Do you foil line before you season?

[NDKoze]

I have seen a couple of differing views on this.

The SI instructions state:

It is recommended to season your new smoker before the first use. This will improve your cooking experience and the desired taste of the food. Remove all packing materials from inside and outside of your new smoker. Place two pieces of the sample wood into the wood box. Completely close the wood box lid and slide over the heating element. Remove the shelves, then close and latch the door of the smoker. It is recommended to cover the top of the wood box lid with aluminum foil and also the bottom of the smoker. Set the temperature control to 250 degrees and let your smoker run for three to four hours completely empty.

I know you want to foil when cooking food. But I would think that the seasoning process may be the one time where you may NOT want to foil just to get the entire smoker seasoned.

Or maybe it doesn't really matter.

Just looking for some opinions.

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[swthorpe]

You don't need to foil for the seasoning run.   The foil is to help with clean up when you are smoking meat, and since you won't have meat in while seasoning, no need for the foil.

[DivotMaker]

No foil for seasoning, just for cooking.

[NDKoze]

Thanks guys. That is what I was thinking.

[Three Sons BBQ]

I seasoned it with no foil and there is no issue...

[BHamel]

I do recommend using a heavy duty foil.  If you use a thinner foil it could stick to bottom and cause you a little bit of trouble during the clean up.