First time, some questions

Go an almost new GSM 22.5 off of craigs list. The guy decided he wanted the smaller one, so he was selling the 22.5 to get an 18.5
It has the gasket kit installed and a rubber grommet for a probe to go thru
He had a second grate under the charcoal the he said I might want to remove, but I forgot to remove it until my problems arose...

I decided to make 1 rack of ribs and 2 chickens butterflied, both rubbed with all purpose rub
Lit up .5 chimney and dumped them on a full unlit chimney in the smoker (Kinsford origional)
Added 4 chunks of cherry wood
I foiled the water pan and added hot water
Chicken on bottom, ribs on top rack.

I put the meat on at 1pm planning for 5pm or so to eat.

I could not get the temp up, I started with the vents at at 33% bottom, 100% top, after 1 hour 15 minutes temp still not up so I opened the vents to 100%
The temp did not come up after 20 minutes or so. Checked charcoal did not seem to be going well. Lit up another half chimney dumped them in. Still no love, (temp did come up a little)
I then remember about the 2nd grate under the charcoal. So I disassembled and removed the 2nd grate under the charcoal which was holding the bottom of the charcoal up about even with the bottom of the vents, maybe slightly above. Lit up another full chimney added a chunk of wood and put it all back together

Temp was better but still not able to get much heat out of the thing, maybe 220 degrees.

Around 5:45pm I removed the water pan because I wanted to crisp the chicken skin some. Without the water pan temp was better but only got up to about 275 degrees.

Finally ate at at 7pm, everyone thought everything was delicious

What can I do about getting the temp up, throughout the day I was checking the virtual website for troubleshooting tips for low temp. I even propped open the door some hoping to get more air in.

I was not peeking in as I know that will loose a tremendous about of heat.

Please, any suggestions as to what I did wrong, or what I can check for?

Thanks,
John

John,

I think you may not have enough charcoal. Your timeline may be a little optimistic as well.

How are you measuring temperature?

When I do ribs, I measure temps through the vent with a Maverick - I set that temp at 250° - more or less. Baby backs cooked like that take about 5 hours, Spare ribs - more like 6 - I do not foil the ribs and do not use water - I use stainless steel plates for a heat sink and foil the pan to catch the drippings. I don't do chicken on the Smokey Mountain - I do those on my kettle grill where I can cook indirect at higher temps.

It seems to me that your vent settings were about right - on my 22.5 WSM inch, I usually cruise with one lower vent set about 1/8 to 1/4 open - the other lower vents are closed and the top vent is wide open.

"Lit up .5 chimney and dumped them on a full unlit chimney in the smoker (Kinsford origional)". I agree with Mike. One chimney of unlit is kinda light. Try filling the ring halfway full for a short cook and when complete shut your vents so you can reuse the unspent charcoal.

One more suggestion: Make sure the ash bowl is empty and there are no vent restrictions. I have had charcoal fall between the bowl and ring which can affect airflow.

I also agree with Mike that ribs take ~ 6 hours. Plan time to get the fire burning clean, get cooker ready and up to temp, and time in the end to prep completed food. I like to plan 7 to 8 hours for a rib cook for a fudge factor.

Any chance your charcoal had absorbed some moisture? What was the wind doing?

Thanks everyone...
I'll use more charcoal next time.
There was absolutely no wind.
I considered the charcoal and had a brand new bag that I used when I added more. The guy I got the GSM from gave me about half a bag of kingsford.
I was probing with a thermometer in the top vent. I discovered the built in thermometer is off. Is there a way to calibrate them?

Thanks,

John

Dwain Pannell said:

I also agree with Mike that ribs take ~ 6 hours. Plan time to get the fire burning clean, get cooker ready and up to temp, and time in the end to prep completed food. I like to plan 7 to 8 hours for a rib cook for a fudge factor.

Click to expand...

One thing to think about - if you plan extra time, have a cooler, foil and bath towels available - when the meat is done, wrap it in foil and put in the cooler surrounded by bath towels - it will stay hot for a long time - I always do this for at least 1/2 hour, regardless of what I'm cooking - I think it helps the moisture in the meat redistribute itself. A lot of people on this website do the same thing - I originally noticed this at a "rib trailer" on Dale and '94 in St. Paul.

Mike May said:

One thing to think about - if you plan extra time, have a cooler, foil and bath towels available - when the meat is done, wrap it in foil and put in the cooler surrounded by bath towels - it will stay hot for a long time - I always do this for at least 1/2 hour, regardless of what I'm cooking - I think it helps the moisture in the meat redistribute itself. A lot of people on this website do the same thing - I originally noticed this at a "rib trailer" on Dale and '94 in St. Paul.

Click to expand...

Thanks Mike