Braten and split size

[das85]

Happy Sunday all, really appreciate everyone's help and encouragement so far as I have come up to speed on my new Braten..

I'm now trying to figure out consequences of different split sizes and how much to focus on this.

Engelbrecht suggests 16"x4" splits.. And when I got started buying bags of Kingsford splits from Home Depot, they were about that size and seemed to work well.

I then found a local wood supplier and got a first delivery:

The supplier warned me they are generally 5-6" not 4", but figured no big deal.. I'm now wondering if it is a big deal. They fit well enough but feel like I'm having a harder time with fire and temp management.

Am I right to think that clean fire + large splits = higher temp than I want? (I am still early stages of both reading and practicing fire management so please forgive if this is a really dumb q.)

Second q: if this is a big deal, then do people have favorite log splitters to recommend?

I think I saw Huskee recommend Kindling Cracker, and have seen other machines in videos..

​​​​​​​Thanks again everyone for bearing with me as I learn!

[bbqLuv]

I now have a Traeger and use Traeger pellets. Types of pellets make a difference. It is a learning journey.
Amazing Ribs is like a "map" for the journey. And when it comes to "stick burners" we get to follow along with other Grillers trek in the BBQ world.
Happy Grilling to you and PBR too.

[USMCCrashCrew89]

I would think this has more to do with:

1. The species of wood. If you pick up a split of hickory and a split of apple, the hickory feels like a brick versus the apple split. A higher density split is gonna burn hotter.

2. The splits you buy in a hardware store are likely kiln dried where the local guy is likely air dried. This is going to make an impact on how they behave in the cooker. Just an addition to the learning curve is all.

[Greygoose]

You can’t beat the kindling cracker for sizing your splits for your particular stick burner

[JCGrill]

The kindling cracker is outstanding, if your splits will fit. Which I believe they would.