture during a cook by mopping or spraying. I think it's a good idea to use oil in the mop to slow the loss.
Sounds like some more experiments are in order.
 
I got a question about the mod. The 2 brinkman pans are being delivered today (just in time for an overnighter tomorrow night), and I picked up all the hardware last night. The problem was that I couldnt find the "1/4-20 stove bolts". I got 2 1/2 in bolts instead. So to make a long question short...whats the size of the gap between the 2 pans??? I cant wate to try it tomorrow. I should have pictures of my pork butts and spares on monday....
 
I used two nuts on each bolt for space= 1/2 inch.
This amount of space appears to be adequate and it does not interfere with the bottom rack.
 
Ben,

Like the "Wizard" Steve said about a half an inch. There are some many ways to make the setup. By no means do you have to use the exact same bolts. Please post some photos of your smoke. I would run the setup with the top vents all the way open and the bottom vents about 1/4 to 1/8 you will maintain about 225 - 250 consistent lid temps, which is about 8 10 degrees lower on the grate.

I did baby backs on Christmas and they were perfect. I took pictures of the final product but they're on my friends camera. I'm just waiting for her to email me photos and I'll post them.
 
Dave,

Please post your results after you do a comparison. I only have one WSM so I don't have the luxury to run two at the same time.
 
Excelent. I will post the pictures next week. I just bought the wife a new digi-cam. so they might actually come out good this time!!

Thanks for all your help!!!!
 
Im fairly new at this but dont smokers with the offset firebox smoke without water and create good results?
 
That, im not sure of.
I have a questions for wizards and members....how long (or how many posts) till I switch from a newbie to a member??? I showed up for rush week, but noone else was there....
 
Cesar,
Yes, you can achieve good results in an offset w/o water. I have a Brinkman offset that I also use - sometimes with a water pan, sometimes without. I am working on designing some extensive mods to my offset to improve its performance however, and it will include a water pan to help even out the hot spot in the cooking chamber next to the fire box among some other inventive changes.

Benjamin,
I think at 30 posts you make the jump.
 
Clark, if you had to pick one...only one. Would you take the weber or the brinkman? I havent really heard to much about them.
 
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