Deal fell into our lap. Transitioning from a Weber Kettle... help?

I am a kettle veteran. The egg is much easier to control temps and it doesn't dry out your food. Water baths are not needed in the egg. The screen over the lower vent will arrest the Sparks so that's not a problem. Pull the trigger. Many people on this forum (myself included) expressed regrets to not buying an egg sooner than they did.

The hazard to a deck would be minimal. I have both an older BGE w. no vent screen, and a newer one with it. I use them both about as much, and I see sparks from the bottom of the old one so rarely I don't recall the last one I saw. I don't have a deck. Mine stand on flagstones next to my garden. There's almost always some dry leaves and weeds around them, and have never even had those kindle. I've never had ash fly from mine. Sometimes when I light using a weed burner, the lump will pop, and some tiny sparks fly out. I've been hit w. a few, and though they bite, and I'm glad I'm wearing glasses, never had even a little blister. The tables I've seen that were scorched didn't have adequate protection at the bottom of the Egg. A few had no paver, and others had pavers, but no spacers to let the air flow under the Egg and cool it. W. a nest, there is no problem like that. FWIW, its perfectly easy to have different cooking temps w. an Egg. W. a 2 tier grill set-up, just put a few firebricks, or even a half cake pan on one side. The direct area will be 2 - 4 times hotter.

I too transitioned from a Weber Kettle.  I haven't used the Weber once since.  I agree with an earlier post that the Weber is dollar for dollar the best cooker out there but the Egg is just a superior grill with so many more options.  I have the XL so I can split the firebox similar to how you would on the Weber.  All in all I am 110% happy and haven't looked back.  The egg is a great cooker but I would not get totally rid of the Weber, never know when you may need additional grid space or different temp, etc.

Focker said:

The biggest challenge will be going from a 22" cooking grid, to 18.  And the all-or-none setup constraints of the egg.

I cooked for years on a 22" Weber.  I used the briquette holders and hinged grate for indirect cooks, which takes away a lot of that real estate.  +1 on keeping the Weber if you have the space.  I gave mine away when I got the egg, but I feel like my roasted chickens on the Weber were better than mine are on the egg.  However, I have no idea what temp I cooked at on the Weber, so that may be the reason.

I just bought a new Large BGE last Saturday and fired her up for the first time last night. I have exclusively used a 22.5" Weber Kettle up until now and was amazed at how easily it was to dial it in to 350 degrees my first time. I was easily able to hold it to +/- 10 degrees, although the last hour it did spike to over 400 somehow. I love to smoke butts, ribs, turkeys, and chickens so it is going to be nice not having to dedicate an entire day to tending to the Weber.

I still plan on using my kettle regularly though. The extra cooking area will be handy at big cookouts, I often take it camping with me, and I have an awesome Craycort cast iron grate for it which is just now getting that good naturally seasoned coating on it.

Cookinbob said:

Focker said:

The biggest challenge will be going from a 22" cooking grid, to 18.  And the all-or-none setup constraints of the egg.

I cooked for years on a 22" Weber.  I used the briquette holders and hinged grate for indirect cooks, which takes away a lot of that real estate.  +1 on keeping the Weber if you have the space.  I gave mine away when I got the egg, but I feel like my roasted chickens on the Weber were better than mine are on the egg.  However, I have no idea what temp I cooked at on the Weber, so that may be the reason.

The briquette holders do take away some space, but not a lot particularly if you're only using one at a time which suffices for many indirect cooks, but if you need every square inch of the 22.5 grid there's nothing stopping you from setting the kettle up indirect the same way it's done in an egg, with either a setter or some other type of barrier between a pile of charcoal placed in the center of the kettle & the grid(s) above.  I've never found it necessary to do this as the kettle set up indirect is still more spacious than a LBGE.  A standard kettle is only an inch and a half shy of the XL grid space.

Congrats, you'll be more than happy with it. Today I made skillet cornbread and cherry cobbler in mine.

JenniferEgger said:

Oh, and my hubby proclaims that it's ugly...

Frankly, I agree with him. Funky lookin'. But that's okay, it cooks a mean, umm, whatever.