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Raised grate and fuel efficiency

Powak
Powak Posts: 1,412
edited June 2016 in EggHead Forum
After cooking some steak tips on my PSWOO2 last night I got thinking about how much coal I had to use and the temps I had to run to get my steaks the way I want em. Has anyone else observed this? My buddy at work who doesn't have a raised system yet cooks stuff at much lower temps for shorter periods and gets many cooks out of a full load of coal. I go raised 99% of the time and average 3 maybe 4 cooks before adding more coal. That's still amazing compared to Kingsford in a weber but it still makes me wonder if I could get more cooks if I did more fire ring level cooking.
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Comments

  • DieselkW
    DieselkW Posts: 915
    Raising the grate lowers the available btu you use to cook your food, so it makes sense it would take longer for you to cook the same size steak as someone cooking closer to the fire.

    So, yeah... unless I read your post incorrectly, you would use more lump.

    Indianapolis, IN

    BBQ is a celebration of culture in America. It is the closest thing we have to the wines and cheeses of Europe. 

    Drive a few hundred miles in any direction, and the experience changes dramatically. 



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  • NonaScott
    NonaScott Posts: 446
    I can cook a spatchcock chicken and at least three steak or burger meals on a half a firebox full of lump at factory grid level all at 400 or higher with RO to boot.
    Narcoossee, FL

    LBGE, Nest, Mates, Plate Setter, Ash Tool. I'm a simple guy.
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  • Powak
    Powak Posts: 1,412
    NonaScott said:
    I can cook a spatchcock chicken and at least three steak or burger meals on a half a firebox full of lump at factory grid level all at 400 or higher with RO to boot.
    That's what I'm talking about.
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  • Jstroke
    Jstroke Posts: 2,605
    Try cooking caveman, on the coals. First of all it tastes better and two you don't need as much charcoal----winner winner. But then again I don't get too worried about lump. I figure it takes what it does. When you open it up and let it rip----just like a big block---it costs. OR, this is a very good reason to buy another smaller egg in order to save money on lump. Try that math on the spouse.
    Columbus, Ohio--A Gasser filled with Matchlight and an Ugly Drum.
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  • tjv
    tjv Posts: 3,847
    steaks and burgers, things you want to char or sear are better done near the lump.  more heat with less energy to expend.    

    roasting cooks. chicken, brats, veggies,  things you want to render fat or crisp can be done higher up (felt in the dome) where is is easier to create and maintain a 350-425 cooking environment. 

    t
    www.ceramicgrillstore.com ACGP, Inc.
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  • theyolksonyou
    theyolksonyou Posts: 18,459
    Raised = I can drink more without burning food

    Stock = burnt food
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  • Darby_Crenshaw
    Darby_Crenshaw Posts: 2,657
    edited June 2016
    The further you get away from a campfire, the colder you are. And the bigger it needs to be to warm you up again

    going raised direct as a rule will use more fuel


    [social media disclaimer: irony and sarcasm may be used in some or all of user's posts; emoticon usage is intended to indicate moderately jocular social interaction; the comments toward users, their usernames, and the real people (living or dead) that they refer to are not intended to be adversarial in nature; those replying to this user are entering into a tacit agreement that they are real-life or social-media acquaintances and/or have agreed to or tacitly agreed to perpetrate occasional good-natured ribbing between and among themselves and others]

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  • Powak
    Powak Posts: 1,412
    tjv said:
    steaks and burgers, things you want to char or sear are better done near the lump.  more heat with less energy to expend.    

    roasting cooks. chicken, brats, veggies,  things you want to render fat or crisp can be done higher up (felt in the dome) where is is easier to create and maintain a 350-425 cooking environment. 

    t
    Man I've thought of it like that. Makes more sense now.
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  • Canugghead
    Canugghead Posts: 13,784
    Lately I've been cooking chicken direct at fire ring level, with the firebox filled 2/3; it's almost like raised direct due to lower/smaller fire but uses less lump.  Just did a batch of jerk chicken, near the end I raised the grid with AR to get crispy skin without over charring the sauced skin.
    canuckland
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  • gdenby
    gdenby Posts: 6,239
    @Darby_Crenshaw mentions the campfire. Physic explanation. Most of the heat from the lump comes off in IR, which drops off by the inverse square. Simple multiples of 2. 2" away gets half as much heat as 1". 4". half of that. 8", half the 4", etc.

    its about how close the food is to the lump that is burning. Mini Eggs sear as well as other, 'cause the proportions scale down the distance between.

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  • Powak
    Powak Posts: 1,412
    When you guys cook fire ring level do you use lower temps?
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  • Darby_Crenshaw
    Darby_Crenshaw Posts: 2,657
    Never listen to people as though they are telling you what to do. They are really explaining WHY you do something. 
    [social media disclaimer: irony and sarcasm may be used in some or all of user's posts; emoticon usage is intended to indicate moderately jocular social interaction; the comments toward users, their usernames, and the real people (living or dead) that they refer to are not intended to be adversarial in nature; those replying to this user are entering into a tacit agreement that they are real-life or social-media acquaintances and/or have agreed to or tacitly agreed to perpetrate occasional good-natured ribbing between and among themselves and others]

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  • NonaScott
    NonaScott Posts: 446
    I don't. I use the same dome temp everyone or recipes suggest. I'm not trying to lower temps with less lump only creating more distance. Chicken I do at 400, steaks burgers at 550 or 600. You do have to watch it a little closer.
    Narcoossee, FL

    LBGE, Nest, Mates, Plate Setter, Ash Tool. I'm a simple guy.
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