Weber Universal Smoker or Alternative?


 
David-Belfast

David-Belfast

TVWBB Member
Hi all,

looking to get some advice on whether the Weber Universal Smoker #17179 is worth the value? £35/$45 Weber Universal Smoker Box

i have been doing some research, and it seems this would fit under my grates in a Genesis Silver B and that smoking from underneath is "better"

otherwise the alternative is a a flip lid stainless steel one from B&Q (Home Depot styl) for £8/$10 B&Q Smoker Box - which i believe will also fit in between my flavouriser bars?

my ask is, as a first time user/smoker - is it worth getting the weber one or will the cheaper alternative be a smart move?
 
Hi David,

Most of our members won't have experience with the Weber Universal Smoker Box #17179 because it's not sold here in the United States. In the U.S., Weber does sell a Smoker Box #7576 made of stainless steel and it appears to be a better version of the B&Q box you mentioned. It gets a 3.6/5.0 rating and has 99 reviews you can read here:

www.weber.com

Smoker Box | Weber Grills

Made of stainless steel, the Weber Smoker Box holds wood chips to transform any grill into a smoker, adding delicious smoke flavor to any grilled meal.
www.weber.com www.weber.com

If it were me, I would try making an aluminum foil packet of wood chips, poke a few holes in the top, and place it over the burners below the cooking grate. If that does what you're looking for, then you don't need one of these boxes. Otherwise, I'd try an inexpensive one to see how it works.

girlscangrill.com

Smoking with a Wood Chip Foil Pouch

If you only have a gas grill, you can still smoke some mean barbecue by using a wood chip foil pouch made with Reynolds Wrap® Heavy Duty Foil.
girlscangrill.com girlscangrill.com

Untitled-1.jpg
 
It also depends on what your using as a smoke medium, chips, pellets or saw dust.
I have a old spice tin with a screw on top. I use that for pellets. It has a hole punched in the top.
I have a SS screen maze for dust, and a SS box for chips.
 
Chris Allingham said:
Hi David,

Most of our members won't have experience with the Weber Universal Smoker Box #17179 because it's not sold here in the United States. In the U.S., Weber does sell a Smoker Box #7576 made of stainless steel and it appears to be a better version of the B&Q box you mentioned. It gets a 3.6/5.0 rating and has 99 reviews you can read here:

www.weber.com

Smoker Box | Weber Grills

Made of stainless steel, the Weber Smoker Box holds wood chips to transform any grill into a smoker, adding delicious smoke flavor to any grilled meal.
www.weber.com www.weber.com

If it were me, I would try making an aluminum foil packet of wood chips, poke a few holes in the top, and place it over the burners below the cooking grate. If that does what you're looking for, then you don't need one of these boxes. Otherwise, I'd try an inexpensive one to see how it works.

girlscangrill.com

Smoking with a Wood Chip Foil Pouch

If you only have a gas grill, you can still smoke some mean barbecue by using a wood chip foil pouch made with Reynolds Wrap® Heavy Duty Foil.
girlscangrill.com girlscangrill.com

View attachment 70458
Click to expand...
Thanks for this, I had seen the stainless steel one on the website aswell, but it was a similar price.. debating getting the cheaper one and seeing if I like the smokey flavour?
However the tinfoil packet trick looks fun!

Any recommendations on a good starting point for smoking while cooking?
Shall I get some applewood chips and some aluminium foil to start?
 
timothy said:
It also depends on what your using as a smoke medium, chips, pellets or saw dust.
I have a old spice tin with a screw on top. I use that for pellets. It has a hole punched in the top.
I have a SS screen maze for dust, and a SS box for chips.
Click to expand...
I genuinely have no idea haha

I was thinking starting with basic wood chips off Amazon/eBay. Nothing ridiculous, but just to get started 👍
 
David-Belfast said:
Shall I get some applewood chips and some aluminium foil to start?
Click to expand...
I think this would be a good place to start. Apple is easily available and works well with many meats, especially poultry and pork. For beef, something like oak is good.

Timothy mentioned pellets. If you decide to go this route, you might consider pairing them with a 6" smoker tube like this:

 
Question on the smoker tube and pellets. I bought one of those and some pellets. I used a small butane torch to get it going on the bottom and the put it in my genesis. I put it on the front flavorizer bar. Net time I look, it is full on fire. Is the idea to have it burn slow without flame, much like charcoal??? I had a heck of a time trying smother the flames before putting it back in. But, it really does put out the smoke well, when not going nuclear. Any tips? What am I doing wrong?
 
Bruce said:
Question on the smoker tube and pellets. I bought one of those and some pellets. I used a small butane torch to get it going on the bottom and the put it in my genesis. I put it on the front flavorizer bar. Net time I look, it is full on fire. Is the idea to have it burn slow without flame, much like charcoal??? I had a heck of a time trying smother the flames before putting it back in. But, it really does put out the smoke well, when not going nuclear. Any tips? What am I doing wrong?
Click to expand...
When I use a smoke tube with pellets, I light the open end with a Bernzomatic torch (make sure it stays lit), set it upright and let it burn for at least 5 minutes, then blow out the flame and stick it inside your grill. I'm not sure if putting it on the flavorizer bars will relight it or not, so watch out for that.

I've also started putting a mix of wood chips in with the pellets, basically making layers. It's supposed to give off a better smoke flavor, but I'm not sure if I could tell.
 
PXL_20221106_175851825.jpg

I've never used it in my Genesis. Only on my pellet grill, so I have the advantage of having the smoke stack on the right, so I put the tube on the left.
 
The only negative I’ve seen from the smoke box is users report warping. The lid gets hot and warps and never closes. To me, that was a deal breaker, as I was interested in trying on my gassers. So I got a smoke tube instead.

I’ve also not had good results with it, but need to play with it more.

I also tried the foil pouch with wood chips, also to no avail. So I personally haven’t had much luck with any option but am determined to make something work to up the gas game
 
I was going to recommend one of these:

iu


But it looks like they are either out of stick or (even worse) have been discontinued.

Sorry.





BD
 
Bruce said:
Question on the smoker tube and pellets. I bought one of those and some pellets. I used a small butane torch to get it going on the bottom and the put it in my genesis. I put it on the front flavorizer bar. Net time I look, it is full on fire. Is the idea to have it burn slow without flame, much like charcoal??? I had a heck of a time trying smother the flames before putting it back in. But, it really does put out the smoke well, when not going nuclear. Any tips? What am I doing wrong?
Click to expand...
Let it burn vertical for a few mins, then blow out the flame and lay it on its side. That's worked for me. Wear gloves as it gets hot.
 
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