Brand new to the BGE world... couple of questions

Chase2016 said:

Hello everyone and thanks for the accept into the future. I live in eastern North Carolina and BRAND new to the BGE. I am really excited   about learning to dial in my cooking on this awesome grill. I do have a few questions about the egg and the way the forum works....

1.If I read a post with some really helpful information how can I flag it to refer back to later?

2.In reading what little I have so far it seems a plate setter is a must. Which should I get a cast iron or ceramic? Also what are some other (if any) must own accessories?

3.Where is a good place to order or buy accessories?

Will take any help I can get as I'm just trying to be a sponge right now and soak all the information in I can. Thanks again everyone and happy to be here

Welcome, Sponge! 

1) Hit the star in the upper right corner. It'll flag it.

2) Ceramic.  Less maintenance.  You'll find people here that like both and you can also cook on the CI version, but keep it simple.  Or buy an Adjustable Rig from the CGS and get their stone.  (I just gave you the link.)  Also search this forum for tips on what to buy.  You'll find answers for most of your questions.

3) It really depends what you want.  There isn't one place for everything.  Some sites just sell their own stuff, so you will end up bouncing around to several. Many are represented by owners/users here and you'll see their links as you read.

First, welcome aboard.

I'm no help with #1.

For #2 and #3, many would recommend not buying a platesetter and calling Tom at the Ceramic Grill Store to figure out what you need in terms of a heat deflector (you need something to do indirect cooks) and assorted accessories to cook on multiple levels.

https://ceramicgrillstore.com/

Again, welcome aboard.  Enjoy the journey and join the fun.

Although we all know that in eastern NC, all you're ever going to cook is pulled pork, so you may as well just get a platesetter and be done with it...

Good morning and welcome. You have to be on a computer to flag posts to save, at least that's what I've noticed when using an iPhone. I have a ceramic plate setter and it works fine for me. If it ever breaks, I would look at cast iron as it does seem to have some advantages. I'm sure others will chime in on this...

Go slow on buying accessories, you do need a good, fast digital meat thermometer and high temp gloves are useful. The platesetter is a must and a pizza stone is good to have as well.

good luck and have fun!

^^^I forgot Thermapen as @Griffin suggested..that is a MUST! and take it easy on buying accessories because you will buy stuff you don't need (trust me on this) but  foremost  call Tom.

piney said:

Also, I would like to personally invite you to Butt Blast 2017 @ Salisbury, NC on 4/22/17, everything is free and you will meet a great bunch of people plus gather a ton of information. 

Piney....quit lying to him.....some of us are @ssholes. 

Welcome to the forum.

Here's a thread I started when I first got my egg asking about accessories: 

To answer my own questions 18 months later:

Table - had one custom built (see link in my signature)
Lump starter - weed burner. Easiest and fastest. Tried them all (even wasted money on the LooftLighter).
Pizza Stone/Platesetter/multi-level cooking - Tom at Ceramic Grill Store, as mentioned above
Cast iron grid - love it and use it all the time for steaks and burgers. Not essential.
Grid lifter - get the Third Hand from Third Eye
Ash removal - get a cheap Sears shop vac with the fine ash/HEPA filter. Easiest way to do it.

You will quickly see that there is no one right answer (just wait until someone asks which lump is best and how to light it). And go slow with purchases, especially big ones. I'm glad I waited on the table as I ended up with two large eggs (and now a MiniMax also) so would have had to get rid of the single table had I purchased one. You will see what you use and what you need the more you cook. Most of all, enjoy. Even if you are a Dolphins fan.

Oh, one final suggestion: to search the forum posts more efficiently, use Google and enter your search terms and "site:eggheadforum.com"  Much better search tool than the one on the site. Pretty much everything you will ask has been discussed at length so it will help you get the answers you need quicker than asking and waiting for responses.

Welcome fellow Carolina egger!!!   Glad to have you aboard.... 

For me, the plate setter turned out to be a waste of money as I purchased an AR and several different sized stones from Tom at CGS that several have linked above. If you don't want to spend the money and make your own set up for raised grid a platesetter is pretty much a necessity if you want to do indirect cooks.  I believe Tom now makes a set up that incorporates a platesetter, but that wasn't available when I purchased my Adjustable Rig

What follows is a collection of info that may or not be of use:

Here’s a link to all things ceramic-chances are if you have a question the answer is within this site somewhere.  Check out the recipe section for some great ideas.  http://www.nakedwhiz.com/nwindex.htm

For additional links to cooking/recipe sites; here are two very good ones, depending what you are cooking:  This site contains a wealth of the science behind Q cooking along with info on about every type of meat cook you would attempt: http://amazingribs.com/

Here’s the second one:  http://playingwithfireandsmoke.blogspot.com/

 After-market toys- With the BGE there are three basic styles of cooking;  “direct”-where the cooking grid is on top of the fire ring; “raised direct”-where the grid is elevated at least to the gasket-line (this setup requires after-market stuff-easiest is to get another grid and then use three fire bricks (or three empty aluminum beer cans) and place them on the grid at the fire ring and then put the second grid on top. The third is “indirect” where there is a heat deflector (platesetter or some other type stone, see above option) between the burning lump and the cooking grid.  This is the setup for low&slow long duration cooks.  I would get comfortable playing around with the BGE before any major after-market investments.  Will save you $$ in the long run.

 Some observations-make sure you calibrate your dome thermo-boil some water, then insert the thermo and check the temp.  If not around 210*F, then note the off-set and use the nut on the back to correct.  Then recheck.

Temperature is a controlled by the volume of lump burning.  The volume is controlled by the air-flow thru the BGE.  In thru the bottom vent and out the top.  Make sure when you set it up that the fire box opening is aligned with the lower vent. 

When adjusting the vent(s) to change temperature, the feedback loop can take some time.  Changes in air-flow are reflected in the dome thermo temp.  Don’t chase temperature; +/- 10-15*F is close enough.

“Stable temperature” is a relative term.  Means you haven’t moved the vents and the temperature is steady for anywhere from 30-60 minutes.

That's more than enough.

Griffin said:

...

and if you want to do pizza, get the BGE pizza stone. Others just break, BGE won't

...

The BGE pizza stone is a good one.  However there are others available that are just as good.  You want a stone that is at least 5/8" thick made of cordierite. Both the BGE and CGS stones meet this.  If you have a good pottery supply store near you, you can get a kiln shelf.  Pizza stones and kiln shelves are the same thing.  Kiln shelves sell for less than an equivalent pizza stone. While you are at the pottery supply store you could also get some kiln shelf posts to use as spacers in the egg.  The ones that break are thinner or made from other materials.

I have a plate setter and the Woo for my large. It works for me.
It has an add on option of a raised grid with a sliding D grid for two level cooking.
And I have the first one of those! It works great, for me.

The A/R goes beyond that. Most here use the A/R. Think about how, what and how many you cook for. Then just ask for Tom to give you a call back. Tell him how and what you cook. Butts, brisket, pizza, wings, steaks ribs cakes, bread, cookies, chili (no beans of course), stews, soups or what ever.
He will put you on track with what is best.

I did not notice if you have a large or XL? If XL that's a game changer. Just speak with Tom, you will be fine.
Then come back to the forum and we can spend more $$ on other stuff!!

And again, welcome to the herd!

Sup, I got my stuff from CGS, Tom is easy to deal with.