Sand vs. water in pan


 
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Tom Dreher

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I just got my WSM after 2 years with a cheap offset. I was wondering about the pros and cons of using sand in the water pan. I'm looking for the best temperature stability. It seems like it would run hotter with sand, but if you got the temps down it would be simpler than water. I haven't fired it up yet, so this is all speculation on my part. Thanks
 
I'm strictly a water user, but from all I've read, there are these considerations:

Pro sand:

Water evaporates, sand doesn't, so it doesn't have to be replenished on a long cook.

Sand will not spill and snuff your coals or cause a plume of ash to coat your food.

Sand is easy at clean-up-- you just throw away the foil covering it and you're done.

Con sand:

Sand doesn't evaporate, so it can continue to absorb heat and become an undesirable radiator of heat.

Pros outweighing the cons 3 to 1, I still prefer to think that the original design of all water smokers specifically counts on the fact that water cannot exceed 212*F without evaporating, and that it therefore acts as a very good heatsink to keep the cooker temps within the temperature range defined as true BBQing.
 
Tom, you are right on both counts. Sand is simpler, but tends to run hotter and is easier to lose control of your temps.

I recommend that you start out using water and as you gain experience, then experiment with sand to see which you prefer. I still use both as the mood suits me. I've never thought it a big deal to add water every couple of hours. As the cook progresses, I need to add less and less water because the grease build up on the water surface slows evaporation. On overnight cooks, I fill the water pan just before bed (midnight) and its usually about only 1/2 gone by 6 am when I get up to check on things, so I fill it again. I still use the stock WSM water pan. The last four or so hours of a long butt cook, I stop adding any more water so that I have less of a greasy/watery mess to deal with at the end.
 
I run sand 100% of the time. Guess I've been lucky because I haven't had much trouble keeping temps between 225-250 for the whole cook.

Besides the three pro's mentioned above, I also think that the temps return quicker to where they were before opening the lid.
 
We gotta stop this nonsense about "running hotter" What does that mean? Hotter than what?

I switched to sand over a year ago and my unit runs as hot as I want it to run....not any hotter or cooler than anything. It ran exactly the same as when I used water.

The same is true when it comes to a new unit. I bought a new unit a couple years ago and it runs exactly as hot as I want it to...right out of the box.

Now, when using water, the vent adjustments may need to be changed, but that is all. Same with a new unit. But, it doesn't run "hotter". If you find the thing is running too hot, then close the vents up. Also, I have never had a major temp spike when using sand..never.

These wonderful little machines can run without any heat sink at all. I dry jerky on mine and can keep the temps under 180? for 10+ hours with an empty waterpan. It's all in how you control the airflow and how much lit charcoal you use.

Sorry, I just had to stop the madness! LOL
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR> We gotta stop this nonsense about "running hotter" What does that mean? Hotter than what? <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>Stogie is still upset over the Packers. /infopop/emoticons/icon_frown.gif

Sand is "hotter" than water. For example, if using water my vents might be open 33% to maintain 250 degrees lid temp. If using sand, my vents might be 10% or less to maintain the same 250 degree lid temp. Hence, "running hotter."
 
Ditto what Stogie said.
It's all about physics.
More air = more combustion = more heat.
You can use either one with the same outcome as long as you control the "heat" (air).
I've never tried sand, but using the above argument, one could conclude that sand, requiring less heat to mantain a constant temp, would be more economical.
Ravings of a madman /infopop/emoticons/icon_rolleyes.gif
 
I find temp control to be easier with sand than water. The temps change much more slowly, and the overall stability seems to be much better (I run the Brinkmann charcola pan about 2/3 full of sand all the time now--weighs about 20 lbs). I did have to change my startup procedure tho-- I used to let the WSM go up to 275 or so, then load 'er up, and the temp would drop to 225-250 or so. With sand, I let it ramp up slowly to 225-250-- don't let it overshoot.

I did a 14 lb brisket day before yesterday using sand. From cold start to 225 F, it took about about an hour (I started Kingsford with my propane torch, which seems faster also). The WSM then ran for 14 hours with only two minor vent adjustments-- once at about 2 hours, and once at about 10 hours. Using my wireless Maverick smoker thermometer, I just set smoker alarm limits and 210 and 260 and go to bed (put the brisket on at midnite). I always get a good noght's sleep on long cooks now using sand.

Clark
 
Put me solidly, very solidly in the Stogie camp here. I have run both, and switched to sand about 18 months ago. Your temperature is your temperature, and it is controlled by the vents. I too have no idea what "running hotter" means.

The water pan is used as a heat shield, and you can use water, sand, rock, brick, big diamonds, or small blocks of concrete to shield the heat. Sand is good for me until something better comes along.

My $.02......
 
Dave....

I guess when it comes right down to it...you are correct!!!! I have been in an ugly mood ever since that horrible loss(Tom feels the same pain!)! LOL Good news is, only a few more months until training camp!!!

Actually, this concept has bugged me ever since it became standard to tell newbies that their unit would run hotter when they first used it. I can see the newbie quizically thinking, hotter than what? I never had one of these things!

Dave, I agree with you......the vents will need to be adjusted accordingly, but even when I got my new unit, I found no evidence that it ran any hotter than my 6 year old unit.

The same is true when burning lump.....the LUMP burns hotter...NOT the unit......I can keep my unit pegged at 225? for long periods of time.

I couldn't tell you what my vent settings are for any given cook. These things change for EVERY cook...the ambient weather conditions are never the same for any given cook. This is also why it is impossible to give advice about vent settings....they are meaningless to someone clear across the country.

Chris, bless his heart, keeps such copious notes about vent settings, but I think they are meaningless unless I am in his backyard the day of the cook.

OK, OK, enough! I will descend from the soap box....for now.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Kevin Taylor:
[qb]Chris, bless his heart, keeps such copious notes about vent settings, but I think they are meaningless unless I am in his backyard the day of the cook.
[/qb] <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>You know what's funny, when I wrote the new dry-aged prime rib article last December, I left out the table showing the cooker temps and the vent settings. Within hours of publishing the article, I had an e-mail from someone saying, "Why'd you leave out the vent settings?" /infopop/emoticons/icon_smile.gif

The only reason I publish that table is to show people (especially potential owners) how stable temperatures can be achieved in the WSM. Obviously, your vent settings will vary.

Regarding the issue of the WSM running up to 50* hotter when new, that comes straight from Weber. I've not experienced it myself, and it sounds like others are not experiencing it, either. If enough people feel that this is not truly the case with the WSM, perhaps I should remove that information from the Web site. Any comments on this point?

Regards,
Chris
 
Alright, alright, I'll stop using the term "running hotter." My vent settings were just an example, because Stogie is correct, they are never the same from cook to cook. As for "running hotter" during the first few cooks on my new WSM, I didn't have any problems either keeping the cooker in the desired temp range. It got easier when my WSM built up a little crust, but I was also more experienced by then too.
 
It makes sense that if with sand you have to close the vents down more because the pit is running hotter than it would with water, then the pit does run hotter. It's all about cause and effect.
Jim
 
The biggest reason that the vents are closed more for a cook with sand is that water is not a heat sink, but a consumer of the heat.

It takes over ten times more heat to change 212 water to 212 vapor than it takes to take 211 water to 212 water. What this means is that the water is like a buffer. If your temp starts to go up, a majority of the increase will go out the vent as steam.

With the WSM's ability to control air this is not a concern at all. It is very easy to reduce the air quickly and efficiently to control any temp spikes that occur.

I would imagine that the water pan is a vital asset to someone who cooks on a Brinkman or other type of water smoker that has poor air control. I used to cook on a Bandera. Even after extensive modifications it still was a chore to use. I can't imagine what it would have been like without the water!

That just my dos centavos.

Royce
 
BTW, to comment on sand being "hotter," I have done jerky in my WSM with sand in the pan at 150-160 or so and maintained this temp with no problems.

Clark
 
Ok, so if someone is going to do their first pork butt brisket combo, how much sand would you recommend for the pan? I bought the brinkman pan, so I can use either...
As always, I lean on your bountiful wisdom /infopop/emoticons/icon_smile.gif
 
The Brinkmann pan is best left to use with water on long, overnight cooks. For sand usage, the original WSM pan is more than sufficient, and, in fact, preferable to the Brinkmmann.
 
I contend that in fact most everyone that has posted here, first cooked with water in the waterpan.
When you started cooking with sand or dry waterpans, in fact you controled the pit temp from the knowledge that pit was running hot and you closed down the vents, it becomes second nature.
That is the definition of the pit runs hotter. /infopop/emoticons/icon_wink.gif
Jim
 
Just a quick (and newbie) question:

Doesn't the water/steam vapor help to keep the meat from drying out during prolonged cooking sessions?

Just curious...
 
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