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Weber Kettle design change - an issue?

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    Weber Kettle design change - an issue?

    Hi everyone

    I am the proud owner of a brand new Weber 22" kettle! This is my first charcoal grill. I have owned a gas grill for a year (Weber Genesis II) and while it is very convenient, I constantly struggled with the inability to get nuclear-hot searing temperatures. I am a big fan of my new kettle. No prior grilling experience.

    While I am happy so far with the kettle, I noticed that there appears to be a design change that I could not find discussed on the board. The bottom vent holes now are "P" shaped instead of "I" shaped. See photos. This means that when fully closed, there is still some airflow into the kettle. Every other photo I have seen of Weber kettle innards suggests that this is something new.

    What this means is that when I try to choke off the grill after cooking, it still smolders for a while. And if it's overheating, I can't fullystarve it of oxygen. Maybe this is not the worst thing in the world (though I may end up buying more charcoal as a result). But because I have never used a charcoal grill before, I'm not sure if this is a real problem.

    What do you all think? Big nothing? Valuable safety feature? Or grill heresy?



    Attached Files

    #2
    Hmmm ... I’ve only seen this on the Summit Charcoal Grill. It apparently is an intentional design feature for smoking temps on that grill. Maybe someone here knows.

    Comment


      #3
      Wow. Never knowed that. I don’t like it especially as a proud papa of 2. I wonder how that makes Mr. Bones feel.

      Comment


        #4
        I went on line atbWeber and there is a picture of the traditional slots on the Original, but when I viewed the Master Touch it showed the P shaped ones. There was not a photo of the vents for the Performer.

        Comment


          #5
          Thanks for the responses so far. For clarity, this is the "Original Kettle Premium" model.

          Comment


            #6
            Wow - I don’t like not being able to close all the way. I’ve got a 2007 Performer Deluxe and it has the i or slot shaped vent holes, which can be fully blocked. This feels like a design change for no reason on the part of Weber.

            as you said, it’s not the end of the world, but means you can’t fully shut things down. All you can do is close it as far as it goes, and fully shut the top.

            Comment


            • RonB
              RonB commented
              Editing a comment
              What a coincidence that Weber now sells charcoal...

            #7
            This is a really cool design they have borrowed from the WSCGC. The low smoke mode works really well on my WSCGC.

            It appears that your sweepers are not correctly installed. Not buy you, as they came that way from Weber. This "P" trap should close all the way. All you do at assy is install the ash catcher ring and pot and legs. These blades are numbered (stamped on the bottom) 1, 2 and 3. You can contact Weber and make them make it right, or possibly disassemble your sweeper assy, (not that hard) and reassemble it using some good instructions from Weber. Ill bet they got a blade mixed up or something and threw out the range of motion or something. In any case, it is suppose to close all the way. Then when you bump it to smoke mode, that is what you should see in your pic.

            Doing a youhoo search, I found a good video on the Premium 22" If ya look at the 3:40 mark, you can see the sweeper fully closed.

            Hope this helps man.

            https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cDyc...ndex=20&t=311s
            Last edited by lonnie mac; May 29, 2020, 06:34 PM.

            Comment


            • Troutman
              Troutman commented
              Editing a comment
              Excellent response, you have mis-aligned sweeps. They can be adjusted.

            #8
            Thanks everyone! I will let you know that this will be the second service call to Weber on this grill. It shipped without the leg pieces, amazingly. Their customer service has been great, but seems like all is not well at their assembly plant.

            Comment


              #9
              I got a Weber 22 last year with the P shaped vents and the grates can close them completely. Shuts off quickly.

              Comment


              • Mr. Bones
                Mr. Bones commented
                Editing a comment
                As they oughtta...

              #10
              HouseHomey

              Lookin at th vent openin, I can see where this would certainly allow some easier fine control to air intake regulation, especially to a first time user, but as many said above; not closin fully is definitely a DealBreaker thang, to me...

              I hope Weber can git it sorted out fer ya, an congrats on th new kettle, Brother!

              Th lil ash wipers, as they come, have a 1,2, an a 3 stamped on em, an have a specific order to install em...mebbe they was jus put on, outta sequence???
              Last edited by Mr. Bones; May 29, 2020, 09:04 PM.

              Comment


                #11
                I have an old Kettle (20+ years), and the one-touch handle can be assembled in 2 different directions.
                Is that true for your Kettle? Can you re-install the handle from the opposite direction and solve the problem?

                Comment


                  #12
                  It is an assembly error at the factory. On another forum Weber answered that the vents should close Just call them and they will tell you what to do.

                  Comment


                    #13
                    I like the new design (P shaped), as it gives you more precision when regulating air flow via the bottom vent. But: is it strictly needed? Not really. And like others have said, it should close. Contact Weber.

                    Comment


                      #14
                      Guys, thanks so much for all the help and recommendations! I'll let you know what they say. Also I'll see if the vanes are assembled out of order. SmokingPat the handle appears to be in the correct orientation so that does not appear to be the issue (thanks lonnie mac for posting that video).

                      I'm less than a month in to charcoal grilling and I gotta say it is just excellent. High heat searing on the kettle (with the SnS) is a thing of beauty.

                      Also I will point out that this is basically the most helpful internet forum I've ever been on!
                      Last edited by pinot59; May 30, 2020, 05:15 AM. Reason: Added @ handles

                      Comment


                        #15
                        FWIW, I can get 700°+ searing temps on my gasser with Grill Grates, flipped over for maximum Maillard. In fact, that's one of my big uses for that gasser is high temp searing. I also have GG for the SnS for the WSCGC and for my 22" kettle They work great too.

                        Kathryn

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