glazed clay saucer


 
DThayer

DThayer

New member
I found an 18" clay saucer but it has some type of glazing on the sides and inside bottom. Should I stay away from using it as a heatsink?
 
Biggest I found, unglazed, was 16" and it works just fine in the bowl of my 22" WSM. Now, I need to get a clay saucer for the 18" I recently picked up. :)
 
I've just used the basic "orange" clay saucer that you find at Home Depot, Lowes, probably even Wal-Mart. I think it's terracotta. They're cheap enough, and very readily available.
 
Went back and got the 16" plain clay saucer. I got up this morning and put on a 8lb butt and a 7lb point. Hoping to have pulled pork and burnt ends later on. This is my second smoke on the new weber. Did chicken quarters first. I'll look for the picture posting details and post some when they come off.
 
Forgot about the pics. Pork was good. Brisket was a little dry. Will try foiling during stall next time.
 
I used a clay saucer for the first time instead of water. The temp got hot faster and it was more difficult to keep down.
I had to close 2 of the three bottom vents and the third was just barely open.
And I even had to close the top vent about half way.

Is this normal with a clay saucer?

Other things it could have been.
Still a new smoker. only my 5th run.
Extra windy day

The ribs still tasted great so Im not worried just want to know from others who have done this mod if its the norm and what I should expect going forward.
I might have to switch to H&F briskets sooner than I anticipated. ;)
 
Exactly my experience as well (vent closure, etc). Requires an adjustment from the water pan method as you found out but once I got the hang of it, not an issue.
 
When using the clay saucer as opposed to water start with less lit fuel. You can then catch the temps on the way up. Much easier to manage that way.
 
Without water you have to start backing off on the vents a little at a time as you approach your target temp, if you bring the pit up to temp first and then try to adjust the vents to maintain it the temp will continue to rise and overshoot your mark. I usually start backing the vents off when the pit gets up around 150 to 175.
 
Thanks Eric. I do that usually with water I started backing off at 190 but with clay I got up to 170 really quick so started to back off at 180ish.
I think I just need more practice.
 
I basically set the vents as soon as I put the lit charcoal in the ring. Might leave one vent wide open while I finish the prep, but not more than 20 minutes. A slow climb is way easier to control than a quickie. :D
 
Chad Bman said:
I basically set the vents as soon as I put the lit charcoal in the ring. Might leave one vent wide open while I finish the prep, but not more than 20 minutes. A slow climb is way easier to control than a quickie. :D
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That`s what I usually do now too. In the beginning I would leave the vents all open to get up to temp but then it usually overshot my desired range and it took longer to bring it back down. I would have to keep shutting vents down and wait till it choked it out a bit. I now keep them all about 1/3 open on bottom and full open on top and adjust it after that to get more heat as needed or back off a little when it gets to temp. I just find its easier to climb the heat scale to get the desired temp then keep bringing it back down.


Chad you need to edit your signature to " 22.5" and a WHOLE bunch of Weber kettles & gassers" LOL
 
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Jem Scott said:
What is the advantage of using a clay saucer in the smoker? Do you place it in the empty water pan?
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Yes. I found the filling and getting rid of the water in the pan after a smoke to be the only frustrating part of the process.
Putting the clay saucer in and foiling it up means once your done all you have to do to clean up is ditch the dirty foil.
 
Jem Scott said:
What is the advantage of using a clay saucer in the smoker? Do you place it in the empty water pan?
Click to expand...

There are various opinions Jem. There are several threads if you search that discuss the merits of other heat sinks such as sand, saucers, steel discs vs a water pan with water and a dry water pan. Search "heat sinks" and you will see what I mean. That should keep you busy reading for awhile. Experience will aid you in determining what works best for you. Personally I like a water pan with water for ribs otherwise I really don't use water. I use a heavy metal plate. I did use clay but broke them from the thermal shock. Everybody on this site will have an opinion of what they like best or their opinion can be as simple as avoiding the cleanup with a water pan.:)
 
BEWarre said:
Yes. I found the filling and getting rid of the water in the pan after a smoke to be the only frustrating part of the process.
Putting the clay saucer in and foiling it up means once your done all you have to do to clean up is ditch the dirty foil.
Click to expand...

Gary S said:
There are various opinions Jem. There are several threads if you search that discuss the merits of other heat sinks such as sand, saucers, steel discs vs a water pan with water and a dry water pan. Search "heat sinks" and you will see what I mean. That should keep you busy reading for awhile. Experience will aid you in determining what works best for you. Personally I like a water pan with water for ribs otherwise I really don't use water. I use a heavy metal plate. I did use clay but broke them from the thermal shock. Everybody on this site will have an opinion of what they like best or their opinion can be as simple as avoiding the cleanup with a water pan.:)
Click to expand...

Cheers guys, that's what I thought. With the first smoke, I added water to the pan and at the end was pretty disgusted with the cleanup. After reading some more before the next smoke, I decided to just foil the water pan. This seemed a much easier cleanup plus the added bonus of catching the drippings. I'll have a search around the diggs for a clay saucer, but methinks they have all been broken. Thanks Gary for the keyword to search the topic further.
 
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