WSM Coals burning out


 
M

Matt Gillham

New member
Hi,

I'm a newbie. I've been loving the awesome recipes and detailed instructions in this community. My issue is that I'm not getting nearly the cook times or temperatures others seem to get. I'm using Kingsford Competition charcoal. With all vents wide open I'm not getting hotter than 225 and the coals don't last more than an hour above 180F. From a different discussion here, I read about a similar problem that was assisted by leaving the door open for 10 minutes, however I'm worried about loosing smoke.

I always start with a clean ash bin, I measure the temp at the top vent, I've seen this for the past several months in ambient temps from 35F- 80F.

Any idea why this could be happening?

thanks,

matt
 
I will have to go along the lines of Larry. There is something other than a small tweek that is not right. Is the top vent open? How long are the coals burning before adding to the smoker?

Some more info about the set up should lead to an answer.
 
Plz don't take this wrong but ... well ... just from the description ... it sounds like you forgot to add unlit coals.

Are you following the directions as shown here - The Minion Method

Don't worry about the smoke for now, let's get the fire buring right first. You can always toss in wood later.
 
if you have all vents open (top and bottom)......you should be able to attain high temps with a chimney full of just about any kind of lit CC........of course they will burn out quickly with everything wide open.

maybe the CC you're using is defective/wet or something like that
 
Matt, I have found with my new WSM that the thermometer has been less than accurate. Measuring with a probe at the top vent and grate as well I got a 70 degree(higher) difference at some times. I followed some cooking charts on this site and the meat progressed just fine for the time frame. I'm planning to further test both therm and probe, but if you have a faulty therm with all vents open you'll cook through your fuel.
 
Thanks all.

Walter- I've had many different readings as well. I got a digital thermocouple measured around 200f and kept the the analog thermometer that was the closest. I've also measured water with it as it came to a boil to check it and it seems fine.

I've used the minion method as well as just lit a chimney of CC and tossed it in when flames were coming up through the top coals. It seems if I wait until the top coals are gray around the edges the bottom coals are spent.

I've used the Minion method for ribs and used 1 lit chimney and 1 unlit, but for smoking boneless chix breast I read a chimney should keep it hot enough for an hour or so...

The top vent is open.
The chimney went for about 20min before adding them to the smoker.

I got a bunch of this Kingsford Comp coal in one batch but I don't think it's bad b/c it burns well with the door open or on a different grill.

Maybe I'll try letting the coals go for a while with the door open before I close them up next time.
 
It sounds like you might need more coal. That's a mistake I made when I started with the WSM. Even short cooks need a full ring.
 
Matt - I always load the smoker full with coal. I mean I freaking fill up the charcoal ring, then put my lit on top of the unlit, evenly spread. I do that even if all I am doing is cooking some chicken. I'll use the coals that don't burn and the last thing I want to do is to run out of coals. I've done the thing before with a chimney of unlit then a chimney of lit and that does burn out pretty quickly - although not as quickly as you are describing.

I tend to agree with Lou - load UP the coal ring,do the Minion thing and see if you don't get some better results.

Good luck!

Pat
 
Are you using water in your pan? If so try the clay saucer mod or none at all. I use this all the time with a minion start and do not have an issue. Vince
 
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