flying charcoal pieces


 
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elmo

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This is my first summer with performer and i noticed that the past two times i BBQed, the food got covered with some light charcoal dust that flew off from the bottom to the food.

I specially noticed that on the white onions as they had some black charcoal small dots on them.

I make sure to open the lid to the side horizontally like it said in the manual to avoid charcoal to fly on food but it does not solve the problem.

Any suggestion on what can help with this problem and is this bad to have some charcoal particles flying on food. I am beginning to be worried because the briquettes i use i think have some chemicals added to them to keep them uniform shape and burn longer.

elmo
 
Lift your lid in a motion that cracks one side and gradually allows more air in. DON'T pull it straight up
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i am using charcoal briquettes. I dont lift the lid straight up. I slowly move the lid to one side horizontally as written in manual. i am not sure i understand what is meant by cracking one side.
 
elmo, if you're using Maple Leaf briquettes then I'm pretty sure they don't have a chemical binder-- I think they use starch as a binder. Do you hear the coals popping when you cook? It does happen sometimes but I don't see it very much with Maple Leaf lump (although I don't know about ML briquettes). Not much sparking, either (mini-fireworks) with ML lump.
 
Have you brushed the bottom of the lid lately?

If not, see if there is a build up of flaky stuff on the underside of it.
 
I use the Maple Leaf charcoal briquettes and you guys are right, i checked and they only add starch. But does that mean that it is still safe to eat the food if it has charcoal pieces on it as long as the charcoal is natural.

I dont use any lighter fluid or newspapers to light it.

I cleaned the bottom very good before last cook and still had the problem but will try cleaning the inside of the top lid and see if that will help.

Guys, does the fact that i completely close and then open bottom vents during cooking with lid on to control temp have anything to do with charcoal flying on food. I leave top vent always open but wondering if closing / opening bottom vents create air suction and blow charcoal pieces inside.
 
not familiar with that brand but it seems that the ones that have that binder seem to have ash issues. the stuff is so light it doesn't take much to get the ash flying. i noticed this with rancher and kingsford competition briquettes. doubt that there would be any taste or health issues. i don't get this problem when using royal oak briquettes.
 
This can happen with the all-natural briquettes. Rancher, Kingsford Comp, Stubbs, Wicked Good - they all seem to do it. These work pretty well in the WSM, but for grilling you might want to consider using lump.
 
Yes lump is best for grilling, I even use it for rotisserie cooking, one question guys, when
I'm doing a bird on the rotisserie with
the basquets on each side where should the upper vent be, in the middle or over the side of the lump.

Keep at it Elmo, once you get the hang of
it you won't look back. If need be I will
come over and show you but only if you supply
the beer..

Anthony
 
I have used only lump for grilling and kingsford for smoking or indirect, low temp cooking. Try lump, it should alleviate your problem.
 
thanks for the advice guys about the lump but i tried lump one time this month and it was really difficult for me to handle. i am a newbie with charcoal and just got my performer this summer and the lump hardwood got hot fast and was hard to control its temp.

I am disappointed to hear that the natural charcoal briquettes like maple leaf have flying charcoal issue because i find them a lot easier to use than lump hardwood.

I cooked indirect with them and was fine. it is just when i do direct cooking that it becomes a problem.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Anthony W.:
one question guys, when
I'm doing a bird on the rotisserie with
the basquets on each side where should the upper vent be, in the middle or over the side of the lump.
</div></BLOCKQUOTE>

hey Anthony, i believe the upper vent should be in the middle so that the heat from both basquettes on each side go up and circulate inside the lid and not escape from upper vent if it was directly over one side of the charcoal.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by elmo:
thanks for the advice guys about the lump but i tried lump one time this month and it was really difficult for me to handle. i am a newbie with charcoal and just got my performer this summer and the lump hardwood got hot fast and was hard to control its temp. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>Try using the Minion Method, even when grilling.

Start it like you normally would a MM start and leave the lid on with the vents open. Maybe even crack the lid. Depending on the temp you're looking for, start shutting the lower vent 50% about 100* below your target temp.

Continue shutting them down at 50* to about 25%, or less. I've done this the last few cooks and I've been able to hold 350*, 400* and 500* with no problems for quite a while.

There are two upsides to this. One is the grill grate will give you killer grill marks because of the slow heating process. The other is the saving of fuel. Whether it's natural lump or K, I end up with a huge about of coal left over.

The down side is it takes a lot longer to get ready to cook.
 
Ken,

Let me make sure I have this straight.

So, you would not do a full chimney on the kettle/performer...maybe only a dozen or so briquettes, then when you put these on the pile of unlit briquettes, then put the lid on and let it come up to temps?
 
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