Ready to make the purchase, but...

[JerryP]

Greetings to everyone. I'm new to the forum. Just wanted to start out by saying my first-ever grill was a 22.5 One-Touch Gold which now lives with my brother in Potter County PA. I now have a Genesis and a Big Green Egg. I'm ready to pull the trigger on a Smokey Mountain and am leaning toward the 22.5. Just had a few questions.

First question is about automatic temperature controllers. I have one for my Egg and love the fool-proof, hands-free convenience of it. If I use one on the WSM, how long can I get a full load of charcoal to last at 250 degrees.

Second question is about lump vs briquettes. I prefer lump over briquettes but wondered if there's a drastic difference in burn time between the two.

Last question concerns the amount of meat you can load into one. It seems to me you can pack a lot of meat in one, especially the 22.5. I'd be interested to hear stories of how much food you've been able to stuff into one.

Thank you very much.

Jerry
Dallastown PA

 

[Greg Powers]

Depending on ambient temp, wind conditions, type of coal, etc.; ballpark of 8-10 hours
I use lump, not so much about burn time as taste and ash production.
I've had 8 pork butts on mine a few times
You won't regret it

 

[justin.williams]

I like the smoke ring i get with lump better than briquettes, but I'll use either in a pinch. I don't have ATC and mine seems to lock in for upward of 10+ hours at 250-275, like Mike said though, depending on weather conditions.
The most I've had on mine is 3 full rack of baby backs, 2 8-9# butts, and about 6 ears of corn probably could have fit a little more on though.
I was in the same boat too about size when i got mine, and after reading all the posts on this forum i decided i would never regret the extra room. Either way You'll love it!

 

[Chad Bman]

I've had 64 pounds of pork butt on my 22 at once and it wasn't crammed. THAT, was a lot of meat.

I always figure 12 hour cooks for my butts at 250-275 ish and never have to reload charcoal. Even the big cook only went a couple extra hours and no extra fuel was required. Granted, I did PACK the ring with an entire bag of Stubbs and used Kingsford in the chimney. Don't have an ATC, but don't feel I need one. Once the WSM settles in, it just rolls along.

I've used lump in the WSM before, but I prefer briquettes for the longer burn, lower temps, consistent temps, and well - they're cheaper.

 

[JerryP]

Thanks a bunch for all the replies. It's settled. 22 it is.

 

[Brett Grant]

I've had 44 lbs of pork butts on the top rack, a 16 lb brisket underneath that. The top rack was kind of full, but none of the meat overhung the water pan.
I've also done 8 pork racks up top and 4 beef racks down below, using rib racks. I could probably have crammed a few more somewhere.

My 22 tends to run a little cool, usually around 230ish. I don't have automatic anything, just the dome temp. I don't really sweat it for bbq. I do wish I could get it hotter when I do turkeys, but I don't do those often and they have always turned out well even thought I can only get the thing to about 300* with the door propped open.

I one time got 15 hours @ 230ish. That was in the summer with no wind. In the summer, sitting in the sun, the dome will hit 180*. Helps when it is already 110 ambient.

I love the big size for parties/big cooks. I haven't really played around with it for small cooks, so when I go small I think that I often use way too much charcoal. I've been thinking about building a mini, just haven't done it.

Brett

 

[M Halle]

Hey Chad, when you used Stubbs...did you fight with to much smoke? With my first cook I did chicken. Ran it at higher temps and only took an hour and it was awesome. This past weekend I did a ham. I did it at 225 for about three and half-hours and it seemed really smokey. I used three chucks of apple and that was it. I know Stubbs smokes more than kingsford. Do you think this could be the problem? I did have top vent completely open the whole time also.

 

[Derrick Llewellyn]

Hi Jerry. Not sure what ATC you use but I have a Guru CyberQ. Over Christmas I did a Brisket for 17 hrs with full ring on my 22 at 235* at it was in the 20's the whole cook.

I prefer KBB cause that is all I know but one of these days I am going to buy a bag of lump and see if there is any difference.

 

[Darrel Williams]

I now have a Genesis and a Big Green Egg. I'm ready to pull the trigger on a Smokey Mountain ...

First question is about automatic temperature controllers. I have one for my Egg and love the fool-proof, hands-free convenience of it. If I use one on the WSM, how long can I get a full load of charcoal to last at 250 degrees.

Second question is about lump vs briquettes. I prefer lump over briquettes but wondered if there's a drastic difference in burn time between the two.

If you have a BGE, why are you interested in a WSM? While you are in the Weber fan section here, most of us here would kick our Webers to the curb at the chance to get a BGE.


Lump burns cleaner (less ash) than briquettes. It also burns hotter. Briqs burn longer. YMMV. There are a lot of variables. Around here, any lump is usually triple the price of K, so while I like lump, I grill mostly with K because of the cost. In the smoker I use K-Comp, which is only double the price of K.

On my 18 WSM, the most I have done is 4 shoulders which was just north of 34lbs of raw meat. I'd bet you could get 6 on a 22.5 so about 50lbs. The longest I ever got a load to last was about 14 hours with no ATC, just careful manual vent adjustment.

 

[Greg Powers]

If you have a BGE, why are you interested in a WSM? While you are in the Weber fan section here, most of us here would kick our Webers to the curb at the chance to get a BGE.

I have a Big Steel Keg. Same size as a large BGE but more durable and while I like it for high heat stuff, for low and slow I'll fire the WSM every time.

 

[Chad Bman]

My 22 tends to run a little cool, usually around 230ish. I don't have automatic anything, just the dome temp. I don't really sweat it for bbq. I do wish I could get it hotter when I do turkeys, but I don't do those often and they have always turned out well even thought I can only get the thing to about 300* with the door propped open.
Brett

If all you're going by is the dome thermometer, don't be so sure about your 'low' temps.

Hey Chad, when you used Stubbs...did you fight with to much smoke?

Stubbs is my absolute favorite, but I can't beat the price of KBB for everyday use. I've never noticed 'too much smoke' but then again, I let the WSM get to a clean-burning-fire before adding meat & smoke wood. Typically, takes about 30-45 minutes. Dwain has been posting about that since I joined the forum and I really like that method.

To me, Stubbs burns cleaner (less ash) than KBB or Kingsford Competition, but still dirtier than lump. It's kind of a best-of-both-worlds as I get the really long predictible burn, but less ash than KBB.

 

[JerryP]

If you have a BGE, why are you interested in a WSM? While you are in the Weber fan section here, most of us here would kick our Webers to the curb at the chance to get a BGE.


Lump burns cleaner (less ash) than briquettes. It also burns hotter. Briqs burn longer. YMMV. There are a lot of variables. Around here, any lump is usually triple the price of K, so while I like lump, I grill mostly with K because of the cost. In the smoker I use K-Comp, which is only double the price of K.

On my 18 WSM, the most I have done is 4 shoulders which was just north of 34lbs of raw meat. I'd bet you could get 6 on a 22.5 so about 50lbs. The longest I ever got a load to last was about 14 hours with no ATC, just careful manual vent adjustment.

I've been kicking around the idea of entering a few of the small local bbq competitions and need something with more space than my large egg can offer. Also, I started doing bbq on my kettle, so it has a special place in my heart. I just wonder if a digital controller would extend how long the charcoal lasts. All stuff I will figure out.