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WSCG Owners....

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    WSCG Owners....

    Anyone using a billows controller from T-Works yet?

    #2
    I have both the Smoke and Fireboard and use the FB 99% of time so probably going with the Pit Viper. Following.

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      #3
      I added the Signals unit b/c I wanted more probe capacity.......never really paid attention to the billows, but saw today that it's only $60 to add it so im considering it. Had a great, uneventful overnight cook this weekend and kind of enjoyed the uninterrupted sleep...so maybe adding a controller to achieve that more regularly isn't all bad!

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        #4
        No...but I keep threatening to pick one up...along with the Signals thermometer...
        It's just a little hard to justify as I currently own 2 ThermaQ units AND a ThermaQ WiFi. O_o

        Now...if they made one that uses the K type probes that I already own...I would have purchased it yesterday.

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          #5
          If I had the Signals, I would probably try their Billows fan. I just don't like the way it mates to the grill for use with my Performer however. I've got a Party Q right now, along with a BBQGuru fan adapter that I close with a kill plug when not using the fan. With the Billows, it needs to mate up against the flat (or curve I supposed) of the body of your kettle body, so you would just need to drill an open hole, preferably one you can find a kill plug to close when not in use.

          For the PBC, a WSM or one of the old kettles that had vents setup like the WSM, the Billows fan would fit perfectly with no drilling required. For the PBC I think you would want an adapter plate to replace the intake vent. Not sure what the fan hole on the Summit looks like, so cannot comment on that cooker.

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            #6
            well I guess I'll blaze this trail. gonna be a while before I can use it, but I'll report back when I can.

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            • surfdog
              surfdog commented
              Editing a comment
              Looking forward to your review.

            #7
            It’s windy and rainy....perfect day to test her out!
            Attached Files

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              #8
              I’m curious how it goes. I have the FireBoard with the pit viper and it works really well.

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                #9
                Alright - Those of you that own the WSCG know that the cooker does a pretty good job of holding temps on it's own and those temps are also very easily adjusted. I've never had an issue getting pretty much the exact temperature I wanted. However, wind and rain will cause fluctuation and temp drops (and rises if the rain stops and I've adjusted)...as it would in about any cooker. Im glad that my test run yesterday was in poor conditions...gives me a lot of confidence for down the road.

                So while I dont really "need" the controller, and while I definitely wont use it on every (or maybe even most) cooks, I do like the idea of sleeping through the night when the time comes....I swear every brisket cook I've done has involved rain and a temp drop - usually at about 3am. and in sketchy weather cooking, especially in winter, the control this provides definitely has value.

                The fan performed perfectly. On long, uninterrupted runs the temps settled within 3 degrees of my desired temperature. Towards the end of my cook I played with raising the temps and they went right up within just a couple minutes of me changing the setting (from the comfort of my basement couch with beer in hand!). After start up I thought the smoke was as perfectly thin as it normally is.

                One thing I may do differently next time, and it's not a big deal at all, is bring the grill up to temp with the vents as I normally would before I engage the fan. For this cook I engaged the fan immediately and the temps overshot my target (target was 225, temps shot to 280). Again, not a big deal and the temps came down after the fire settled in.

                All in all things went well. This is a useful tool to have in the arsenal. The cooker is so good on it's own out of the box, but this is a nice supplement.
                Last edited by xaugievike; February 18, 2020, 10:46 AM.

                Comment


                • Razor
                  Razor commented
                  Editing a comment
                  I use my billows on my WSM. It will sometimes go slightly above the set point once I get things started, but not like that. Once it is set it is set. Make sure you close down your top vents some. I've been running mine ~ 50% in 20-30º temps. Two totally different cookers, but I think the top vent is the key irregardless.

                • xaugievike
                  xaugievike commented
                  Editing a comment
                  I found that I was able to keep my usual top vent setting. that was nice, I didnt have to fuss much and the controller kept it riding right along.

                • CaptainMike
                  CaptainMike commented
                  Editing a comment
                  Thanks for the report, I was looking forward to your comments.

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