noob with a Smoke Hollow 30168E

[silvertrigger]

Just bought this model as my first smoker and have a quick question. I was reading the owner's manual and it says to not spill water, marinade, or liquid onto the electric element. The element is exposed in the bottom of the smoker, so what is the best way to protect it?Ithought of putting a drip pan on the lower rack just above my smoke box and water pan(which are just above the element), but don't really want to sacrifice the rack space. Also thought of lining rack above element with foil and forming a slight funnel in the middle that would drain away from the element. Anybody have any suggestions? Any and all are welcome. Thanks.

 

[pineywoods]

Welcome to SMF glad you joined us. Congrats on the new smoker. It says it comes with a drip/water pan that should set in above the element and protect it from the liquids.

 

[pignit]

It's set up like all the vertical electrics I've seen.... with the water pan over the element. That keeps the grease from dripping on the element. Same in the ECB. It has a water pan that hangs directly over the element then two shelves. You should be ok without putting a catch pan on one of your shelves or modifying it. Should work fine the way it came. Probably just need to take care not to move it around and splash water out of the pan and be careful putting water in the pan while the element is hot.

 

[langemr]

I have the same smoker and water pan and chip pan do help catch most of the grease and juice that spills down. Unfortunately alot of juice hits the chip pan also and even through the lid so my chips get full of it and take a bit more to get going in the first hour or so. My element for the most part so far stays pretty clean. I was thinking of adding another way to catch pan between the meat and the element as PignIt stated as the chips get drenched.

 

[silvertrigger]

Thanks for the tips. I'll try the setup it came with, and if I feel it's not sufficient I'll try something else. I'll let ya know how it works.