[beerocd]

Wow, I've never seen a clean water pan - except new out of the box. I just throw mine in the fire pit every now and then and it's clean enough since I never use what's in the pan. Gotta say I'm happy to see there's only one guy here with a spotless water pan.

[markaberrant]

Wow, I've never seen a clean water pan - except new out of the box. I just throw mine in the fire pit every now and then and it's clean enough since I never use what's in the pan. Gotta say I'm happy to see there's only one guy here with a spotless water pan.

I don't use a water pan on my smoker.  My parents' crappy electric smoker has a water pan.

[Pawtucket Patriot]

I clean my water pan after every use.  In fact, I try to keep my smoker pretty clean in general.  I let it go once and mold began to grow on the inside...it was nasty.

[tubercle]

I clean my water pan after every use.  In fact, I try to keep my smoker pretty clean in general.  I let it go once and mold began to grow on the inside...it was nasty.

 My S.O.P. is to intend to clean the pan after each use. More often than not I realize I didn't the next time I take off the lid to fire it up again. Seen some interesting stuff.

[deepsouth]

how about bacon wrapped duck breasts.....  soaked the duck in buttermilk overnight and seasoned it, wrapped it in bacon and grilled.....

[bluesman]

I clean my water pan after every use.  In fact, I try to keep my smoker pretty clean in general.  I let it go once and mold began to grow on the inside...it was nasty.

+1

This is my SOP. I had a water pan that started to rust from lack of cleaning so I clean it out after every use now.
In fact it is so clean I can eat out of it. 

[bluesman]

how about bacon wrapped duck breasts.....  soaked the duck in buttermilk overnight and seasoned it, wrapped it in bacon and grilled.....

That will work for me. 

[markaberrant]

I couldn't imagine not keeping a smoker or grill clean.  That is pretty nasty when you think about it.

If find the UDS is really easy to clean.  With no water pan, the drippings hit the charcoal and burn up, and I don't use sauces or marinades during the cooking process either, so none of that crap is dripping all over either.

[deepsouth]

I couldn't imagine not keeping a smoker or grill clean.  That is pretty nasty when you think about it.

If find the UDS is really easy to clean.  With no water pan, the drippings hit the charcoal and burn up, and I don't use sauces or marinades during the cooking process either, so none of that crap is dripping all over either.

i've never cleaned my grill besides removing ash and scraping the grate before i drop food on it.  am i the only one?

[euge]

I clean my grill pretty good of the debris and grease with a wire brush or wad of paper. Then it gets a good spraying.

This gets done every time. I connected the dots years ago when I would get the sh!ts from a dirty gunked up grill. The heat of the fire isn't enough to tackle the whole job especially when using sugary BBQ sauces.

My understanding is "sand" in the water pan is better than water.

[deepsouth]

I clean my grill pretty good of the debris and grease with a wire brush or wad of paper. Then it gets a good spraying.

This gets done every time. I connected the dots years ago when I would get the sh!ts from a dirty gunked up grill. The heat of the fire isn't enough to tackle the whole job especially when using sugary BBQ sauces.

My understanding is "sand" in the water pan is better than water.

i haven't tried it yet, but what about a "burn out"?  would that work as well?

[nicneufeld]

I couldn't imagine not keeping a smoker or grill clean.  That is pretty nasty when you think about it.

I can!  I worked at a Kansas City BBQ joint when I was a teenager.  I can very readily imagine! 

[bluesman]

If you are running a BBQ joint and keeping the grill hot most of the time it's not as much of a problem to have grease and debris in and around the grill. Keeping the grill at a minimum of 250-300F is a safe window.  Cleaning the grill of grease and debris at a minimum is sound practice. We don't want to ingest any harmful bacteria.

Here's a guide to food safety from the USDA.

http://www.fsis.usda.gov/factsheets/barbecue_food_safety/index.asp

[euge]

I clean my grill pretty good of the debris and grease with a wire brush or wad of paper. Then it gets a good spraying.

This gets done every time. I connected the dots years ago when I would get the sh!ts from a dirty gunked up grill. The heat of the fire isn't enough to tackle the whole job especially when using sugary BBQ sauces.

My understanding is "sand" in the water pan is better than water.

i haven't tried it yet, but what about a "burn out"?  would that work as well?

Envisioning.... Maybe. Probably. Then give the grill a good going over with a brush and wipe. All I know is since adopting a clean grill procedure any "incidents" have dropped to zero.

[capozzoli]

I couldn't imagine not keeping a smoker or grill clean.  That is pretty nasty when you think about it.

If find the UDS is really easy to clean.  With no water pan, the drippings hit the charcoal and burn up, and I don't use sauces or marinades during the cooking process either, so none of that crap is dripping all over either.

i've never cleaned my grill besides removing ash and scraping the grate before i drop food on it.  am i the only one?

No your not the only one, I never clean any of my out door cooking gear. I just put it on the fire burn it off then brush it down liberally with cooking oil as it cools. This is how you season it. If it isn't stainless cleaning it off with soap or down to steel will promote rust. Just like a cast iron pan.

I even brush the smoker inside and out with oil regularly. It builds up.

So I guess I dont clean my outdoor stuff. I dirty it.