Billows

[KevinTelmino]

I filled the charcoal ring and then dumped a full chimney of lit charcoal on top. About two-three hours in, the temperature started dropping. I have the billows set to 250 and it kept dropping to 220ish. What am i doing wrong? Thanks!!

Ps never had this issue before.

 

[EricV.]

If you are trying to emulate the "Minion" you don't need a full chimney of lit charcoal. The whole point is that a small amount of briquettes,, depending on weather conditions will slowly catch the unlit charcoal on fire, to create a low & slow effect. Furthermore when using an ATC, the vents should barely be open. You have not mentioned anything about the vents.

 

[KevinTelmino]

If you are trying to emulate the "Minion" you don't need a full chimney of lit charcoal. The whole point is that a small amount of briquettes,, depending on weather conditions will slowly catch the unlit charcoal on fire, to create a low & slow effect. Furthermore when using an ATC, the vents should barely be open. You have not mentioned anything about the vents.

Oh i see. I will use less lit charcoal next time. As for the vents, all bottoms are closed (besides the billows) and the top I had opened halfway-3/4.

 

[Jim C in Denver]

Your charcoal was fine.

Instructions say half to three quarters chimney. But more is fine and better than too little lit. Billows works better with plenty of lit. And the fan function keeps it from getting too hot.

Your problem was the top vent. Instructions say only one eighth open. 50-75% open is way too much and defeats the ability of the fan to control temp.

 

[DanHoo]

I've not ever used a billows on a WSM.

I've used it on my BGE and on my summit kamado E6.

I've found it works best as insurance for the pit temp dropping too low.

I get the temp stable before I plug the fan in and I set the billows temp 5 to 25 degrees below my desired temp. The billows will turn on only if needed.

 

[John K BBQ]

I filled the charcoal ring and then dumped a full chimney of lit charcoal on top. About two-three hours in, the temperature started dropping. I have the billows set to 250 and it kept dropping to 220ish. What am i doing wrong? Thanks!!

Ps never had this issue before.

Not sure what charcoal you're using, or what size your WSM is... regardless, I have better results when using a minion doughnut on my 22" I fill up the ring, then take fuel out of the center and put it in the chimney light it and then put the lit fuel back in the center. This keeps the ash (especially if using KF original) from dropping down thru the bed of unlit coals and changing airflow throughout the duration of the cook. This method works well with a Billows, and without.

When/if I use lump, I always break up any pieces much longer than 6" so they don't form a "fuse" in the coal bed and promote a faster burn. This is not a concern when using briqs

 

[KevinTelmino]

Your charcoal was fine.

Instructions say half to three quarters chimney. But more is fine and better than too little lit. Billows works better with plenty of lit. And the fan function keeps it from getting too hot.

Your problem was the top vent. Instructions say only one eighth open. 50-75% open is way too much and defeats the ability of the fan to control temp.

My first two cooks when great and now that I think about it, I had the top vent only opened maybe 1/8th like you mentioned. For some reason I opened it way too much this time. Thanks!

 

[KevinTelmino]

Not sure what charcoal you're using, or what size your WSM is... regardless, I have better results when using a minion doughnut on my 22" I fill up the ring, then take fuel out of the center and put it in the chimney light it and then put the lit fuel back in the center. This keeps the ash (especially if using KF original) from dropping down thru the bed of unlit coals and changing airflow throughout the duration of the cook. This method works well with a Billows, and without.

When/if I use lump, I always break up any pieces much longer than 6" so they don't form a "fuse" in the coal bed and promote a faster burn. This is not a concern when using briqs

Thanks for the tip. I was using kingsford charcoal and it’s an 18.5” WSM.

 

[MartinB]

If you got a pinch the vent too much you got too much blower. From what I recall the billows blower is way size for a WSM.

If you use too many coals to start... The temperature skyrockets first to 325+, and the blower won't run if you're trying it to cook at low temp. It might take 30 minutes or more for the temperature to drop to the set point.... Or even an hour..... And the fire might go out during that time. This can actually put the fire out so that it's only lit in one small area or something when the blower actually does start to run once you come down to the set point.... And that sets it up to be able to go out easier sometime later in the cook.

No billows here.... I use a heater meter with the blower/damper. I spread the lit charcoal out on top as well, and let the controller do its thing. For poultry I'm shooting for 350 plus and that's a big full chimney of coals. For brisket and butts that I usually do in the 250 to 275 range I use more like 2/3 -3/4 of a chimney and that's even too much it overshoots quite a bit at the start.... Here's a brisket done last night at 270 for 12 hours. You can see it shot up to 325 or so when I first added the coals, and then i. Brought it down to the target temperature over the next 40 minutes or so before adding the meat. I usually start hotter because it doesn't want to come back up to the same temperature easily after you put a big block of 40° meat in there

 

[John K BBQ]

So, knowing you have an 18" WSM and are using KF original, and having temp control issues with the Billows, I would definitely try the doughnut minion, and if it's a nice warm day, you could probably get by with using a 15 or so briqs to start with, put em' right in the middle, and let the Billows huff and puff until you get to target temp (run with a dry pan - wrap it in foil, put your smoke wood chunks under the briqs).. Keep the lid vent mostly closed. If that doesn't work, you might need to restrict the airflow coming out of the billows.

I think the billows can produce 46 cfm, and an 18" WSM has about 5 cubic feet of interior space (just a rough guess).... so your changing out the air inside the cooker about 9 times per minute when the billows is running... seems like too much. I've actually noticed keeping temps low with the billows on my 22" WSM, so I bought the Thermoworks air flow restriction device (but haven't used it yet, its only about $3.00). You might need one for the 18" WSM... You could always cover 2/3 of the air intake hole with some painters tape and see if that helps. If your experiment works, reward yourself by buying the Tworks throttling cover and some other cool stuff on T-Works website : ) I like the trivents and brushes and those wire spools...

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Specializing in cool, unique and professional temperature tools. Super-Fast thermocouples, thermistors, infrared thermometers, data logging and more.

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