2nd Smoke a brisket - still having a hard time with the temperature


 
M

Marc L

New member
Hi all,

2nd smoke today on an 18", I decide to do a 5 lb brisket flat. My last smoke, I used 1 entire lit chimney but it ran out after 2.5 hours and I had to "reload." So, today, since I expected to smoke 4-5 hours, I lined the charcoal ring completely with unlit Stubbs bricks and put about 1/3 lit chimney spread around. Well, the temp skyrocketed to well over 350! Seems like all the unlit coals fired up rather quickly. I then had to take out a load of bricks! I know people out there load the thing up and smoke 10+ hours, so how do you do it without all the coals igniting??? I mean in less than 15 minutes, ALL the coals were hot. Replacing the water with cold water and closing the bottom vents didn't help much, so removing coals was the only thing I could do (before I put the meat on).

Once I got the coals out - I left maybe ONLY about 20 in, I easily got the WSM to a respectable 225. Seems to me that if I put in a lot of bricks, the temperature goes way up. But, the problem with leaving only a few bricks in a time is they only seem to last about an hour. Maybe it's the Stubbs brand? I like the way they light and you can easily place unlit coals on a lit coal and it will ignite pretty easily. So, I find myself constantly feeding coals through the door when I find the WMS dropping.

The good news is that I did a 5 hour smoke, keeping the temp between 210 and 235, then foiled and put in the oven. I cooked another 2.5 hours at 225, which got the temp to 197 and then did 15 more minutes at 300 which got the temp to 205. Removed and let it sit for an hour. It turned out very good, not as moist as I'd like, but still very good for the first time. Probably should have removed at 190 - that probably occurred about 75 minutes after putting it in the oven, but I was afraid that wasn't long enough, so I kept going...

Anyway, would like some advice on how to put in more coals at one time without WMS getting too hot. Is there a trick? Perhaps it's the Stubbs?
 
I'm one of those WSM owners who have trouble keeping temps as low as I'd like them. So, I'm sympathetic.

What were you doing with the lower vents? I ususally CLOSE mine when the grill temp (checked by remote thermometer) is 50 degrees below my target.

I also don't put as many lit coals on.
 
Here's a couple of links to the Minion method and temp issues troubleshooting.

Personally, I think that most of the issues with cookers running hot is that they are too leaky. This will usually be less of a factor over time as the seasoning builds up in the cooker, but the door can easily be tweaked if there's too much of a leak there. One fairly common issue is that sometimes the bowl/stack/dome sections just don't fit acceptably, and Weber will replace sections if they are out of spec or out of round. I dropped my dome once and had to tweak it by hand, but don't bend sections much as the enamel might crack.

http://www.virtualweberbullet.com/fireup2.html#minion

http://www.virtualweberbullet....tempcontrol.html#hot
 
Thanks, Dave. I did see those minion posts out there, but couldn't find much to address my issue. One suggestion was to place the lit coals in the middle of the ring. Maybe I'll try that.

I think the fits between the 3 sections are ok. When I put new bricks in, I do get some smoke (as they light) coming between the dome and mid section, but the manual says it's not leak proof and normal. Door seems ok.
 
How much time from first putting the lit coals on top of the unlit to the time of the meat and lid closed?

It shouldn't be more than a minute or two or at least close the lid right away so that excess air does not flame the coals.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Marc L:
Thanks, Dave. I did see those minion posts out there, but couldn't find much to address my issue. One suggestion was to place the lit coals in the middle of the ring. Maybe I'll try that.

I think the fits between the 3 sections are ok. When I put new bricks in, I do get some smoke (as they light) coming between the dome and mid section, but the manual says it's not leak proof and normal. Door seems ok. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Marc, I've only had 3 smokes on my new WSM but I've found that it's better to fill the charcoal ring uniformly then remove enough bricks to fill your chimney starter to 3/4 to full depending on conditions. Light the chimney and pour into ring. Add your favorite wood and go. I too am running a Tad on the hot side but I notice the inside of the WSM is getting coated a little more with each cook. The great thing I've noticed is that after a smoke anywhere from 5 to 10 hours, when your done and close all vents, the next day it there is more and more fuel left so there is no waste. I do remove the charcoal grate with the ring of leftover charcoal and set it aside while emptying the ash bowl. Got to have those 3 bottom vents clear of ash.

1st smoke equaled approx. 13 lbs of KB
2nd smoke = approx. 9 lbs.
3rd smoke = approx. 6 lbs.

Just my .02 and Good Luck Sir!
 
Hey Marc,

You say your using a third of a chimney to start and depending on the weather conditions, it may be too much. If your using the Weber chimney the capacity is about a 100 briquettes so a third would be 30 plus. Next time try starting with only 20 and start closing the bottom vent to 25% open when it hits 200.
 
How hot are you letting the smoker get before you start closing off the bottom vents?

I'll start a cook with the bottom vents fully open and once the smoker gets near 200, I'll close them to about halfway. Once the smoker reaches target temp, 220-240, I dial down two vents almost all the way (just leave a hair crack) and leave the back vent 25% open. This works for me, but the most important thing to do is catch those temps on the way up.
 
I'm not in any way connected with Pitmaster. But I love the IQ-110. Holds steady temp. Yesterday cooked 2 slabs of baby backs. Started with 1/2 ring unlit coals. Added 1/2 chimney lit. Added 1 gallon hot H2O to the foiled water pan. Set the IQ-110 to 225. Smoker was at temp in about 20 mins. Stayed there all day. Dome was reading 215. Outside temp was mid 40's. Pulled the ribs after about 4.5 hours after toothpick test. Love the IQ-110.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

 

Back
Top