Lump consumption

Deviledegger

I know there are endless variables to this question but on an average cook how much lump do you think you use? I'm tying to figure out if I am using more lump than I should/need.

Ozzie_Isaac

What egg, what temp, how long?

Deviledegger

LBGE- let's say a few burgers *500 for starters.
Then 60ish minutes for a spatcocked chic at*350ish

Deviledegger

Separate cooks on that.

Philly35

You should get longer burn time than that. What brand are you using?

Ozzie_Isaac

I have an XL so little different but in a similar cook I would use probably 3 lbs or so.

I also usually let it burn for an hour before I cook. The high temp burns really eat the lump.

henapple

Depends on the brand....

Deviledegger

A better way to ask this question might be
do most people add lump close to the top of the firebox and reuse what's not burned. Or do you usually just add a minimal amount of lump for your specific cook?

Ozzie_Isaac

I refill everytime. I knock the lump around to get all the ash and small chunks out, scrap out the ash and then top off.

Ozzie_Isaac

If your temps are what you want then you are using the lump you need.

Only way to conserve is don't do long clean burns and use the snuffer cap right away when you are done.

It will take what it takes. If your gasket isn't leaking a lot and your temps don't over shoot you don't have anything to worry about.

Jeepster47

That's a different question than what I thought you were asking.

I like consistency.  So, for low-n-slows, the lump is piled just short of the bottom of the plate setter.  Can't run out that way.  For other cooks the egg gets filled to the fire bowl-to-fire ring seam.  All left over lump, that doesn't fall through the fire grate, is used as a part of the next fill.

Deviledegger

Pretty much what I thought. I just wanted to check in on that one. Sometimes I feel like I'm burning through the lump other times I feel like I'm being pretty conservative. I know I've gone over thirty hours on lowand slow. The last 3 hours I just opened the vents and it stayed up around*300 for a bit.

Ozzie_Isaac

I always fill to the bottom of my Woo. I have never filled only to the seam. In the XL the seam feels like almost empty.

SaskNortherner

I know in the winter I use a lot more lump. Right now it is - 30 C here with 75% humidity. I did a batch of ribs yesterday, fired the egg at 7 a.m. to let it warm up and then cooked my ribs for 5 hours. By the time I took them off I had used almost all the lump( about three ice cream pails ). My dampers were open about twice as far as they needed to be. In the summer I would have been able to cook a second time as well. At these temps and humidity it makes it harder to light as well. I opened a beer when I foiled my ribs and set it beside my Egg, when I went back 1/2 an hour later to drink the rest it had frozen.

Deviledegger

@SaskNortherner this is a good point. I'm in Vermont and it's been really pretty cold for about a month or more. It could be why I feel I'm using more lump right now. I did a simple quick cook the other day and used must if a 8# bag.

Fred19Flintstone

I know some guys like to have everything calculated out, but IMHO, if I was worried about lump consumption, then I shouldn't have bought an egg. If you can afford an egg, you can afford the lump, the accessories (toys), the meat....etc. It's like buying a Porsche and worrying about the gas mileage. My advice is to sit back, crack a cold one and enjoy the ride.

theyolksonyou

Fred19Flintstone said:

My advice is to sit back, crack a cold one and enjoy the ride.

This. Sometimes we get caught up in analytics, me included. Filler up and cook, filler up again.

Deviledegger

Done and done!

fishlessman

if you want to burn less then opt for more direct cooking. platesetters and indirect setups reflect more heat down into the base and just burn more lump. its incredible how little lump gets burned on a raised grid low and slow direct rib or butt cook

jcaspary

Fred19Flintstone said:

I know some guys like to have everything calculated out, but IMHO, if I was worried about lump consumption, then I shouldn't have bought an egg. If you can afford an egg, you can afford the lump, the accessories (toys), the meat....etc. It's like buying a Porsche and worrying about the gas mileage. My advice is to sit back, crack a cold one and enjoy the ride.

Agreed...if I need to buy a little extra lump to put smiles on peoples' faces then a little extra lump it is.  When I buy anything big I factor in the cost of maintenance, upkeep, and use.  If I buy it I know going into it what it would take to own it.  No point in complaining about a couple extra bucks a month when I'm putting good food on the table that everyone enjoys.

Deviledegger

I have no problem burning or buying lump. I'm not trying too be cheap. Just feel like I've burned a lot in some small cooks lately. I have gone 30+ hrs. On one load of lump. That impressed me. It's all in what your cooking out sounds.

jaydub58

Speaking of lump in general, I am impressed by all the eggers who say Rockwood is the big dog.

I'm getting very low on Royal Oak so I called Firecraft and ordered 100 lbs.

Cool, free shipping all the way out here.

Sounds great.

Ladeback69

jaydub58 said:

Speaking of lump in general, I am impressed by all the eggers who say Rockwood is the big dog.

I'm getting very low on Royal Oak so I called Firecraft and ordered 100 lbs.

Cool, free shipping all the way out here.

Sounds great.

Rockwood is all I use now, but I can get it form my dealer who is on 3 miles away from me.  Just like any other cooking vessel, if its cold and wet outside its going to take more fuel to keep it going.  I don't really worry about how much I use, I always have an extra bag or so on hand.  When I get down to a half bag I buy another one or two.  High long cooks of course like pizza will eat it up too.  I like lump better then propane,  because I can see how much is left before I run out.  I don't miss that stuff at all. 

Terrebandit

10% of a full load.

Deviledegger

@Terrebandit - i like how you answered that. That is exactly what I was looking for. I fill mine up around 75% every time and I think I could do less. Of course I do have leftover lump. I probably load it up that much because I know how it's going to burn.