Big Green Egg - EGGhead Forum - The Ultimate Cooking Experience...
The grilling community is known for coming together to provide help and support in times of need, and many families and communities have been devastated by the recent severe weather events across the country. Please visit these sites to learn more about how you can support relief efforts - operationbbqrelief.org and redcross.org.

ready to cook: the story of changing a gasket, and menu for today.

allitnilsallitnils Posts: 109
in EggHead Forum
Well I spent about 2 hours yesterday cleaning my bge and replacing the gasket.
"2 hours?" you ask..
yes..
2 hours..
And I'm rather proud of my achievements.
Considering this was the first time I've ever used a wrench (I had to go out to the hardware store and explain what I was doing so the guy could recommend the right tools to use), and sand paper (granted, I helped a friend paint his house once, so I have used sand paper before..)
Came home, pulled it apart, and cleaned out as much as I could from the old gasket.
So, got it as clean as I could, stuck the gasket in, let it sit, with its lid close, overnight.
I finished at around 4, and at 8am the following morning I filled it up with coals, and it's currently sitting just shy of 250, where it'll stay until the lump runs out.

So the menu for today:
Chicken breast marinated in thyme, garlic and lemon juice, served on steamed cauliflower and saffron puree, roasted pumpkin (which will also be going in the egg), and a balsamic and white wine reduction. 
For dessert, baked cheese: a wheel of double brie baked with slivered almonds, rum-soaked raisins and lemon zest, baked in the egg. I'm hoping the smoking of the egg isn't too harsh on the cheese and will add to the flavour.. 
Will make for a good experiment nonetheless. :D
More photos to come.
Flag • Off Topic Disagree Agree Like

Comments

  • bigphilbigphil Posts: 871
    Congrats on a great job. and dinner sounds great also what time will it be ready  :)  i need to replace mine as well just don't wanna be a day or two without my egg enjoying cooking on it now . Wife says its cause of the fear of withdraw without it that am putting it off 
    Large Big Green Egg , XL Big Green Egg . BBQ Guru, Weber Kettle, Weber Q grill for road trips.
    Flag • Off Topic Disagree Agree Like
  • allitnilsallitnils Posts: 109
    hehe, lunch, actually. It's almost 11am, so should start getting things ready! ;)
    Flag • Off Topic Disagree Agree Like
  • GadflyGadfly Posts: 91
    Is taking it apart for cleaning the dome absolutely necessary? I need to change the gasket but I am not in mode for removing the dome and putting it back on.
    Flag • Off Topic Disagree Agree Like
  • allitnilsallitnils Posts: 109
    Honestly, I don't imagine being able to change the gasket without removing the dome.
    I'm sure it's possible, as am sure there are people with more dexterity than what I possess, so won't officially comment. It's similarly (apparently) unnecessary to clean the egg completely after each cook, remove all the left over lump, remove the fire grate and clean it thoroughly, remove all accumulated ash, &c....
    But I do anyway. :P

    Truth be told, I kind of enjoyed pulling the whole thing apart, cleaning it and putting it back together.
    It fed my ocd proclivities for a few hours. :)

    Flag • Off Topic Disagree Agree Like
  • Elmer FuddElmer Fudd Posts: 50
    I recently replaced my gasket with a Rutland. It's thick enough that I only put it on the bottom so I didn't need to remove the dome.

    Elmer Fudd
    Minneapolis / St. Paul. Large & Mini
    Flag • Off Topic Disagree Agree Like
  • The Cen-Tex SmokerThe Cen-Tex Smoker Posts: 7,654
    Unless you have an XL it easier to change the gasket without taking the dome off. I never take mine off and I've changed plenty of gaskets.
    Flag • Off Topic Disagree Agree Like
  • djmsalemdjmsalem Posts: 15

    Today I replaced the bottom gasket on my large with a Cotronics woven gasket. I am sensationally unhandy and it still only took me only a little over an hour to scrape and sand the old gasket off and attach the Cotronics with the high-temp water-based cement they recommended.

    A couple of hours curing at 250 and I was cooking pizza again! It seems to be stuck on pretty tight.

    Not the kind of thing I want to do every weekend, but it turned out to be a lot easier than I thought it would be. And it was great that the gasket material is thick enough that I didn't need to replace the top portion, which is also completely fried.

    Flag • Off Topic Disagree Agree Like
  • bigphilbigphil Posts: 871
    what did they recommend ? 
    Large Big Green Egg , XL Big Green Egg . BBQ Guru, Weber Kettle, Weber Q grill for road trips.
    Flag • Off Topic Disagree Agree Like
  • allitnilsallitnils Posts: 109
    Hhm.. Well I have a large and I doubt I'd have been able to clean the old gasket off as thoroughly as I did with the lid in place. Again, that would mostly suggest my inability to efficiently use the tools at hand than anything else.. 
    In any case, the disassembling and reassembling of the egg took only a fraction of the time that cleaning/sticking/gluing/cutting my fingers with hundreds of tiny razor-sharp cuts took, and the YouTube instructional videos I've seen all had the lid off, so I didn't really question it..

    I suppose it also depends on the gasket you use - the Nomex one goes on the lid/base, whereas the rutland (and other thicker) gasket(s) apparently only goes on the base, so you can easily get to the back of it with the lid still there. (having said that, my limited physics experience would suggest that for a better seal, the gasket should be on the lid instead)..
    Flag • Off Topic Disagree Agree Like
Sign In or Register to comment.