ACRID WHITE SMOKE...

GreenWave36 · August 2014

Thanks to those who responded to my question yesterday... for the second night in a row I am having white smoke (and funky smell) issues from my BGE... Before I used it today I got rid of all the charcoal in the BGE, cleaned it thoroughly, and refilled it (stupidly with more of the same charcoal from the bag, Frontier Brand Lump Charcoal)... same issue... I have only used my BGE 5 times, will try again with Big Green Egg Brand Lump later this week. But my question is, could anything else be causing this? Lighting the charcoal incorrectly (the white smoke began as soon as the charcoal was lit)? Placing the plate setter on (legs up) immediately after the fire was lit? Not keeping the cover of the BGE open long enough? Just trying to think of other things that might be causing this issue...

Thanks all for your help!

Jeremy Perelman

Scarsdale, NY

RickyBobby · August 2014

How you getting your fire lit? Just curious.

berndcrisp · August 2014

Just give it time to clear. Depending on the lump, this could be ten to forty minutes.

stevesails · August 2014

Let it burn till clear. 30 minutes maybe more with fresh lump

Rusty Rooster · August 2014

It sometimes takes as much as an hour to clear but it also takes that time to get your egg stabilized at your desired cooking temp. Patience.

freddyj · August 2014

berndcrisp said:

Just give it time to clear. Depending on the lump, this could be ten to forty minutes.

^^^^^ this

Philly35 · August 2014

It's either the lump or how your lighting it. Curious as to how your lighting it?

Nature Boy · August 2014

Good tips so far. Also consider using much less charcoal. Especially if you are just grilling for an hour or two. The less you use, the cleaner it burns.

Cheers!

Chris

XC242 · August 2014

I was having the same problem. Was using Royal Oak lump. Over the weekend switched to Rockwood. Problem want away immediately. I don't know much but am convinced the quality of the charcoal is extremely important.

johnkitchens · August 2014

It is more than likely your lump. Rockwood will not do this. If you can't get it locally order it from Firecraft.com. You will be so glad you did.

GreenWave36 · August 2014

Thanks all for the responses -- I am lighting it with a looftlighter -- are there other preferable methods? Could I not be lighting enough of the charcoal?

The white smoke eventually cleared but there was still a very funky smell coming from it.

Thanks again.

JRWhitee · August 2014

I could be the charcoal, I have never tried frontier. I use Rockwood and it clears quickly, I used to use BGE and Royal Oak (they are same thing) and it took longer to clear. I would let the temp get stabilized at around 350 prior to putting in the plate setter and see if that works, your fire may need to get hotter to burn off that nasty stuff.

GreenWave36 · August 2014

If i wait until I stabilize the Egg at 350, then put the plate setter in, will that impact the air flow/temperature at all? Also -- is there a prescriptive measure for how much charcoal to light, or ultimately when it gets up to temperature does it auto-correct itself?

Thanks!

XC242 · August 2014

Using the loft lighter the way you describe is not causing the problem.

iPaddler · August 2014

Don't be discouraged. Make sure that you have a good light going in the lump before closing the lid. I put in my platesetter and install the grid when the lump is showing a good amount of flame, then close the lid but leave the daisy wheel off and the vent open. With either BGE or Costco lump charcoal I get smoke at this point but stay patient until the Egg reaches 600+ and there is no smoke, probably 30 minutes from ignition.

Hope this helps, I too am a noob, had my XL since mid june 2014.

JRWhitee · August 2014

GreenWave36 said:

If i wait until I stabilize the Egg at 350, then put the plate setter in, will that impact the air flow/temperature at all? Also -- is there a prescriptive measure for how much charcoal to light, or ultimately when it gets up to temperature does it auto-correct itself?

Thanks!

Yes, the temperature will drop to around 250 then close your vents to where you set them for a 250 cook and let it when the white smoke clears you should be good. Remember a 25 degree plus or minus isn't a problem.

mcmac · August 2014

I just ordered some Rockwood and Ozark Oak. We don't have any outlets (that I am aware of) here in the Northwest, so I order some from Firecraft. Anxious to try them out.

Thanks to everyone for posting your experiences and reviews on both of these brands.

mokadir · August 2014

I just bought my first bag of frontier. It definitely takes longer to get rid of the white smoke than cowboy, bge and RO. I hope I can find some other stuff

Willieb9000 · August 2014

@mokadir Firecraft is in West Chester. If you order and call them you can go pick it up at their window. I am a Rockwood devotee. Buns very clean.

SGH · August 2014

I'm have no way if pin pointing your problem as I'm not there to see your egg. That being said let me name a few things that can and will cause acrid smoke. It then becomes a simple matter of process and elimination. Here are a few of many in no particular order or priority.

Lack of oxygen. Usual causes. Plugged or fouled lump grate and air inlets in the fire bowl.

Wet ceramics. Usual causes. Rain, water pan, large greasy cuts of meat, spritzing and mopping.

Poor quality or wet lump. Usual causes. Poor quality control at the manufacturing plant. Rain.

Green or unseasoned fuel. Usual causes. Natural resin and moisture.

Non neutral flame. Usual causes. Overcrowding, vents to closed for the amount of lit fuel, dust and particulates.
Any type of air restriction. Improper vent settings etc.

Soot or build up on the inner ceramics. Usual causes. Spills and oxygen deprivation. Poor quality lump. Unseasoned fuel.

I would recommend a good cleaning of your egg. Be certain that all air holes in the fire bowl are clear and free of ash and dust. Check the lump grate as well for debris or build up. Load with a fresh supply of lump. Open the bottom screen and vent all the way. Remove the daisy wheel from the egg and then light. Give it 10-15 minutes and see what happens. It should burn hot and clean. I hope this helps to point you in the right direction. Let us know how it goes and good luck my friend.

PNWFoodie · August 2014

GreenWave36 said:

Thanks to those who responded to my question yesterday... for the second night in a row I am having white smoke (and funky smell) issues from my BGE... Before I used it today I got rid of all the charcoal in the BGE, cleaned it thoroughly, and refilled it (stupidly with more of the same charcoal from the bag, Frontier Brand Lump Charcoal)... same issue... I have only used my BGE 5 times, will try again with Big Green Egg Brand Lump later this week. But my question is, could anything else be causing this? Lighting the charcoal incorrectly (the white smoke began as soon as the charcoal was lit)? Placing the plate setter on (legs up) immediately after the fire was lit? Not keeping the cover of the BGE open long enough? Just trying to think of other things that might be causing this issue...

Thanks all for your help!

Jeremy Perelman
Scarsdale, NY

I would definitely change lumps - I've heard nothing but bad about Frontier. Not sure I'd go to BGE, though, since that is just RO with a pricier label. RO almost ruined the experience for me. Personally, I am a huge fan of FOGO, but my step-father prefers RW or OO. Just my 2 cents.

B&BKnox · August 2014

The one bag of frontier I tried did the same thing, burned more like green firewood. Un-cookable. I returned the second bag. By far the worst lump I ever used. Worthless.

ACRID WHITE SMOKE...

Comments

Categories