A couple of questions for the PBC gurus...

[Ailkiw]

Hi folks,
A couple of quick questions for ya.
Q1: We had a week of heavy rains a couple of weeks ago. Although my PBC was well covered, I came back about a week later to find half an inch of water in the base of the PBC. I'm guessing it may have seeped in through the air intake. I hadn't cleaned out my PBC from the last cook, (shame on me), and now had a nice soup of water and ash to deal with. I poured it all out and now have a mess in the bottom and along one of the sides of the PBC. I'd love to just rinse it out but I've read that the PBC should never be washed. Your thoughts would be greatly appreciated. Can I rinse it out and let it air dry?

Q2: I also have a roll of BBQ gasket left over from when I used it on my WSM. Do you find any benefits to installing the gasket on the PBC lid? Or should I just leave it alone. I didn't see any posts about using a gasket to tweak the PBC but I figured I would ask the experts.

Any thoughts would be great. Cheers!

[Jerod Broussard]

I would definitely wash that out and then dry it out thoroughly. I wouldn't worry about the gasket, I typically have just a little bit of smoke coming out the lid, you just don't want copious amounts.

[jmott7]

Ditto. The no cleaning rule is based on the assumption it hasn't been flooded. And unless it's been dinged, the lid should fit fine as is.

[_John_]

All the goodness shouldn't come out with just a wash anyway. My lid got enough gunk up there to seal tight, in fact if I don't clean it on occasion lifting the lid will lift up the whole barrel.

[Ailkiw]

Thanks gents! Appreciate the responses.

[fzxdoc]

My lid got enough gunk up there to seal tight, in fact if I don't clean it on occasion lifting the lid will lift up the whole barrel.

Ditto what John said. My lid can sometimes stick, it's on so tight. Not a molecule of smoke escapes. Definitely no gasket needed!

Do you have a snug-fitting cover for your PBC, Ailkiw? I have the PBC cover whose elasticized opening curves under the bottom of the barrel. Rain would have a hard time finding its way in through that baby.

Kathryn

[smarkley]

yeah my lid sticks too.. kind a bad actually, when I went to open for cleaning the other day, I had to bang on the edge of it to loosen it... maybe I should clean a little

I use a cover that was meant for a different cooker... it has an elasticized bottom too

[Ailkiw]

Nah. My lid's pretty snug. No worries there. Always have the urge to fiddle and tweak things hence the thought of the gasket. I'll leave it alone.
I hear you Kathryn. I should have picked up a cover with the elastic bottom when I bought the unit. I'll try to find something after market that will do the trick. Thanks again. Andy.