Just noticed a crack in my base

jls9595

I got a new dome under warranty about two months ago but I hadn't checked my base in a while. After putting my chicken on tonight I decided to take a good look at the bottom. Low and behold:

How long can I expect this to not be a problem?

DieselkW

If the dome was under warranty, I would get a new base before your warranty runs out.

It won't get better, it will only get worse.

SloppyJoe

No treble

tz666

Isn't warranty lifetime?

jls9595

Yeah it is, not worried about that and I will definitely go ahead and make a claim. I just wonder about using it in the meantime. How hot and often and such.

SoCalTim

DieselkW said:

If the dome was under warranty, I would get a new base before your warranty runs out.

It won't get better, it will only get worse.

Lifetime warranty on ceramics.

henapple

Is it on a deck?

Lit

That's a big ass crack. Normally they are hairline.

jls9595

henapple said:

Is it on a deck?

it is in a wood table on a concrete patio under a wooden pergola, so...

jls9595

I plan on cleaning it out and checking for more tomorrow, but likely just low temp cooks for a while.

NPHuskerFL

DieselkW said:

If the dome was under warranty, I would get a new base before your warranty runs out.

It won't get better, it will only get worse.

Warranty runs out :-??

jls9595

Lit said:

That's a big ass crack. Normally they are hairline.

it is? that is worrisome

DMW

I guess it's that time of year. Warranty rocks. Can you slide a metal pan or upside down garbage can lid underneath until you get it replaced?

NPHuskerFL

jls9595 said:

Lit said:

That's a big ass crack. Normally they are hairline.

it is? that is worrisome

Either way big or small it's under warranty. Take some more pics and start the process so you can get your new base asap.

jls9595

good idea @DMW, I can do that. would give me a little more piece of mind.

RickyBobby

Did you do high temp clean burns? .... just curious.

jls9595

RickyBobby said:

Did you do high temp clean burns? .... just curious.

Not at all until this past October I was doing a long burn but not wide open. Maintained 800* for an hour until I went to check it and the dome fell out onto the ground when I opened it. Warranty covered that. I know this crack was not there then because I checked it over really well. 

RickyBobby

I may be wrong and catch heat for saying this but I avoid the high heat clean burns with my XL. It sure does seem like the fellas doing them are more susceptible to cracked Eggs. I have owned my XL for roughly 2 yrs now and 650 is about the hottest I've cooked with it. I guess with the bullet proof warranty that BGE provides it's not a big deal but I just wouldn't want the hassle of having to swap things out.

Zmokin

Personally, I would hate to deal with an egg in operation that cracked open enough to spill out the burning lump.  If it was mine, I wouldn't use it at all and I would wait for my warranty replacement.
But that's just me, I prefer to be careful that way.

jls9595

@Zmokin I feel the same way, I might just go buy a fire extinguisher and keep using it though. I did put a metal garbage can lid under it as well. I definitely won't be doing and over night or high heat cook though.

matt121966

Let's us know how you did.

Can't imagine that getting bigger with hot coals spilling out.

But a new lower would be nice.

Zmokin

matt121966 said:

Let's us know how you did.

Can't imagine that getting bigger with hot coals spilling out.

But a new lower would be nice.

neither can I.
but I can see another crack forming, that then intersects that crack.
and then maybe you end up with a pie shaped wedge of bottom dropping out.
I don't know if it has happened before, I just know I can see it could possibly happen.

I'm a better safe than sorry kind of person.  I have the mandatory smoke alarms in my house. 
but then I also have 2 extra detectors, one smoke detector in my house tied into the burglar alarm and another heat sensor in the garage connected to the burglar alarm.
I then have 4 fire extinguishers around my house. One close to my kitchen in the hallway closet.
One in the laundry room. One in the garage. and the 4th out in a cabinet with my gasser.

don't get me wrong, I'm not paranoid of fire.  One time out in a rain drenched forest, I accidentally ended up with a wet fuel bottle on fire.  while my cohorts were panicking and yelling for me to throw the flaming gas bottle, I calmly but quickly screwed the top all of the way back on the bottle so no more gas would leak out before I tossed it on the ground and then I wiped the fire out that was on my hands.  I received no burns.

I enjoy a good campfire, but I have a healthy appreciation for what fire can do, especially left un-attended, and while cooking on my egg, I'm never sitting there watching it 100%.  so for me, an existing crack, especially down at the bottom as shown in the picture, is a show stopper.

I'm not trying to tell anyone what they should do, I'm only sharing what I would do.  So far we are a free society and you have the freedom to make your own choices in life.  Well, free to do the things the Feds haven't banned yet anyway.