Does anyone else sometimes add a water pan when doing a long cook?  Maybe its me, but sometimes it seems my pit will dry things out a little too much if I'm not careful.

I don’t know if it makes a difference but I do, it helps hold the pit at a steady temp.

I do too.  Certainly doesn't hurt anything.

Thanks for the replies, one more question.  I have been using the bowl from my Bradley, the only problem is I also have a Br6 system and if I don’t have much room.  Would something the size of an empty soup can in the back corner have the same/similar effect as the larger bowl?

 The larger the surface area of the pan = more evaporation..A "loaf pan" doesn't take up too much space and should be worth a try.

 Any body of liquid will act as a heatsink as well.

I use a throw away aluminum bread loaf pan in the GMG and two half loaf pans in the Traeger.  I don't throw them away, of course.  The half loaf pans can run out of water at extended high temps.

I put my meat on top of a water pan

Lamb and a chook on the go here

And hi from Australia btw

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I don't, but I also know it cant hurt!

I picked up two narrow, cheap loaf pans tonight. I'm going to give those a try, one on each side of my ambient temp probe I keep in the back of my pit. 

I use a water pan in my FEC-120. Mostly I use it to collect the drippings from the meat.

I don't, but I also know it cant hurt!

+1   

Might you be smoking the meat too long?

It seems to me that you'd certainly want to cook it long enough to render the fat and break down the collagen.  But I wouldn't think it would be dry at that point.  There'd be moisture from the fat and something like gelatin from the collagen.

I don't want to put a water pan in with the stuff I'm smoking because I don't want to waste pellets by boiling water away.  The water will be a 212°F cold spot in my pit and it'll be sucking up heat energy.

Might you be smoking the meat too long?

It seems to me that you'd certainly want to cook it long enough to render the fat and break down the collagen.  But I wouldn't think it would be dry at that point.  There'd be moisture from the fat and something like gelatin from the collagen.

I don't want to put a water pan in with the stuff I'm smoking because I don't want to waste pellets by boiling water away.  The water will be a 212°F cold spot in my pit and it'll be sucking up heat energy.

My thoughts exactly. BUT... I have read where the pan of water helps create bark on some cuts.

Sadly. I have little space for a water pan of any size when cooking. I will attempt to spatch cock a small turkey and report back in a couple weeks.  Hopefully it will fit in me Jr.

Here are the cheap pans I found and am trying, they fit perfectly behind my BR6


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Since I use a 3" stove pipe elbow for my down draft, I have enough room to set a small loaf pan of water to set in that area.  I always use a water pan for any cook.