I'm considering purchasing an automatic temp control/blower system to run my WSM for me. Are you running one and how has your experience been?
Yes, I know, theoretically I can set my vents and voila WSM will run stable. With a toddler and growing family, that quick temp check or slight vent adjustment can sometimes hinder my ability to cook. To address these concerns and maximize my family time, I've thought a PartyQ with quality rechargeable batteries would be my best bet.
TTT and a 732. You're set for a lot less money.
I haven't seen the need for any gadget. It's taken me a few cooks to dial in what it likes but once you do that it's pretty much auto pilot. I got mine second hand and my factory door latch left the door very loose. I upgraded to the Cajun bandit door and latch and it is much more consistent. The door is the one thing on the wsm that is not great imo.
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The only maintenance that's really required is adding fuel or water if needed. I haven't seen a robot on the market that will check and add fuel for me.
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Bought new 22.5", no mods, no temp controllers, no tip top vent blocker, no "upgraded door", lock in temp and cook, almost to easy
I have in the past for overnight cooks. An ATC is good piece of mind but with practice you can get the wsm running at steady temp for hours. You need to pack the charcoal in such a way that the fuel density near the fire doesn't change drastically as it burns. Also, learn how to use a wsm without water so you don't have to worry about it drying up.
To
@Harleysmoker's point, perhaps locking in temp is where I lose time.
For example, to get the timing down for my cook for Super Bowl, it would have required skipping church. Instead I got my WSM to settle at a lower temp than I usually cook at (225 v 275), put the meat on approx 90 minutes before my ideal start time and out the door we went to church.
I set my vents and let the smoker warm up before for about an hour to make sure it was stable. It ran where I wanted for about 30 min and i felt confident. Upon returning home, the smoker was at 210. Not too big of a deal, but I have no idea how long it stayed there but thankfully I had enough time left in the day to increase temp and speed things up.
At the end of the day, I find myself negotiating how time is spent (family, activities, etc) and am trying to avoid comprising my desire to BBQ and make great food.
Quote from: pbe gummi bear on February 07, 2017, 10:10:01 PM
I have in the past for overnight cooks. An ATC is good piece of mind but with practice you can get the wsm running at steady temp for hours. You need to pack the charcoal in such a way that the fuel density near the fire doesn't change drastically as it burns. Also, learn how to use a wsm without water so you don't have to worry about it drying up.
@pbe gummi bear I use a foiled terracotta base.
Quote from: HoosierKettle on February 07, 2017, 01:15:14 PM
The only maintenance that's really required is adding fuel or water if needed. I haven't seen a robot on the market that will check and add fuel for me.
I don't have to refuel on most cooks, but when I do it is often from an overnight cook and i reload in the morning. Not sure how true this is, but I think I've read in some reviews about ATCs that fuel usage is maximized and makes me think that possibly there is a small savings per cook on charcoal.
Quote from: TheDude on February 07, 2017, 10:17:41 AM
TTT and a 732. You're set for a lot less money.
@TheDude after reading reviews on that gizmo it makes me think that perhaps I need to use my top vent to dial in temps...I always left my top vents open on all charcoal cookers.
Your temp dropped when you left because of the cool meat placed in the cooker, not because the cooker was unstable. This is the same with my kettles and wsm. It takes a couple hours for the meat to warm and temp will climb right back up on its own. This is the part that people will drive themselves crazy. At least I did at first. Opening vents after the meat is on only to return to a cooker temp exceeding 300 later on when meat warms them trying to fight and get pit temps back down. If you know your cooker and fuel, dont worry about Low temps the first hour or 2. Temps will return to normal and you won't have to fight a temp spike later on.
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I haven't rigged up a controller but was going to just because I like building shit like that. My wsm runs great without one.
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I use the Party Q and have had very good results. For ribs I still go without but for the 12 plus hour cooks I use it every time. It will hold 225 for 10 hours without issue or any intervention. After 10 hours a few handfuls of charcoal are needed, then another handful every hour or so.
I use an Auber Inst ATC from time to time, but my 18" WSM doesn't really need the excessive monitoring. I NEVER leave a lit kettle/WSM alone on my WOODEN deck (any more), but when I'm cooking on the lawn I'll take a break between cigars to chat with the rest of the family :)
SJ
Quote from: magonzo on February 08, 2017, 04:12:52 PM
I use the Party Q and have had very good results. For ribs I still go without but for the 12 plus hour cooks I use it every time. It will hold 225 for 10 hours without issue or any intervention. After 10 hours a few handfuls of charcoal are needed, then another handful every hour or so.
I would do the same. Glad to hear positive feedback about the PartyQ
Quote from: blksabbath on February 08, 2017, 01:10:36 PM
I haven't rigged up a controller but was going to just because I like building shit like that. My wsm runs great without one.
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If time permitted I would venture into building one as well. If you build one, share the process with your fellow grill fellas!
If you want to add an ATC then do it even if it's to give you more peace of mind during your cooks. I too have a lot going on and I added one to my UDS. Heck that thing will run for 3hrs on one load of fuel but there have been times on 2 rare occasions when something went wrong while it wasn't being monitored. Since adding my Pitmaster IQ 130 I can now do my overnight cooks and actually sleep without subconsciously thinking about it. It will hold temp the entire night and also allows me to make adjustments from my phone which is a nice feature as some pieces of meat cook faster than others. It also takes the weather out of the equation. I've had cooks be affected by changes in the weather over the course of the night so now no more worries about that anymore.
It also is much more efficient with fuel usage. I like it so much I even use it for small cooks on my Weber 22.5 Kettle.
Hope that helps.
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i love my pitmaster iq110, makes things stupid easy.
Quote from: jdefran on February 07, 2017, 09:31:57 AM
I'm considering purchasing an automatic temp control/blower system to run my WSM for me. Are you running one and how has your experience been?
Yes, I know, theoretically I can set my vents and voila WSM will run stable. With a toddler and growing family, that quick temp check or slight vent adjustment can sometimes hinder my ability to cook. To address these concerns and maximize my family time, I've thought a PartyQ with quality rechargeable batteries would be my best bet.
I started out not using an ATC, and viewed using them as "cheating". The thought of set it and forget it seemed counterintuitive to mastering the skill of using a WSM. But now I'm totally in the other camp. Being able to get some precision lets me better plan cooks which is important - whenever I am using the smoker it is usually for a gathering of people, and the ATC makes for one less thing to worry about.
There are so many good systems out there, from very basic units to high end wifi controllers. Once you decide to go with an ATC, it is hard to go wrong. the PartyQ with a rechargeable battery set up would be a good, portable rig.
I ended up building 2 versions of my own ATC: [size=78%]http://weberkettleclub.com/forums/wsm-weber-smokey-mountain/home-made-automatic-temp-controller-model-2-0/msg232816/#msg232816 (http://weberkettleclub.com/forums/wsm-weber-smokey-mountain/home-made-automatic-temp-controller-model-2-0/msg232816/#msg232816)[/size] It has been a fun project, but best of all, makes for carefree cooking.
Winz
Whenever I am cooking for a big event, I will run as many as four 18.5" WSMs simultaneously and none of them have an ATC.
Never seen the need for them.
Quote from: Harbormaster on February 20, 2017, 05:23:08 PM
Whenever I am cooking for a big event, I will run as many as four 18.5" WSMs simultaneously and none of them have an ATC.
Never seen the need for them.
Harbormaster, you've been smoking with wsm's a while now. You still using RO Chef Select briquettes for long cooks? Water?
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Quote from: kettlecook on February 20, 2017, 05:51:20 PM
Harbormaster, you've been smoking with wsm's a while now. You still using RO Chef Select briquettes for long cooks? Water?
Generally RO Chefs Select or Stubbs Minion Method. I run without water. Half a dozen crushed aluminum cans in the water pan covered with a sheet of heavy duty aluminum foil.
Quote from: Harbormaster on February 21, 2017, 03:05:14 AM
Quote from: kettlecook on February 20, 2017, 05:51:20 PM
Harbormaster, you've been smoking with wsm's a while now. You still using RO Chef Select briquettes for long cooks? Water?
Generally RO Chefs Select or Stubbs Minion Method. I run without water. Half a dozen crushed aluminum cans in the water pan covered with a sheet of heavy duty aluminum foil.
Cool. Can't find RO Chef Select around here but a buddy of mine has always spoke highly of them. Thanks.
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Pitmaster 120
(http://i1104.photobucket.com/albums/h339/njb1954/Mobile%20Uploads/2017-02/79B8B345-6B18-4BCB-95C3-0951E489488D_zpsaplsaoc8.jpg) (http://s1104.photobucket.com/user/njb1954/media/Mobile%20Uploads/2017-02/79B8B345-6B18-4BCB-95C3-0951E489488D_zpsaplsaoc8.jpg.html)
I use the Pitmaster IQ 130 and love it. (https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170227/85ef1a94e09ba2b45821fe1dbf610e70.jpg)
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I don't hang mine from the handle .. it's way too hot for a plastic housing. IMHO
I know this an old post but does anyone else feel like using Pitmaster IQ burns more coals? I feel like any long cook over 6 hours or so requires a reload. I did a 7lb brisket cook last week that ran though an entire bag of Stubbs (first full ring and a reload) and then I still needed to add more coal to finish cook. Pitmaster did hold temp as directed but ran through a ton of coal.
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If you have a Do It Best Hardware Store near you, you can order it and shipping to the store is free, then you pick it up. My store gets their shipments on Fridays.
Quote from: kettlecook on February 21, 2017, 04:47:02 AM
Quote from: Harbormaster on February 21, 2017, 03:05:14 AM
Quote from: kettlecook on February 20, 2017, 05:51:20 PM
Harbormaster, you've been smoking with wsm's a while now. You still using RO Chef Select briquettes for long cooks? Water?
Generally RO Chefs Select or Stubbs Minion Method. I run without water. Half a dozen crushed aluminum cans in the water pan covered with a sheet of heavy duty aluminum foil.
Cool. Can't find RO Chef Select around here but a buddy of mine has always spoke highly of them. Thanks.
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Quote from: CharliefromLI on April 15, 2017, 05:51:00 PM
I know this an old post but does anyone else feel like using Pitmaster IQ burns more coals? I feel like any long cook over 6 hours or so requires a reload. I did a 7lb brisket cook last week that ran though an entire bag of Stubbs (first full ring and a reload) and then I still needed to add more coal to finish cook. Pitmaster did hold temp as directed but ran through a ton of coal.
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Imo 6 hour burn time on a wsm is really short. Are you running dry or with water? Are you packing the coals into the ring and stacking them high? You can pile them up into a mountain without much issues. I usually can get 10+ hours on WSM (dry water pan) without refilling for both lump and kbb.
Charlie, I couldn't agree more w/ pgb ... something is rotten in Pitmaster town. Several (most) of my WSM logs indicate that a WSM, with a full level of KBB, started w/ a modified Minion method should easily cook for 13-15 hours at 225. I have occasionally allowed my coals to "burn out" and seen 17hrs at 225.
Sooooooo, my guess is that the heuristic algorithm in your Pitmaster is poorly designed (not likely or we'd have heard other KettleHeader's comment about it) or your particular unit is faulty. If your Pitmaster "starves" the coal for too long before it initiates the air flow, then you end up with a major cyclic airflow problem (that is; choke the air too low and pump the air(temp) up too high).
My advice, for what it's worth (and really what is ANY advice really worth), "log" some cooks (with or without meat) keeping track of your WSM temps for various damper settings. Once you have confidence in the settings vs temps, you won't need any ATC to allow you time-away-from-the-cook. Or you could just send your pitmaster back to the pitmaster factory :)
SJ
I use a pitmaster IQ120 on my WSM and mini WSM
Works great.. I use s TTT on my 22 kettle and it is a cool toy for $35!!
Quote from: HoosierKettle on February 07, 2017, 01:12:07 PM
I haven't seen the need for any gadget. It's taken me a few cooks to dial in what it likes but once you do that it's pretty much auto pilot. I got mine second hand and my factory door latch left the door very loose. I upgraded to the Cajun bandit door and latch and it is much more consistent. The door is the one thing on the wsm that is not great imo.
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This..id buy the cb door before an atc..
The cb door will remedy the problem rather than soothing the symptoms.
Ive noticed a dramatic temp stability diff after buying the cb door....
An atc is simply addressing the symptoms of the actual root problem which is the thin flimsy aluminum stock door...
Think if your oven door was made of the same material......
You may find you may not need an atc afterwards....
Aside from also getting more mpg from your fuel bc your wsm is now better insulated
Quote from: toolhead on April 26, 2017, 04:10:34 PM
Quote from: HoosierKettle on February 07, 2017, 01:12:07 PM
I haven't seen the need for any gadget. It's taken me a few cooks to dial in what it likes but once you do that it's pretty much auto pilot. I got mine second hand and my factory door latch left the door very loose. I upgraded to the Cajun bandit door and latch and it is much more consistent. The door is the one thing on the wsm that is not great imo.
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This..id buy the cb door before an atc..
The cb door will remedy the problem rather than soothing the symptoms.
Ive noticed a dramatic temp stability diff after buying the cb door....
An atc is simply addressing the symptoms of the actual root problem which is the thin flimsy aluminum stock door...
Think if your oven door was made of the same material......
Exactly my thoughts.
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Quote from: CharliefromLI on April 15, 2017, 05:51:00 PM
I know this an old post but does anyone else feel like using Pitmaster IQ burns more coals? I feel like any long cook over 6 hours or so requires a reload. I did a 7lb brisket cook last week that ran though an entire bag of Stubbs (first full ring and a reload) and then I still needed to add more coal to finish cook. Pitmaster did hold temp as directed but ran through a ton of coal.
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Try the cb door...without atc...then with atc...
But sgree with ither members...that is way short cook time..
What temp are you running?
Is your therm calibrated and tested...sounds like you are running 325/350 at 6 hours to having to rekoad