GAS-ASSIST Performer Users....


 
Jim Lampe

Jim Lampe

TVWBB 1-Star Olympian
i had the habit of starting the grill and walking away, leaving my gas on for way too long.
sometimes burning the gas left in the tank.

perhaps someone came up with this idea before, but i thought... why not set a small piece of smoke wood (apple or hickory or whatever you have) over the flame and set the charcoal chimney over that...?
burn it for one minute and the small piece of wood is fired up and then you can turn off the gas assist, saving you the hassle of waiting those 3 minutes or 5 minutes while the charcoal is ignited....

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this works well for me, hope it does for you.
 
Interesting idea Jim, I've got both my performers on the large tanks. I used to forget and use up the little bottles real fast and they aren't cheap. Now I set a timer for about three minuets to remind me. Nice thing is it's been over two years and the original 20# tanks are still doing the job. With Costco charging under $8 to fill a tank it's only about $4 a year for the gas.
 
you'll still save gas Rich, perhaps your tank will last three years burning a piece of wood for only a minute, instead of the gas for 3...
on the + side, you get to smell burning apple wood or hickory, which is nice all by itself. ;)
 
So, are you only supposed to run the gas for 3-5 minutes and then let the chimney sit for another 10 minutes or so? I let gas run on the full chimney run for the full 15 recommended.
 
Jim,
What happened to your poor charcoal grate? It looks like we will have to take up a collection to get you a replacement. It actually looks like a cheap top grate for a smaller grill rather than a Weber charcoal grate.
 
Greg Y said:
Jim,
What happened to your poor charcoal grate? It looks like we will have to take up a collection to get you a replacement. It actually looks like a cheap top grate for a smaller grill rather than a Weber charcoal grate.
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Not really. Mine looks about the same. Hot fires.......... good steaks.
 
Forgive my ignorance since I don't have one, but surely you don't need to run it more than a minute to get the coals going right?
 
It's probably good I don't have a gas assist BBQ, cuz I'd probably just use the gas and pretend I'm using charcoal :)
 
Malvin C said:
So, are you only supposed to run the gas for 3-5 minutes and then let the chimney sit for another 10 minutes or so? I let gas run on the full chimney run for the full 15 recommended.
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The flames only reach the bottom few coals, so running it longer than it takes to get a few of them going is a waste of gas in my opinion.
For Kingsford briqs a couple minutes is usually enough.
Stubb's briqs, Coshell, and lump might take 3 or 4 minutes to get a decent bottom start.
I plan and allow for this start up time for each cook.

A bonus with Jim's method is some nice pre-smoked charcoal. :rolleyes:
 
I like the idea of igniting the wood block so it keeps burning. Works like the Weber paraffin starter cube but with flavor.
 
Neat idea, Jim. I don't often forget to turn the gas off, but it still happens from time to time. And a little extra smoke wood is always enjoyable.
 
Jim Lampe said:
you'll still save gas Rich, perhaps your tank will last three years burning a piece of wood for only a minute, instead of the gas for 3...
on the + side, you get to smell burning apple wood or hickory, which is nice all by itself. ;)
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Yeah, the smell would be a nice side affect, okay I'll give it a try, but to do all this I'll have to put my beer down and that may not work out so well.:rolleyes:
 
If mine was "new enough" to have the gas assist, it do it in a heartbeat, fantastic idea! I use the newspaper, it's the only thing other than fish wrap that it's good for!
Have a lovely day!
 
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