water, sand or nothing?


 
A

Allen S.

TVWBB Member
What do you guys use? I have been using water, but am seriously considering switching to sand for my next cook. Does sand help hold the heat better?

What say you?
 
I taped around my door with aluminum duct tape and don't use anything in the pan. It's just a heat deflector. I have no problem getting up to temp and it usually settles in around 270.
 
Allen,
Im new, used my WSM 18 3 times, one rib cook, one smoke of a Bluefish and a long ovrrnight picnic shoulder. I used 2 or 3 pieces of clay brick in an unfoiled water pan, and a foiled, shallow drip pan on the lower grate. Steady temps each cook, a little adjusting but no major swings.
 
I've been experimenting: tried nothing, water, icewater (for a cold smoke in Summer), and seem to have settled in on a foiled clay saucer. It's really all about which way is going to yield the easiest clean-up for me, unless I need to target a high or low temperature.
 
It's a couple of foil wrapped fire bricks in a foil lined water pan for me for the last couple of years. Works well for me.
 
I just foil a clay saucer and put it over an empty water pan. I used water on my first cook. Worked OK, but I've found it's not necessary. Since I've gotten a good layer of gunk on my WSM, I've been able to dial in at just about any temp and keep it there.

Plus, if I want to run my temperatures up to speed up cooking, I can do so without a big heat sink that is sucking up all the heat energy to undergo a state change.
 
<6 hour cook (ribs, chicken)- water

>6 hour cook (brisket, butt) - clay saucer and NanoQ controller
 
Foiled clay saucer inside foiled water pan. Remove top layer of foil over foiled clay saucer, and cleanup is a breeze. Never used water or sand at all.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Joe Stout:
I taped around my door with aluminum duct tape and don't use anything in the pan. It's just a heat deflector. I have no problem getting up to temp and it usually settles in around 270. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Why? "I taped around my door with aluminum duct tape....." Please help me understand why one would want to do this. Is this a common mod within the WSM user community?

Thanks.
 
Water for low/slow - like butts and bacon. Imo, it's a better heat sink than sand or ceramic and I use it for precisely that.

Empty, foiled pan for ribsand briskets as I cook both ~350?.

Vaughan, I don't get it either. The WSM was not designed to be air tight and it needn't be. But we all may have differing views.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Vaughan:
"I taped around my door with aluminum duct tape....." Please help me understand why one would want to do this. Thanks. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
Because he inherited a ton of aluminum duct tape?
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I've ducted my door because it got very leaky, and all attempts to straighten it out failed. (For a mechanic I'm a good philosopher.) But, I just got a new Cajun Bandit door, and it's a dream.

The clay saucer is the sort one uses for a water catcher under a planter, right?
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">The clay saucer is the sort one uses for a water catcher under a planter, right? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Yep.

And to answer the OP- I always run mine dry - no sand, no saucer. Sometimes foil.
 
As I mentioned in my "homeostasis" post, I'd like to dry pan it somehow but get temps down. I used a foiled water pan with a foiled 14" clay saucer today, and "homeostasis" seemed to be around 275-280 at the grill (20 degrees less at the lid).

In my next cook, I'm going to try a few mods (in my search for lower, stabilized temps):

1. Fewer lit briquettes for Minion startup;

2. Clamp down all bottom vents (0% - 25%) when I'm 50 degrees short of target; and

3. Use a foiled 12" clay saucer underneath 14" clay saucer.

We'll see. It's all in good fun.
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Used to use water in the pan. Recently wanted to go to a clay saucer but couldn't find a 12 or 14" anywhere as most places were sold out after summer. Just did a 5 hour rib cook and a 12 hr butt cook using an empty foiled pan. Note that I'm now using a Stoker so I no longer need a heat sink. Even without the Stoker, I no longer feel the need for a sink as it eats up fuel. Pretty sure I'll get ATC comments but heat is heat as long as you control it properly.
 
I use water, clay and a empty foiled pan depending on what I'm doing and timing. I don't believe the clay is actually a heat sink, it just slows the the rate of temp. Careful with clay because if you have a problem you won't know it for sometime. I use it if excessive wind and rain is an issue. Mostly just a dry foiled pan is my go to. I rarely cook under 250.
 
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