To Burn or Not To Burn

ray356 · February 2010

I have had my LBGE for maybe eight months and cooked many very good meals with it. I did my pre-purchase research using this site, along with others, and have continued to lurk here learning something new each time I log on - a BIG THANK YOU to all here. Anyway finally to my question - I have read here about cleaning the egg by doing a high temp burn and was wondering is that necessary? Does everyone do this from time to time, or just keep cooking? I also am afraid of toasting the gasket, which has held up great to this point.

Thanks in advance for any information.

Spring Chicken · February 2010

I sometimes finish off a high-temp cook by letting it burn @ 750° or higher until it uses up the lump. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't.

There is a gradual accumulation of soot on the inside of the dome. Sometimes the soot will flake off and land on or in whatever you are cooking. So I try to keep that to a minimum. One way is to ball up some HD foil and rub it around inside the dome. It seems to knock off most of the loose soot.

Personally, I don't see a big reason for a 'clean burn' but I do it, mostly to clean the grid or get rid of some old lump.

I'm sure others will share their thoughts.

Spring "Clean Enough For The Chicken Ranch" Chicken
Spring Texas USA

Grilling Away in ? · February 2010

It is not necessary to do a high temp burn to "clean" an egg. It will take care of itself when you get it up to high temps for steaks and sears and etc. You may want to let the high temp cook go a few extra minutes every now and then if you do a lot of low to medium temp cooks of fatty meats but it is not really necessary.

field hand · February 2010

Agree with the above comments. Most of our cooking is below 400*. When we do cook steaks at higher temps, we let it go for a few minutes after we pull them, also put the daisy wheel inside to clean it while we let the temp go up. Worked ok so for. JMHO.

Barry
Marthasville, MO

gdenby · February 2010

If I've done a bunch of lo-n-slos in a row, I often notice flakes of creosote clumping around the top vent. Also, I may do a string of rather greasy cooks, and the inside of the Egg gets a rather, ahem, distinct aroma. So when I have about 1/3 of a load of lump left, I just open the bottom wide and take the daisy off. After cool down, there is just some soot to scrape off.

I did damage a gasket from cleaning, but not the way I expected. The inside edges had become rather gunked up, and I shaved a lot of that off. Within the next month, everywhere I had shaved, the gasket began to burn. Turns out the crusty stuff was protecting the felt, and keeping the hot gasses from getting thru.

Billy Grill Eggster · February 2010

Welcome,

Hi-temp burn is not necessary.

AZRP · February 2010

I don't do it, at least not on purpose. -RP

Sooner Egg · February 2010

I have never felt compelled to do a high heat burn, seems to be pretty self cleaning to me

Capt Frank · February 2010

Five minutes or so after a hi-temp cook works for me. I also put the daisy wheel inside for this quick cleaning burn. Always did the same thing on my gasser, especially after cooking chicken or other greasy critters that ten to gunk up everything. :P

Capt. Frank
Homosassa, FL

AzScott · February 2010

I did it one time and the gaskets melted together. Needless to say, I haven't done a high temp burn in quite a while but I do open the top and bottom vent when the charcoal is almost out after a cook if it's been a long time since I've cleaned the ashes out outside the fire box.

Purpose · February 2010

Been wondering about this myself.

Given that it seems to kill the gasket (and that does not seem to be a quick repair), in no rush to do this if not necessary

thanks

thebtls · February 2010

I second AZRP's comments...I don't do it unless it was an accident. Haven't found it necessary. However I a also a neat freak so I always brush off my grid, clean my table, accessories and brush down the platsetter, etc after each use. I don't see the need personally; The one time I did get crazy I used oven cleaner and it worked adequately.

WokOnMedium · February 2010

Recently I was "organizing" which with my Egg table gently cradled in a snowbank seems harder than expect I noticed alot of black crud flaking off in the dome. I think that I may have had something to do with the 3 butts, prime rib, fatty beef ribs, boatload of chicken thighs....fatty cooks at lower temps.

Then steaks followed by pizza burned the crud up and I ran a crumpled up piece of aluminum foil, now there's black crud flakes all over the table and in the snow, but not on my food! :woohoo:

To Burn or Not To Burn

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