HELP! Flashback with Pizza Stone

VaDave

Ok, I've never had flashback problems before...that is, I know the precautions, etc. But tonight I'm trying to get my fire stabilized with my pizza stone, and every time I crack the lid, I get flashover. [p]My setup is: large egg with plate setter legs up, then 3 fire bricks on edge, then a pizza stone. (My stone is smaller than the plate setter, so I need the bricks to hold it up). My thermometer reads 350 in the dome, until I open the lid and allow a small flashover to occur, then it spikes to 450. As soon as I close things up again, the dome temp drops back to the mid-300's.[p]So I'm thinking I don't have enough airflow. But my stone is smaller than the BGE stone, so there should be lots of airflow around the edge of it. And this happens even with the bottom vent open all the way and the daisy wheel removed.[p]Anyy suggestions??[p]Thanks in advance!!

The Naked Whiz

VaDave,
Try putting the plate setter in legs DOWN. That's how most of us use if for pizza. I use the PS legs down and a 16 inch stone. I have the bottom vent wide open and the slider on the daisy wheel about half open. I stabilize at 550 degrees and never have had a flash back. Try the PS legs down and see what happens.[p]TNW

nikkig

VaDave,
Don't know anything about the flames, but I do have a question...why don't you put the platesetter feet down under the pizza stone?[p]~nikki

Mike in MN

The Naked Whiz,
I was doing a low and slow this weekend. When I was first stabilizing to the initial temp of 225 (nice EZ, slow start) I shut down the vents and Mr. Egg began huffing like mad. Didn't like that at all, as I was down adjusting the lower vent (visulaize this: Mr. Egg sits directly on the deck, no cart or raised nest except that patio stone) I'm down in the catchers position, and old Mr. Egg gave one heck of a huff out the LOWER vent....needless to say, I felt hot air in an area I don't really care to experience when I'm grilling! Opened my eyes wide![p]Must have something to do with the fresh load of that new lump, Wicked Good. I'll certainly remember this the next time![p]BTW I did have the inverted platesetter and a pizza stone in the egg.[p]Mike in MN

VaDave

nikkig,[p]Since I don't have the official BGE pizza stone, and since I've had a few of the lesser ones break on me, I wanted more ceramic mass between the flames and my stone. That's why I put the plate setter legs up...so that I could also have a layer of fire bricks between the flames and my stone. I don't know if it makes sense, but it didn't seem like it would hurt.[p]BTW: i FINALLY got the flames down a bit, and the pizzas were fine. But every time i opened the egg, it was a "pucker moment."

Unknown

VaDave,
Remove the cap before opening the lid, and you will never have flashback!!!

VaDave

ThunderThud,[p]That's what I always thought....in fact I always open the bottom vent and remove the daisy wheel, then I "burp" the egg 2 or 3 times. Like I said, I've never had flashback problems before, but nothing I did last night help. It must've been because I had the plate setter in legs up....maybe that was restricting airflow to the lump. I'll try it again this week with the legs down as recommended here and report back. Thanks!

VaDave

Thank you to everyone who replied....the consensus is that I should try using the plate setter legs down for my pizza, which is exactly what I'll try this week. I'll report back. Thanks again, folks.