First Burn 22" Weber Kettle & SnS

[Lowjiber]

A week ago I didn't even have a Kettle and had never heard of a Slow 'n Sear. Yesterday, I ran the first burn (empty) of both.

A nice, clear 75 deg day with only a slight breeze told me it was a good time to see if I could control these two monsters in the 225-250 deg range. I followed the advice in the SnS instructions and on this forum. Within forty minutes (1350 hrs), I had the SnS full of water and charcoal with the exhaust vent at 1/2 and the intake vents at 1/8th. I had two small lid-leaks across from each other that were quickly contained using the clip-tips that members shared last week.

Below is a chart of the times, lid temps (dial gauge) and grate temps (Thermoworks Smoke).

To say I was impressed is an understatement. I wanted to run the test for four hrs, as I mostly intend to cook a couple of racks of ribs and other "quicker" cooks on the grill. Compared to my first run with my WSM, this rig is like having a auto-thermostat... temps held well with only minor adjustments throughout the test (described on the chart).

Finishing up at 1800 hrs, the SnS still had about 40% of the coals unlit and the water "pan" remained about 1/3 full. Nice.

I'm really impressed with the whole rig. The SnS preformed flawlessly and the grill adjustments were minor, making the entire test stay almost effortlessly within my intended temp range.

(This is my first attempt at posting pictures, so I hope I have them in some sort of logical order. We'll see.)

[Danjohnston949]

Lowjiber, Thanks for your Kettle S 'n S Burn Data! Todate I haven't been able to Log the Temps! I didn't realize that the ThermoWorks Smoke is a Data Logger? I have a FireBoard being delivered this coming week and I intend to duplicate your experiment as best I can! I have one question, How often did you shake the Ashes Down!
Eat Well and Prosper! From a Backyard Cremator in Fargo ND, Dan

[David Parrish]

@lLowjiber looks like you've got your kettle all figured out! One thing. That's a 22" kettle. There isn't a SnS for the 18" kettle at this time.

[Lowjiber]

David, of course you are right. I have an 18" WSM and am just too stupid to remember the size of my own kettle. LOL

BTW: I know a bit about stainless steel. You guys have quality product there. Thanks!

[David Parrish]

Thank you Sir! I changed the title of the thread to reflect 22 instead of 18. Good to go!

[Lowjiber]

Lowjiber, Thanks for your Kettle S 'n S Burn Data! Todate I haven't been able to Log the Temps! I didn't realize that the ThermoWorks Smoke is a Data Logger? I have a FireBoard being delivered this coming week and I intend to duplicate your experiment as best I can! I have one question, How often did you shake the Ashes Down!
Eat Well and Prosper! From a Backyard Cremator in Fargo ND, Dan

The Smoke isn't really a data-logger. It does keep track of the high & low temps for each channel. I simply recorded the data every fifteen minutes on an Excel Spreadsheet and posted a screen-snip when I was done.

I did not shake the ashes down at all. I likely could have in the last hour of the test, as the temp started to vary a bit. However, I just wanted a little practice at minute adjustments of the air and decided to only do one-thing-at-a-time for such a short (4 hr) run.

BTW: I spent the fifteen minute intervals between readings carefully reading Meathead's great book.

[Danjohnston949]

Lowjiber, David Parrish, I usually try to Shake the Ashes down every 1 1/2 - 2 Hrs when I am actually Cooking! I use a BBQGURU DigiQ Dx2 Temp Control! It seems the temps stay in the Proper Range if I do!
From a Backyard Cremator in Fargo ND, Dan

[Huskee]

I have the same red tongs! Those babies are THE rib tongs!

[David Parrish]

The Smoke thermometer isn't a data logger right now, but when the gateway comes out that connects Smoke to your phone via local network that's likely to change.

[Danjohnston949]

David Parrish, Dave thanks for the info on the Smoke by ThermoWorks! I will try to Post Something meaningful on the FireBoard when I recieve it! 45* and Sunny In the Promised Land Right Now Upper 50's Promised! Dan

[PappaTbone]

I recently purchased the SNS for my 22.5" Weber Performer. My first cook was a rack of baby back ribs and a pork butt, 3-2-1 method. Second long cook was a slab of pork belly. They were fantastic! I have also reverse seared ribeyes and sirloin steaks. I am thoroughly impressed and thank Amazing Ribs for recommending the SNS!

[JeffJ]

That looks great! I am using my SnS in my Performer as I am typing this (2 - 4 pound butts).

[fuzzydaddy]

PappaTbone Gorgeous cooks! Congrats!