Andy Harmon
New member
I am new to the WSM, but not smoking meat, been doing that for a very long time with a variety of smokers. This is my first water smoker though, but I am getting an unexpected result that's got me wondering what's happening. I am using it with water in the water pan, which is one of the main reasons I bought it. After a long smoke, such as butts or brisket, I get this rust brown residue coating the center section above the water pan and throughout the dome lid. After cooling down and drying out the residue will start flaking off. So now I scrub it off before it dries out now, don't want that flaky stuff raining down on my next cook. I have owned a variety of smokers from offset, barrel and one pellet type and none did this. In my mind it must have something to do with the vapor from the evaporating water. But why is it rust colored? It's not rust, but it sure looks like it. Any clue what's happening or is this normal?