WSM never fails to amaze me


 
K

Kirk A

TVWBB Member
Just woke up and checked the WSM which is happily chugging along at a shade under 250. I last threw in some additional coals around 2AM, after putting on a pair of butts at 8PM last night. It seems that no matter what I throw at it in terms of ambient temperatures, it is so easy to get it to hold a constant temperature. Last night was about 10 degrees with a bit of wind. In summer, I need to close vents a bit, but this time ran them wide open.

Amazing how well these units are engineered. I've now smoked with a 80 degree difference in ambient air temperatures, and don't struggle to maintain good temps.
 
You pay for the quality it gives us but it is well worth it. Wouldn't use anything else. Enjoy that pulled pork. Can't wait till my next cook.
 
I think we sometimes forget how fortunate we are to have these quality smokers. I know I do! Once a WSM is seasoned, and you gain (minimal) experience controlling the temps, it's amazing how good these smokers make us look!
Enjoy,
Tim
 
Tim K said:
I think we sometimes forget how fortunate we are to have these quality smokers. I know I do! Once a WSM is seasoned, and you gain (minimal) experience controlling the temps, it's amazing how good these smokers make us look!
Enjoy,
Tim
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And I have also realized that the times that things don't turn out great that it is not the cookers fault but mine. They are that well engineered. Wouldn't trade my Weber's for anything else.
 
I must be doing something wrong. I have a fairly new WSM, bought it after weeks of research. so far have cranked out some great food but my temps are a roller coaster. I am constantly having to go in and out of house to open vents, close vents, blow in vents. I barely open or close and I get huge swings up and down.

I love it but it is far from the set and forget I had hoped. I know it is not an electric one but I also am surprised how much I basically need to hover over all day.

I am worried about my lid versus middle section. just seems like there is not a snug fit. I tried the bear hug thing but nothing. door seems sealed pretty well but I get tons of smoke out of the lid (not the vent on the lid, the lid itself)

thoughts on if that is the issue? maybe need a gasket sealer kit?

sorry for hijacking the thread, I am just jealous when I keep seeing posts like this because I struggle and this is the main reason I bought the wsm

as a side note, I have the 22.5", it has been in the low 20's etc in Columbus ohio the times I have tried and I have used it about 5-6 times so not sure if it still needs to seal more.
 
Keith, have you taken measurements of the diameter of the center section? Take measurements about every 45 degree's and see what the differences are. That will tell if it is out of round. If it is a lot, you should contact Weber for a replacement center section. They are very good about these issues. We are all happy to help here. I personally have the nomex sealing kit and am quite happy with it, but it is not meant to solve out of round issues. Check the out of round issue first before doing any mods.
 
My WSM runs so consistent that I when I talk to friends that aren't into doing their own BBQ (just eating mine) that they kind of look at me sideways and don't really think that it runs as well as it does.
 
I picked up a used 18.5 WSM last summer and the guy I bought it from said he only used it a couple of times and it looked like it. Well needles to say I fought with it all summer with temp swings all over the place. I almost gave up on it and was just going to use my mini.
My point is, like many on the forum have said it takes a few cooks for it to settle in. I now have about 12-15 cooks on it and it's getting gunked up, the temp swings are very minor now and the last cook it sat at 255-260 for at least 4 hours, it is as stable as the mini.
So Keith don't give up yet, if it isn't out of round it should get more stable with use.
 
Bob Ivey said:
Keith, have you taken measurements of the diameter of the center section? Take measurements about every 45 degree's and see what the differences are. That will tell if it is out of round. If it is a lot, you should contact Weber for a replacement center section. They are very good about these issues. We are all happy to help here. I personally have the nomex sealing kit and am quite happy with it, but it is not meant to solve out of round issues. Check the out of round issue first before doing any mods.
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Actually I was going to mention this but skipped it. When I first got my WSM and opened the box the center/top grates that I think normally sit on the very top had been pushed down and was wedged in the center section.

When I took the WSM completely out and went to assemble the lid would not fit on the center section. Not even close. I would need a whole pack of bears to hug it into place as well. I tried.

I called Weber and you are 100% correct, they were awesome. Sent me a new center section very (very) well packaged overnight air and I did not need to send the previous section back. they were super helpful. love weber

Doesn't mean that one in turn is not out of round either, or that the lid was not also bent (but it was in a whole separate area of the box so I assumed it wasn't. I have however not measured as you suggested. I was going to do 7-8 or so cooks and see if it got better.

I am also running into charcoal just burning up faster then I think it should. or more than I read on here. I think that may be any of these (or a combo) - may be the lid, may be the fact I am using water in the pan (I think I am going to experiment with skipping next time) and maybe the pure cold weather.

still temps do jump around some. I feel I have to watch it pretty consistently

I will measure, try with out water and I thnk just get more used to it in general. I agree though Weber rocks for customer service
 
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Also, where are you keeping your upper and lower vents? What type and brand of charcoal are you using?
 
Bob Ivey said:
Also, where are you keeping your upper and lower vents? What type and brand of charcoal are you using?
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Upper open all the way. bottom usually two of them closed, one I open and close to control temp. At times I have opened a second one to try to adjust as well

so far have only tried KBB
 
Kieth,
I hate to say it, but more than likely you are causing the problem. Start using the minion method with an empty water pan except for a 12" ceramic pot bottom in the pan. Open all lower vents so they have a small sliver of light, about the width of a quarter. Open the top vent all the way. If you go over 250-275 at that point close the top to 1/2-3/4 open and your temps will even out. Any adjustment after this should be minor.
 
Frank L said:
Kieth,
I hate to say it, but more than likely you are causing the problem. Start using the minion method with an empty water pan except for a 12" ceramic pot bottom in the pan. Open all lower vents so they have a small sliver of light, about the width of a quarter. Open the top vent all the way. If you go over 250-275 at that point close the top to 1/2-3/4 open and your temps will even out. Any adjustment after this should be minor.
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no fears of insults, not taken that way at all. - I posted what I did for feedback and advice. I was thinking the water pan was taking up a lot of energy/charcoal. I am looking forward to trying the 12" ceramic pan (was going to next time anyway I think), adjusting with the top somewhat (I do know to leave at least 1/2 open though) etc.

I know owning a WSM for maybe 6 weeks with 5-6 cooks under my belt does not make me an expert, ha ha. Appreciate the candid advice. Telling me "ah your doing ok" won't help me learn

and again I do feel bad if I took over the thread. a few adjustments and maybe I will be hold steady temps like you guys. also will be nicer when it is in the 60's-80's out versus low teens etc.
 
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We have all struggled with temp control, no insults intended. Just try to be patient and only make adjustments after about 10-15 minutes. The cooker will need a little time to settle in. Good luck, it will be woth it in the end.
 
Keith - the temps usually don't hold rock solid, expect fluctuation that can be from a few degrees to say 10-15 degrees one way or the other, only become concerned if the temps continue to rise or drop at a steady rate over about a 30 minute span, dropping temps after a few hours could be ash build up on your coals, just give the legs a few thumps and monitor the temps to see if they go back up, if you run out to adjust the temps every time they fluctuate you'll run yourself into the ground, voice of experience here on that. Do learn the minion method because it's so much easier to catch your temps as the climb and yes it takes a little time to get the feel of your smoker and just because something works well for one person doesn't always mean it'll work for you, we learned through trial and error by trying and tweaking and yes, we've all had our fair share of failures but DO NOT get so frustrated that you think you made a mistake buying you WSM, be patient, trust us on this and once you do get the hang of it, for God's sake don't let your wife know how easy it's become ,you'll understand why later. I'm not going to say good luck just have fun and enjoy.
 
Also Keith, if you don't want to buy a terra cotta saucer, just foil the top of your water pan, same results..second, 22.5's are known to be fuel hogs, so maybe that could help explain some of the fuel consumption. Are you using the thermometer on the smoker, of something else. I know when I got my wireless thermometer, it was a lot more exact, and that caused me to check the vents every few minutes. (A lot like you are describing) as Don said, let it ride for a while before adjusting, see if it corrects itself and as the greatest QB EVER said, RELAX!
Tim
 
Tim K said:
Also Keith, if you don't want to buy a terra cotta saucer, just foil the top of your water pan, same results..second, 22.5's are known to be fuel hogs, so maybe that could help explain some of the fuel consumption. Are you using the thermometer on the smoker, of something else. I know when I got my wireless thermometer, it was a lot more exact, and that caused me to check the vents every few minutes. (A lot like you are describing) as Don said, let it ride for a while before adjusting, see if it corrects itself and as the greatest QB EVER said, RELAX!
Tim
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I am using a new Maverick ET-733. I am not sure I have even looked at my lid thermometer knowing it was most likely inaccurate.
I do think using the 22.5, the colder weather and using water in the pan all is contributing. I think as I get the hang of this I will learn how to stabilize and also not worry if I have 5-10 degree swings over a 3-4 hour period.

I am also really into home brew beer making. when I had first started that I was worried about just about everything, and learned over a few years that 99% of the time it all works out. and then I go to home brewing forums and see newbies with all the same worries and fears and I know they are over worried. I might be that, but still trying to learn

I have said it a few times already but thanks everyone for all the feedback. I am soaking it all in.

ps each time I have used the minion method and done a pretty good job getting the temps up, I think I am just making myself crazy worrying about 5-10 degree swings once I get there.
 
I agree with a lot of the above Keith. One thing I had to learn since I got my WSM was to ignore any temps swings within +/- 25 degrees. My WSM likes to run around 275*. I set my Maverick to warn me if it drops below 250* or rises about 300*. It's hard fighting my OCD when I see it hovering at 260* and I want to go crack the vent a little more, but I am getting better at letting her go.
 
I have not used any of my WSM's in a long time because I've been using my Pit Barrel cooker, but the last few times I did cook with my WSM, I could not get the temps up even with starting with all vents open, a foiled water pan, and new charcoal. I even use a wind break on every cook. When I first started using my new WSM, it would get up to temps quick but it seems like the more I use it, the harder it is to get the temps up. The last few cooks were very frustrating and I even had to open the side door for awhile but after I closed the door, the temps would fall. This is the big reason I have been using the Pit Barrel cooker and not the WSM.

Wayne
 
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