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Jeepster & DigiQ - Round II

Decided I'd recovered enough for round two with the DigiQ ... this time the patient is a pork butt.

Started out following the installation pictures that @TheShaytoon provided in the previous thread: http://eggheadforum.com/discussion/1174416/jeepster-digiq-up-in-flames

This time the adapter installation was very tight:

image

Lit the lump and let it go for about eight minutes; installed the plate setter, Woo and grate; installed the DigiQ and programed it for 200 degrees.  When it hit 200 and stalled, I bumped it to 225, and then finally to 250.  By this time the lump had been burning for about 45 minutes and the smoke was clear, so I put the pork butt on the grate.  Temps dropped - as expected - and then overshot and leveled out at about 270 with the DigiQ programed for 250 ... what the hell, not this again. 

The DigiQ vent had been set at half open and the SW cap was about 3/8" open.  So, DigiQ vent was throttled down to one-quarter open, the SW cap down to 1/8", and I stuffed the gap at the back of the door with a piece of paper towel.  The temp came down and settled right at 250 degrees ... even the dome temp is now reading 250 degrees.

Looks like the DigiQ and I are now friends.  My takeaways are:

1) There is an air gap at the rear of the bottom vent door that has to be addressed.  That gap is probably why I have to have the door almost closed to get below 350 degrees.

2) Looks like throttling the top vent down such that the fire would go out if the DigiQ wasn't working is the way to go.  Creating some back pressure and making the DigiQ work to get air in the egg is the way to go.  I'd tell @nolaegghead he was right on that point, but then he'd just get a swollen head.

Washington, IL  >  Queen Creek, AZ ... Two large eggs and an adopted Mini Max

Comments

  • The DigiQ vent had been set at half open and the SW cap was about 3/8" open.  So, DigiQ vent was throttled down to one-quarter open, the SW cap down to 1/8", and I stuffed the gap at the back of the door with a piece of paper towel.  The temp came down and settled right at 250 degrees ... even the dome temp is now reading 250 degrees

    I am usually at 1/4 on the DigiQ and 1/8" on the SW.  And remember that not all eggs have the same air tightness, due to the gasket.

    Maybe I should have said this before, this thing is not going to be perfect, it is after-all an organic reaction that it is trying to control.  The DigiQ helps keep things in a range.  You are going to drive yourself CRAZY if you try to keep a constant dome temperature.  Half an hour a little too hot, or half an hour with the temp a little low will not affect a L&S cook.

    I think once you have confidence in the process, you will get what I am trying to say.  

    I have a very hard time engaging in passive relaxation. Twitter.Instagram.
    Dallas, TX

  • Jeepster47
    Jeepster47 Posts: 3,827
    @TheShaytoon ... thanks for the feedback on your settings ... looks like your egg and mine require the same settings.

    I'm comfortable with the idea of getting the temp close and not chase small deviations.  But, what in your experience, is a reasonable range to expect around the 250 target temp?



    Washington, IL  >  Queen Creek, AZ ... Two large eggs and an adopted Mini Max

  • With a base of 250, it sometimes goes up to almost 300, but comes back down.  I suspect that once you inject oxygen into the egg, sometimes a chunk of wood ignites, or some of the lighter fluid that is still in the egg ignites creating some extra heat...temp goes up.

    I honestly set the digi Q for less than my target, so if I want a 250, I am at 230 on the digiQ.  The other factor is that I am starting to get away from the 225-250 and going a little hotter, 275ish.  I get better results.



    I have a very hard time engaging in passive relaxation. Twitter.Instagram.
    Dallas, TX

  • Carolina Q
    Carolina Q Posts: 14,831
    Why did you go with the 200/225/250 increments? I light the fire, put all the parts and wood chunks in, install the digiq (set for 250°) and then close the dome. I have had the internal fan opening set at 1/3 open since day one (about 4 years ago) and it hasn't been touched. The dfmt petals are about half open, though the guru folks told me it really didn't matter. 

    I always clip the pit temp sending sensor to the dome thermo probe. They rarely read the same, but are within a few degrees of each other and rarely vary much from the temp I requested.


    I hate it when I go to the kitchen for food and all I find are ingredients!                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

    Michael 
    Central Connecticut 

  • Jeepster47
    Jeepster47 Posts: 3,827

    Why did you go with the 200/225/250 increments? I light the fire, put all the parts and wood chunks in, install the digiq (set for 250°) and then close the dome. I have had the internal fan opening set at 1/3 open since day one (about 4 years ago) and it hasn't been touched. The dfmt petals are about half open, though the guru folks told me it really didn't matter. 

    I always clip the pit temp sending sensor to the dome thermo probe. They rarely read the same, but are within a few degrees of each other and rarely vary much from the temp I requested.


    Give me a few more months and I'll be right there with you. Probably will do a double step next time and then a "set it and leave it" the time after that.  If you hit your settings on the first attempt four years ago, then help me with a powerball sequence. I've never been that lucky and have to learn in steps.

    Don't take my comments negatively, I think it's beneficial for folks who have been egging for a long time to make newbies aware of what the target process should be.  My contribution to the forum, hopefully, is a newbie view of the learning process ... some might call it "The village Idiot approach to BBQing", but I'm having fun and that's important.

    Having the pit probe on the grate (if it's protected by the plate setter) seems like a good way to tell how stable the egg temp has become.  This morning, they differed by about 30 degrees, but as the cook settled in, they approached and finally tracked each other.  But, since most recipes use dome temp as the cook temp, hooking the pit probe to the dome thermometer is probably smart.  Thanks for mentioning it.

    Washington, IL  >  Queen Creek, AZ ... Two large eggs and an adopted Mini Max

  • Carolina Q
    Carolina Q Posts: 14,831
    Jeepster, if you are egging without the crutch (digiq) going at it in increments is a good idea. Not so much increments as paying attention so the temp doesn't get away from you. WITH the crutch, that's not imortant. as long as you don't have some unidentified air leak, if you have the guru set at 250°, it can't go higher. Not enough airflow. 

    Here's a pic of how I route my temp probe cables. The PS leg is right next to the bracket that holds my egg mate. I run both probe wires behind that bracket so that they enter the egg just above the PS leg. One goes up into the dome where it clips to the temp probe. The other is inserted into the meat. Both are protected from direct heat by the PS leg. Pretend the DO is a pork butt. It was the best pic I had to illustrate. :) The Mate bracket seems to keep the cables exactly where I want them, even when opening and closing the dome.

    Anyway, hope this helps...
    image

    I hate it when I go to the kitchen for food and all I find are ingredients!                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

    Michael 
    Central Connecticut 

  • Jeepster47
    Jeepster47 Posts: 3,827
    ... WITH the crutch, that's not imortant. as long as you don't have some unidentified air leak, if you have the guru set at 250°, it can't go higher. Not enough airflow. 


    Went back and looked at my first thread on the DigiQ going up in flames.  I see you didn't post there, so assume you didn't see it.  A runaway temp was the problem the first time I used the DigiQ ...  the "crutch" helped warm the egg up to 250, shut off, and then the temp kept right on going up. Folks pointed out a sloppy installation of the adapter, which I corrected this time.

    Still had some temp overshoot issues this time, even with the step-by-step approach.  But, was able to catch the overshoot early and keep the temp low enough to get on with the cook ... without having to pull the DigiQ like last time. 

    Have you had any problems damaging your probe leads via pinching when they are routed through the rear of the egg?  I have a nest handler on the way.  Planned on using it as a support for a small DigiQ/Maverick holder since I don't have egg mates nor a table.  Thought about bringing the leads in through the rear hing area - where I align the plate setter leg.  But, the concern is that if the hinge is slightly out of alignment, then the rear of he egg can act like pliers and pinch the temp probe leads.

    Washington, IL  >  Queen Creek, AZ ... Two large eggs and an adopted Mini Max

  • Carolina Q
    Carolina Q Posts: 14,831
    I saw your earlier thread. You had a ton of air getting in around the lower vent. If you had temp overshoot issues  after fixing that, then you still have unidentified air leaks. Regardless, the step by step approach isn't going to keep the temp under control. The fire can't get hotter than the oxygen supply will allow. If you have too much air, the temp is going to get too high.

    I haven't had any problem with probe wires. They have been routed as shown since day one. I have no alignment issues. 

    I hate it when I go to the kitchen for food and all I find are ingredients!                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

    Michael 
    Central Connecticut 

  • dstearn
    dstearn Posts: 1,702
    Decided I'd recovered enough for round two with the DigiQ ... this time the patient is a pork butt.

    Started out following the installation pictures that @TheShaytoon provided in the previous thread: http://eggheadforum.com/discussion/1174416/jeepster-digiq-up-in-flames

    This time the adapter installation was very tight:

    image

    Lit the lump and let it go for about eight minutes; installed the plate setter, Woo and grate; installed the DigiQ and programed it for 200 degrees.  When it hit 200 and stalled, I bumped it to 225, and then finally to 250.  By this time the lump had been burning for about 45 minutes and the smoke was clear, so I put the pork butt on the grate.  Temps dropped - as expected - and then overshot and leveled out at about 270 with the DigiQ programed for 250 ... what the hell, not this again. 

    The DigiQ vent had been set at half open and the SW cap was about 3/8" open.  So, DigiQ vent was throttled down to one-quarter open, the SW cap down to 1/8", and I stuffed the gap at the back of the door with a piece of paper towel.  The temp came down and settled right at 250 degrees ... even the dome temp is now reading 250 degrees.

    Looks like the DigiQ and I are now friends.  My takeaways are:

    1) There is an air gap at the rear of the bottom vent door that has to be addressed.  That gap is probably why I have to have the door almost closed to get below 350 degrees.

    2) Looks like throttling the top vent down such that the fire would go out if the DigiQ wasn't working is the way to go.  Creating some back pressure and making the DigiQ work to get air in the egg is the way to go.  I'd tell @nolaegghead he was right on that point, but then he'd just get a swollen head.
    I was having problems with keeping my temp steady when I first used the DigiQ. I called BBQ Guru support and they suggested that I install the pit viper and DFMT or SW cap  no longer than 4 minutes after lighting the lump. I use the BGE starter cubes. Ever since then my temps have been spot on. Last weekend I let the lump go to long and the temp spiked up but eventually settled back down. 
  • I am also new to the DigiQ II and I have installed it right off the bat set my temp, put my electric lighter in and shut the dome.  I have had good success with lighting the egg this way and getting to temp a little quicker than i normally would with leaving the dome and bottom vent open.  The fan runs continually providing a little bit of a quicker startup.  When I think the coals are sustainable I just pull the electric lighter and let the DigiQ II get to whatever setpoint is input.  
    Large BGE
    BBQ Guru DigiQ II

    Martensville, Saskatchewan Canada
  • henapple
    henapple Posts: 16,025
    You should be able to see your air leaks from the smoke. To keep 225 I pretty much close the dw. Holds true all night. Also, make sure your bge thermo is on.
    Green egg, dead animal and alcohol. The "Boro".. TN 
  • nolaegghead
    nolaegghead Posts: 42,102
    I didn't read all this stuff, but if you close you daisy wheel all the way, the system will pretty much  hit any set point below 275, round about, depending on your gasket.  If you want to cook at 300, 400, etc, you need to open the top and bottom vents to allow enough air flow to get, with the fan off, somewhere below your setpoint.


    ______________________________________________
    I love lamp..
  • r8rs4lf
    r8rs4lf Posts: 317
    I set the top ventware cap on MBGE all the way closed when I use my Guru. Just let the Guru do all the work.

    I have some air leakage problems at my lower vent door as well, but the Guru always settles in on the temp I set.

    I think you may be over thinking it too much. Just set it and forget it. Especially with pork butt. 250*, 260*, 270*, really it's not that serious.

    For a 250* setting I use one starter cube. I don't use a torch. Light it with ventware cap off, let the fire set in, add wood if needed, put cap back on all the way closed then add the rig and Guru. Let the smoke clear and wait for 250* to settle. Rarely does it over shoot the 250*. If it does, it makes it's way down eventually.

    Stop over thinking it. There's plenty of leakage. It's not air tight!! The Guru is smart enough to compensate for that leakage.
  • Jeepster47
    Jeepster47 Posts: 3,827
    Although I've been known to over think things, this list hiccup was hands-off.  Help me understand what happened.

    The guru and the egg had been settled in for about eight hours ... nothing was changed ... nothing was moved ... no onset of rain, snow, fog.  I was playing on the computer while noting that the Maverick pit temp hadn't changed more than the +/- 5 degrees that it had maintained all afternoon.  So, I visited the egg just to check on the meat temp.  What I found was the guru reading 250 and pumping air into the egg at about the 50% rate.  The dome temp was 310 and going up.  Shut the guru off and closed the bottom vent while the dome temp coasted to 335.

    Both the guru and the Maverick pit probes were next to each other in the front left side of the grate (as you look at the egg) and they both were reading 250.  Quickly changed out my dome thermometer with a back up ... nope, it too read 335.  Returned the BGE dome thermometer to the egg and clipped the guru probe to it. The guru quickly started reading the same 335 degrees.  Installed the meat probe in the Maverick and placed it in the egg next to the pit probe ... yep, they both read the same temp.  So, all instruments are/were reading correctly.

    Took about an hour to get the temp down to 270 ... no sense trying to push it down to 250.  Used the Maverick to check the temps over each of the three legs on the plate setter.  The front two legs read about 230 degrees and the back leg reads 250 degrees.

    The only thing that could have changed is the pile of lump or direction the fire was moving in the lump ... yes?  If that's so, then how do you guard against it happening again ... I caught it at an 85 degree shift, but it was headed higher.  Right now I'm thinking that Carolina Q has the right idea of clipping the guru probe to the dome temp probe so that it is unaffected by where the fire is located under the plate setter.

    Washington, IL  >  Queen Creek, AZ ... Two large eggs and an adopted Mini Max

  • r8rs4lf
    r8rs4lf Posts: 317
    I always clip the temp probe to the egg thermo.
  • minniemoh
    minniemoh Posts: 2,145
    In my experience, (I had a pork butt on last night too), if the fan is running more than ~35% the dome thermo reads much hotter than the grate temp and takes longer to equalize. I find that my dome and grate come very close to matching each other when I keep the draft and fan control in the 20-30% range, the temp holds very nicely. I seem to remember the instructions saying you should try to get the airflow set up so your fan runs in that 20-30% range.

    My dome temp was getting quite hot compared to the grid last night too and I've never had that issue before. I even switched to a different dome therm from another egg to verify. My fan was running over 40% most of the time and I think it was due to me not cleaning out my egg good enough when I started the cook. I think you will have it figured out when you get your air leak taken care of. 
    L x2, M, S, Mini and a Blackstone 36. She says I have enough now....
    eggAddict from MN!
  • Jeepster47
    Jeepster47 Posts: 3,827
    @minniemoh ... by stuffing paper towel in the rear of the bottom vent door, the leaks seemed to be reduced to an acceptable level.  As others have suggested, it looks like the next step is to clip the DigiQ pit probe to the end of the dome temp probe.  That should prevent a runaway.  Where do you position your pit probe?

    On an indirect cook, I've been placing the pit probes in the shadow of one of the plate setter legs.  My guess is that this afternoon, the lump burned such that some fell and the heat was deflected towards a slightly path such that the pit probe called for more heat.  The DigiQ did what it was asked to and turned the fan on much more than was necessary.

    Washington, IL  >  Queen Creek, AZ ... Two large eggs and an adopted Mini Max

  • minniemoh
    minniemoh Posts: 2,145
    I clip my pit probe to the grate (also over one of the platesetter legs). I really don't worry about what the dome thermo says and go by grate temp. I really only paid attention last night based on your previous thread. I have a lot of trust in my CyberQ but I did have some issues with it when I first got it. My issues were firmware related. Even when I don't use it, I use a Maverick and the dome and grid temps spend a good deal of time without matching up. 

    I have also found that if I drink a few more beers during the cook, I quit worrying about the temp variation and things have still turned out fine. 
    :D
    L x2, M, S, Mini and a Blackstone 36. She says I have enough now....
    eggAddict from MN!
  • Jeepster47
    Jeepster47 Posts: 3,827
    @minniemoh ... more beer will fix a lot of things.

    Washington, IL  >  Queen Creek, AZ ... Two large eggs and an adopted Mini Max

  • I normally take my BGE probe out and stick the digiQ probe into that hole. seems to work
    Large BGE
    BBQ Guru DigiQ II

    Martensville, Saskatchewan Canada
  • nolaegghead
    nolaegghead Posts: 42,102
    Your food is connected to the grate, not the dome thermometer.

    Ignore the dome thermometer if you're measuring grate temperature. 

    If you cover every square inch of space in your egg with thermometers, you're gonna see all kinds of gradients in there.  The temp at the top of the meat will be different than that at the bottom.  You will never get them all the same.

    If you really want to be horrified, put your maverick in your oven.  Move it around.  You will never sleep again, yet, the damn things works - it cooks food.

    Temperature is not that important.
    ______________________________________________
    I love lamp..
  • r8rs4lf
    r8rs4lf Posts: 317
    I use to clip my probe to the grate, but found it was too much drama trying to get the meat and probe to share space. 
  • Just read through all the posts.
    I start my lump with my electric lighter. Once started, I close the lid install the DigiQ and set my temp for 250 on L&S cooks and clip the pit probe to my grate as far away from the meat as I can get it somewhere near the back over top of one of the platesetter legs. I might initially over shoot by 20-30 degrees but it settles in and my temps never vary by more than +or- 2 degrees. My gate oon the DigiQ is open halfway. I also have the smokeware cap and it is all but or is closed up. I let the fan push the air in.
    I love the DigiQ, I can sleep at night without having to babysit my cook.
    SE PA
    XL, Lg, Mini max and OKJ offset
  • Jeepster47
    Jeepster47 Posts: 3,827
    ... I love the DigiQ, I can sleep at night without having to babysit my cook.
    That's the reason I bought mine ... plain and simple.  Thought about using my Maverick as a hi/low warning alarm to wake me when problems occur, but just couldn't bring myself to do it.  If an alarm wakes me in the middle of the night, then I'm awake for the rest of the night.

    Several of you have chimed in with a process that is quite similar to what I finally stumbled upon.  The only loose end is where to place the pit probe.  Thermoworks had an interesting e-mail this morning ... they're my new best friend with an e-mail every other day.  Remember that they sell instruments and not a dome thermometer.

    http://www.thermoworks.com/blog/2014/06/dont-trust-dome-thermometer/?utm_source=Nl-2014Dec19&utm_medium=email&utm_term=Dome&utm_content=inbox&utm_campaign=Dec2014-BBQ-Christmas-cs

    Washington, IL  >  Queen Creek, AZ ... Two large eggs and an adopted Mini Max

  • to me it doesn't matter where you take your temp as long as you are consistent is using that spot all the time.  With the digiQ you also open your dome way less, I had a pork loin on yesterday for 12 hours and only opened the dome at the end of the cook.  I also put my probe where the BGE probe goes so I keep the temp similar to what I have been using for cooks since I bought the Egg.
    Large BGE
    BBQ Guru DigiQ II

    Martensville, Saskatchewan Canada
  • Jeepster47
    Jeepster47 Posts: 3,827
    @bigalsworth ... can't find any fault in what you've said ... although there are some locations that might be worse than others.  @TheShaytoon warned that from a base of 250, the temperature might swing upwards to almost 300, but will work it's way down ... I assumed he meant dome temp.  When mine went roaring past 300, it seemed like a good time to intervene.  The pit contained wood chips not lumps and was started with either electric or MAPP (can't remember which), so nothing was in the pit to cause that drastic of a change.

    The DigiQ comes with a clip that covers the end of the pit probe.  I'm guessing that it also dampens the sensitivity of the probe to temp swings.  Changing the pit probe clip to expose the tip and then positioning the probe a little higher off the grate might be the consistent spot/process that works in my egg.

    Washington, IL  >  Queen Creek, AZ ... Two large eggs and an adopted Mini Max

  • No doubt there are better or worse spots and every egg is different. Good luck with getting that digiQ to nail those temps, it sure is nice. Although now I am wishing I spent the extra $100 and got the cyber Q.
    Large BGE
    BBQ Guru DigiQ II

    Martensville, Saskatchewan Canada
  • Jeepster47
    Jeepster47 Posts: 3,827
    The blower, blower adapter, probes and power supply look like they would work with a cyber Q.  If that's true, it looks like one could buy the cyber Q controller separately and upgrade that way. 

    Washington, IL  >  Queen Creek, AZ ... Two large eggs and an adopted Mini Max

  • Maybe the next iteration of the cyberQ WiFi. I've barely had the digiQ a month
    Large BGE
    BBQ Guru DigiQ II

    Martensville, Saskatchewan Canada
  • Solson005
    Solson005 Posts: 1,911
    edited December 2014
    So I just skimmed over your first post and I think I have one idea that has not been mentioned. 

    You might be lighting too big of a fire, if you are wanting to go 225°-275° light a very very small fire and put the digiQ in and barely have the smokeware vent open. Let the digiQ do all of the work. Open the fan anywhere from ½ to all the way open and leave it that way for the rest of its life (the fan will only kick on when you need to bump up the temperature so when it is off you are not leaking any air or anything else) Mine was fully open for 3 ½ years until I made beef jerky and wanted it as low as possible so I dialed it to ½ and have kept it there since. 

    I have been using a DigiQ Dx2 w/ the pit viper fan for 4 years and have never had it more than 3° off the number I set (after I learned it is all about the type of fire you start) 1 tiny spot for anything under 275° and 2 or more spots the hotter you go. 

    I don't know why you would want to read dome temp, that is more a convenience thing for me when I do not use the digiQ. Grate temp and meat temp is what truly matters. 

    I hope this helps, I brought my digiQ to the eggfest this past year and let people play with it all day. Most were over analyzing it and felt much more comfortable after seeing it work at the eggfest. 
    Large & Small BGE, CGW Two-Tier Swing Rack for BOTH EGGS, Spider for the Wok, eggCARTen & and Cedar Pergola my Eggs call home in Edmond, OK.