First Brisket

IowaJim

I have my first brisket on, about 5#, so how can I keep the temp from fluctuating up or down 20 degrees?

FxLynch

Just let it fluctuate.  If you don't you will be "chasing the temp" which will make the cook miserable and is very labor intensive. 

The egg responds slow at low temps so if you try to open it when temp drops you will open too much, then have to close it a little to drop temps, then open it again to raise them, etc.  I did this on my first long cook, actually maybe a few of them.  Then I witnessed a relative do a brisket cook where it was adjusted maybe 3 times over the course of the whole cook.  

The egg will stabilize, and when it does it will generally stay pretty steady.  How far in to the cook are you?

lousubcap

The BGE doesn't care what you are cooking and hopefully you have had some practice at low&slow cooks before.  That said, most BGE's (I have the LBGE) seem to enjoy low&slow dome temp of around 240-260*F as a lower end "sweet spot".  You can run at higher dome temps and the prevailing thought these days is somewhere in the 280-310 range-FYI.   BGE temperature control is a function of air-flow.  The lower vent can be considered the macro adjustment and the DFMT the micro adjustment.  The feedback loop for any adjustments takes a while so don't get into chasing the calibrated (key word) dome temp.  Minor adjustments and then wait to see the effect.  Use google and put "big green egg" in the header along with temperature control and you should find plenty of information.

IowaJim

FxLynch said:

Just let it fluctuate.  If you don't you will be "chasing the temp" which will make the cook miserable and is very labor intensive. 

The egg responds slow at low temps so if you try to open it when temp drops you will open too much, then have to close it a little to drop temps, then open it again to raise them, etc.  I did this on my first long cook, actually maybe a few of them.  Then I witnessed a relative do a brisket cook where it was adjusted maybe 3 times over the course of the whole cook.  

The egg will stabilize, and when it does it will generally stay pretty steady.  How far in to the cook are you?

It's been on about 90 minutes and temp has gone from 234 to 273. Now it's down to 264. You're right on the running in and out to adjust.

FxLynch

IowaJim said:

FxLynch said:

Just let it fluctuate.  If you don't you will be "chasing the temp" which will make the cook miserable and is very labor intensive. 

The egg responds slow at low temps so if you try to open it when temp drops you will open too much, then have to close it a little to drop temps, then open it again to raise them, etc.  I did this on my first long cook, actually maybe a few of them.  Then I witnessed a relative do a brisket cook where it was adjusted maybe 3 times over the course of the whole cook.  

The egg will stabilize, and when it does it will generally stay pretty steady.  How far in to the cook are you?

It's been on about 90 minutes and temp has gone from 234 to 273. Now it's down to 264. You're right on the running in and out to adjust.

Eventually you will find a general setting that you know is a specific temp, like how much to open bottom and top for 250, etc.  Till then you've gotta just let it ride for a while then if needed make a tiny adjustment and wait.  You will be fine on this, but getting the temp in the right spot will save you a major headache.  My cooks went from being a lot of work, to being very enjoyable just watching the egg do it's thing.  Sounds like temp is dropping now so lets see how low it goes.  Then when it stabilizes just leave it if the temp is acceptable.  If it drops under 220 then maybe it's time to open the bottom 1/8 to 1/4 inch.  Small adjustments make a big diff, but take some time to show that difference.