Water in the Pan


 
Alan F

Alan F

TVWBB Pro
Kevin, in another thread you mentioned you have not modded any of your wsm's.

So, does that mean you always cook with water in the pan? Have you ever tried cooking without water?
 
Alan
Yes I have not modified any of the smokers I currently own. Have I tried cooking without the water pan? Yes I have and I brutalized a beef brisket. The water pan does so many things inside the smoker that not using it can be catastrophic. What results have you gotten?

Kk
 
Last edited:
Kevin, this is Alan not Mike. I get better results without water. Why do you believe the lack of water contributed to a bad brisket?
 
Alan,
I apologize, I misunderstood your question. I thought you asked if I have ever used my Smokey Mountain without a water pan. To your question, yes I have used it with the water pan but without water in it. What I know is water does help with temperature regulation especially for long smokes and I believe it does help with humidity inside the smoker which does help with the smoke penetration of your food. Although both ways work I have gotten better results with water than without.


Kk
 
Thanks. This is the first time I've ever heard of someone from Weber stating what most of us assumed- that one of the major reasons for the water is for temperature regulation.
 
Alan,
The water pan does a couple of things inside our Smokey Mountain Cookers. It helps regulate temperature, it works as a baffle sending indirect heat up to your food and also adds humidity. This is a critical piece of the smoker and one that does not get enough credit.

Great question!!!

Kk
 
You think the water pan doesn't get enough credit? It's the diffuser, a major piece of the smoker. I really, really wish you still sold the original shallow 18" water pan so the user can have more access to the coals. Instead of the stock (new version) water pan I use the brinkman charcoal pan with a clay saucer in it. This works well for me. Harry Soo uses the heat shield as the diffuser which seems like a great idea.

A side thought: I really wish the door on the 18" went a few inches higher for more access to the bottom grate.
 
Alan,
I appreciate all the feedback and will pass that info on to the appropriate people here at Weber. Thanks for sharing some time with me and agree with some of your comments above.

Kk
 
Alan F said:
Thanks. This is the first time I've ever heard of someone from Weber stating what most of us assumed- that one of the major reasons for the water is for temperature regulation.
Click to expand...

I was pretty sure I read exactly that in my WSM 22.5" manual. (i.e. helps control temperature)
 
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