Follow-up to 20-hour cook question

Q-Scoop

Everyone responded about keeping the Egg up to temperature overnight, but can you keep it at 220-250 for 14 hours without adding charcoal? If you have to add charcoal do you just dump it in or use a chimney? Catherine

Bobby-Q

Q-Scoop,
If you fill up to the top of the firebox and you can even go a little into the firering you can go for over 20 hours using BGE lump.

Unknown

For long cooks I fill nearly to the top of the fire ring just to make sure. After 22 hours (my longest cook), I had plenty of charcoal left,
Mike

Essex County

Q-Scoop,
I have never added charcoal during a cook and have done several that hit the 20 hour mark! The only times I've run short are when I've tried to do a steak or something that requires high heat on too little used lump. If it's low and slow you're after, it'll burn for a looong time.[p]paul

The Naked Whiz

<p />Q-Scoop,
Here is a photo of my Egg after cooking for 20 hours at 220 degrees. As you can see, there is a ton of lump left. If you start about 1/2 way up the fire ring that sits on top of the firebox, you won't run out if you use lump like BGE, Royal Oak, etc. Cowboy lump is much less dense and doesn't burn as long per equal VOLUME of charcoal.[p]TNW
[ul][li]Pulled Pork Web Page[/ul]

stike

Q-Scoop,[p]12 hours is easy.[p]once did a brisket AFTER pork butt without adding lump. the single cook was maybe 32 hours total.
days later, same lump, we did chicken. and a few days later steak after that as well.[p]for the original overnight cook i had filled to the top of the fire ring. that was one of my first overnight cooks, and i was afraid to run out of lump.[p]i don't fill it nearly that much anymore...

BBQBluesStringer

Whiz, quit spewing crap about Cowboy lump. I've burned almost 30 20-lbs bags of it through the egg and one firebox full will last 20 hours of low-n-slow. Sometimes more. I burn it in my insulated competition smoker all the time with similar results. Cowboy lump burns just fine in the real world. I have judged a lot of winners in barbecue compettions that burn Cowboy lump.

jake42

Q-Scoop,
Yes you can with no problem. Just make sure you have a full load of lump and light it close to the top. And if you use Wicked Good charcoal the Egg will burn at low temps for well over twenty hours.

fishlessman

Q-Scoop,
just make sure to fill it up for the cook and you wont run out. i typically fill to about 1 inch below the cooking grid for long cooks. using a quicker burning lump i actually had the pile above the fire ring with the grid balancing on it. you wont run out, but sometimes the ash will start to clog the air flow or the center of the lump wont catch the side pieces of lump. for this i have a coat hanger that i can shake the lower grate thru the vent, and slide it down to push lump back towards the center of the egg. i do this about8 - 10 hours into the cook. with a full load of wicked good you could low and slow for close to 40 hours without refilling.

EddieMac

I think one of the biggest mistakes people make - especially when learning to use the BGE is that they don't put enough lump in the firebox. I know I didn't and it took me three or four times to realize that (too many head injuries during the football career!! lol). These days I load my BGE up and cook with no problems.[p]I think it's interesting that so many Eggers recommend Wicked Good lump. I also like Wicked Good as well as it has many virtues. But I also regularly cook with the BGE Lump and find that it's also a high quality fuel that has worked well in every cooking stituation (long or short) that I've put it in. I would recommend to newbies that they get the hang of the BGE Lump before dealing with the Wicked Good.[p]Just My Opinion....[p]Ed McLean
Ft. Pierce, FL

Q-Scoop

Thanks to all for the good information. Catherine

Poppasam

Q-Scoop,I have gotten long cooks doing what most of the others have stated. I have also, after about ten hours, lifted the grate and platesetter out, stirred the lump, added more lump, and put everything back in. I then watch the temp for a short time to make sure it don't jump up and then get some shut eye.
A lot of folks are using the Guru to get extreme long burns.
Good Eggin' to you,
Poppasam