New 2009 WSM - Built in thermometer is so "wrong"


 
You keep telling him he needs to learn his smoker and thats exactly what he is trying to do. I think he has given great info that will help shorten the learning curve myself and others. Thanks euge.lee and others for the valuable info.
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You can take or leave my advice, it doesn't bother me any.

I can't figure out why everyone is so dismissive of what I have to say. I'm just repeating something that helped me improve the bbq I produced on the wsm, which is...stop worrying about temps and stop following time and temp guidelines and start figuring out what done meat looks, feels, smells, tastes like and how to get there.

You can lengthen the stem on your probe or you can do some trial and error. it takes both IMO.

I know it's a great cooker, but I think you're forgetting how it was to be a newbie and how you want to make sure you're "doing it right" (as prescribed by the recipe).
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on the contrary. here's what I wrote in my original post, way up thread:

I was once there with you all too, at that point when the wsm was new and things weren't going right, trying to follow time and temps. I had wires all over my wsm trying to figure out actual temps. The first eureka came when I realized temps aren't always what they seem, but the second and big one came when I stopped caring about the actual temp.
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J.
I'm with you. I've learned through this site & so
e wasted time to Try to figure out the temps. I am agreeing with you to test for doneness tenderness etc. I just keep the probe in the meat to make sure it's cooked through. I spent way too much time & $ messing w/ different temp gauges. I rely a lot on folks like yourself who have much more experience than me.
 
I like your point, j biesinger. No matter how many digital thermometers you have, and how closely you follow a championship recipe, good barbecue really depends on some experience and honing of intuitive skills "and start figuring out what done meat looks, feels, smells, tastes like and how to get there." It takes practice and patience.
 
Originally posted by ron "Rondo" hanson:
FWIW, For 18yrs, from 1981-2009, the WSM was manufactured with no thermometer at all. The WSM got rave reviews as a stable, set-it & forget it, simple cooker that produces great BBQ. This was accomplished by simply using known vent settings...
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Keep in mind that the WSM was designed to be used with water in the pan and the water evaporating does a really good job of regulating temps, without water in the pan you have to regulate things yourself. And with many people choosing to pass on the full water pan a thermometer is a little more of a necessity than it once was. I agree that there is no point making things too complicated but you do want a ballpark figure on what your temp is.
 
but you do want a ballpark figure on what your temp is.
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I agree.

Be mindful of you temps and decide how long it takes to get the specific meat to tender. Next time measure the same way and you'll have a better idea when to start checking for tender. If the wsm runs hotter, check sooner, if it runs cooler, check later or foil.
 
Hey, Cliff..welcome to the discussion..lotza different thoughts ideas & info here
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Consider reading this entire thread, from page one, if you haven't done so already.... also
.....you're measuring the temps in different locations under different conditions.... the temperatures indicate differently because they are different..... not wrong, just different ..and it just doesn't matter much...
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All this talk of measuring temps at different places got me thinking...(uh, oh).

I know turning and rotating the meat isn't very popular with forum posters here, and personally, I'd rather relegate that to grilling and my ugly drum smoker. However, all this discussion and my own first experience with a "full cooker" ("four chickens on a wsm") does make me wonder if G. Wiviott's instructions to turn and rotate meat might have some validity. What's interesting is Wiviotts take on temperature gauges (don't gauge it!)and the (lack of) importance of (consistant)low and slow in light of his instruction to turn and rotate the meat just so for evenness of cooking. (Actually, it's funny that Wiviott's book in entitled "Low and Slow.")

It's just interesting, and arguments can be made about whether spikes in temps are a good or bad thing. But, how can you argue with trying to get the meat cooked evenly because you realize that as great as the little cooker is, it's got hot and cool spots just like any other cooker, especially if you use the bottom rack.

Not trying to hijack the thread, just wondering if there are any other take-aways besides to go and have a beer.
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As a fellow newbie I just wanted to say thanks for testing the therm on the lid. My temps have always been really low but I thought it was because I have been cooking in 10-30 degree weather outside. My first briz came out overcooked on one side despite the lid reading normal smoke temps. There are lots of good tips in this thread, but when its your first time cooking a piece of meat on a new WSM its good to know that the lid temp is unreliable.
 
I have had one of the WSMs with the lid thermometer since last year. I've cooked tons of things, never checked the accuracy of the thermometer, but always have tried to keep it somewhere between 235 and 275. It generally stays around 250.

And you know what? Everything has turned out great. I'm all for the thermometer being accurate, but I'm more concerned with how the food is.
 
I was cooking a brisket New Years night and my maverick was reading 300 degees and the lid thermometer was reading 240 degrees. There has also been times where the lid temp was higher than the temp at the top grate. I think I am about to buy a stoker anyway.
 
Originally posted by Jared G:
As a fellow newbie I just wanted to say thanks for testing the therm on the lid. My temps have always been really low but I thought it was because I have been cooking in 10-30 degree weather outside. My first briz came out overcooked on one side despite the lid reading normal smoke temps. There are lots of good tips in this thread, but when its your first time cooking a piece of meat on a new WSM its good to know that the lid temp is unreliable.
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What's been established is that most lid temps ARE reliable. In other words, the wsm lid temp will (reliably) be aprox 30 degrees cooler than a top grate temp if measured with a lid gauge that is opposite the vent such as on the new wsm.

Unlike with an offset smoker, temp. measured in the exhaust of a vertical smoker like the wsm will most certainly be higher than the temp. right below the opposite side of the lid. However, this shouldn't affect your brisket in any significant way. Assuming your coals are uniform, your grate temps will be consistantly hotter all the way around the edges because of the pan's heat deflection. No surprise, this grate temp inconsistancy is much greater on the bottom rack... again, because of the pan's heat deflection.
 
Hey great discussion everybody - I think the biggest obstacle for the new people has been the heat zone they are lost in and haven't found that comfort zone yet. When you are feeling uncomfortable with your temps you start questioning the whole cook and we are all like that until we have enough experience. I think Rondo and biesinger were right on with their replies. For years the WSM had no built in lid temp guage and as such you had to rely on remotes and touch/smell/taste/texture etc. So many factors figure into a cook, outside temps, humidity, meat load etc. that very seldom will a suggested recipe be followed to the tee and produce the same results as the original author intended. Calibrate with another thermometer of your choice that will give you that comfort zone you are looking for while doing your cook, but even a WSM is not automatic. You will still need to rely on your continuing experience to improve your results.
 
It takes some time to get use to how the smoker works but don't get discouraged. It's all about trial and error. A friend of mine got tired of the stock thermometer on his lid being off and decided to install a tel-tru bq300. Along with the use of a DigiQ 2 he noticed that the difference between top grate and lid temp to be maybe 15 deg and at some points they were exactly the same. I followed suit with mine and I have had nothing but great experiences with mine.
 
Good active thread for the New Year !

All good discussion here - I am waiting on the completion of the bbq triumvirate in the next month or two (Genesis, Performer, and soon WSM) and like the input from new WSM users, since I will be one of you soon.

j biesinger, the comment that included "how long it takes to get the specific meat to tender" is bang on. I tried my first brisket a while back and that is the true test - tender. I came up a bit short but still had a great meal.

Once the WSM is here I look forward to many more briskets, and butts. I do expect a learning curve because the fire in the WSM will not be the same as the other gadgets.

Thanks all.
 
Mark - Your comment was also right on and was exactly what I was referring to: A therm that you are comfortable with show you the difference and will get you approximately where you want to be, but your experience will tell you when it is done, tender and ready to be plated and that is what biesinger was saying. Bob B
 
thanks for the back up guys
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I felt like I was getting drilled for having an opinion that people disliked. it was just a suggestion. take it or leave it.
 
Just checking here...we're all focused on temperature inside the WSM, right? On that front, I used to care a lot, now I'm pretty casual about it. If I were into competitions or something like that, I'd probably be more diligent.

I've drifted towards the approach several other posters are suggesting. That is, having a rough idea of the temp. HOWEVER, I do focus on the internal meat temperature with a probe thermometer. I think that's an area where you want to be pretty careful in terms of undercooking or overcooking stuff. In my opinion, take it or leave it, that's more important in terms of accuracy.
 
Hey guys, Temp is just a GUIDE. Ever since I used my ET73 along with my el cheapo Taylor thermometer they have NEVER matched during a cook. Remember, it's not rocket science. If you keep your temps even through out the cook and you monitor it's tenderness your BBQ should turn out great BBQ
 
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