Good food, good times

I purchased the Brinkmann Smoke 'n Grill Double Charcoal grill this past summer.
I kept hearing all of these different people talking about how much they loved smoking food at home. I had to give it a try and you know what, it is fun to do! There's just something good about it. I remember my Grandfather talking about the old smoke house on the farm where he grew up. Well, since I don't have a smoke house, I figure this is the next best thing.
The price was right and it looked easy to set up and use. I purchased the smoker, some good quality charcoal, and various types of wood chips. I took it home and set it up in the backyard. First, it needed to used without food inside to burn off any excess oils from the factory. No problem, I was able to get a fire going inside easily. Then, it needed to be coated in vegetable oiled, that includes the entire smoker/grill and it's inner accessories (such as the grill plates). Here's where I ran into a notable snag. I oiled the water pan and I believe that was a mistake. Either it was a mistake or I used too much. I came to find that the water had difficulty turning to steam due to the fact that the oil had mixed in with the water. So be aware of that and definitely don't use too much oil on that water pan.
The smoking itself was easy enough but it is sort of tricky to get the fire going and keep it going once everything is in place. I had to use long handled tongs to add charcoal and wood chips.
All in all, the food turn out to be excellent. The first thing I smoked was a beef brisket and I didn't even season it, yet it came out tasting so incredibly flavorful.