New owner and old questions..............


 
Rolf Jacobsen

Rolf Jacobsen

TVWBB Emerald Member
Okay so I am now the proud owner of the 18-1/2" WSM. I also own the Maverick 732 and plan to use it a lot with the Weber. Realistically I don’t see me using the lower grate that much as we are a small family and I assume the top rack is preferred. Please correct me if I’m wrong. I would like to drill holes for the two probes, (food and smoker), while the Weber is still pristine. I know this sounds dumb but where for the grommet location/s? Level with the top grill? Also down the road I see myself possibly getting BBQ Guru or PitMaster IQ controller. Please keep this in mind.

As Always…. Thanks,
Rolf
 
The top rack is preferred if you are not cooking so much as to need the lower.

Personally, I would skip the mods for the grommets. (Normally one just replaces the screws in the grate holders with grommets.) Imo, better to drop the cooker temp probe into one of the lid vent holes (the probe itself just inside the vent, the probe wire on the outside). If you want to temp the meat during cooking (I rarely do this) just run the wire under the lid.

My two cents.
 
Well i Always run my probes under the lid! Cant se the benifit of the "vent" drop. Removing the Probe when i remove the lid? Same spot during the whole cook works for me. As for drilling - Sure could be a good idea. But then again under the lid is just fine. As Kevin stated:"Normally one just replaces the screws in the grate holders with grommet" is one great way of doing it.

But with the 732 running wires thru the top vent is just strange to me. One for the smoker temp and one for the meat..Right? Will be a pain...When you open the lid. And if you gonna run one under the lid and one thru the top? Humm...Why? And if you set it up under the lid the probe is in the same spot during the cook.

And the grommet idea! Sure looks cleaner..Will add some work to install & add time to everycook you do.(probes in and out)

Never had a problem with the wires under the lid.

My 2

*edit bad word choise´s*
 
This is why I appreciate this board. Two very experienced folks with two different approaches. I’m inclined to go with under the lid for now. Given this is for the 732, it looks like I would need the 3/8” grommets. I don’t know if using the grommet/s to hold the rack is a good idea or not. Either way I’ll still have to drill, if nothing else, to open up then existing holes. Something to ponder during tomorrow’s cook I suppose. Thanks so much!
 
Contrary to Wolgast, I drop my probes thru the top vent holes. It does help to get the longer probes from maverick.

Mark
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by mk evenson:
Contrary to Wolgast, I drop my probes thru the top vent holes. It does help to get the longer probes from maverick.

Mark </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

The longer probes are already ordered. One however will not be available until early November. Regardless of which way I go, i figured I would need the longer ones.

Thanks!
 
I temp at the top of the lid (as opposed to the grate) so I also just dangle the probe through a vent hole.

If I temp meat I place the wire under the lid.

When I open the lid I just move the vent probe. It's not too painful to do so.
 
I run my food probe under the lid. For the smoker probe, I will either run it under the lid and clip it to the top grate or if the top grate is fairly full, I will drop it through the top vent and use a clothes pin to keep the probe dangling.
 
Rolf,

Yes top rack is preferred. Easier to work with.

After ruining several probes over the years (and rendering one set of thermos useless, they went out of business), I did the grommets. If you are careful every time, under the lid is fine. But I wasn't.

There are several topics that cover grommets and have pictures of where you can mount them.

You can not mount level with the top grate, as the grate rest on tabs at the top of the middle section. You have to run to probe through the grommet and then up though the grate.

On my 18" I have two grommet holes. One about 2 inches below the top grate and one a few inches below that.

On my 22" I have 3 racks & two grommet holes. Again, one about 2" lower than the top grate that probes for the top & middle rack go through and one grommet in between the bottom & middle rack for meats on the bottom rack.

For a smoker probe, I would suggest hanging/suspending it through the top vent, but not mounted to the top grate. If you put 2 pork butts on the top grate of an 18", the cold meat will possibly affect the reading on the smoker temp.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Mike_L(Big Mike):
This might be off topic, but do you guys still probe the temp of the smoker even with the lid temperature gauge? Do you not trust this one? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

I always either use my Maverik at grate level,or my true temp thru the top vent. I believe that the Weber therm is only good for stopping up the hole that it is in.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Mike_L(Big Mike):
This might be off topic, but do you guys still probe the temp of the smoker even with the lid temperature gauge? Do you not trust this one? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

I doubt you will find anyone who trusts the weber therm. Mine was always off by 20-50, and usually reading low. I removed mine to add an extra exhaust vent.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Mike_L(Big Mike):
This might be off topic, but do you guys still probe the temp of the smoker even with the lid temperature gauge? Do you not trust this one? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

I'll ditto Mark and Josh. One other thing about the gauge I don't like though. I know the probe is on the inside, but it's fairly sensitive to sunlight. Now I know that some folks will say that simply means the cooker is hot all over on the inside. However, when my Maverick probe (clipped UNDER the center of the top grate between two butts) reads twenty degrees LESS than the dome, I'd say the gauge is measuring higher temps due to sunlight. I noticed this today somewhere 'round high noon (after the meat had already gotten pretty warm).

I wish I'd tried clipping my therm UNDER the grate like this sooner. IMHO it's the best way to go, not nearly affected by the temp of cool meat like when clipping to the top of the grate. Doubt I'll be hanging the probe in the vent from now on.
 
I installed the "lamp rod" grommets from the directions on this board. It makes things soooo much easier and i dont worry about cramping down on the wires.

I installed one for the upper rack and one for the lower rack
 
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