crust or creosote in top of egg

Unknown

My egg is 2 Years old. It is getting real crusty inside and around the vented top. The grease or crust on the felt is sticking so bad I have to use a screw driver to open the lid. I have to hit the sprial lid with a rod to unstick it.
I have friends that do not have this problem.
Am I getting it too hot, not hot enough, or what.

Spin

James L. LInt Sr.,[p]It sounds like you have enjoyed many a good low temp cook. A good high heat burn off will dry the crust so it can be wiped off with a gloved hand. Oven cleaner works nicely on the top vent (put it in the Egg as it cools down from the burn off). The goop on the felt will dry and can be removed. [p]Spin

BBQfan1

James L. LInt Sr., I too have experienced this heavy creosote coating on my 1 year old (almost) Egg. It also was to the point where I could not spin open daisy wheel without wackin' it with a hammer or the rake tool. Someone, (and this is the problem with the forum; so much help from so many that you forget who said what to save your day), mentioned using a bath in water/ammonia solution to disolve the gum. I did this and it spins pretty good right now. Some say to do more high temp cooking and it will bake off, but it seems that everything I want to make is done by 'low and slow' method for the most part. If this is the case with you as well, maybe the ammonia bath would be a good idea periodically.[p]

BBQfan1

James L. LInt Sr., I too have experienced this heavy creosote coating on my 1 year old (almost) Egg. It also was to the point where I could not spin open daisy wheel without wackin' it with a hammer or the rake tool. Someone, (and this is the problem with the forum; so much help from so many that you forget who said what to save your day), mentioned using a bath in water/ammonia solution to disolve the gum. I did this and it spins pretty good right now. Some say to do more high temp cooking and it will bake off, but it seems that everything I want to make is done by 'low and slow' method for the most part. If this is the case with you as well, maybe the ammonia bath would be a good idea periodically.[p]

Char-Woody

BBQfan1, back in the archives I believe it was Elder Ward who gave us the Ammonia treatment for sticky gummy daisies and slider tops.
C~W[p]

JimW

James L. LInt Sr.,
I personally know that the ammonia treatment works on the daisy. Put the daisy in a large zip-lock plastic bag, pour some ammonia in, seal it up and wait 2 days. Take it out and wash it off with mild soap and water. It will be like new.[p]On the felt problem, if a high temp cook doesn't fix it then you may need to replace it. BGE Atlanta has the stuff and it is very simple to do.
JimW

Bambi

JimW,
Re the ammonia Rx, do you "as is" from the bottle or diluted with some water? Also, is it regular strength that you get from the store or some industrial strength ammonia from a janitorial supply? Thanks!

JimW

bambi,
I just used the regular stuff you get at the grocery. I used it undiluted, maybe around a cup(?). I simply made sure the daisy part of the top was in the liquid.
JimW
BTW, it didn't hurt the finish at all.

Bambi

JimW,
Thanks, my friend.

Unknown

James L. LInt Sr.,
My felts have been sticking for some time now and got to the point where the screwdriver deal didn't work any more. Eventually I suppose I will replace them but, as a workaround I simply lay a sheet of aluminum foil over the open egg before I close it. This prevents the sticking and does not affect the seal.
A good smack with anything convenient unsticks my daisy. I don't like to smell ammonia.