To soak, or not to soak your wood

Page 12 of the owners manual reads
"Place recommended amount of wood chunks in a pan of water to soak at least 1 hour before using."

Is this necessary? Do you do it?

It's thought that soaking wood chunks causes them to smoke more and burn less quickly. If my wood chunks are small, I will soak them. If I am fortunate enough to have fist-sized chunks or split pieces, I probably won't soak them.

Regards,
Chris