First Brisket on a BGE w/ a Flame Boss.... couple questions

[titus0327]

First off, Im not sure if this is the right forum for this thread.... if not, my apologies.

Anywho, I just smoked my first brisket (they've always intimidated me before... was hesitant to put in all that work and not have it turn out great... but I just bought Aaron Franklin's book, and I felt inspired).  It was only my second smoke on my BGE, and my first using the Flame Boss.

Overall, I was happy with the brisket.  I followed Franklins method as closely as possible (I couldnt find 16 mesh pepper, I used a coarser grind.... and I couldnt find butcher paper, I wrapped in HD foil). But I ran into a couple snags and questions along the way, so I'll ask you guys.

Questions:

1. Whenever the Flame Boss would kick on, I would get a ton of smoke pouring out all around the draft door, by the fan. I did end up tightening it up a bit with a couple thin pieces of wood wedged in there, but was still getting a lot of smoke coming out the bottom. Is this normal? If not, what am I doing wrong?

2. Before the cook, I calibrated my dome thermometer, but I didn't rely on it for this smoke because I was using the Flame Boss.  On average the dome thermometer was reading 75-100* hotter than the FB clip.  I know the dome temp should be hotter than the grate temp, but by that much? I question it, because my 11lb brisket was done in 7.5 hours at 275*, at least 2 hours faster than I thought. Can you calibrate a FB clip using boiling water? If so, how do I adjust the FB?

3. The FB fan was on.... a lot. It was cold outside, but not terribly cold, mid 30s or so, with a 10-15 mph breeze.  I filled an XL BGE right up to the top, and I ran out of charcoal after about 10 hours of cooking (after the brisket was done so quick, I decided to throw on some fresh Polish sausage). On a previous cook, with the same amount, and brand, of charcoal, it went for 18 hours with ease using just the dampers to control temp, but it was also 80* outside that day.  Again, Im not sure if I was actually running hotter than 275*, but is it normal to burn charcoal quicker using a FB?

4. Water pan. Im using the largest aluminum pan that will fit between the plate setter and the cooking grate without having to raise the grate.  Im using a couple large washers to elevate the pan off of the plate setter, and filling it as full as possible with water.  I feel the water evaporates quicker than it should, as I had to refill it during the brisket cook.  Again, this may be a sign that I was running hotter than I thought, but is having to refill the water pan normal?

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And with all of this being said.....now I cant wait to do another one.

Thanks,

Titus

 

[yraen]

I'll try to answer some questions for you. I'm not too familiar with the Flame Boss though I do have a Stoker, so I have used a fan before.

1. You're getting smoke out around the draft door because this is the path of least resistance for the amount of pressure being built up inside the BGE when the fan kicks on. This could be caused by poor air flow around and through your charcoal, top vent settings, etc. I'm not saying anything you were doing was wrong, just when the fan kicked on it produced a greater flow than the system could handle easily.

2. Did you check the FB probe before use? I read that they do not need calibrated but I would have checked it myself to just see what it reads in boiling water. Myself, I don't use the dome thermometers at all, I rely on my Stoker probes to tell me grate and meat temps. I would clip the alligator clip to a wooden skewer or something and submerge the tip in boiling water to check it. Depending on how the air was flowing in the smoker, the dome thermometer could be reading vastly different than the grate thermometer.

3. Being cold, you will use more fuel but once to temp it should have been easy to keep it there in the BGE. You say you filled it up, so I'm guessing a 20 lb. bag, Depending on whether it was briquettes or lump I would expect 12 (briquettes) to 24 (lump) hours burn time in my ceramic. Mileage may vary due to outside conditions, but not by much in the ceramic. See below for my thoughts on the causes of the fan running way too often.

4. I don't normally use a water pan myself, I do use a drip pan though. When I catch the drippings I use them to make a dipping sauce. Depending on the meat cooking this can be a lot of moisture in the cook chamber also. I do use a Weber grill to raise my pan above the plate setter though. Running at 275 you will go through water quickly. At 275 grate temp, you are boiling the water so you can expect the water to last as long as it would on the stove top while boiling. Refilling the water pan in long cooks is normal though.

I think the fan running more than expected can be contributed to several factors all working together. This is all guess work mind you. I do think it was a combination of the higher temp (275) and the water pan that caused the fan to run. Having to get the FB probe to register 275 above a pan of water would more than likely cause the fan to run more than was actually needed. This excessive pressure is what caused your smoke to come out around the fan.

I've got a Stoker but I don't use the fan on the ceramic, just the stick burners when I cook with them. When I do use a water pan and the fan on a stick burner my fan still doesn't run alot unless it is running out of fuel. I do use the probes on the ceramic, but that is so I can read the temperatures and have an alarm inside the house should something go wrong. To me, using a ceramic is like having a Ronco device in the house. You set it and forget it. Just use the dampers and the top vent to control the temp for a few more cooks and you'll get to know just where to set it to achieve the temp you want. Right now, after my fire is burning the way I want I close the lids, set my top vent and dampers and I'm basically done. I just add food and remove it.