Some of the links on this forum allow SMF, at no cost to you, to earn a small commission when you click through and make a purchase. Let me know if you have any questions about this.
I am very busy with two young boys and the propane makes life so much easier. I first started with my UDS and I thought life was great. After a few smokes it began to be a pain to reload the charcoal basket and my temps seems to fluctuate requiring frequent monitoring. I could always dial in the temp and it would remain steady, but the temps would slowly decline over 8 hours. I have a big belly and I would always get grease or charcoal stains when reloading the charcoal basket. I would have to take off the meat and remove the grates, etc.
With the propane I get constant heat and when I want more smoke, I open my door and just throw a couple more pecan chunks on. Less than 30 seconds and I am done, where as the charcoal reload in the UDS was at least a 5 minute deal and that does not include the warming up of lump charcoal.
I usually compare my BBQ with other friends who have UDS and they can't tell a difference in flavor. We all used pecan and covered the plates and there was no clear winner. Propane works for me, the UDS has not been used in 2 years. I am most likely going to give it to my brother in law.
Gotta sy that I'll never get rid of my stick burner now. It survived the hurricane. Even almost floated away. Got a special place in my yard now. (behind my pre-built log jam in the river that my yard becomes
) Watched my neighbors propane tanks float away and then swam after them becase he's a good dude. Sadly tho,,, I had to watch my wood float away too. I found most of it in the woods (how ironic is that) but it was very dis-heartening to watch all that wood I'd gathered and split be taken back by good ol' mother nature. What a bitch man. Hope everyone else had a better weekend that I had