Stoker - Water, Clay Pot or Empty Pan ?


 
J

James Harvey

TVWBB Pro
Which do you use? I recently got my Stoker and was going to move from water to clay pot but it seems I may not even need that from what I read here. My worry is about initial temp overshoots.

JDH
 
I'm currently using a foiled empty pan. I'm planning on moving to a (foiled) clay pot base (disk) as soon as I find one the right size. It's a real pain to restock the charcoal through the side door with the water pan in the way.

joe
 
ATC systems do not require a heat sink at all. If one seems necessary the unit is not properly set up.
 
I don't really consider the clay disk to be a heat sink, more like a diffuser or baffle between the coals and the first rack. I stopped using water as a heat sink as soon as I got the Stoker.

joe
 
It's absolutely a heat sink. It absorbs heat then releases it, something an ATC cannot control.

I do not understand why you'd need to add fuel.
 
It went well. It actually took a little longer to get to temp but it was windy and I used RO Briqs vs. my usual lump. It also rained the 2 days prior so I'm not sure if this has any effect on coal.

Once up to temp at 250F, it stayed within 5F for the 5+ hours the ribs were on.

I will use the foiled, empty pan from now on with the Stoker. Cleanup was a snap.
 
In James' initial post in this thread, he mentioned the possibility of temperature overshoot with an ATC.
Using a Guru DX and a foiled clay saucer in the waterpan setup, I find that overshoot will occur on a regular basis.
In competitions, we do what's called a "sneak-up on the temp" approach. Say our pit target temp is 225 degrees. If thats where you set the Guru to start with, the pit temps may go considerably over that as the WSM and saucer stabilize at operating levels. To avoid this overshoot, I set the Guru at 200 and let it temperature stabilize. It will usually creep above the "set" 200 degree mark, buts thats fine as I am "working" the anticipated overshoot. I let it stabilize, then move the pit up to 215 degrees, then finally to 225 degrees. By anticipating and working the overshoot, you can get it to temp perfectly in small stages.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">and a foiled clay saucer in the waterpan setup, I find that overshoot will occur on a regular basis. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
Not surprising. The Guru, like other ATCs, is not designed to work with a heat sink, does not require one, and the use of one can easily thwart its way of working.
 
Morrey,

I've used the empty pan a few times now and actually haven't had the overshoots I expected. I've also mimimized the start up fuel I use MM and it tends to take 45 mins to an hour to get to temp which is fine. I usually set the ATC at 225F (my rib cook noted above was set at 250F to shorten cook time but it didn't anyway) and I tend to get a pit stall around 200F after 15 mins that takes a further 45 mins to stabilize at the set temp.
I understand the methodology of the staged increases you noted but don't think an ATC should require a crutch to set properly. That said, I'm a backyard cook that rarely sees the swings that comp cooks might.
The only mod's to Rock's suggested Stoker use I've used is leaving the top vent at 100% vs, the 25% noted in Kenny's video on the web page. This was just because I forgot and it never became an issue (although I did play with it once with no appreciable difference).
 
James;

I, like many others I'm sure, get stuck in my cooking methods and fail to look around at other ways of doing things. Like you and Kevin feel, an ATC should dial in the temp and let er rip with little or no problems. Maybe, just maybe, the clay saucer method radiates back heat into the unit (once hot) and overcomes the ability of the ATC to work the way it is intended.
My thoughts were that the radiant heat from the clay would save fuel in the long run. Maybe this is not really the case at all. Maybe the foiled dry pan is all the shield I need anyway.
I think its time to experiment. I'll monitor my fuel consumption while cooking with and w/o the clay. I'll set the Guru at 225 dead on to start with and also watch that.
The top vent (with an ATC) seems more of a way to allow the smoke to breath and not let creosote form in the pit. I usually leave my almost wide open. Again, may be time to experiment with that too.
 
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