Newbie, few questions before I purchase?

jmy2469 · July 2015

New here, from Florida, so I like to cook outside pretty much all year long. Have always owned gas grills, last 2 being from Charbroil, a 3 burner RED and SRG,both which have pretty much rusted away in less than 2 years. Time for me to purchase something which not only cooks better,but that is also going to last. What are some must have accessories for a newbie? Why did you purchase the size BGE that you have? Most of the time there are only 3 people here that I do cook for, but on occasion, I have a bunch of people here. I am thinking a large or xl. Thanks for the info. John.

johnkitchens · July 2015

Hey John. I started with a large for my family of 4. I added a second large last year because when we have a lot of family over I needed more cooking space.

I would get a Thermapen or at least a Thermapop. I would alse get a platesetter for low and slows. I added a Maverick for low and slows because if you are like me you want to know what the egg is doing without having to be right beside it.

You are going to have a blast! We are here to help, and we like pics!

jmy2469 · July 2015

Thermapen, I already have, one of the best things that I have purchased! Low and slow is what I will be doing a lot ,could never do that on a gasser. I'll grab a Maverick also. Thanks for the quick reply!

Greedygoat · July 2015

I started with a Large and sold it after a few months because I had XL envy. Where in FL do you live?

mtbguy · July 2015

I live in Florida. Get a pizza stone,platesetter, pizza peel and a woo. ( ceramicgrillstore.com) I have a large and mini max.

jmy2469 · July 2015

I am in Palm Harbor

jimithing · July 2015

I'd go with the XL. It'll use a little more fuel but it's nice to have all that real estate to play with.

Are you thinking about getting a package? Most of the places around here sell a package that includes a grate gripper, ash scraper and plate setter. I'd call those necessities rather than accessories.

I dunno if you consider it an accessory but the best thing I've done is make a table so I have plenty of room for food going on or coming off and plenty of storage.

In terms of true accessories I'd say the Smokeware chimney cap. I was a little perturbed that the egg had a cast iron cap that started rusting after 3 or 4 cooks. Just doesn't make sense to me on a $1000+ grill. The Smokeware has been great.

ar15203 · July 2015

I would consider the CGS woo ring and adjustable fire rig. If you get two stones then you have so many options.

jmy2469 · July 2015

I'll look into packages.

Greedygoat · July 2015

jmy2469 said:

I am in Palm Harbor

Cool, only reason I asked is I did a lot of research before buying my XL and I found that Wassi's Meat Market in Melbourne had the best prices on eggs in the state. I saved over $300 by making the 4 hour round trip there.

As far as accessories go, I went with the Woo and Adjustable Rig from the CGS instead of the platesetter. I wish I hadn't bought a Maverick, I tried programming it before my first overnight cook and didn't have the patience to figure it out so I put it back in the box and haven't opened it since.

Sonny3 · July 2015

@jmy2469 I recently purchased an XL and Med. I also cook for crowds hence the XL. Actually my wife bought me the XL for my birthday. I bought the Med for the times I am cooking for just the two of us. I just took delivery and am having to make some table adjustments so I have not fired them up yet. From learning about things on here, I purchased the Thermapen and Maverick ET733. Bought a plate setter for the XL with the package. I live just up the cost in Titusville and bought mine from the Pinch A Penny up here. I think their prices are pretty good from what I read. The XL was $899 and the Med was $569. Good luck in your search and Welcome.

avibug · July 2015

I have an XL. Agree with the above suggestion about getting a set-up from Ceramic Grill Store -- I have an adjustable rig and a woo, and if I had bought that at the outside I would have skipped the platesetter. I also recently got a Kick Ash Basket and really like it.

aukerns08 · July 2015

I went with the Large, at the time it was just the wife and I and we would have parties that warranted the size, plus we had plans to expand the family so it seemed to be the best option. I ended up getting a Mini for a second Egg because the Large wasn't needed for cooking for just the two of us on the majority of cooks. If I add another Egg to the line up it will be either another Large or a Medium, I don't see a need for the XL for my needs.

All of these suggestions posted are good accessories to have but for me the only 2 must have that I couldn't do without would be my Woo and plate setter (you could go with the Adjustable Rig and pizza stone instead and get a little more flexibility, pretty much the same thing though). Those 2 items really allow me to expand what I can do on the Egg allowing me to go raised direct/indirect getting the grid up to the felt line. I cook probably 90% of the time at the felt line. The best way to figure out what accessories you will need is to find an Eggfest that you can attend and walk around talking to the cooks to see what they're using to cook the things you're most interested in. That's how I discovered a lot of accessories I didn't even know were around, just seeing what they brought with them and how they used it was better than people telling me I needed X or Y.

SoCalTim · July 2015

jmy2469 ...first two purchases should be welding gloves and a thermometer. These are basic first purchases to get you and your family eating right away.

Greedygoat · July 2015

+1 on the kick ash basket.

sctdg · July 2015

Whats nice about large compared to XL is amount of charcoal used and how fast it will come to temp . I live alone and have a large .It serves me fine even when girlfriend is here .I also have an Acorn which if I need it works well and does overage just about as good as Egg . If you are doing a low and slow like a Brisket you would still need something else for the other food you are going to cook . I would suggest that whatever size you get make sure you buy some kind of deflector ,Platesetter ,and Woo from ceramic grill store are a good combo. Smokeware cap and Kickash basket are almost a must have,in my opinion . Check out a temp controller like Flame Boss,Digiq or a cheaper choice (but still works) Auber control ,no frills . Last but not least a good quality thermometer,don't cheap out on that,if you do you will not be happy. .

MeTed · July 2015

Make plans to buy a lot more aluminum foil and paper towels, along with beer! Good luck!

lousubcap · July 2015

I would go slow with the accessories out of the gate. That said , here's a link to the ceramic grill store after-market rigs that are of top quality: http://www.ceramicgrillstore.com The site can be overwhelming with info so give Tom a call if you have questions. Another link worth checking out is here- http://www.nakedwhiz.com/ceramic.htm Odds are any ceramic question has an answer in there somewhere. Recipe section is good as well.
Enjoy wherever you land.

jmy2469 · July 2015

Thanks for the links! I'll check them out.

Doc_Eggerton · July 2015

Sonny3 said:

@jmy2469 I recently purchased an XL and Med. I also cook for crowds hence the XL. Actually my wife bought me the XL for my birthday. I bought the Med for the times I am cooking for just the two of us. I just took delivery and am having to make some table adjustments so I have not fired them up yet. From learning about things on here, I purchased the Thermapen and Maverick ET733. Bought a plate setter for the XL with the package. I live just up the cost in Titusville and bought mine from the Pinch A Penny up here. I think their prices are pretty good from what I read. The XL was $899 and the Med was $569. Good luck

Did that include the nest and wings?

Newbie, few questions before I purchase?

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