Water in my PK 360. Need help.

[Meathead]

I finally got Max to give me custody of our PK 360 and I love it with one aggravation. When I am done cooking it is to hot to cover, and, frankly I am bad about covering my grills. The exhaust vents in the top collect water and allow it into the body where it pools on the bottom and fosters mold. I could solve the prob by drilling drain holes in the bottom, or finding a simple cover for the exhaust vents. They are just too large for ball jar lids. A quart size ball jar will work but the wind will blow them off and break them. Anybody got a solution?

[Larry Grover]

If the weather is foggy or expecting possible showers I’ll put standard sized foil pans on the grate under each vent. I’ll need them anyway for the next cook & collection of unburned charcoal.

I hate covers, black widows love to hang out on them etc. My PK has sat mostly uncovered and in rain. No mold, looks like new. I’ll cover it only if rain probability is high.

[Polarbear777]

https://pitmaster.amazingribs.com/forum/grills-and-smokers/charcoal/288652-pk360/page2

post 19 is my homemade charcoal basket and description of how. A pit viper press-fits into the lower vents.

I used the same stainless steel to bend and make a rain shield that is attached with threaded rods so it is above the vents with clearance so it blocks rain during cooks. See my avatar. I wish i could post a video of the pk360 steaming away in a raging downpour and simultaneously show the plot of it keeping temp just fine with the fan controller.

If if I were to do this again, I’d get the largest aluminum water heater catch pan I could find. Then I’d cut 2 2x6s so they would match the pk contour. I’d then attach the pan and attach a few bricks on top for weight. That would keep the whole rig dry and could be easily taken off. Did this for my pbc (used a pan so I had clearance for the lid handle and I had room to bolt bricks on the underside.

I think water may also be able to get in between the lid and base which a large drain pan would help. There is no overlap flange at that joint like there is on a kettle.

[Polarbear777]

Well I haven’t figured it out for the 1050 yet either.

I’m just using a big tarp cover. However it seems to run in the rain just fine. I don’t like to leave it not running uncovered though.

If I come up with something I’ll be sure to post.

[STEbbq]

Do you think we need to cover the electronics and the firebox or just the firebox given the shelf over the electronics?

[STEbbq]

I figured the indirect cooking chamber might be okay by itself....

[RonB]

How about a piece of foil held in place with a wide mouth jar lid. You might need to add a bit of weight though. Or maybe something like this or this with a weight to hold it in place.

[ComfortablyNumb]

I forget where I got them, but I came across about 100 coffee cans. I put one upside down over each vent. I put a weight on each, but thought that if I attached them together with a stick or a piece of flat stock it would make it easier to put on and take off.

[FireMan]

100 coffee cans over 100 vents? Holy moly Andy, I am just picturing this.

[ComfortablyNumb]

FireMan If I had 50 PK360's, then yes. But since I only have one, I have 98 for other uses.

[FireMan]

ComfortablyNumb , oh. 😎

[Steve B]

Meathead The perfect solution for your dilemma Is to get that cooker to me. So I can assess exactly what the problem is. Once diagnosed I will be happy to inform you of the best resolution.
Anything I can do to help. I’m here for you.
Steve B.

[Polarbear777]

Best answer.

[ComfortablyNumb]

Straight out of the playbook of HouseHomey

[Sweaty Paul]

Ball jar lids with rocks on top of them to hold them in place. Sometimes I can be old school lazy and simple. . Good luck.

[Henrik]

Close the vents fully (to keep water out), and put a small bolt (or similar, anything really) between the bottom and the lid. This leaves a small gap, allowing air to come in, but water out. There’s gonna have to be pretty heavy rain for it to leak in via that gap.

[Jerod Broussard]

Henrik in agreement with Henrik. Glad that worked out, be kinda hard to get in between you two.

[Henrik]

Lol!

[Polarbear777]

what I’ve found is that after crud builds up, water running down the sides clings to the lid abd runs down and a little creeps into the cooker.

I just cleaned the joint area. We will see if it helps. It’s so well machined that hardly any smoke gets out until it gets dirty and there are small gaps.

[jecucolo]

You could buy a piece of 4 " PVC pipe and glue an end cap on it. I think they even have fitting that are open on one end and closed on the other. If 4" is too small they have 6" pipe.

Or a silicone hot pad that you just set on top of the vent.

[Polarbear777]

I like this one. Two silicone trivets/hot pads and two bricks on top and you are done.

[SmokeyGator]

Leave a pan in the cooker after your done? It will collect any water and allow for easy dumping. Just don’t forget about it for too long.

[Polarbear777]

Seems like a drain hole design may be the most reliable and mess free option. Just have to think about how you would make it airtight but easily openable when you are done cooking while still hot.

The bottom really is pretty flat but with lots of bumps so it may not fully drain anyway.

[Bob's BBQ]

I always put my cookers inside after cooking (and cooling off). It can be kind of a pain to run out in the middle of the night, but I guess they'll last a long time not being exposed to the elements. Wisconsin summers/winters are HELL on stuff left outside.

[Jfrosty27]

I do the same. All cookers in the garage every night.

[Polarbear777]

Water heater drain pans make better covers than fabric. Especially since you can use them while cooking (depending on how you design) and if you bolt on a couple bricks to weigh them down for wind.
I liked the one I made for the pbc and my kahuna burner so something similar would work for the pkgrill or pk360.

[blbvtec]

Just picked up a PK360 a few weeks ago, thought I would add my solution to the open vent issue.

[ComfortablyNumb]

What are they? Off a shelf or something you fabricated?

[TripleB]

Genius

[blbvtec]

Friend fabricated them for me, he is a machinist. Next up is an adapter for the fireboard fan and the bottom vent tubes.

[TripleB]

Wow, a lot of high tech options posted. Only had to worry once about water getting into my PK360 after queing. When I finished grilling, I closed up all the vents and then put a brick on top of each top vent. Inside was bone dry the next day. Just used what was laying around.