Help with Gasket - we are dorks

oggiedog

Ok...we are dorks...yesterday was our first day with the Egg. I have been eying it for 10 years. FINALLY bought it....SOOOOO exciting. But let the hubby and friend (no offense guys) light it and heat it up to 350 degrees. after what seemed like forever, we went out to check the temp and found it was 650 degress!! they were looking at C and not F!!! and No, there was NO alchohol involved...hard to believe. Unfortunately, they thought they were "burping" the egg and opened it too far. The flash was HUGE and almost killed our friend...he lived, but the gasket didnt....it was FRIED. We managed to get through ribs and chicken with amazing results but the gasket was STICKY and horrible.

Today I went to the dealer who said new gaskets are special orders and I cannot get one for 2 weeks. Called 50 miles around and it seems my BBQ weekend is over. I am sad.

So we turned our attention to getting the gasket off. The dealer had no idea what to tell us. how to remove it or clean it or prepare it for another one.

THe new DVD is a sales pitch and not very educational especially for the gasket changing......

Can you guys help a newbie????

thanks.....the dorks from CALIFORNIA

Buckethead

Don't be so hard on yourself. Save the Dork stuff for 2-3 years and do it all over again. Try this nakedwhiz.com. Best site you can find out about most everything you need to know to Egg.
Doug

low tech redneck

If you can hold temps. don't worry about it,you should be able to cook anything from 250 and up no problem. The only problem you might have,and this is not a given, is smothering the fire when you are done.All you will be out is a little lump.I wouldn't worry about cleaning the old one up til you are ready to replace it.If you call Atlanta Monday they will shoot one right out to you and it won't take any two weeks,ask for the Nomex,it's a far better product.I think mine was $17
At least now you can go ahead and do high temp. cooks w
ithout worrying about the gasket. :cheer:

FlaPoolman

Not dorks just new. Scrape the old gasket off with a putty knife and wire brush. for the new gasket see if you can get the nomex but both come with self stick. Others have used a 3M adhesive in addition. When done do the dollar bill test to make sure base and dome are adjusted right.

Semolina Pilchard

LOL, that is what I call initiation by fire. Is your husband the one driving 43 miles per hour on the interstate all the while thinking he is doing the speed limit? LOL. I can not help with info on how to change it, but be thankful the dealer had no gaskets. Call the mothership in Atlanta and get the new nomex gasket, they stand up to the heat much better.

Mike in Abita

Scrape off as much as you can and then fire up the egg. Light er up and bury the thermometer and it should burn off the rest of the residual gasket.

Unless the hubby is forgetful then a gasket is typically not necessary. Other then allowing for a great seal for low and slow cooking and snuffing out the fire after you are finished cooking, the only other thing a gasket is good for is cushioning the lid from contacting the base too hard.
Some on here actually have eggs that seal so well that they heave never replaced their burnt up gasket.

If it were me I would keep on cooking until I could get a new one.

gdenby

Ahh, you make me feel good. I burnt up my gasket 2 times in a row. At least the dome was not glued down.

Removing a ruined gasket is no big deal. I'd suggest buying a propane torch and a putty knife (the propane can later be used with a weed burner nozzle for a wonderful fast start). Heat the remaining gasket. When it bubbles, scrape away the damaged gasket with the putty knife, moving along just behind the flame. Give it a few minutes to cool, and scrape a razor edge over the rims to remove any left over adhesive. Apply new gasket, and wait a day.

Spaceman Spiff

Or you can try soaking the gasket for a minute with Goof-Off or acetone and then lifting it off.

For ease of the top gasket removal/replacement, remove the top, turn it upside down and place it in the bottom half of the egg.

Spacey

egginator

Try http://www.nakedwhiz.com/gasket/gasket.htm

02Roush2

I'm laughing with you and not at you! I had the very same experience on my second cook. Between the sonic boom sound that came out of the BGE and my blood curdling yell my wife thought I had killed myself out on the deck! Try what the others said. For me it was a royal pain in the tail getting all of the old gasket/adhesive off.... Best of luck and remember...it will get better with time and additional cooks!

Hitch

Gaskets are pretty much overrated. Some like them and swear by them, but that is mainly because they use them. I haven't had a gasket on my Egg for over 100 cooks easy. My dome is in line and I am quite sure that is the only real concern for temp control. I do slow and low all the time. In fact, I am about to pull off 2 butts that have been on for 18 hours. Oh yeah, still no gasket on my egg.

Get cookin!!!