Notes on Lump wood, N00b and Req for Wireless Opinions


 
J

jlevy

New member
I wanted to distill my learnings from the last 2 smokes here in the forum in hopes that it might help someone else.

Over the last 8 months since I've had my smoker I have done about 16 smokes. Turkeys, ribs, butts, briskets, etc. The fuel of choice has been Kinsford briquettes, and it's served me well. I have noticed, though, that the vents really have no discernable effects on temperature control when using briquettes. Yes, leave the vents open for an hour, and the temp will certainly climb, close them, and it will drop. But all of this happens in slow motion.

So, the last 2 smokes, including the one I'm currently doing, I've opted for lump wood. The local Ace Hardware had a sale, 5 bucks a bag. I don't remember the brand, I just rip and dump into a big plastic trash can specifically tasked with storing fuel. It's 'decent' lump, burns well, but has a lot of grist.

I noticed right away that lump wood burns faster, much faster. MUCH MORE receptive to oxygen. Furthermore, I noticed that the small gap I've got in my WSM really has nasty effects with Lump. I sealed the gap with oven gasket. It's like having a completely different smoker now. I can actually control the temperatures with the vents now *in real-time*. Fascinating. I never really noticed how out-of-round my WSM was until I started using lump.

The smoker's on it's 12th hour now, running a stately 220 at the top. 10lbs of ribs will be going on about 10:00AM. Wish me luck.

OH, and before I forget, if anyone has an opinion on wireless thermometers, I would appreciate it. On these longs smokes, I would like to keep an eye on temps from afar. Since using lump, I realize it is critically important to monitor temps until they stabilize. This fuel adjusts to conditions so fast, it's really, really easy to hockey-puck your meats because temps went from 200 -> 500 in 2 minutes!
 
Yup, when I first got my WSM a few years back I sent back one to Amazon for shipping issues and then twice with Weber on out of round bowls...at that time I questioned their manufacturing quality control...not sure what's up with it these days.

It's all about the oxygen...just like the v-twin on my bike that runs either rich or lean...and wind is your main nemesis with all WSMs but it especially shows up with those out of round.
 
Do not get the "talking " remote thermo. It's a PIA to sync up the bases. Just a regular remote will do you just fine.
 
Time for the obligatory 24-hour followup.

It's been a solid day since the Q was pulled and consumed. My friends, as usual, left the house with praise and gratitude, and all declared their desire to purchase a WSM. The time is right, then, I've seen the photos of the 2009. The perfect time to buy a smoker.

To summarize quickly, since I have to prepare for a hurricane:

- 16 lbs of butt
- 15 lbs of pork spares (12.5 trimmed, St. Louis)
- a simple dry rub; some kept in reserve as sop.

This was my second smoke using all lump wood. It was my first successful smoke using all lump wood. I credit the use of the fireplace gasket to solve the out-of-round. Without the gasket, my temperature control would have been impossible for this 18 hour smoke. I'm pleased that this inexpensive solution to a seemingly avoidable engineering problem has totally changed the behavior of my smoker.

The butts cooked from 9:00PM Friday night to just about 3:45PM Saturday Afternoon. They were paroled from the smoke chamber for an hour and three quarters to rest before they were pulled and consumed by an anxious mob of Q deprived maws. Each guest went home with a ziploc container of meat, my goodwill gesture to the masses. Enough to make a few sandwiches later, should they get a craving for more.

The ribs were succulent. They went on at 11:00AM and came off the top grate at 5:30, the same time the butts were being pulled and served. They were turned once. The ribs were quartered and distributed to mouths.

The smoker maintained a stately 225 at the grate for an incredible ~20 hours. Totally amazing what a seven dollar piece of fiberglass rope can do.

If I survive the hurricane, the next batch of flesh will be another brisket. Something in the 20-30lb range. The smoker is now at it's peak, and I must capitalize.
 
I have both a Maverick (the model with just one probe), and a Nu Temp with three remote transmitters, and have had good results with both. The Nu Temp is a little tricky to use with 3 remotes, because the remotes are identified by the receiver in the order they are connected. So, the remote that was #1 today might be #3 the next time you use it. Or, if I remember correctly, if the base loses the signal from one of the remotes, then picks it up again, the numbering of the remotes might change. So you have to keep a close eye on them. The fact that the cooking temperature is always higher than the meat temperature makes it easier than it sounds. I also have an old Polder (actually, sold under the Radio Shack name a few years ago) that is not wireless, but still works well since I can see it from inside the house.
 
I've never seen a 20-30 lb brisket, but a chuck roll or clod is that big and good to cook on the WSM.
Good Luck

Cooking is really not luck, so just go for it. It's not difficult to cook a big piece of meat.
 
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