Tempurature questions..


 
B

Brad Greer

TVWBB Super Fan
Hello all. Sorry for the rambling post...
I am trying to understand the fine art of temperature control. Please correct me if I am wrong.
From what I have read on the forum it seems that if the minion method is used, the amount of unlit coals does not affect the temp as much as the overall burn time and the amount that are lit has a more direct impact on the temperature. Along with other factors such as outside temp, amount of meat etc...is that right?

For example - A long cook at low temp=a full ring of bricks and a smaller amount of lit coals (depending on meat amount and weather conditions.)
A short cook at high temp=less unlit bricks and a much higher amount of lit coals.

Also, does anyone have an opinion on sealing the unit with gaskets etc?(the idea being to have an easier time with temp control)
Thanks for your input.

Brad

22.5WSM
 
You are correct. For LNS, the amount if unlit doesn't play a role in temp. The amount of lit added dictates how fast you will get up to temp. Keep in mind the faster you get there, the harder it is to slow down. This is based on running with no water. For me, it's 15 lit

For high heat smoking I would still fire it up the same way. Only difference would be that u would let it get to higher temps before shutting vents

For high heat roasting, then I would use a full lit chimney added to an amount of unlit needed for the time of cook
 
Hi Brad. I have used Nomex on two smokers. The first one was out of round and I did it out of necessity. I liked it so much I did the second one too. I have made several mods to my 18.5 ranging from a charcoal basket to the gaskets to a second dome vent. The gaskets do give absolute control. When you shut it down it's down. You save fuel and if you use a heat sink other than water such as a saucer you can quickly react to temp spikes.
 
Gary,
Do you just use the bottom of a clay flower pot as the heat cink? How does this help when reacting to temp spikes?
thanks,
 
Brad yes a lot of us are using the clay saucer or the bottom clay dish if you will for the flower pot. Mine came from HD up here they are about $14.00 I use the 14" all by itself. I shimmed the bottom of the 4 grill straps by placing 2, 1/4" washers behind each grill strap. It makes for a little tighter fit. When I use water I have a Brinkman pan they have a wide lip. Some people put the saucer in the dry pan. Each to their own preference. The saucer will heat up more quickly than a pan of water and go beyond 212 the boiling point. When that happens it can be hard to get the temps back down but with gaskets if and when that happens I just shut down the bottom vents completely and partially close the upper vent. I mentioned I have two vents in the dome. I have deliberately buried the needle on the therm to sear a roast and then shut down to go back to a lower temp. I have dropped 50 degrees in 15 minutes. I attribute that to the gaskets. I can cook like an ordinary oven using my smoker if I choose to.
 
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