Charcoal Water Smoker (WSM) vs. UDS (2024)

I’m new to the forum and I’m intrigued by all of the people using UDS’s. Never heard of them before. I’ve been smoking on a Masterbuilt Triple Crown for over 5 years now and I’m happy with the results. It is a charcoal water smoker similar to a WSM. BTW, when you tell others not-in-the-know that you have a water smoker, they think bong.

Since the UDS is so easy to build, I figured I’d give it a try if there was an advantage over something like the WSM. I have to admit that I’m concerned about the direct heat. So what do you guys think?

I'll also throw another variable into the mix. I am about to inherit a Chargriller offset smoker.

Thanks in advance.

I sold my CharGriller offset and built a UDS. It was a good trade. The UDS so far has cost me about $20.22 to build (not painted yet) and I sold the offset for $120.00. The UDS is incredibly simple to use and reliable. Direct heat is not really direct since there's at least 24" between the meat and the very choked fire.

The Offset was a pain to use; burned through fuel like a demon, leaked like a sieve, and held heat like a desert night sky. That being said, my CG taught me a LOT about fire control (none of which I need to use now with the UDS). There are a lot of mods you can do to supposedly reduce some of those frustrations in a CG like extending the smoke stack down closer to grate level, putting sealing gaskets around the cooking chamber and lining the firebox with firebrick... but for my money, I'm in love with my UDS.

I also have a ProQ Frontier which is a water smoker similar to a WSM. I use it too, but not as much as the UDS. They produce different flavors. Because the fat and juices drip directly onto the coals of a UDS, they produce a smokier, "flame-grilled" taste that you don't get with a water smoker.

One thing I love about my drum is I can fill the coal basket and not have to worry about adding more throughout the whole cook. It will go on and on without me needing to tend a fire.

I wouldn't trade my UDS for anything. :becky:

1FUNVET said:

Hard to go wrong with a UDS, and ya get to tell everyone you built it.:thumb:

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Exactly - add to that the ability to cook for 18+ hours on 1 load of coal/wood, easy to control temps, and very easy to build.

It isn't really "direct" heat.

Well, the one advantage of the UDS over the WSM is that you build it yourself, so the cost can be much cheaper. However, with a UDS there is your time to factor in as well as parts cost.

In my case I got a drum for 15 bucks and the inside was already bare, so I didn't have to worry about burning it out. Net cost 15 bucks... no time involved.

Got a Weber lid & hinged cooking grate free from my brother. Net cost 0 bucks.

Had to buy screws nuts pipe... and a couple of hole saws to make intake holes. Net cost 50 bucks.

Bought an 18" Weber charcoal grate for 15 bucks but had expanded metal mesh for free to make the charcoal basket. Net cost 15 bucks.

Took me about 2 hrs to slap the thing together. Net cost, about 80 bucks plus a bit of my time to put it all together.

But, if I had to buy a lid, and a grate...or paid more for a drum, and had to spend time burning it(even if I could, depending on where I live)... well, you can see where the cost & time involved suddenly starts to rise. Only you can decide if it's worth it for you to build a UDS.

Having said that, I would have no issue with buying a WSM. Like anything from Weber, it's built like a tank, and with minimum care it'll last forever. And most importantly... it works.

I've already got something similar to the WSM. That's a sunk cost. So I'm looking for a reason to build the UDS

my water smoker.

The "set it and forget it" thing is attractive. But what would I tell my wife when she wants me to run errands? Watching the smoker always worked in the past.

I can get a drum gratis.:-D

I think I see what's going on here; you kinda want to make one, but need a little encouraging from elsewhere to get started. Well, consider this to be your "push" to make one. You can even blame me if you are getting hassled for making one.

Start by reading here and taking notes as you go (we all had to, and so do you):
http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/showthread.php?t=23436

Then concentrate on this build, and follow it's tried and tested simplicity that works EVERYTIME if you follow it to the letter (it starts about 1/3 of the way down by NorcoRedneck):
http://www.bandera-brethren.com/forum/showthread.php?t=43943&page=3

Now go get you stuff, and build away! Post pix w/ your initial fatty seasoning run, and some food pron from your 1st cook!

This.

cowgirl said:

One thing I love about my drum is I can fill the coal basket and not have to worry about adding more throughout the whole cook. It will go on and on without me needing to tend a fire.

I wouldn't trade my UDS for anything. :becky:

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There’s definitely some truth in that, McGurk.

I just have to justify to myself. I’ve already got the bullet smoker, a Weber kettle, and an Aussie gasser. Combine that with the patio set and fire pit and I’ve got a crowded patio. On top of that, I’ve got my brother-in-law dropping off an offset Chargriller because he’s moving and couldn’t get it to work right. I figured I could modify it to get it going because I’ve got more patience than the zero my brother-in-law does.

So based on what I’m hearing here, I think the first plan of action is to unload the Chargriller on somebody else. Probably take more time to get this right than building a new UDS.

I’ve already got the bullet which I’m happy with. Having both the UDS and bullet seems somewhat unreasonable if both do the same job.

Overnight cooks seems to be the big advantage for the UDS. That might be enough to justify it.

I’m not saying I want to do this, but if the need arises, can a water pan be added? A quick link would be appreciated as there are mountains of UDS info to sift through. If so, it may eliminate the need for the bullet.

Just thought of it, I can build a UDS as a housewarming gift for my brother-in-law! I’ll obviously have to test it out. I’ll probably love it and make one for myself. That way I work all the kinks out on somebody else’s smoker. :mod:

The beauty of making a UDS is this simple: you get to build your own UDS. If you want to use a water pan/heat sink/diffuser, make the modifications to hold one and put it in. If you want kettle lid, get one. If you want a different venting system (most of them work well, just cost more or less than others) you can do what you want. If you want to make a smaller version, find the right drum and do it. If you want to use it as a high heat grill, bring that coal basket up high and use it that way!

The fact is, a well built UDS can do some awesome things and be a very versatile piece of cooking equipment. Will it replace all smokers? No way, but from what I can tell it can make a great addition to the arsenal of both a simple summer weekend smoker or a year round comp-grade pro. After I built mine, I ditched my gasser.

It can do all night smokes for you, it can be made to use a water pan, it can do high heat grilling for you, it will give you the ability to smoke more food (if you use a 55 gal drum), and it can free up some space for you if you want to move the rest of your equipment.

Why not try it? In a worst case scenario, you can just sell it on CL for at least what you've got into it.

What everyone else said about the ease of operation and long lasting fuel is great but you also get to express yourself in your drums paint job. Here is my latest one:becky:

I spent my lunch using the search function and found similar threads.

Thanks for all of the responses.

I think I'm going to keep my water smoker and build a UDS too. It almost seems like fun to build one. I'll post pics when I get around to it.

Thanks again.