New and smoldering


 
C

Caz

New member
Hi All,
I have been reading and learning from this site for a couple months now. I recently moved from smoking (baby back ribs and brisket) on my Genesis grill to the Weber Bullet 18'. I am on my 4th attempt on the ribs.... but haven't attempted the brisket on the Bullet. The 3 attempts of the ribs had issues, but even so the results were well beyond what I could do with a smoker box on a gas grill. So I am sticking with the Bullet.

My recurring issue. 3.5 to 4 hours into a seemingly easy session.... my smoker crashes. Heat drops and I struggle to get it to come back up to 225/250. I open all vents to some degree or an other. Nothing. I open the access door. Try to get air flowing. Maybe get a short burst of heat, but ultimately the heat dies down below 200. My novice opinion is in all 3 cases, the coals get smothered by ash from the spent coals. I can see I have unspent coals. I can see a lot of ash.

I can eventually get things sort of going by reaching in and stirring the charcoals a bit. But this causes ash to cover the ribs. Not to the point of making ribs unedible, but does impact taste.

I am using/doing:
Kingsford Original
Minion Method - load unlit coals about 3/4's to the top of chamber. Spread lit coals on top. Add wood (not soaked).
Water Pan - filled with tap water. no foil.

Any suggestions or advice to my 3.5 hour burn out issue? I really want to try a brisket, but not until I can handle ribs.

Any advice is really appreciated and thanks!
-Caz
 
Hey Brad,
Appreciate the quick response. Especially since I'm smoking ribs for a group tomorrow. We do have Royal Oak available locally and I happen to have a half bag sitting in the garage (2 years old) when I use the Weber Kettle. I'll try it tomorrow.....
Thank you!
-Caz
 
Caz,
If you got some lump try it, but fill the pit up as much as can, move the charcoal around to get as much in the add your minion starter charcoal on top. Also start with boiling water for the water pan. Let us know how those changes help.
 
For ashy charcoal like the K, you need to kick or tap the legs a few times.
That should knock off any ash. Do it with the door closed and shut the top vent,< will help with the flyaway ash.
OBTW, welcome to the board!

Tim
 
Hi Martin - I agree with you. But that is why I am confused with why fire is burning out around 3.5 hours in all of my 3 attempts. I check and have plenty of charcoal, but I always seem to have to do what Tim suggested. Tap on legs (although I didn't close the top vent, so will try that if needed). And eventually, I open door and use a fireplace poker to try to clear ash. I would like to avoid that.

Sounds like I need to move away from Kingsford and try using Royal Oak Lump charcoal.

Thanks to all for your input.... I'll get there eventually. Just need to make mistakes and continue asking questions in order to fix my errors! You guys are a wealth of knowledge!

Off to try again!
-Caz
 
I order B&B briquettes from ACE. I went all day steady at 250 smoking a pork butt. They seem to make less ash than Kingsford. I'm using a 14 WSM.
 
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JWorden said:
I order B&B briquettes from ACE. I went all day steady at 250 smoking a pork butt. They seem to make less ash than Kingsford. I'm using a 14 WSM.
Click to expand...
Great to know. I have an ACE right next to the pool supply shop. Super convenient!
 
I order it online and pick it up when it comes in. When it is out of stock online it takes a couple of weeks to come back. I've only been using it for a month so I don't know if the delay is normal.
 
Almost everyone on here uses Kingsford Blue. So I don't think that is your root problem.

Chris (see below) says this: "The WSM will run too cool if too little fuel is used for the amount of meat being cooked. Especially during the early stages of cooking, the meat will absorb a lot of heat energy, causing the cooker temp to drop significantly." So maybe you just don't have enough lit coals going early on.

Cold meat absorbs heat energy. And so does cold water. So maybe try hot water in the pan. Or a dry pan. Or more lit coals at the beginning. Or add more coals after a bit -- which should be lit rather unlit.

The other problem is that you are probably overly concerned with flying ash. You probably don't need to do a vigorous stir. A gentler tap or poke to the coals while leaving the door open is probably enough. Or tap the legs a little.

I've also heard various theories about the best way to poke/tap/stir. I think some say you get less ash on the food if you do it with while the lid is off? Or is it the opposite -- with the lid on and the top vent closed? Or something else?

Last, you can always do the hot squat before stirring. Takes care of the flying ash problem, but introduces other issues. I hot squat occasionally. The garage door handles make that easier. And no pan/dry pan is preferred over full pan.

But lump is def less ashy than KB. And it burns quicker. So some folks do a 50/50 mix of lump and KB. Lumps burns hot earlier on and the KB burns in the later stages of a very long cook.

You'll figure it out!

www.virtualweberbullet.com

Temperature Control Problems: Too Hot, Too Cool - The Virtual Weber Bullet

How to solve temperature control problems when your Weber Smokey Mountain Cooker runs too hot or too cool. Lots of useful tips to get temps back on track!
www.virtualweberbullet.com www.virtualweberbullet.com
 
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I agree that you must pack lump charcoal very tightly, fit small pieces in the crevices and jiggle the charcoal bowl so everything settles. In order to stir the charcoal mid cook I have a long metal skewer which I insert through the bottom vent, enabling me to gently shake the coals.
 
My routine is at the 4 hr mark to close the lid vent and tap the legs vigorously to shake down the ash. I use KBB and don’t get an ash plume. You’ll find what works for you.
 
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