The last few (3) cooks in the PBC have me battling high temps (340) on the cooking grate. This happening regardless of weather conditions. I've tried blocking rebar holes with foil, closed the vent considerably and clipped the top down with clips. I still run high. Vent is probably close to 7/8 closed.lighting procedure includes 30_40 briqs in the starter, burn them for 10-15 minutes, add them to the cooker for 10 more minutes before adding the food. I'm using thermoQ therms. Any suggestions, observations and or corrections will be appreciated. You guys are the best around for quick accurate advice.
-
-
340°? Hope ya' were cookin' chicken!
-
How many cooks have you done on the PBC total? I found that the first few cooks ran hot till some funk built up inside the barrel and dulled the walls and under the lid to help seal it up and slow leaks.
How long does temp stay that high? Does it eventually settle in to a lower temp?
Comment
-
after taking all the measures I described, the temp gradually dropped to 225. So I started reversing the previous steps by taking all aluminum off rebar holes, Also opened the vent a bit as I thought it was just too closed. Temp began to rise. I'm trying to get to a steady 275 -
A total of at least a dozen cooks with ribs being 3/4 of the cooks and spatchcocked chicken being the rest.
-
I've had my PBC run hot for a while quite a bit during cooks and usually I just let it ride and do it's thing and all my cooks have come out w/ my family's approval.Comment
-
I had some similar issues early on as well. I live in the Piedmont of North Carolina (low elevation), and have noticed that being a little shorter with your coal sequence will help. I use the charcoal basket, 40 briquettes taken out of an entirely full PBC coal pan, and let the roar in the basket just until they are all charred slightly (typically only 6-8 minutes). I'll put them on the coals in the PBC and usually only leave them open to air for another 6-8 minutes. Personally I never let it go beyond 10 minutes; every time I've done that it's turned into an inferno that's tough to get down.
It's mentioned in the sticky "light my fire," but the peak temp usually predicts what it will settle out at. I generally shoot for just shy of 400 for a peak temp; that will settle into the high 200s or low 300's, but with some airflow restriction you can drop that to 225 if you want. For me in my environment, the abbreviated coal sequence helps with that. Below shows two 5.5 pound pork shoulders cooked very nicely using that method. After lighting, sat right around 240 pretty much all day. Took about 8 hours. Could have gone with a higher temp probably, but it was the first try so I was gonna go by the book.
Comment
-
Try placing weight on the lid. Clips will not always help seal the lid to the barrel. Sometimes you need more....... I put a 50 Lb. dumb-bell on my friend's PBC for the first few cooks. Worked like a charm. Now that baby seals up great!Comment
-
Or an extra bag of charcoal.Comment
Comment