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Whoosh Sound

rthornton159
rthornton159 Posts: 5
in EggHead Forum
I was bringing my BGE up to 250 deg. Suddenly there was a big whoosh and the temp jumped 50 deg. Scared the living day lights out of me. I had been digging through the charcoal to get the ashes to fall out. Everything is accounted for so nothing fell out of a pocket.

Egg is about 4 mths old, cooked on about 12 times or more. Had it up to 700 deg several times. It's a plain jane Large. Top was closed, vents were slightly open.

I wasn't hearing things. My son was with me. Scared him too.

Anybody got any idea?
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Comments

  • YEMTrey
    YEMTrey Posts: 6,835
    You simply fed the fire more oxygen.  You are very lucky to still have your arm hair and eyebrows if it happened while you were digging around in the coals.
    Steve 
    XL, Mini Max, and a 22" Blackstone in Cincinnati, Ohio
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  • lousubcap
    lousubcap Posts: 36,781
    edited September 2014
    Oxygen starved fire-introduce more oxygen and away we go.  I'm guessing the whoosh happened when the dome was open...FWIW- Check out the following link for the science behind the entertainment:
    http://www.nakedwhiz.com/flash.htm Now you know.  Buyer beware :)>-
    Louisville; Rolling smoke in the neighbourhood.  Life is too short for light/lite beer!  Seems I'm livin in a transitional period. CHEETO (aka Agent Orange) makes Nixon look like a saint.  
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  • RRP
    RRP Posts: 26,454
    Common issue when it suddenly sucks in a major breath of oxygen. You must of missed it since it was still too bright out, but when I have had that happen there is rush of blue flame out the dome. It is like an afterburner kicking in on a jet engine!
    Re-gasketing the USA one yard at a time 
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  • DMW
    DMW Posts: 13,836
    Agree with the above. You had a lit fire that was O2 starved (nature of the egg). You opened the dome and stirred things up and closed the dome. After stirring the lump the airflow properties were much more open. Fire started breathing more and whoosh! Would have been neat to watch in the dark.
    They/Them
    Morgantown, PA

    XL BGE - S BGE - KJ Jr - HB Legacy - BS Pizza Oven - 30" Firepit - King Kooker Fryer -  PR72T - WSJ - BS 17" Griddle - XXL BGE  - BS SS36" Griddle - 2 Burner Gasser - Pellet Smoker
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  • rthornton159
    rthornton159 Posts: 5
    Thanks for the quick answers, but let me clarify.

    I dug through the coals when it was out, cold, before starting.

    I was 5 feet away and the top was closed. No one was near it. I had just shut the vents down to slits a minute earlier.

    This was not a burping issue while opening it. Had that close call already. Once burned...
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  • lousubcap
    lousubcap Posts: 36,781
    Okay-with that description let me go with this although a bit off with the shutting vents scenario-how about a backdraft.
    "A backdraft can occur when a fire's product-gases are depleted of oxygen; consequently combustion slows (due to the lack of oxygen) but the combustible fuel gases (primarily carbon monoxide) and smoke (primarily hydrocarbon free radicals and particulate matter) remain at a temperature hotter than the ignition-point of the fuel gases. If oxygen is re-introduced to the fire, e.g. by opening a door (or window) to a closed room, combustion will restart, often explosively, as the gases are heated by the combustion and expand rapidly because of the rapidly increasing temperature."
    So, now that I have exhausted my knowledge of the "whys" I will await enlightenment along with the OP.  Regardless-good that no one was hurt.
    But somewhere relative excess oxygen had to be in the game.
    Louisville; Rolling smoke in the neighbourhood.  Life is too short for light/lite beer!  Seems I'm livin in a transitional period. CHEETO (aka Agent Orange) makes Nixon look like a saint.  
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  • rthornton159
    rthornton159 Posts: 5
    If the gases were building up and the temp was still rising, could have hot a combustion point with the little oxygen there was.???
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  • DaveRichardson
    DaveRichardson Posts: 2,324
    Maybe an air pocket in the lump catching????

    LBGE since 2014

    Griffin, GA 

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  • rthornton159
    rthornton159 Posts: 5
    This lump had been burned. Did not add new. Had plenty in there.
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  • 500
    500 Posts: 3,184
    I've experienced something similar, but in reverse. A whoosh, and a burst of flame out the bottom vent. It happened a few times as the temps were rising in the Egg. I believe I had the lid open at the time, so once again it's oxygen starved fire. It almost caught my leg hair on fire.
    I like my butt rubbed and my pork pulled.
    Member since 2009
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