Ok... a buddy of mine has asked me to do up some pork shoulder for a
tournament he's running this coming Sunday, prob. about 20-30 people,
although I don't necessarily have to have enough there for everyone, as
he'll have a bunch of other food as well..

So I'm figuring on doing a couple 8lb or so shoulders. The tournament
starts at 2pm, should be there by 1:30 or so to have everything there on
time. So I figure I either have to do it up over night, or get up REAL
early in the morning to get it started.

My problem is, the water pan isn't very large in my smoker, and when the
water boils away, the temp in the smoker goes up rather quickly and
sometimes drastically. It's a propane powered smoker, the Great Outdoors
Smokey Mountain.

I've read somewhere about putting sand in the water pan instead of water,
that the sand still provides a good barrier to keep the meat from cooking
over direct heat, and that once the box hits a stable temp, it'll stay there
pretty well the entire cook.

Any opinions on this? Suggestions? Unfortunately I can't even do it
completely the day before as I'll be busy at a tournament my team is running
that day.

Thanks!
Shawn

"43fan" > wrote in message et...
> Ok... a buddy of mine has asked me to do up some pork shoulder for a
> tournament he's running this coming Sunday, prob. about 20-30 people,
> although I don't necessarily have to have enough there for everyone, as
> he'll have a bunch of other food as well..
>
> So I'm figuring on doing a couple 8lb or so shoulders. The tournament
> starts at 2pm, should be there by 1:30 or so to have everything there on
> time. So I figure I either have to do it up over night, or get up REAL
> early in the morning to get it started.
>
> My problem is, the water pan isn't very large in my smoker, and when the
> water boils away, the temp in the smoker goes up rather quickly and
> sometimes drastically. It's a propane powered smoker, the Great Outdoors
> Smokey Mountain.
>
> I've read somewhere about putting sand in the water pan instead of water,
> that the sand still provides a good barrier to keep the meat from cooking
> over direct heat, and that once the box hits a stable temp, it'll stay there
> pretty well the entire cook.
>
> Any opinions on this? Suggestions? Unfortunately I can't even do it
> completely the day before as I'll be busy at a tournament my team is running
> that day.
>
> Thanks!
> Shawn
>
>

If you can maintain your target temp with sand, then go for it. If it works, you never have to worry again about keeping the water
pan full. I don't have any experience with a smoker that has a pan since I use and offset smoker.

Good luck.

--
Al Reid

On Wed, 28 Jun 2006 08:44:50 -0400, "43fan" >
wrote:

>I've read somewhere about putting sand in the water pan instead of water,
>that the sand still provides a good barrier to keep the meat from cooking
>over direct heat, and that once the box hits a stable temp, it'll stay there
>pretty well the entire cook.

With my Kamados, sand stabilizes the temp but it also raises it, at
least when compared to running the Kamado in the same configuration
but with an empty pizza pan as a heat shield.

"Kevin S. Wilson" > wrote in message
...
> On Wed, 28 Jun 2006 08:44:50 -0400, "43fan" >
> wrote:
>
>>I've read somewhere about putting sand in the water pan instead of water,
>>that the sand still provides a good barrier to keep the meat from cooking
>>over direct heat, and that once the box hits a stable temp, it'll stay
>>there
>>pretty well the entire cook.
>
> With my Kamados, sand stabilizes the temp but it also raises it, at
> least when compared to running the Kamado in the same configuration
> but with an empty pizza pan as a heat shield.

When you say it raises it, do you mean you have to adjust it down (however
you adjust your Kamodo, for me it'd be open the top vent some or turn down
the gas), and then it stabilizes?

I'm wondering then if just putting the empty water pan in, instead of water
or sand or anything would do just as well? Once I get the temp stablized, it
should stay that way then... Not sure what(if anything) the water actually
does, other than provide somewhat of a heat shield and I suppose some steam,
but it can't actually add that much "moisture" to the meat, can it? Same as
with my brisket drying out, I'd figure the fat on the shoulder is where the
moistness in the meet comes from, not the water in the pan?

Heck, maybe a couple of good, clean bricks would do just about the same
thing then?

On Wed, 28 Jun 2006 11:14:21 -0400, "43fan" >
wrote:

>
>"Kevin S. Wilson" > wrote in message
.. .
>> On Wed, 28 Jun 2006 08:44:50 -0400, "43fan" >
>> wrote:
>>
>>>I've read somewhere about putting sand in the water pan instead of water,
>>>that the sand still provides a good barrier to keep the meat from cooking
>>>over direct heat, and that once the box hits a stable temp, it'll stay
>>>there
>>>pretty well the entire cook.
>>
>> With my Kamados, sand stabilizes the temp but it also raises it, at
>> least when compared to running the Kamado in the same configuration
>> but with an empty pizza pan as a heat shield.
>
>When you say it raises it, do you mean you have to adjust it down (however
>you adjust your Kamodo, for me it'd be open the top vent some or turn down
>the gas), and then it stabilizes?

That's sort of what I mean. The few times I've used sand, the K got to
temp much more quickly than it does when I use an empty pizza pan, and
it was more difficult to decrease the temp.

>I'm wondering then if just putting the empty water pan in, instead of water
>or sand or anything would do just as well? Once I get the temp stablized, it
>should stay that way then...

That's what lots of people here say they do.

>Not sure what(if anything) the water actually
>does, other than provide somewhat of a heat shield and I suppose some steam,
>but it can't actually add that much "moisture" to the meat, can it? Same as
>with my brisket drying out, I'd figure the fat on the shoulder is where the
>moistness in the meet comes from, not the water in the pan?

The water is just a heat sink. It doesn't add any moisture to the
meat.

>Heck, maybe a couple of good, clean bricks would do just about the same
>thing then?
>

Yep. Or an unglazed ceramic tile resting on the pan or the pan
supports.

>>
>
> Yep. Or an unglazed ceramic tile resting on the pan or the pan
> supports.
>

Kinda have another idea, wanted to see what you(and others) think... If I
can find something the right size that is... the water pan slides in on
holders on each side like are there for the racks themselves up higher... if
I can find a good solid piece of tile that would slide in there instead,
just use that? Actually also thinking that if that works, using not
necessarily tile, but a good piece of fire brick or something, I could cover
it when doing a smoke... but then uncover it and turn the temp up to get it
good and hot, and have a reasonable facsimile of a stone pizza oven. *g*

"43fan" > wrote in message
et...
>
> "Kevin S. Wilson" > wrote in message
> ...
>> On Wed, 28 Jun 2006 08:44:50 -0400, "43fan" >
>> wrote:
>>
>>>I've read somewhere about putting sand in the water pan instead of water,
>>>that the sand still provides a good barrier to keep the meat from cooking
>>>over direct heat, and that once the box hits a stable temp, it'll stay
>>>there
>>>pretty well the entire cook.
>>
>> With my Kamados, sand stabilizes the temp but it also raises it, at
>> least when compared to running the Kamado in the same configuration
>> but with an empty pizza pan as a heat shield.
>
> When you say it raises it, do you mean you have to adjust it down (however
> you adjust your Kamodo, for me it'd be open the top vent some or turn down
> the gas), and then it stabilizes?
>
> I'm wondering then if just putting the empty water pan in, instead of
> water or sand or anything would do just as well? Once I get the temp
> stablized, it should stay that way then... Not sure what(if anything) the
> water actually does, other than provide somewhat of a heat shield and I
> suppose some steam, but it can't actually add that much "moisture" to the
> meat, can it? Same as with my brisket drying out, I'd figure the fat on
> the shoulder is where the moistness in the meet comes from, not the water
> in the pan?
>
> Heck, maybe a couple of good, clean bricks would do just about the same
> thing then?
>

The water makes the heat 'sensible' vs 'non-sensible' the same way the
relative humidity works outside, when its high you have a harder time
shedding
your bodies heat verses low humidity where you will cool off more quickly.
It will also keep your meat from drying out quicker. The sand justs acts as
a heat sink and will add thermal mass the same as firebrick does. It's
simple physics.
Thanks,
Mike R.

Kevin S. Wilson wrote:

> On Wed, 28 Jun 2006 08:44:50 -0400, "43fan" >
> wrote:
>
> > I've read somewhere about putting sand in the water pan instead of
> > water, that the sand still provides a good barrier to keep the meat
> > from cooking over direct heat, and that once the box hits a stable
> > temp, it'll stay there pretty well the entire cook.
>
> With my Kamados, sand stabilizes the temp but it also raises it, at
> least when compared to running the Kamado in the same configuration
> but with an empty pizza pan as a heat shield.

Do you think that would also work with a Brinkman electric smoker?

--

On Wed, 28 Jun 2006 15:16:06 GMT, "Ken Slimmer" >
wrote:

>Kevin S. Wilson wrote:
>
>> On Wed, 28 Jun 2006 08:44:50 -0400, "43fan" >
>> wrote:
>>
>> > I've read somewhere about putting sand in the water pan instead of
>> > water, that the sand still provides a good barrier to keep the meat
>> > from cooking over direct heat, and that once the box hits a stable
>> > temp, it'll stay there pretty well the entire cook.
>>
>> With my Kamados, sand stabilizes the temp but it also raises it, at
>> least when compared to running the Kamado in the same configuration
>> but with an empty pizza pan as a heat shield.
>
>Do you think that would also work with a Brinkman electric smoker?

Electrics seem to run at such low heat that I wonder why you would
need a heat deflector.

"Ken Slimmer" > wrote in message
>
> Do you think that would also work with a Brinkman electric smoker?
>

It can help stabilize, but I doubt it would increase it. Just a couple
inches of sand and then foil over the top to keep grease from dripping into
it.

Edwin Pawlowski wrote:

>
> "Ken Slimmer" > wrote in message
> >
> > Do you think that would also work with a Brinkman electric smoker?
> >
>
> It can help stabilize, but I doubt it would increase it. Just a
> couple inches of sand and then foil over the top to keep grease from
> dripping into it.

What I have been doing is running it with the water pan full of water,
and then after 5 or 6 hours I'll pull the water pan out to get the
heat up to finish it. Guess I'll try it with sand and see what happens.


--

"43fan" > wrote in message
et...
> Ok... a buddy of mine has asked me to do up some pork shoulder for a
> tournament he's running this coming Sunday, prob. about 20-30 people,
> although I don't necessarily have to have enough there for everyone, as
> he'll have a bunch of other food as well..
>
> So I'm figuring on doing a couple 8lb or so shoulders. The tournament
> starts at 2pm, should be there by 1:30 or so to have everything there on
> time. So I figure I either have to do it up over night, or get up REAL
> early in the morning to get it started.
>
> My problem is, the water pan isn't very large in my smoker, and when the
> water boils away, the temp in the smoker goes up rather quickly and
> sometimes drastically. It's a propane powered smoker, the Great Outdoors
> Smokey Mountain.
>
> I've read somewhere about putting sand in the water pan instead of water,
> that the sand still provides a good barrier to keep the meat from cooking
> over direct heat, and that once the box hits a stable temp, it'll stay
> there pretty well the entire cook.
>
> Any opinions on this? Suggestions? Unfortunately I can't even do it
> completely the day before as I'll be busy at a tournament my team is
> running that day.
>
> Thanks!
> Shawn
>
Sand in the water pan won't reduce the temp. inside the grill. It may for
the long time it takes for 5lb of sand to warm up, but with a "long smoke"
it will reach the higher temp, as without it. Water, on the other hand, will
keep the inside temp. much lower because much of what is coming toward your
meat is from the 212F temp of the simmering water.
Kent.

Kent Wrote
"Kent" > wrote in message
. ..
> Sand in the water pan won't reduce the temp. inside the grill. It may for
> the long time it takes for 5lb of sand to warm up, but with a "long smoke"
> it will reach the higher temp, as without it. Water, on the other hand,
> will keep the inside temp. much lower because much of what is coming
> toward your meat is from the 212F temp of the simmering water.
> Kent.
>
Actually water can and does get hotter than 212 degrees F @
standard.pressure if in a surrounding enviromnment that is hotter than 212
F.
Thanks,
Mike R.

"Michael Richardson" > wrote:
> Kent Wrote
> "Kent" > wrote in message
> . ..
> > Sand in the water pan won't reduce the temp. inside the grill. It may
> > for the long time it takes for 5lb of sand to warm up, but with a "long
> > smoke" it will reach the higher temp, as without it. Water, on the
> > other hand, will keep the inside temp. much lower because much of what
> > is coming toward your meat is from the 212F temp of the simmering
> > water. Kent.
> >
> Actually water can and does get hotter than 212 degrees F @
> standard.pressure if in a surrounding enviromnment that is hotter than
> 212 F.
> Thanks,

Mike,

Can you provide any documentation to support this statement? When liquid
water reaches 212°F at standard pressure, it will pass into the gaseous
phase, steam. [Note that the water at the bottom of a deep vessel may be
subjected to a higher pressure - insignificant in a 1" deep water pan] The
steam may indeed rise well above 212°F (somewhat at odds with the idea that
" . . . much of what is coming toward your meat is from the 212F temp of
the simmering water."). I look forward to seeing some evidence to refute my
statement on this relatively moot point.

--
Nick. Support severely wounded and disabled Veterans and their families!

Thank a Veteran and Support Our Troops. You are not forgotten. Thanks ! ! !

> wrote in message
...
> "Michael Richardson" > wrote:
>> Kent Wrote
>> "Kent" > wrote in message
>> . ..
>> > Sand in the water pan won't reduce the temp. inside the grill. It may
>> > for the long time it takes for 5lb of sand to warm up, but with a "long
>> > smoke" it will reach the higher temp, as without it. Water, on the
>> > other hand, will keep the inside temp. much lower because much of what
>> > is coming toward your meat is from the 212F temp of the simmering
>> > water. Kent.
>> >
>> Actually water can and does get hotter than 212 degrees F @
>> standard.pressure if in a surrounding enviromnment that is hotter than
>> 212 F.
>> Thanks,
>
> Mike,
>
> Can you provide any documentation to support this statement? When liquid
> water reaches 212°F at standard pressure, it will pass into the gaseous
> phase, steam. [Note that the water at the bottom of a deep vessel may be
> subjected to a higher pressure - insignificant in a 1" deep water pan] The
> steam may indeed rise well above 212°F (somewhat at odds with the idea
> that
> " . . . much of what is coming toward your meat is from the 212F temp of
> the simmering water."). I look forward to seeing some evidence to refute
> my
> statement on this relatively moot point.
>
> --
> Nick. Support severely wounded and disabled Veterans and their families!
>
> Thank a Veteran and Support Our Troops. You are not forgotten. Thanks ! !
> !

Water can carry a tremendous amount of heat energy, even at standard
tenperature and pressure. You are thinking of it in terms of how water turns
to steam at 212F @ STP. If you continue to add heat energy to steam it will
continue to pick up this energy even at STP. In the environment of a grill
it won't be a tremendous amount more but it can none the less pick up more
energy. It takes a fair amout of energy just to turn 212F water into 212F
steam. Think of the opposite scenario of water turning to ice and then the
temperature dropping to, say for the sake of arguement, -40F the ice does
continue to relenquish energy. Also, make no mistake about it that steam
isn't a gas, it's a vapor and all water exerts a vapor pressure when in the
liquid phase and then becomes fully vaporous in the steam phase. True gases
are generally noble and diatomic. There is plenty of documentation on the
internet for this but I learned it at what is now called the University of
Memphis. It used to be Memphis State University when I went there.
Thanks,
Mike R.

"Kent" > wrote in message
. ..
>
> "43fan" > wrote in message
> et...
>> Ok... a buddy of mine has asked me to do up some pork shoulder for a
>> tournament he's running this coming Sunday, prob. about 20-30 people,
>> although I don't necessarily have to have enough there for everyone, as
>> he'll have a bunch of other food as well..
>>
>> So I'm figuring on doing a couple 8lb or so shoulders. The tournament
>> starts at 2pm, should be there by 1:30 or so to have everything there on
>> time. So I figure I either have to do it up over night, or get up REAL
>> early in the morning to get it started.
>>
>> My problem is, the water pan isn't very large in my smoker, and when the
>> water boils away, the temp in the smoker goes up rather quickly and
>> sometimes drastically. It's a propane powered smoker, the Great Outdoors
>> Smokey Mountain.
>>
>> I've read somewhere about putting sand in the water pan instead of water,
>> that the sand still provides a good barrier to keep the meat from cooking
>> over direct heat, and that once the box hits a stable temp, it'll stay
>> there pretty well the entire cook.
>>
>> Any opinions on this? Suggestions? Unfortunately I can't even do it
>> completely the day before as I'll be busy at a tournament my team is
>> running that day.
>>
>> Thanks!
>> Shawn
>>
> Sand in the water pan won't reduce the temp. inside the grill. It may for
> the long time it takes for 5lb of sand to warm up, but with a "long smoke"
> it will reach the higher temp, as without it. Water, on the other hand,
> will keep the inside temp. much lower because much of what is coming
> toward your meat is from the 212F temp of the simmering water.
> Kent.

I'm not concerned with something "reducing" the temp. I'm wanting something
that will remain a more "constant" temp. I can adjust the temperature to
what I want by adjusting the gas regulator and the vents. I'm wanting to be
able to put the shoulders on tomorrow night, late, and let them cook through
the night so they're ready in time for the tournament on Sunday. If I use
water, it'll boil away in approx. 3hrs tops, at that point the temp in the
smoker rises quickly and drastically. I'm looking for something to keep
that from happening. Yeah, I'm looking to somewhat "simplify" things for
this cook, as I don't particularly want to get up at 3am to put more water
in the pan, and I don't particularly want to get up at 4am to start the
cook. The tourney starts at 2pm, I need to be there by around 1:30pm.
Plus, I'm throwing in the tournament as well, so staying up all night
wouldn't be too good for me from a competition standpoint. *g*

If sand in the water pan will allow me to get the temp stabilized at say
250-275, and then maintain it there for at least say 5-6hrs, I'd be a happy
camper.

>

"43fan" > wrote in message ...
>
> "Kent" > wrote in message
> . ..
> >
> > "43fan" > wrote in message
> > et...
> >> Ok... a buddy of mine has asked me to do up some pork shoulder for a
> >> tournament he's running this coming Sunday, prob. about 20-30 people,
> >> although I don't necessarily have to have enough there for everyone, as
> >> he'll have a bunch of other food as well..
> >>
> >> So I'm figuring on doing a couple 8lb or so shoulders. The tournament
> >> starts at 2pm, should be there by 1:30 or so to have everything there on
> >> time. So I figure I either have to do it up over night, or get up REAL
> >> early in the morning to get it started.
> >>
> >> My problem is, the water pan isn't very large in my smoker, and when the
> >> water boils away, the temp in the smoker goes up rather quickly and
> >> sometimes drastically. It's a propane powered smoker, the Great Outdoors
> >> Smokey Mountain.
> >>
> >> I've read somewhere about putting sand in the water pan instead of water,
> >> that the sand still provides a good barrier to keep the meat from cooking
> >> over direct heat, and that once the box hits a stable temp, it'll stay
> >> there pretty well the entire cook.
> >>
> >> Any opinions on this? Suggestions? Unfortunately I can't even do it
> >> completely the day before as I'll be busy at a tournament my team is
> >> running that day.
> >>
> >> Thanks!
> >> Shawn
> >>
> > Sand in the water pan won't reduce the temp. inside the grill. It may for
> > the long time it takes for 5lb of sand to warm up, but with a "long smoke"
> > it will reach the higher temp, as without it. Water, on the other hand,
> > will keep the inside temp. much lower because much of what is coming
> > toward your meat is from the 212F temp of the simmering water.
> > Kent.
>
> I'm not concerned with something "reducing" the temp. I'm wanting something
> that will remain a more "constant" temp. I can adjust the temperature to
> what I want by adjusting the gas regulator and the vents. I'm wanting to be
> able to put the shoulders on tomorrow night, late, and let them cook through
> the night so they're ready in time for the tournament on Sunday. If I use
> water, it'll boil away in approx. 3hrs tops, at that point the temp in the
> smoker rises quickly and drastically. I'm looking for something to keep
> that from happening. Yeah, I'm looking to somewhat "simplify" things for
> this cook, as I don't particularly want to get up at 3am to put more water
> in the pan, and I don't particularly want to get up at 4am to start the
> cook. The tourney starts at 2pm, I need to be there by around 1:30pm.
> Plus, I'm throwing in the tournament as well, so staying up all night
> wouldn't be too good for me from a competition standpoint. *g*
>
> If sand in the water pan will allow me to get the temp stabilized at say
> 250-275, and then maintain it there for at least say 5-6hrs, I'd be a happy
> camper.
>
> >
>
>

Here is my suggestion, FWIW, seeing that my original response was ignored.

Fill the pan with sand and fire it up. Cook some ribs on it. My bet is that in less than an hour the temperature will stabilize
and hold quite well. Other than trying it, I suspect that no one will be able to tell you for sure what your smoker will do. You
will have to find the correct combination of flame and vents to tit and hold the desired temperature.

--
Al Reid

"Al Reid" > wrote in message
...
> "43fan" > wrote in message
> ...
>>
>> "Kent" > wrote in message
>> . ..
>> >
>> > "43fan" > wrote in message
>> > et...
>> >> Ok... a buddy of mine has asked me to do up some pork shoulder for a
>> >> tournament he's running this coming Sunday, prob. about 20-30 people,
>> >> although I don't necessarily have to have enough there for everyone,
>> >> as
>> >> he'll have a bunch of other food as well..
>> >>
>> >> So I'm figuring on doing a couple 8lb or so shoulders. The tournament
>> >> starts at 2pm, should be there by 1:30 or so to have everything there
>> >> on
>> >> time. So I figure I either have to do it up over night, or get up
>> >> REAL
>> >> early in the morning to get it started.
>> >>
>> >> My problem is, the water pan isn't very large in my smoker, and when
>> >> the
>> >> water boils away, the temp in the smoker goes up rather quickly and
>> >> sometimes drastically. It's a propane powered smoker, the Great
>> >> Outdoors
>> >> Smokey Mountain.
>> >>
>> >> I've read somewhere about putting sand in the water pan instead of
>> >> water,
>> >> that the sand still provides a good barrier to keep the meat from
>> >> cooking
>> >> over direct heat, and that once the box hits a stable temp, it'll stay
>> >> there pretty well the entire cook.
>> >>
>> >> Any opinions on this? Suggestions? Unfortunately I can't even do it
>> >> completely the day before as I'll be busy at a tournament my team is
>> >> running that day.
>> >>
>> >> Thanks!
>> >> Shawn
>> >>
>> > Sand in the water pan won't reduce the temp. inside the grill. It may
>> > for
>> > the long time it takes for 5lb of sand to warm up, but with a "long
>> > smoke"
>> > it will reach the higher temp, as without it. Water, on the other hand,
>> > will keep the inside temp. much lower because much of what is coming
>> > toward your meat is from the 212F temp of the simmering water.
>> > Kent.
>>
>> I'm not concerned with something "reducing" the temp. I'm wanting
>> something
>> that will remain a more "constant" temp. I can adjust the temperature to
>> what I want by adjusting the gas regulator and the vents. I'm wanting to
>> be
>> able to put the shoulders on tomorrow night, late, and let them cook
>> through
>> the night so they're ready in time for the tournament on Sunday. If I
>> use
>> water, it'll boil away in approx. 3hrs tops, at that point the temp in
>> the
>> smoker rises quickly and drastically. I'm looking for something to keep
>> that from happening. Yeah, I'm looking to somewhat "simplify" things for
>> this cook, as I don't particularly want to get up at 3am to put more
>> water
>> in the pan, and I don't particularly want to get up at 4am to start the
>> cook. The tourney starts at 2pm, I need to be there by around 1:30pm.
>> Plus, I'm throwing in the tournament as well, so staying up all night
>> wouldn't be too good for me from a competition standpoint. *g*
>>
>> If sand in the water pan will allow me to get the temp stabilized at say
>> 250-275, and then maintain it there for at least say 5-6hrs, I'd be a
>> happy
>> camper.
>>
>> >
>>
>>
>
> Here is my suggestion, FWIW, seeing that my original response was ignored.
>
> Fill the pan with sand and fire it up. Cook some ribs on it. My bet is
> that in less than an hour the temperature will stabilize
> and hold quite well. Other than trying it, I suspect that no one will be
> able to tell you for sure what your smoker will do. You
> will have to find the correct combination of flame and vents to tit and
> hold the desired temperature.
>

My apologies Al, your response wasn't ignored though, trust me. I
suppose that's all I can do really, is just try it. Thing is, unfortunately
this is going to be a "try it with something that HAS to turn out right"...
*g* I won't have any time tomorrow to try it out to see how it does...
actually, if I can get some things done tonight, I "might" get a chance
early tomorrow morning to fire it up and see if I can get the temp to
stabilize like that... without any meat in it though. I suppose if I can
get it to maintain a temp for about an hour at least, it should stay that
way for a relatively long time?



> --
> Al Reid
>
>

43fan wrote:
> My apologies Al, your response wasn't ignored though, trust me. I
> suppose that's all I can do really, is just try it. Thing is,
> unfortunately this is going to be a "try it with something that HAS
> to turn out right"... *g* I won't have any time tomorrow to try it
> out to see how it does... actually, if I can get some things done
> tonight, I "might" get a chance early tomorrow morning to fire it up
> and see if I can get the temp to stabilize like that... without any
> meat in it though. I suppose if I can get it to maintain a temp for
> about an hour at least, it should stay that way for a relatively long
> time?

Just my 2¢ worth here, so take it as you like...

You're tryin to be too scientific. Turnin out good Q is an artform that
takes practice, practice, practice. If you'll do just that (practice),
you'll soon learn what it takes to turn out the ribs you prefer everytime.

Since many environmetal factors like outside temp, humidity & wind can
effect your cooker's temp, it's better to try to cook in a range of temps.
If your "target" temp is 275°F, then a temp swing of +/- 25° should be
acceptable since the swings are generally temporary. In this range, ribs
cook in 4-6 hours; so, if your party's at 2pm, start your ribs at 8am and
your cooker an hour before to get the temp within range.

Now, about that water pan stuff. IMO, forget it and toss the pass or turn
it into a flower pot. Don't know about you but I don't wanna steam my meats
nor do I want to heat up some sand (a waste of fuel) to cook up some Q.
Just learn fire management with your cooker. Sides, I never seen a water
(sand) pan in a big cooker. But for some reason, folks with vertical
cookers think they need one. The heat just goes around the pan and cooks
the outter edges of your meat faster than the part that's over the pan.
Talk about unevenly cooked meat! Go back to the early days of BBQ which was
cooked over open fires and you won't find a water (sand) pan.

All this leads me back to what I said at first. Practice, practice,
practice. Best thing about practicin is you get to eat all those "near
misses".

--
-frohe
Life is too short to be in a hurry