Minion method not burning evenly

[Andrew S]

I'm smoking today for the 10th time and always using minion method, I've tried two different approaches an have the same bad results on both, this is what happens:
After 2-3 hours of smoking my Maverick starts to ***** about the temp dropping below the 215 threshold, so for curiosity I lift the middle section of the smoker and what I find is that always, one side of the charcoal burned to ashes and the rest of the charcoal ring is not lit.
the two methods that I've tried.
- putting unlit charcoal in the ring and then spreading some lit charcoal on top of it.
- use an empty can in the center of the ring, fill the outside with unlit charcoal, put lit charcoal in the can then remove then can leaving the lit charcoal in the center of the ring.
Top vent is always 100% open, bottom vents starts at 100% open then I close all 3 to like 10% open when temp reaches 210, it stabilizes around 225-235 and it stays stable for 2-3 hours then drops quickly.

Any tips? ven when spreading lit charcoal evenly on top of unlit it's not burning evenly. Then I have to keep dicking around with lit/unlit charcoal to raise the temperature and have a terrible night of no sleep.

 

[Monty House]

Your first method of spreading lit charcoal should do it. But, remember "lit" means white & dusty. They should be glowing hot and fully lit.

I also wouldn't set my Maverick alarm at 215. Maybe 180, but not 215. (Actually, I never set the low end alarm; it's not going to go out.) A full ring of unlit briquets takes awhile to get going with the Minion Method, but, when it does, it's a rocket booster.

 

[Jeff Langer]

How many lit briquettes are you putting on top? Are you spreading them out evenly?

Also, wind will affect how the fuel burns... If it is windy and that wind is blowing through a bottom vent that side will burn much faster.

Sounds like we have the same amount of cooks so don't take what I have said as gospel; just sharing my experiences. Hopefully some of the pros here will offer up some advice!

 

[Jerry N.]

Are you using lump? That sort of sounds like you're not packing the ring tight with charcoal. Make sure you get the ring packed tight even if using briquettes. Also, make sure the ring is full. As for starting, I just leave somewhat of a dip in the center of the charcoal pile to accept the lit charcoal. Similar to your second method. I'm struggling to understand why the can in the center method didn't work for you.

You might want to check your thermometer. You may be cooking at too low a temp and basically choaking out the fire.

 

[timothy]

I was gonna guess you might a had a bad bag of charcoal (damp) but seeing you're over 10 cooks you're prolly on a third bag?
No offense.. But I gotta ask, you are putting the water pan on the tabs,not on-top of the charcoal: right?

Tim

 

[Glenn W]

All good advice above. I would bet that the side that burns out is where your door is!?!?!? Make sure it doesn't have wide gaps around it. I always put the door over one of the legs and the top vent 180 away from the door.

 

[Andrew S]

Trying to answer all the question.
Lump vs briquettes.
- Yes I do use lump only, Royal Oak... I bought 10 17# bags so I'm not changing soon, plus I love it on my kettle grill

- Fully lit, I waiting 15-20 minutes before dumping then over the unlit charcoal, they were a beautiful bright red in the chimney.
-Regarding packing the charcoal, no I'm not doing it, I just dump it from the bag into the ring and "shake" the ring a little bit for them to sit. How do I pack it?
-Yes, water pan on the tabs, if they were over the charcoal I wouldn't be able to lift the middle section to re-arrange the charcoal when the temp dropped.
-Used half full lit chimney evenly spread over the unlit charcoal. but yesterday I used the can in the center method... I think I did much better with spreading it over. so no more cans.
-Regarding the thermometer been broken, I wouldn't think so since I've two, the Maverick and the lid thermometer, their readings are withing ~20 degrees, being the lid 20 degrees colder then the maverick at the grate.

 

[Jerry N.]

You pack the ring by filling it about half full and getting your hand in there and making sure there are no big gaps. Then, fill the ring full, again making sure no big gaps. With lump, the different size pieces can create areas where the charcoal is not touching and therefore making it difficult for the fire to spread. Get that ring full and packed tight with charcoal and smoke wood and that should make for a more even spreading fire. Also, like you said, spreading the lit charcoal will help but make sure you have somewhat of a pile of lit in the center so that the fire gets going and stays going.

I used RO lump many times and had good success with it.

 

[Anthony Irving]

Are you using a ATC?

 

[bryan baker]

Bottom vents at 10% may be a little restricting. Pack the lump and try bottom vents at 25% and see if that helps.

 

[Andrew S]

Originally posted by Anthony Irving:
Are you using a ATC?

What does ATC stands for?

 

[David B.]

Automatic
Temperature
Control

There are systems that can be used to maintain consistent temps in your smoker. Stoker and BBQ Guru are just two of the manufacturers that make them.

 

[Scooter B]

From my own experience, uneven burns like that are usually related to wind/airflow. If the fire starts in the middle and only works in one direction its likely that you have air passing through one side of the bottom vent and through the other.

Try to keep your smoker in a protected area and maybe spread your lit a bit more. I find that using a 1/3 chimney of lit dumped on the center works fine. I don't fuss too much with something like the coffee can as I find you don't need to be that picky about having a tight center of lit.