my brisket tragedy...

Mark Backer

was not one at all. It was off at 10am, wrapped in a cooler until 7 tonight, and it was falling off the bone good. Hooray for the egg again.[p]I now have to butts (16 lbs tota) on. I put them on at 250 at 4pm, and they're already at 164. Where's my plateau? I don't want to be up wrapping meat at 3 in the morning, but I may be if the climb doesn't stop soon.[p]keep your fingers crossed for me and my fire.[p]

Char-Woody

Mark Backer, good on the brisket, now the butts are a bit unusual. Your cooking too high in temps for one thing, 230 is plenty, 240 is tops for the long haul. Now if your running 250, and your thermometer is reading low, then your really cooking much higher. Check the thermometer and if its accurate, lower the temps.
C~W[p]

1044

Mark Backer,[p]It's not unusual for it to hit the 160's in a few hours. Now, it's just gonna sit...and sit... and sit. [p]Patience, grasshopper. All is going according to plan.[p]Howard

Mark Backer

Char-Woody,
I'm having trouble keeping the fire lit lower than that. To make 225, I can't get enough air in to keep a bird alive.[p]Egg's pretty new and very clean, which may be my problem. However, I just had my second fire go out in two days, which means I probably ought to be cleaning the bottom holes before I head for bed with a cook going.[p]Any ideas regarding me keeping 225 dome temp are welcome, and I fear that a guru is in my future.

James

Mark Backer,[p]
Well, I'm up at 4:30 to check on my fire also. It's going fine at 220. I did make sure to clean out all the ash before I lit the fire..[p]It was 225 when I went to sleep. It's still 225.[p]However, if I didn't bother to get up and check it, it would have gone out..[p]

UnConundrum

Mark Backer,[p]If you've had the problem 2 out of 2 cooks, I'd bet your fire box isn't properly aligned. There's a "cut out" on the bottom of the ceramic insert that is designed to align with the vent/clean out on the egg. This lets the air flow freely into the firebox, under the fire.

Char-Woody

James, Now thats thinking positive...I think early in my years of ceramics, this is where the C~W wiggle rod approach came into being.
He may also have very small particles in his charcoal, and that too will slug up the system. I will usually add those at the top of coarser charcoal so it filters down to the fire.
I use a core fire start proceedure. It works for me.
C~W[p]

Mark Backer

UnConundrum,[p]I figured that might have been the case, but I cleaned it out yesterday down to the last minute grain of ash, then used a ruler to align the firebox and vent openings. My problem is that if I try to cook under about 240, the thing goes out after about 8 or so hours of cooking. [p]I have had a successful butt cook, the brisket was great and today's butts look awesome and I eagerly await the unveiling at noon. [p]Is it possible / likely that I am going to have to start hand-building my fires instead of using my willy-nilly dump the coal in approach? [p]If it's necessary, I'll do it. I just don't want the wife/family/neighbors to think I am more of a freak than I already am. Sorting lump may get me sent to the nut-bin.[p]Your responses are welcomed.

KevinH

Mark Backer,[p]It should be no surprise that your fires are going out if you just dump a bag of lump into the egg. You need bigger pieces on the bottom to allow enough air flow through the grate after several hours of cooking. The Naked Whiz has a good explanation of the proper technique. Check the link:
[ul][li]Building a fire for low and slow cooking[/ul]

Mark Backer

KevinH,[p]After a long discussion on the porch with my egg-owning brother in law this morning, we came to that very conclusion. Apparently, I need to lump supplies. The bag I use for quick cooks like steak and fish and stuff taking under 3 hours, and another sorted bag used for long cooks in which I would "expertly" build a fire like the one described by the Whiz. [p]Thanks everyone for your help in this matter. [p]My name is Mark. I am an eggaholic.