Pit Boss K22 - Heat Deflector

Product: Pit Boss K22 Heat Deflector
Dimensions: 18" x 3"
Fit: Pit Boss K22
Price: $48.49 (at time of purchase)
Availability: Various Outlets, Purchased from HomeDepot.com
Link to Purchase: Home Depot - K22 Heat Deflector
Purchased Date: November 7, 2017

Pre-Purchase Research

After much searching in stores and online, the best place to buy this official Pit Boss accessory is online from Home Depot. I was quoted a 1-2 week shipping time for the product, and it came in just over a week, so the estimation was accurate.

The product is available at many different outlets, Amazon, WalMart, Lowe's, PitBoss sells directly, etc., the Home Depot price was the best I could find at the time. Home Depot's price at the time of purchase, November 7th, 2017, was $48.49, and at this time I wasn't ready to try any aftermarket products. I also could've tried putting a $15 pizza stone on the bottom rack, and cooked on the top rack, but something about that, um, seems hokey. If that's how you do it, I'm sure it works good enough, I just wanted to do this right. This left with me with one option, buy it and wait for Home Depot to ship it to me.

During my research I was a little hesitant in purchasing because I didn't know what I was getting myself into. And from what little information I could find, it didn't look like the deflector was going to behave the way I anticipated. In looking online at pictures and videos, it looked like you would be grilling right on top of the deflector if you used the bottom grate, which is not how the Kamado Joe or other kamado grills work. The deflectors of other kamado grills seem to sit lower in the fire bowl or the deflectors come with a riser to lift the bottom grate. My opinion, is that the Kamado Joe has a far superior setup with its stock heat deflector and the ability to not cook on directly on top of the deflector. See below pictures:

Legs Up, Bottom grate correct placement

Kamado Joe with half heat deflector in place,
no grate in bottom position, and a half grate in top position.

Using the Product
After receiving my deflector, I was impressed with the quality of the stone. The thickness measured at 3" and it is a nice heavy, sturdy piece. In my research, I saw where some people cooked with the legs facing up and others who placed the legs down on the firebox, which I believe is how it is intended to be used. There are really no "guidelines" or "instructions" for how to use this and I'm sure you can use it either way and each way will prove to be beneficial. My personal preference after cooking on it many times is to have the 3 legs facing up and the bottom grate resting on 3 legs, giving a 3" buffer between the grate and the deflector. My biggest issue with this, is that when placing the stock grates on the deflector you have to take note of where the access panel is on the grate or else the grate won't sit right. Essentially you want the 2 bars that aren't a part of the access panel to rest on 2 of the legs, then you won't have any issues and the grate will be nice and sturdy. If not, the access panel will open and you won't have a solid cooking surface. So make sure you place this in your grill and test it out by applying some pressure before putting any food on there. Watch the YouTube video below to see what I'm talking about further.

Summary
Overall, the deflector performs great and does it job. I've done cooks with the legs facing up and the legs facing down, and I prefer the legs facing up. Both instances may have their own particular uses, but I would recommend legs up when grilling. Time will tell how long I feel this way, and if I decide to upgrade to a different type of aftermarket system. Anyone else have the Pit Boss K22 or K24 and have the stock deflector? Please let me know your thoughts!