Auber vs iQue for the WSM 22.5

[swordslayer954]

Hey guys,

I was wondering what your opinion was on temp control units for the wsm.

the Auber unit is on sale and seems pretty good:

http://www.auberins.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=14_27&products_id=170

But I have also read the iQue 110 is a good unit too

http://store.pitmasteriq.com/iq110.html

I'd love to get the Stoker but its a lil too pricy for me.

Any experience?

 

[SmokinAl]

I have a BBQ Guru on my WSM. It's a great unit.

 

[dward51]

I have the 18.5" WSM and bought a BBQ Guru DigiQ II model when they first came out. I did not see the need for wireless back then, but might consider it now.  I have the 10CFM fan on mine which is plenty for the 18" WSM.  Once you use one, you will never consider going back.  It is about as close to fire and forget as you can get with a charcoal or wood smoker. Mine holds 225* as long as their is fuel left and I have run 12 hours on a full WSM fire ring.

From what I have read, the 22" uses fuel a little more rapidly than the 18" due to the volume to be kept at temp, but on a 16 to 18 hour pork shoulder smoke with 4 large shoulders (8 to 10 pound each), I only have to add coals & water about 2/3 of the way through and that is mostly for peace of mind while I sleep (I usually start shoulders around 2-3PM with intent on pulling and resting in a cooler by 9AM, ready to pull by 11AM or so). No fiddling with dampers or checking it every hour or so. Once you learn your pit's pattern on a Guru, it's pretty much auto-pilot and repeatable every time.

IMO, they are worth every penny.  Again I have a Guru, but any brand power draft would be a plus on a pit.

I would recommend you go with a model that lets you monitor both the pit and food temp, otherwise you will have to use a Maverick or other unit for your food.  Keep it simple with both in a single unit if you can.

The DigiQ DX2 is the current equivalent of what I have.  Looks like they are $271 now, with 10CFM fan, WSM adapter and the standard 6' probes.  This unit lets you monitor both the pit and food temp (single pit and single food probe).

 

[fpnmf]

I also have the Guru for my WSM.

It rocks!!

  Craig

 

[oldthymer]

I have watched a few videos on the Guru and don't fully understand it.  Correct me if I'm wrong. From what I can tell you close all lower vents but have the Guru hooked to one (so that one is open).  Then the Guru controls the air that is put into that vent to regulate the temperature.  So one question I have is what happens with the WSM becuse we all know that it has different temps at the different racks.  Mine can be as much as 20 degrees apart. 

 

[SmokinAl]

You put the probe on whatever rack you are using, if you use both racks, then you should know what the temp difference between the racks is & adjust for that.

 

[fpnmf]

I have watched a few videos on the Guru and don't fully understand it.  Correct me if I'm wrong. From what I can tell you close all lower vents but have the Guru hooked to one (so that one is open).  Then the Guru controls the air that is put into that vent to regulate the temperature.  So one question I have is what happens with the WSM becuse we all know that it has different temps at the different racks.  Mine can be as much as 20 degrees apart. 

How do you do yours now when you use both racks???

 Craig

 

[dward51]

I have watched a few videos on the Guru and don't fully understand it.  Correct me if I'm wrong. From what I can tell you close all lower vents but have the Guru hooked to one (so that one is open).  Then the Guru controls the air that is put into that vent to regulate the temperature.  So one question I have is what happens with the WSM becuse we all know that it has different temps at the different racks.  Mine can be as much as 20 degrees apart. 

Yes, with a Guru (or any other power draft for that matter), on a WSM you close all but one of the lower vents.  You install the adapter into one of the holes in the open vent and then use high temp foil tape (comes with the Guru) to seal the other two holes in that vent.  So what you end up with is that one small 1" or so whole with the power draft pumping all the air for the fire in via that single hole.  The top vent remains fully open. 

I have not measured mine at the lower rack, but I still have my Tel-Tru thermometer in my lid and the lid temp is a little higher than the Guru pit probe at the top cooking grate.  So based on that I would assume there is still some difference between the top and bottom grate.  That being said, I have not found it necessary to swap food between the racks on smokes and it's all done evenly.  With lower temp swings and the pit temp sticking closer to 225* (or whatever you set), it may make less of difference than chasing temps by adjusting vents the old fashioned way.  Generally I no longer use a probe in the lower rack meat.  I would also imagine the difference is greater if you use an empty pan vs water or a clay saucer as a heat sink though.

 

[fpnmf]

>>>>>>> I would also imagine the difference is greater if you use an empty pan vs water or a clay saucer as a heat sink though.

Interesting..why do you think that??

  Craig

 

[vision]

ATC's are confusing, I really only understand the pitmaster which I might be buying next month. The rest seem too complicated and need to be hooked up to a laptop.

 

[fpnmf]

>>>>>>>The rest seem too complicated and need to be hooked up to a laptop.

  The two mentioned by the OP and the Guru dont need to be hooked up to a laptop..

  Craig

 

[michael ark]

As far as i know only a stoker hooks to a laptop and that for ease of use.

 

[flyweed]

I have a pitmaster IQ110 on both my 18.5 and 22.5WSM's...in my opnion they are great units, and work beautifully for the WSM. I can set them and forget them for whatever I am smoking.

Dan

 

[BGKYSmoker]

I been using the Auber PID on my Bradley for a few years now with great results. The iq110 is on my Meadow Creek and works great. Sold my Guru.

 

[dward51]

>>>>>>> I would also imagine the difference is greater if you use an empty pan vs water or a clay saucer as a heat sink though.

Interesting..why do you think that??

  Craig

No thermal mass buffer and only a thin layer of sheet metal between the fire and the lower rack with an empty metal pan.  No field testing to back this up, just seems logical (but what do I know <G>)

 

[tyotrain]

BBQ guru has never let me down and i love it... 

 

[SmokinAl]

I feel the same as Tyo, the guru is a great little device and once you use one you won't want to smoke without it.

 

[swordslayer954]

Sorry for the late replies here guys... I really appreciate the input and think I'll go with the BBQ Guru.

I can't take another all nighter lol

 

[dpeart]

I don't know how DIY you are, but I just built three of these:

http://tvwbb.com/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/9270072103/m/5721075126/p/1

Total cost was ~$110.00 each

Linksys router: Free as I already had one, but you can get them from craigslist for $20

Parts from Mouser: $31.00 could save a few $$ if you didn't populate the entire board as it is not needed unless you want wireless probes for a rotisserie or something.

Project Case: $5.29 from Radio Shack as I didn't build it into my router

Misc Parts: $10

Board: $10 if you split the cost of three boards with others, or $30 if you buy all three for yourself.

Fan: $10 || $15 if you want a SSR to control an electric smoker.

Probes: ET-73 probes at $10 each, you need at least two, one for pit and one for food, but it supports two food probes.

And the fun of putting it together :)

dave

 

[oldthymer]

I bought a Guru and tried to use it today for the first time.  I started with the minion method, using a coffee can in the center, using a combination of the kingsford blue and whatever royal oak I had left.  I them set the Guru to 225 and let it go.  The temp didn't stabilize until it got to 295 and now it has been sitting at 285 for the past 3 hours.  It is a WSM 18.5 using a clay pot.  Any ideas what went wrong? I used about 20 lit coals to start. To those that use one with a WSM, what is the process you use?