how much water if any

[BTUCKER]

how much water if any is needed in the pan when smoking sausage, and how much do you open the vent?

[KevinG]

I"m certain at least one person on this forum will tell you keep the vent open - not sure which broken record that came from  ;D. As far as water in the pan, it might be easier to help if we knew a little about where you are at. In Arizona it is extremely hot and dry, I need to keep water in the pan otherwise the smoke won't stick. I also have to make sure the product is moist going in. I don't believe you'd have this problem in cooler/damper climates though. I'm sure someone from the cooler climates will chime in soon.

[OU812]

I keep the pan full of water, after the smoke empty the pan and fill with HOT water. The water will evaporate in about 4 hr, so in a long smoke you will need to refill every 4 hr. When doing sausage I keep the vent wide open during the dry time and when its smoking, then after the smoke time close it down to half way. NEVER close the vent all the way.

When you are doing sausage the sausage will sweet when it first goes in the smoker, you need to dry the casings before the smoke otherwise the smoke wont stick to you re sausage.
1 hr at 130 F no smoke vent wide open then start the smoke. You need to raise the temp slowly through out the cook so you dont fat out the sausage.

[BTUCKER]

ok.... so no water no smoke and vent open for 1 hour, then smoke and hot water,,,and slowly raise temp  ,,,, i am in louisiana....   

[OU812]

You got it.

[Roadking]

The guy wants to smoke sausage, not cook a roast. The only reason you put water in the pan is to keep the grease drippings from catching on fire when they land on the bisquettes. If your going to smoke your sausage at a temperature below 170 degrees don't put water in the pan. Dry your sausage at 130 vent open for about an hour. Start your smoke after the sausage is dry you will not need more then 3-4 hours of smoke for any sausage. Start raising your temp say 10 degrees each hour until you get to 170 degrees. After the smoking is over remove the pan, no water at all. When your sausage has an internal temp. of 155-160 remove it and put it into a tub of ice cold water until the temp reaches 110. This will stop the cooking and keep the sausage from getting wrinkled. After that let it stay at room temp for 30-60 minutes then you can refrigerate, The following day package in vacuum bags for freezing.
Just remember that the pan is only there to keep the grease from catching on fire when it drips on the spent pucks. and if you get grease out of a sausage your smoking too hot you don't want hot when smoking.

[OU812]

This guy keeps water in the pan when smoking sausage!

[Roadking]

This guy keeps water in the pan when smoking sausage!

In 45 years of smoking under 170 degrees never did and never will have water in my smoker. Like I said the only reason that pan is there is to catch the spent pucks and extinguish them, so the grease doesn't catch on fire. As long as the temp. doesn't get higher that won't happen. If the sausage starts dripping you might as well toss it.

[wyogoob]

This guy keeps water in the pan when smoking sausage!

In 45 years of smoking under 170 degrees never did and never will have water in my smoker. Like I said the only reason that pan is there is to catch the spent pucks and extinguish them, so the grease doesn't catch on fire. As long as the temp. doesn't get higher that won't happen. If the sausage starts dripping you might as well toss it.

I concur....after 41 years.

I use wet sawdust, no pan of water.