Cleanup is a major motivating factor. I really appreciate the comments about
thermal mass and will adjust my procedures accordingly.

What is a Pitminder controller?

"CSS" > wrote in message
...
>
> "TT" <.> wrote in message ...
>>I am considering filling my WSM water pan with sand covered with foil.
>>This sounds like a good idea from what I have read, but are there
>>downsides?
>>
>> 1) If I do this, will it become more difficult to keep the temperature
>> down to 250ish?
>>
>> 2) Will it be necessary to mop?
>>
>> Thanks,
>> Tom
>
>
> You will find that the temperature of the WSM is much more stable using
> sand than with using water in the pan. That said, it also changes much
> more slowly too. You may need to adjust your operating technique to
> compensate for the increased mass. With water, I used to let my WSM go
> above 250 before throwing the food on, it would then drop to 250. With
> sand, if it goes above 250, it takes a long time to come back down. So
> now my technique is to bring the temp up to 200 or so, throw on the food,
> and let it rise slowly without overshooting 225-250 or so.
>
> The food I've cooked seems no different to me using sand than using water.
> The convenience, however, is great-- no refills on long cooks, no messy
> water to dispose of (cover the sand with two layers of *foil* and then
> throw the top layer away after the cook- instant cleanup.
>
> If you really want no-hassle long cooks, use the Minion method with sand
> in the pan and a Pitminder controller. I've done 18-20 hour cooks with
> this setup and literally not had to do a thing but eat when the food was
> done.
>
> Now, isn't someone gonna tell the OP he shoulda bought a Klamado?
>