Weber Smokey Mountain Mods [Product Guide]

Smoking not only requires skill but the right equipment as well. And when it comes to smokers, there’s no denying that the Weber Smokey Mountain is one of the best on the market today in terms of functionality and price. Both pitmasters and backyard cooks alike have had amazing success with the Smokey Mountain. 

Table of Contents

• WSM Gasket Kit to Seal Front Door
• Hinge For The Lid
• WSM Stainless Steel Smoker Door Upgrade
• Automatic Temperature Controller
• Upgraded Dome Thermometer
• Additional Charcoal Grates
• Smoker Jacket for Cold Weather Smoking
• Water Pan Cover
• Weber Smokey Mountain Wheel Mod Kit
• Conclusion

Nevertheless, sometimes you still want more from your smoker grill. You want to maximize its performance or take care of any minor concerns like the unit’s flimsy door to ensure all smoke is contained. So if you want to ensure your smoker performs at its best, then this article is for you. 

We’ve searched long and hard to provide you with a variety of the best Weber Smokey Mountain mods to help you get the most out of your smoker. Although some of these may fall under the accessories category instead of mods, we’ve decided to also include them. This will give you more options on how you can ensure maximum performance while eliminating some issues you may have with your unit.

WSM Gasket Kit to Seal Front Door

• Difficulty: 4 out of 10 
• Price: 3 out of 10 
• Impact: 8 out of 10

Anyone who owns a Smokey Mountain will tell you that it’s a high-quality smoker. However, you’ll most likely hear them say that they’re having issues with smoke looking from its front door. So to solve this problem, you need a Weber Smokey Mountain Gasket kit. 

A gasket is one of the most popular WSM mods among smoking fanatics. One of the main reasons for it is because the gasket will play a big role in ensuring that the front door system of your smoker is sealed tightly. Rather than buying an entirely new door replacement, it is a more cost-effective option to simply buy a gasket. 

Any new proud owner of the Smokey Mountain who s not yet familiar with its temperature control process and experiencing smoke leaking will particularly benefit from this kit. This is especially true if you have the 22 inches WSM model that seems to experience this issue more often. Some owners even report that its door does not properly seal at all. 

Using the gasket kit will allow you to seal the front door of the Weber smoker, ensuring that all smoke is contained. Moreover, this is a fairly easy mod to install. Aside from the instruction guide, the kit also comes with all the components you need. On top of that, its adhesive is high-quality. This means that you don’t have to another one anytime soon. 

Hinge For The Lid

• Difficulty: 5 out of 10 
• Price: 4 out of 10 
• Impact: 7 out of 10

Smoking your meat to perfection will take hours along with regularly checking its condition. The entire process will involve having to take the lid of your Smokey Mountain on and off continuously, which can be pretty annoying.

What’s more, once you take the lid off, another problem you have to face is finding a spot to place the hot lid. You need to give it immediate attention, which will take your focus off from the smoking process. 

You can easily resolve this dilemma by getting yourself a hinge for your smoker’s lid. This is probably one of the most useful Weber Smokey Mountain mods available for both the 18 and 22 inches models.

Upon installation of the modification, you’ll be able to keep the lid of your unit open in a locked position. You can also close using just one hand. Therefore, this convenient mod eliminates having to worry about where to place the hot lid. 

The hinge may be small, but it’s a highly effective WSM modification that can make your grilling tasks a lot easier. Its installation is not daunting as well. Once you drilled holes on your Smokey Mountain, attaching it will only take minutes. Plus, the mod even comes with an easy-to-follow instruction manual. 

What you’ll like about this hinge is its sturdy built. And aside from making your smoker look even more handsome, it’ll be easier for you to put a thermometer in it. So rather than being very careful each time you remove the move as you place the smoker lid on the ground, you can utilize the intake damper’s top to probe through with your thermometer.

WSM Stainless Steel Smoker Door Upgrade

• Difficulty: 1 out of 10 
• Price: 3 out of 10 
• Impact: 8 out of 10

Another must-buy Weber Smokey Mountain mod or accessory is an aftermarket Stainless Steel Smoker Door upgrade. The aluminum door of your smoke is simply not sufficient and does not properly fit. 

This is the reason why both the heat and smoke leak as your equipment gets hotter with oxygen flowing in. The impact on this on the meat you’re cooking can be anywhere from slight to disastrous. 

Cajun Bandit offers a range of WSM upgraded stainless steel doors. The company is well-known for specializing in upgraded parts and mods for Weber Smokey Mountain and Weber Kettle. This means that you can trust the brand understands how your WSM works.

Aside from taking care of leak issues, the upgraded stainless steel door can add more aesthetic appeal to your smoker. Add it to your unit to make it look smarter, and you’re sure to turn heads. Plus, its installation is quite easy and straightforward. But make sure to choose the right model for your smoker. 

Automatic Temperature Controller

• Difficulty: 3 out of 10 
• Price: 10 out of 10 
• Impact: 9 out of 10

A temperature controller is a separate Weber Smokey Mountain mod. It’s a great grill accessory that allows you to multitask and attend to other stuff while your smoker does its thing. Basically, that means that your Smokey Mountain becomes a set-it-and-forget-it type of smoker.

To use the temperature controller, you need to attach it to one of the intake dampers of your unit. You can usually find this at the bottom. Once you have connected it, close the other dampers. Doing so will prevent all other sources of oxygen aside from the controller itself. 

You can find different varieties of this Smokey Mountain mod in the market with varying features. There are even models that include convenient WiFi connectivity where you can connect the device to your gadgets. This means that you’ll be able to adjust temperatures on your smartphone via an app. You can even create temperature graphs and cook logs. 

Flame Boss 500-WiFi Smoker Controller is one of the most preferred because setting it up is simple. Nevertheless, you can buy any WSM temp controller, as long as it meets your requirements. 

Upgraded Dome Thermometer

• Difficulty: 4 out of 10 
• Price: 3 out of 10 
• Impact: 5 out of 10

One of the most productive Weber Smokey Mountain mods you can invest in is a dome thermometer. That’s why smokers that feature a built-in dome thermometer is a favorite among grill enthusiast. 

But often, the built-in extra does not show the accurate temperature of the food you’re cooking. Usually, the difference is 10-20F, which can make a huge difference.

This is where a WSM upgraded dome thermometer comes to the rescue. The man behind the idea was T-Roy Cooks. His YouTube channel is a good resource for those looking to craft various recipes using their Smokey Mountain. 

T-Roy utilizes the Maverick ET-733 to measure the temperature level of his grill grate. Then, he’ll apply the reading to calibrate his 5-inch River Country thermometer. This, in turn, enables T-Roy to accurately read the temperature at the level of the food. 

The temperature range of the upgraded dome thermometer is quite impressive. It offers a precise reading from 50 to 500F. And in comparison to the stock Smokey Mountain thermometer, this one comes with a color-coded dial. Hence, it’s easier to note its readings.

One of the most vital aspects of barbecue preparation is precise temperature readings. So no doubt, this is a great accessory and modification you can give your Weber smoker. 

Additional Charcoal Grates

• Difficulty: 1 out of 10 
• Price: 2 out of 10 
• Impact: 4 out of 10

An extra grate is a Weber Smokey Mountain mod must-have. They’re quite beneficial, especially if you often cook using lumps of coals. There’s no denying that the WSM is a superb cooking machine with a good price to match. Nevertheless, most users do worry about the unit’s unnecessary consumption of fuel at times.

One of the biggest reasons behind this is due to the stock charcoal grates that come with the device, which have wide gaps between their bars. Why does this matter? Well, as your coals begin to break down, the chunks will keep on falling through those wide gaps. The charcoals then die out as they fall on the ashes. 

Attaching an extra grate at the correct angle with the existing grate of your Smokey Mountain can help reduce the gaps. As a result, your unit’s fuel consumption and performance will be much more efficient. And the best thing about it is that there’s not much installation involved. You simply need to wire the additional grate to the stock one and use them as a single unit.

Smoker Jacket for Cold Weather Smoking

• Difficulty: 1 out of 10 
• Price: 6 out of 10 
• Impact: 7 out of 10

The Smokey Mountain has so much potential and can outperform most of its competitors. This is particularly true if you compare it to a budget-friendly offset model that typically leaks like a chimney. 

However, the power and performance of any smoker will suffer when you smoke outdoors in extreme weather conditions. Even this Weber smoker is no exception to this. No doubt, you’ll find it very challenging to smoke in strong winds or cold weather, no matter how high-end or top-notch your device is. 

For this reason, it’s a great idea to invest in a cold-weather smoker jacket. The Silver Bullet silicone smoker jacket cover is available for both 18″ and 22″ Smokey Mountain models. Its outstanding feature is that its silicone-coated material can withstand temperatures of up to 700F. Therefore, it will work great at conserving your fuel source while at the same time extending your cooking time no matter how extreme the weather is. 

This Weber Smokey Mountain cooker can protect your bbq grill in extreme conditions like rain, snow, or winds. You only need to slip it over your smoker. Plus, it fits very well, and the cover even has a hole for your temperature controller.

Water Pan Cover

• Difficulty: 1 out of 10 
• Price: 2 out of 10
• Impact: 5 out of 10

Cleanup afterward is probably one of the things any smoker dislikes. It’s tedious and not as fun as smoking itself. All those extra grease and juices usually end up in the water pan. 

This usually leads to a nasty mess that a simple cleaning cannot take care of. It gets even worst when you’re using sand or ceramic briquettes rather than water.

A water pan cover is a Weber Smokey mountain mod that can make your life easier. It will make cleanups a breeze and more effective. The cover sits on top of your unit’s water pan, so it eliminates the need to do the time-consuming task of covering up the water pan itself with a foil. When it’s time to clean, simply scrape the cover, and you’re all done.

Weber Smokey Mountain Wheel Mod Kit

• Difficulty: 2 out of 10 
• Price: 3 out of 10 
• Impact: 4 out of 10

Are you a fan of outdoor barbecues and would love to take your Smokey Mountain outside even if the weather is cold? If so, then you may want to consider getting this Smokey Mountain mod. This caster wheels mod kit is a great choice if you want your smoker to be more flexible and portable.

These are available in a pack of 3. Adding it to your Smokey Mountain will make it not only more mobile but easier to move around. Furthermore, it features a couple of zinc swivel casters that you can lock to secure your smoker in place. So toppling another thing you can cross off on your list of worries. 

Another advantage of these caster wheels WMS mod is that they raise your smoker’s height. Therefore, it makes the damper valves and firebox a lot more accessible. However, Weber itself cautioned owners of the grill about adding wheels, so be very careful and avoid misusing the wheel mod kit.

Conclusion

These are all the best Weber Smokey Mountain mods you can get your hands on. You don’t have to get all of them, and you’re not obliged to as well. Nevertheless, modifying your smoker can enhance its performance and will make it even more fun to use.