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SnS - First Cook In Process - Help with Low Temps

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    SnS - First Cook In Process - Help with Low Temps

    Hey y'all,

    Sold my offset smoker last weekend and picked up a SnS for the kettle I bought a long time ago.

    This is my first time really smoking anything on the kettle so I'm going to list out what I did and hopefully someone can critique from there what might be attributing to my problems. I'm just over 6 hours in right now and am probably gonna switch to the oven next time the temp drops unless someone has some good in process suggestions.

    Around 9AM I put a dozen briquettes in one corner of the SnS, doused em with everclear, and lit em up.

    I went inside, unpackaged the pork butt (boneless unfortunately), seasoned it with memphis dust, tied it up so it held together a bit.

    About 20 min after initially starting the charcoal I filled up the rest of the SnS with more charcoal, and then put the meat on the kettle and added 1 quart of hot water.

    I'd left the lid off while I let the first 12 briquettes take. When I put the meat on they were maybe 3/4 caught.

    I haven't figured out a long term temp monitoring solution for my kettle yet as I really didn't cook much on it til now. At the start I'd had a thermoworks probe held about 1/4" below the grate held there with 2 loops I'd made from foil.

    I had the top vents 3/4 open and the bottom vents fully open. While monitoring this the temp sloooowly climbed until it hit about 180 and stalled out. Opening up the lid showed I had decent coals going so I moved the probe to the top of the grates and held it 1/2" off the grates using 2 foil balls. This gave me a reading of just over 200 so I let it sit 15 min to see what happened til the temp started to drop.

    Total elapsed time, maybe 1.5 hours or so.

    At that point I opened the lid, and blew on the charcoal til I had some decent coals going again. Lid back on and finally the temp starts climbing. At around 200 again I close the bottom vent to where it's maybe 1/4 open and the top vents 1/2 open and keep a closer eye on it this time.

    Over the next 15-20 min the temp climbed to 260ish then over about the next 2 hours the temp dropped to 220ish.

    Once I hit 220 I tried to open the vents a bit again but the temp just kept dropping and wanting to hover around 180.

    total elapsed time so far maybe 4 hours or so.

    At this point I probably spent an hour messing around with it but could not get it to stay over 225 for more than 5 min.

    I'd open the lid just a bit at the SnS side and blow air in. Every time I did this I could raise the temp maybe 5 degrees or so. Once I got to 250 again I'd try to adjust the vents differently to let it hold there but it'd just fall back below 210 within 5-10 min.

    I have cleaned the ash out, added charcoal (unlit), moved the coals with a stick so there's no excess ash, etc.

    Funny enough the last time it dropped below 210 I went and took the dog for a 15 min walk planning to put it in the oven when I got back, on my return it had gone back to 225 so I left it.

    Then I got on here and joined up to see what you guys thought. As of now it's at 237 so over the past 45 min the temp has actually stayed pretty good for me.

    I'm wondering if I just didn't start out poorly by not having the coals caught all the way? By the time they were 3/4 lit they were already shrinking rapidly so I didn't think having 12 fully lit coals that were 1/2 size was a very good option either...

    I know reading that it sounds like the lid's coming off quite a bit but with the exception of when I moved the thermometer I've just been cracking it for 5 seconds or so and keeping it directly over the kettle.

    Thermometer cables are run through the vents, not under the lid.

    I'm also using binder clips (6) to keep lid on tight.

    Thermometer probe is designed to be leave in for meat, not air temp (if if makes a difference?).

    I'm using HEB mesquite charcoal from the local store. Next time I go into town I will get some kingsford.

    Anyways, any advice would be appreciated.

    Cheers!

    Pic from just before I changed thermometer position.

    #2
    Welcome!!!

    Nothing gets going like KBB.

    I like to use B & B Hardwood briquettes for the longevity but they do take a bit to light.

    Do you have anything covering the exposed charcoal grate that is under the meat??
    Last edited by Jerod Broussard; January 14, 2017, 04:32 PM.

    Comment


    • TX_Diver
      TX_Diver commented
      Editing a comment
      Nothing under it covering the charcoal grate. Decent amount of liquid is dripping into the ash tray below the kettle. Next time will probably follow the advice from the website and put a pan of beans below or something.

    • Jerod Broussard
      Jerod Broussard commented
      Editing a comment
      TX_Diver it really helps to cover the whole thing. This helps divert most air coming in to the coals.

    • Lowjiber
      Lowjiber commented
      Editing a comment
      I'm pretty new to the Kettle/SnS combo too. Being from Las Vegas, I'll double-down on the advice to cover the lower grate completely, except where it is below the SnS.

    #3
    Welcome TX_Diver

    Comment


      #4
      TX_Diver Welcome! I found that if I wait until I'm around 225 to add the water, I do better. I once added the water to SnS about 150, and it took FOREVER to reach temp. Also, are you adding really hot water to the SnS? The colder the water, the more charcoal energy you're using getting it to temp. And remember, the SnS was tested with Kingsford. If I use Kingsford or Royal Oak, I have no problems.

      Comment


        #5
        Welcome to The Pit.

        I like to cover the part of the charcoal grate not covered by the SnS. Foil will do, but I had a piece of 20 ga. ss sheet cut in a circle to lay on the grate. I did cut off one side so as to not block the SnS. That way you get better air flow through the charcoal.

        Comment


        • Atalanta
          Atalanta commented
          Editing a comment
          Or get a DnG.

        • RonB
          RonB commented
          Editing a comment
          Atalanta - I agree, but then it's easy to spend another person's money. My goal is to get them smokin' cheaply and then let them decide how much they want to invest.

        #6
        TX_Diver Welcome to th' Pit!!!
        How'd dat pork turn out???
        Glad ya joined us here!
        Smoke on, Tex! I'll be right here learnin' with, an' from ya'!!!

        Comment


          #7
          Temp probe to close to the meat will give lower temp reading due to cold / cooler air around meat. 3" away at least works for me.

          Comment


            #8
            TX_Diver, I think Jerod Broussard gave "Sage Advice" on covering the Coal Grate opposite the S 'n S! He helped me with similar advice a couple of Years Ago! I first used Aluminum Foil, then I had My Furnace Man cut me a 20 Guage SS Baffle Plate, Finally AdrenalineBBQCo came out with the Drip 'n Griddle the Best of all so far IMHOP! You also should check on abcbarbecueco.com site for the Technique and Recipe Sections for the Weber Kettle Vent and Temp Settings! The attached Pic's are My Weber with the S 'n S, Drip 'n Griddle, BBQGURU DigiQ DX-2 Temp Control! I have smoked a variety of Meats on it fairly well?
            Eat Well and Prosper! From a Backyard Cremator in Fargo ND, Dan

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            Comment


              #9
              Hey all,

              Thanks for the tips. I plan to pick up some kingsford next time I go to the store and will use some foil to cover up the rest of the charcoal grate.

              I added water that was as hot as my sink would go but maybe next time I'll boil some and add it once I hit 200 or so.

              Cook turned out good, not as good as I was producing on my old offset but I'm pretty happy for a first cook.

              Will keep experimenting and posting up my results. Also, need to find a meat source in Houston that has bone in shoulders/butts! This boneless thing ain't gonna work!

              Cheers



              Comment


                #10
                That is beautiful pulled pork! I recommend getting a probe designed to measure the air temp. Foil on the exposed charcoal grate helps catch drippings making cleanup easier. We'd love to get an intro from you over in the Introduce Yourself channel when you get a minute. Thanks!

                Comment


                  #11
                  Good looking shoulder. Whenever I use a water pan (I don't have a SNS) I add boiling water to shorten the time to get up to,cooking temperature..

                  Comment


                    #12
                    Welcome from Indiana.

                    Comment


                      #13
                      Welcome from Nebraska!

                      Comment


                        #14
                        I hope this question is not offtopic for your cook. After finishing, closing vents and letting everything cool, what's the easiest way of removing the rest of water from the SnS? I assume it still has all the remaining charcoal in it - do you need to remove it first just to be able to pour the water out? Or you just leave it there till the next cook? What's the best practice here?

                        Comment


                          #15
                          Mine doesn't have the charcoal grate on the bottom so the next morning I went out and picked it up, all the charcoal remained in the kettle, then I just tossed the water out onto my lawn. Figured it'd be best to store dry.

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