Water/No Water Hybrid


 
J Hasselberger

J Hasselberger

TVWBB All-Star
After some failed waterless cooks, I went back to water in the pan. I hate the mess, but get better results with water. So I tried a hybrid: Full pan of water; lower grate in place; foil-wrapped 14" clay saucer on lower grate to catch the drippings. I also thought that the saucer would be a stabilizing influence on temperature.

My question is, has anyone else used both water and a clay saucer? Did you have any weird issues?
 
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I have been using sand instead of water, 1/3 full with foil on top of the sand for easy cleanup.

Works just as good.
 
Never tried the Hybrid method. I started off with water on my WSM then switched to terra cotta saucer and never looked back. The only results/differences I saw was in cleanup and no water wins that. My results were great both ways but easier to get high temps without the water.
 
So you are basically using the saucer to catch drippings? I don't think using both would mess anything up but I do not think you are doing anything to make the cooker perform better.
I am interested to hear everyone else's thoughts on your setup.
I love how everyone has their own tips/tricks and setups on how they operate their cooker.
 
I use a foil lined SS pan, which serves four purposes: It catches drippings, helps keep the heat even, helps recovery when the smoker is opened, and diffuses the heat. A water pan (Lasagna pan) sets on top of the drip pan, and it too gets lined with foil for easy cleanup. Never had to scrub it yet. I suspect it is acting much like your saucer or sand.

In my smoker water is important to help keep the heat even. Since water never gets above 212 degrees it helps regulate temps.

On a typical Pork Butt smoke I run around 230-235 or so until it just starts to come out of the stall, then pull the water pan and let it go. It'll usually hit between 265-275 just before the meat hits target temp.
 
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I never have used water in my wsm, I have a 1 1/4 inch firebrick in a foiled brinkman water pan, no problems doing low and slow or going hh
 
Tommy B said:
So you are basically using the saucer to catch drippings? I don't think using both would mess anything up but I do not think you are doing anything to make the cooker perform better.
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Couple of reasons: catch drippings and to add an additional heat sink. It worked great to catch drippings, but it didn't help stabilize the temp and made it more difficult to keep the temp steady. Frankly, I don't know why.

I did an 11lb prime brisket overnight. It took 14 hours, unwrapped all the way, and it was tender, moist and tasty. The temp was all over the place -- from 220 to 270. I have over 100 cooks on the WSM and never had this much trouble holding temp. The result was great, but the cook was a struggle. Back to the drawing board.
 
I wouldn't blame the entire thing on the water pan, there are way too many variables with this kind of thing. Ambient air temp can be a huge factor, so can the water temp. When you put water in the pan, was it hot? You should at least run hot tap water for the pan so it has less of an adverse effect on the smoker's temp. Sometimes I will get it close to a boil. If you're just getting the smoker up to temp the hot water will help. If you're adding part way through the cook, cold water will drop the temp quite a bit.

One other phenomenon. I was cooking for a party and had four 5lb. butts going. After a while I noticed the temp was starting to get a little ahead of the game plan. When I checked the water pan I found the drippings had covered the entire top of the water, basically sealing it in. There was no steam or water escaping. I skimmed some of the grease off the top and things settled down again. Kind of odd, but I guess that with those particular butts on that particular day, it's what it was.
 
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T Waite said:
I wouldn't blame the entire thing on the water pan, there are way too many variables with this kind of thing. Ambient air temp can be a huge factor, so can the water temp. When you put water in the pan, was it hot? You should at least run hot tap water for the pan so it has less of an adverse effect on the smoker's temp. Sometimes I will get it close to a boil. If you're just getting the smoker up to temp the hot water will help. If you're adding part way through the cook, cold water will drop the temp quite a bit.

One other phenomenon. I was cooking for a party and had four 5lb. butts going. After a while I noticed the temp was starting to get a little ahead of the game plan. When I checked the water pan I found the drippings had covered the entire top of the water, basically sealing it in. There was no steam or water escaping. I skimmed some of the grease off the top and things settled down again. Kind of odd, but I guess that with those particular butts on that particular day, it's what it was.
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Thanks for the comments, T. As an old racer, I always follow the practice of just changing one thing at a time, and all I did was add the clay saucer to my usual procedure. I always use hot water (full pan) to start a cook, and rarely have to add. I have experienced the same "grease-over" as you, and that's one of the reasons for this experiment. It was a warm night, but quite breezy and my WSM is in the aptly-named breezeway between the house and garage. The garage is 45° to the house, so it acts like a carburetor and speeds up whatever air flow is present. I block the cooker off, but the wind still swirls. That could have had something to do with it. The WSM usually holds temp very well with a full water pan and minimal vent adjustment. I'm just puzzled that the addition of a clay saucer had the opposite result that I was expecting. It could well have been the wind.

Again, the brisket was excellent, so I have no complaint about the end result. I suppose I'll just have to go out and get another brisket and try it again. :)
 
I have used that method and it works well. I didn't use a clay saucer on the lower grate, but any pan to catch the drippings. Then you can dispose of the water easily and the grease/drippings can easily be thrown in the garbage. I've found it easier to use no water, but if using water, I like this method a lot. I would just use something other than the clay saucer to catch the drippings.
 
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