Proper technique to add more coals to my Weber 26" Kettle?

[kars85]

I'm about 8 hours in on my whole brisket cook, and I'm curious what the guidelines are/best practices to add more briquettes. I had the meat on shortly after midnight, and the outside air temps have been dropping from 25F at the start, to now 17F. Thankfully it's a quiet day as far as wind goes in Central Iowa.

Notice at about 7:30 this morning, when I threw in about 20 more briquettes and refilled the SnS water reservoir, I had a 15-20 minute dip below 200F. I don't think that will impact the outcome, but I'm curious if there are any better methods that y'all use other than just mixing the new coals in with the old ones, and stirring them in.

Pics and a full run of the cook will follow later in a different thread

Thanks!

[Huskee]

Hold the lid over the meat best you can, flip the grate hinge up, stir/tunk the coals well to drop the ash down, push the coals over to one edge, and fill 'er back up with fresh coals. You could try lighting another 6 or 10 coals in a chimney first, then add them once you add the fresh coals to give a little temp boost. I don't do that though, I let it dip if it will because IMO it won't impact much if anything in the big picture. 5 minutes of 10-14hrs isn't much to fret about.


Oh, and welcome to The Pit! We'd love to get an intro from you over in the Introduce Yourself channel when you get a minute. https://pitmaster.amazingribs.com/fo...troductions-aa

[lschweig]

A hearty welcome from Illinois.

[kars85]

Hold the lid over the meat best you can, flip the grate hinge up, stir/tunk the coals well to drop the ash down, push the coals over to one edge, and fill 'er back up with fresh coals. You could try lighting another 6 or 10 coals in a chimney first, then add them once you add the fresh coals to give a little temp boost. I don't do that though, I let it dip if it will because IMO it won't impact much if anything in the big picture. 5 minutes of 10-14hrs isn't much to fret about.


Oh, and welcome to The Pit! We'd love to get an intro from you over in the Introduce Yourself channel when you get a minute. https://pitmaster.amazingribs.com/fo...troductions-aa

Thanks for the help! Unfortunately, I threw a hinge on my cooker. I work pretty quick when the lid is up, so I think my problem was two fold
a) not stirring the coals in (knocking the ash off the old coals and speeding up the lighting of the new coals)
b) adding really cold water that I had let set out overnight to the SnS reservoir

I posted up on the Intro forum, and also sent a message re: my PitMaster renewal

lschweig - thanks for the welcome! It's a brisk one in our next of the woods today!

[lschweig]

It sure is nippy today. I just got back from a deck appointment and my hands are freezing cold.

[Huskee]

Oh yeah always add hot water, boiling or close to it. Just watch for splatters and add it from the cooler end if possible. What I like to do is get tap water as hot as it'll get then microwave it (I happen to have a plastic pitcher that just fits in my microwave) about 4 or 5 minutes, then add it.

[PBCDad]

I thought it wasn't necessary to refill the water reservoir. Another option is to use an electric tea kettle, they are pretty cheap and fast.

[Thunder77]

I don't refill the water reservoir, unless it's a really long cook. A lot of times, I will be wrapping not long after the water runs out, so I don't worry about it.

[Huskee]

PBCDad Thunder77. It's not necessary. But it doesn't hurt either if you have a longer cook like a large brisket.

[kars85]

My reservoir was getting low, and my cook was taking way longer than I thought. I probably could have gotten away with not filling it before wrapping it in foil to power it through the stall.

[Danjohnston949]

kars85, I don't have a 26" Weber Kettle but I do Have 2 - 22 1/2" Kettles and a S 'n S in One a Vortex in the Other! In addition to the Weber Chimney Fire Starter I have a Weber Mini Fire Starter which I us Most of the Time to Light add Coals to the S 'n S! My Weber Performer Deluxe has a Propane igniter my Standard Weber Kettle has a S 'n S, a Drip & Griddle, and A BBQGURU DigiQ DigiQ Dx-2 Temp Control! I also use an Oil Change Pan to move
the Mini Starter from one Grill to the Other without spilling Hot Ash or Coals!
Eat Well and Prosper! From a Backyard Cremator in Fargo ND, Dan

[JeffJ]

In my experiences with long cooks on the 26 I have found no reason to refill the water reservoir. By the time it runs dry the meat is usually in stall and is sweating out creating plenty of humidity. As for adding coals....simply add them. As Huskee said, take a moment to knock down the ash to create better airflow. Only once did I partially light some of the coals to be added and that's when I allowed the fire to really expire to a point where I wasn't sure what remained was hot enough to get the fresh coals going. That is rare and it was due to a lack of attentiveness on my part (it sometimes happens when mixing beer with Q). This is what makes doing Q in the kettle equipped with the SnS so satisfying - adding coals is super easy.