Smoke Hollow Smokers -- grease?

[psychobrew]

I'm looking at the Smoke Hollow smoker, and one of the complaints I found was grease dripping out the front door. Although this is fairly common depending on how well your smoker is leveled, I took a closer look. Do these smokers have a grease tray or a drip bucket? I looked at the instructions, and the the 44 inch "delux" model is the only one that has a picture of the unit with a tray, but the part is not listed on any of them. Grease isn't even mentioned at all.

I'm probably being overly paranoid, but sometimes manufacturers overlook things.

One more question -- does Gander Mountain include the cover with the unit?

 

[raceyb]

I wouldn't call it being paranoid if grease is dripping from your unit, as it's flammable and could ignite at any time.

 

[meat hunter]

I looked at the propane unit a while back. It comes with a water pan and a wood chip box. No drip pan for grease, but you would just use the water pan for that. I'd say that anyone who had issues with grease leaking from the bottom of the door, probably did not have the meat above the water pan to help catch the drippings. I would look for a more rectanular drip pan, maybe one of the cheap aluminum throw away pans and use that instead. The unit sure looked like a nice smoker, and I would not hesitate to get it if you think it would work for you. If I remember right, they did come with a cover as well.

 

[psychobrew]

Thanks.

Is there a deep well at the bottom of the unit or is it flush with the bottom of the door? No matter how well you place the meat, the grease is going to go everywhere and drip down the walls. When smoking 3 briskets and two pork shoulders at a time, you need a good system for disposing it and if you can't fill the smoker because of the amount of grease, the I don't see the point of having such a large smoker to begin with.

The unit is certainly attractive, but I need to make sure the grease is manageable. If not, I'll just go for the GOSM since it's cheaper and bigger anyway and it includes a grease tray (though it's likely not built as well).

 

[raceyb]

I forgot to mention, one of the byproducts of burning propane is water. Chances are it is a water buildup that is dripping? If it ignites, it is grease. If it won't light, it's probably excess moisture.

The drip pan idea is good. that stuff will stain wood decks and concrete.

 

[meat hunter]

You know, it's been a while since I looked at it. The only reason I did, was someone here locally on craigslist had one for 25 bucks. When I seen them at Gander, I just looked at it to see how it was set up. I can't remember how the bottom of it looked, sorry. I don't think you could go wrong with the GOSM either. I know there are allot of people on here that use em. And as far as not being built as well, I would not know, but I don't think many on here would use it if it were not built well. I have not heard or read anything bad about them.

 

[psychobrew]

Excellent point. Thanks. The price of the GOSM is much more attractive to me right now, but it's really not that much of a difference when you include the cover (unless a cover is included with the GOSM).

 

[michaelt]

I own the 38" Smoke Hollow purchased at Gander Mountain. After I got the temp problem fixed I have been very happy with it. Skip calling the factory and go straight to the needle valve mod. I tried new regulators from the factory which were lower temps but still not low enough. There is no grease pan on the bottom. I haven't had any problems with grease leaking out the front of the unit. I do have some grease leaking down the legs though. In my opinion this isn't a big deal. Smoking meat is a messy operation no matter what type of smoker you have. If it's dirty it means you use it. Mine did not come with a cover though this may have changed since I bought mine. Hope this helps.

 

[psychobrew]

Thank you. It definitely helps. The Smoke Hollow sounds like a fantastic unit. It's probably even more solid than the GOSM in many ways, except size (though the Smoke Hollow is big enough for briskets) and grease mamagement. My problem is due to restraints on where I live -- if too much grease leaks out on to the patio, there would be problems. My goal is to be able to smoke foods and keep a roof over my head....