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  • GoDuke
    replied
    Did some overnight butts last night. Thought everything was settled in nicely around 230 without the blower hooked up and I went to bed. unbeknownst to me, it was slowing creeping up and at 3am, fireboard alarm went off as the temp was going above 250. It them precedeed to take off a bit and head above 250. Spent the next 2 hrs futzing with it and the drive blower to try and get it to stablize back around 230. Ultimately what seemed to do the trick was 1) to fill the drip trays with water to provide a heat sink, 2) close all the vents until the temp came back down to the 190's 3) then hook up the blower, set the fireboard 10 degrees below the target temp, then when it overshot, set the target temp for the true target temp.

    In retrospect, I should have just set up the drive blower before bed, but I was enjoying what I thought was a pretty stable cook. Still learning!

    The real fun was setting off the house alarm when I went outside to check the temp and forgot to disable it.

    edit: cook is still going but had a few minutes free to post
    Attached Files
    Last edited by GoDuke; November 28, 2021, 09:39 AM.

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  • Bbqmikeg
    commented on 's reply
    I put my used Kingsford charcoal in a plastic grocery sack and give it a twist then leave it in my Summit the next morning. My thinking is that it helps keep the ambient moisture out.

  • Andrrr
    replied
    I generally put the ash sweep just left of the smoke setting and adjust top vents from there. It helped me out a lot to use the same setting every time for the bottom vent so I only had one vent to tinker with and learn how to hit my 225-275 temps. I’ll add that I’m generally cooking no less than 250.
    Glad you’re enjoying it and I’ve found myself liking the same features you listed. That top vent can get things hot really quickly!
    Last edited by Andrrr; November 8, 2021, 10:15 PM. Reason: SP

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  • fzxdoc
    replied
    GoDuke , I don't use lump at all in the SnS, preferring the predictability of briquettes. You don't waste much charcoal with the SnS.

    Go to this topic to read about using lump in the SnS (which many people do). And take a look at ecowper 's pork chop cook over on the Show Us What You're Cooking (SUWYC) topic where he dumps Fogo lump on top of some coals used for a previous cook.

    HTH,
    Kathryn

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  • GoDuke
    replied
    Originally posted by fzxdoc View Post
    I use the SnapJet all the time for starting the fire in kamado mode. I have a Low Profile SnS which I use when in kettle mode.
    Hey Doc, when not in Kamado mode, what fuel do you generally run in your SnS? Do you use Briq's or lump? Charcoal cooking used to be a once in a while thing for me when I wanted to smoke, but I'm trying to do it more on a daily basis now that I have the summit. I struggle with the wasting charcoal and wanting to reuse it. Not just from a $ perspective but also to minimize general waste. Seems like briquettes don't do very well with reusing - was wondering if lump would be better for that. Or for the price difference if it's just better to dump the leftover briqs and start fresh each time.

    The lazy part of me just wants to be able to leave a load of coal in the basket, shut the damper and then just refire it next time. But that may be a bit too lazy to be realistic

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  • fzxdoc
    commented on 's reply
    I'm glad to hear that my post helped you enjoy your WSCGC even more, GoDuke . Have fun with that cooker. It's a beaut!

    HawkerXP ,

    Kathryn

  • GoDuke
    commented on 's reply
    Thanks Doc for the great tips! I need to try and source some B&B. The white smoke from the KBB stinks up the house as I have my grill near the back door and under and eave. I think I found some about a 30 minute drive away, so I'll try and get some.

    Good to know about the snapjet for the Kamado mode, I assumed it would light too many and run hot. I'm still learning the cooker so this is all fun

  • HawkerXP
    commented on 's reply
    I'm guessing you have used the WSCGC a couple of times..?

  • fzxdoc
    replied
    I use the top vent mostly on my WSCGC to control the heat. Just a slight adjustment will make a difference.

    I don't cook at 225°, preferring 250° to 275° for most cooks besides poultry, which gets the 350° treatment. I set the lower vent just above (to the right of) the smoker setting and the top vent at about 1/3 for most of my cooks.

    I use the SnapJet all the time for starting the fire in kamado mode. I have a Low Profile SnS which I use when in kettle mode.


    FWIW, here's some info about WSCGC kamado mode lighting that works great for me:


    My WSCGC Kamado Method for Smoking

    Note: 1 scoop full = 40 coals or ½ chimney

    1. Foil the Ash Bucket and the Diffuser Plate. Wipe the (previously cleaned) grate down with a disinfectant wipe and then wipe down again with water. Set out two disposable aluminum pans for drip pans to be set on the diffuser plate.

    2. Use 2.5 scoops for short cooks like ribs or chicken and 4 scoops for long cooks like pork butt, chuck or brisket. Four scoops will give you about 10-12 hours of decent temps (250° or more). Spread them pretty evenly on the charcoal grate. Top with 5-6 chunks of wood (4 to 6 oz each). Don't put a wood chunk directly over the igniter. 5 to 6 chunks will give you about 5 hours of beautiful blue smoke. For short cooks, use 1 chunk of wood. (Reminder: 1 Weber scoop holds about 40 coals, about half a chimney.)

    3. Start the SnapJet ignition going. Let it run for exactly 5 minutes with the lid open and bottom vent fully open.

    4. After the 5 minute ignition, turn off the SnapJet igniter. Add the diffuser plate, two aluminum drip pans and the food grate. Attach the ambient probes to the grate. Close the lid, flip down the top vent but leave the holes fully open (bottom vent still fully open) and watch the temperature climb.

    5. When you're about 70 degrees from your goal temperature, close the bottom vent to the smoke setting (or just below if your WSCGC runs hot) and close the top vent to 1/2 or less, again, depending on your Weber. I like to have the lower vent just above the smoker setting and the top vent at 1/3 to ride out the cook.

    6. Before adding meat, oil the grate with a soaked paper towel to give it some lubrication.


    More Notes:

    If using KBB, there's a ton of white smoke until the Weber gets around 225-250, then it settles out to white wispy/blue smoke for several hours. If the smoke is pure white (no grey), I'll put the cold meat on at 180°F grate level temp so it can get a jump on the smoke flavor. I feel (but don't know for sure) that adding that cold mass helps to keep the temperatures from running away. I've done it both ways--adding the meat early at 180°F and adding it at 225°F, and honestly, if I keep an eye on the temp, I've yet to have a runaway smoker.

    With B&B Briquettes, there's no billowing white smoke. Just nice smoke pretty much right after shutting off the SnapJet. I use 3 scoops of B&B and one scoop of KBB, because the KBB lights more quickly. I place the KBB briquettes closer to the SnapJet side and spread the B&B briquettes around it. Ditto with Weber Briquettes.

    Smoking in the 250-270 range: A 4-scoop-load of coals (Kingsford Original) lasts about 8-9 hours at that setting. I set the lower vent to just above (to the right of) the smoker setting and the upper vent to 1/3 open.

    For cooking at or below 250, I close the lower vent to just below the smoker setting (to the left of it) and set the upper vent to 1/4 open. At 250 or less, I can get about 10-12 hours of smoke out of a single 4-scoop-load of Kingsford Original coals.


    Kathryn
    Last edited by fzxdoc; November 7, 2021, 07:34 AM.

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  • GoDuke
    started a topic Impressions

    Impressions

    So, setting aside all the stuff in the other thread (still in progress), I figured I'd post some of my positive impressions of the WSGC/S6:
    • First, having a cart is very nice. I know it would have been cheaper to get a separate cart, but it's nice to have it all attached in one solution
    • Snapjet is nice when you just want to light it and not deal with the chimney, fire starters, etc. Mine has been a bit unreliable but will keep an eye on it
    • STABLE! - I know it's been discussed but this thing really is stable and holds temps. I have a Fireboard Drive and a Pit Viper fan, but I did my first cook as an overnight pork butt and it was pretty dead solid between 230-240 the whole time. When I compared that to my pellet pooper (RT-700), the Summit was much more stable than the RecTeq. Both were definitely in the right range, but the Summit varied a lot less - I'm guessing that's just due to how the two types of grills operate.
    • SILENT! - After using my RecTeq for a few years, I guess I became accustomed to Q being accompanied by the sound of a pretty loud fan. It's so nice now to sit outside and not hear the cooker running. Just smell the smoke and hear the sound of silence!
    • Space - having the extra real estate of the 24" Grate is really nice. you just don't really need to worry about real estate but yet it's efficient enough that you're not burning much/any extra fuel.
    • Top Vent - it's nice to have the rapid-fire damper to fire the grill up and to heat it up for searing. The turning part is still a little loose so it'll hopefully tighten up with a few more cooks. The hinged part though gets stuck and I have to hit the underside with the back of my tongs to get it to flip up.

    Haven't had a chance to cook much else on it so far. Did a quartered chicken one night with the vortex - that didn't come out great but that was operator error - for some reason I can never really seem to time and cook chicken properly. Something's alway goes a bit wrong when I try. Did some reverse seared pork chops and grilled butternut squash that came out pretty good.

    Next week I'm doing a full packer for guests and I'm debating between the pellet and the WSCG... Leaning towards the Summit.

    Question - do you all control with the top or bottom vents? or a mix of both? I did my pork butt with the top about 1/5 open and the bottom vent just below the smoke setting to try and get it down to 225.
    Last edited by GoDuke; November 6, 2021, 02:43 PM.

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