Fire went out

Wrmgirl

i was doing my first over night smoke of pork butt last night and my fire went out.   I put it on at 5:30 pm last night at a dome temp of 250 degrees.  The temperature of the egg was falling around 10:30 to 230 degrees. I adjusted the daisy wheel and it still fell.  Over the next several hours with some adjusting got back to 250 degrees by 1:30 am.  during the several bourse some temp did fall done to 180 degrees.  When I woke up at 4:30 to check on it the down temp was 0. I did probw the meat for the first time and it did range from 139-148 through the butt.  I rebuilt the fire and got the butt back on at a dome temp of 200 degrees.  Is this going to be edible or do I need to pitch?  I would have to believe I exceeded the 140 degrees and with the timing I don't think the 4 hour rule coming into play.  What do you think? 

apinion

Fire it back to 350 degrees and cook the pork until 200 internal and pull.  Good to go in my opinion. 

Robo2015

@Wrmgirl did you run out of charcoal or did your fire just burn straight down and go out?

gdenby

The meat is fine. The exterior was sterile shortly after being placed in the Egg. Given the temperature of the meat after the Egg was quite cool, it was already cooked to safe.

Boost the dome temp beyond 200. Hard to keep a fire that small going. I'm suspecting you have an ash clog somewhere. Bend a wire hanger and wiggle it up thru the bottom fire grate to ensure a decent air flow.

Texture might be a little less than perfect, but should be OK in the end.

lousubcap

Another vote for good to go-and @Robo2015 asks a good question for lessons learned purposes.
BTW-welcome aboard and enjoy the journey.  

dougcrann

I don't lo  & slo butts anymore. 350*, no stall....normally about 40-45 minutes a pound. Sorry you had difficulty, there is a bit of a learning curve in regards to fire control. Whenever I am going to be doing something on the Egg that will require hours of cook rime I pull out the firebox and ring so I can vacuum the Egg out. When I put the fuel in I make sure that none of the holes in the firebox are plugged, my large has a very tough time maintaining temperature even if just 1 is plugged. Good luck with your next cook...

DeltaNu1142

Have a look at this thread...

YukonRon

For what it may be worth, you are fine with the pork. I really like the low and slow method for butts. First, to me, it is fun, second, having done both, and using my process, the meal is so much better (Mine is a bit different, involving brining, and peach preserves).

I will say this, since I have bought the KAB for both my MM and my XL, I have not had an issue with a diminishing fire. 
One reason, is due to the fact of increased airflow, but more likely because of how easy it is to keep the Eggs clean. I just clean it out every time I use it.
 
If you do not have one, investigate it for yourself and weigh the cost vs benefit. For me, after using for a year, I probably would have paid triple and still would think I got a bargain.

I have used Royal Oak, (as rebranded BGE), Carbon Del Sur, and Rockwood. My preference is RW, then CDS. RO is only when there is nothing left and I can't get anything else. I have used Cowboy lump, once, not in my egg. I hope I never have a reason that will require me to do so.

Decent lump, KAB, and cleaning seems to be the combination that has ensured solid cooks for me.

I hope this helps.

Best of luck going forward.

GregW

What you have discovered is the draft characteristics of the egg changes as the lump burns down. (Assuming you didn't just run completely out of lump) This is what causes the draft damper to need to be readjusted during a long overnight cook.

The computerized fire controls that are available automatically adapt to the changing draft characteristics during a long cook. It is in effect making the damper adjustments for you in real time.

I've used the fire controls for many years and think they are worth the investment.

There are many people on the forum that possess much better fire building skills and can accomplish good fire control with out a controller.

My hats off to these people. They have great skill. For me I need all the help I can get.