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So I bought a Guru: Really expensive meat thermometer?

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Rebellab
Rebellab Posts: 43
in EggHead Forum
So about three weeks ago, I was doing a brisket and had one too many Knob Creeks and dropped my meat thermometer. Cracked the face and so I couldn't read it. Yesterday, I was running errands getting ready for my Easter cook. Stopped by the dealer and bought a BBQ Guru. Tested the probes yesterday afternoon, ready to roll. I started the egg this morning and did my usual for a slow steady cook. Rubbing alcohol in four places let it burn off closed down the vents and started to hook up the Guru. About ten minutes went by and I removed the vent slide and screen and slid the Guru in. Replaced slide set pit temp to 300, I am doing a Prime rib. Hour later pit temp 370. So I removed the Guru fan and went back to the traditional manly way of adjusting the vents. I am now an hour behind, and I have a really expensive meat thermometer. What did I do wrong. I also closed down the hole slide in the guru to 1/4 open. I have never had trouble controlling temps for the past two years, just thought I would try something new, and the wind is sometime an issue for me, so I thought this would help.
LBGE South Dakota
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  • BOWHUNR
    BOWHUNR Posts: 1,487
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    When using the Guru I only light in one place and let the Guru take the cooker up to temp.  I have the DFMT just cracked about 1/8" and the fan damper 1/4 of the way open.  Sounds to me like you had too big of a fire and gave it too much air.

    Mike

    I'm ashamed what I did for a Klondike Bar!!

    Omaha, NE
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  • Solson005
    Solson005 Posts: 1,911
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    I did Egret's ham with my DigiQ yesterday and after I know the fire is lit I put in the fan and leave just the petals open on the DFMT, otherwise you will overshoot your temp and it will take quite awhile to get it to creep back down I lit it in two spots and it was about 10° hotter than I planned but that didn't effect the 4 hour cook that much so I just left it. How open was your DFMT? You only need a small amount since the fan is doing most of the work keeping the fire going. 
    Large & Small BGE, CGW Two-Tier Swing Rack for BOTH EGGS, Spider for the Wok, eggCARTen & and Cedar Pergola my Eggs call home in Edmond, OK. 
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  • Rebellab
    Rebellab Posts: 43
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    Daisy was more than likely my problem. I had it open pretty good. Petals and about a 1/4 inch slide to the side. And as Bowhuntr said I prolly went over board on my initial light. I was just doing my usual. I was excited for this, so it sucks that I went back to my old way.
    LBGE South Dakota
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  • BENTE
    BENTE Posts: 8,337
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    I am agreeing with everyone. I usually put mu guru fan on and the clip then light my fire. turn on the guru and find something to occupy my time elsewhere. all you really need with the guru is one piece of lump lit the guru will take it from there.. you also could have just plopped the standing rib roast in there and walked away as long as your meat probe was in the beef it would have let you know when you were at the desired temp. 70 degrees is not much to worry about.. just my $.02

    happy eggin

    TB

    Anderson S.C.

    "Life is too short to be diplomatic. A man's friends shouldn't mind what he does or says- and those who are not his friends, well, the hell with them. They don't count."

    Tyrus Raymond Cobb

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  • nolaegghead
    nolaegghead Posts: 42,102
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    If I'm cooking below 250, I just close the DFMT.  Higher than that, I'll crack it open a hair.  Fan damper 1/4 open.  Holds the set point rock solid.  Start with a small fire. 
    ______________________________________________
    I love lamp..
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  • Bullibe
    Bullibe Posts: 132
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    The flashing led is a indicator of what amount the fan is actually running. If the fan is not running at all or very little, I close the vents down. Air will free flow thru the fan and the Guru can do nothing about it, it can only raise the temp.
    Redneck Riviera, Gulf Shores, Alabama
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  • SMITTYtheSMOKER
    SMITTYtheSMOKER Posts: 2,668
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    We used to use automated draft systems on our competition Eggs (4 large).  Last year we decided to go back to manually controlling the temps on the Eggs and we are finding we have less "hick-ups" by doing so.

     

    -SMITTY     

    from SANTA CLARA, CA

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  • Charlie tuna
    Charlie tuna Posts: 2,191
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    Sounds like you overshot the setpoint with air BEFORE you installed the fan.  Just have to allow the egg to fully stabilize to YOUR setpoint.  Getting stabilized takes more than 15 minutes...
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  • deekortiz3
    deekortiz3 Posts: 60
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    Everyone likes to use these systems differently. I prefer getting the egg up to temperature and stabilized manually then hooking up the blower just to make sure that my temperatures don't drop too far during the cook. I keep my set point about 5 degrees under my goal temperature. This makes it so the fan doesn't come on constantly and/or overshoot the temperature I am going for.
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  • Charlie tuna
    Charlie tuna Posts: 2,191
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    If my setpoint is 280 degrees --  and my egg is stabilized(total mass is at 280 degrees) and my fan is cycling "on' and "off" more than i like to maintain this 280 degree setpoint -- i will open my top vent(daisy wheel) just a "hair" to move a little more air through the lump base.  After about five minutes, my fan cycling will raduce of even stop.  Today i was cooking a ham at three hundred degrees, had my Guru hooked up, top vent totally closed and all was happy -- very little fan operation.. 
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  • Rebellab
    Rebellab Posts: 43
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    Thank you for all the advice, I thought I had done my research guess not. So stabilize then Guru. I always do a brisket for Master's Sunday, so try #2 is coming up.
    LBGE South Dakota
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  • FearlessTheEggNoob
    FearlessTheEggNoob Posts: 888
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    Does anyone have a simple explanation and/or tips on the "learning," "lid open" and "ramp down" features of the Guru?
    Gittin' there...
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  • Solson005
    Solson005 Posts: 1,911
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    @FearlessTheEggNoob here is the User Manual if you look on page 10.1 it shows the setup menu. Basically you push the up and down arrow simultaneously to enter the setup menu. And continue to press up and down until you get to the feature you want to change, then press up or down to select yes or no (on or off) 

    Naked Whiz talks about each feature in the DigiQ II Review 

    I use the lid open but I do not use the ramp mode as I like to FTC and hold my food that way, but it is a great feature if you wish to use it. 

    The learning is just that learning, each cook the controller adjusts the amount of power it puts to the blower and if it over shoots it then it will add less power in the same scenario the next time. It starts over each time the unit is unplugged. Which for me is nice because I use it on both my large and small egg. 

    Lid open just keep your fire from getting too hot while you have the lid open and it adds air creating a big fire. For example I did 10lbs of wings at the same time for the Super Bowl and had the lid open for a long time, but since I had the lid open feature on I didn't have a raging fire by the time I flipped the last wing. 
    image
    Large & Small BGE, CGW Two-Tier Swing Rack for BOTH EGGS, Spider for the Wok, eggCARTen & and Cedar Pergola my Eggs call home in Edmond, OK. 
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  • Charlie tuna
    Charlie tuna Posts: 2,191
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    I have never installed the "ramp up" feature on my Guru.  When the egg is TRULY "stabilized" you can open your egg, do what you have to, and close it, and maybe drop 50 degrees in the egg.  The fan will come on and the egg is back at your set operating temperature within a few minutes.  This has to do with "stabilization"!!  The entire mass of of the egg and the fire rings, etc. equalize and compensate the energy lost. 
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  • The Naked Whiz
    The Naked Whiz Posts: 7,777
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    As far as I know, the Guru doesn't have a "ramp up" feature.  It has ramp mode which is intended to lower the temperature of the cooker as the food approaches it's target temperature.  The Open Lid Detect is a nice feature because it prevents the fan from coming on when it detects rapid temperature changes.  If your Egg is stabilized, meaning the ceramic shell has reached a stable temperature, then you don't need much, if any, fan blowing for the Egg to return to temperature after a brief lid opening.  The ceramic will bring the air temperature back up mostly on its own.
    The Naked Whiz
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