# Them thar heat beads



## resurrected (Jul 8, 2015)

I've heard mention heat beads on here and have found Australian Heat Beads online from BBQworld. 

http://www.bbqworld.co.uk/weber-barbecues/accessories/australian-heat-beads-4kg-bag.asp

Are these the ones to buy and if so is this a good price?

So far I've only managed to get about a 4-5 hour burn using lumpwood I've bought at Homebase. I've used the minion method.

http://www.homebase.co.uk/en/homebaseuk/lumpwood---4kg-814145

Is this a good burn time for one basket? 

I'm wondering as I see forum members posting about leaving a brisket in over night to cook and wonder how the hell they can have a basket burn for that long.


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## kc5tpy (Jul 8, 2015)

Hello.  Those are the Heat Beads and that is a very good price.  I saved the link.

Yes, I found about 4-5 hrs. for lump is about it.

For the longer burns the briquettes are the way to go.  Also the basket size can make a difference ( size DOES matter )  Keep Smokin!

Danny


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## resurrected (Jul 8, 2015)

Cheers Danny.

I steered away from briquettes as I read somewhere it's best not to use them as you don't know what is in them.


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## osprey2 (Jul 8, 2015)

The pork shoulder I done used a 1/4 of a bag of heat beads and went for the 10 hours cooking and I then put the coals in a terracotta flowerpot for a quick patio heater for a few hours.

Dave


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## kc5tpy (Jul 8, 2015)

Hello.  ZERO nasty taste with these.  I NEVER used briquettes ( HATED the taste! )  but Wade told me about these.  I thought he was full of SH** but these are the REAL DEAL!  He was SPOT ON!

When I finish cooking I shut off both vents on the Weber.  2-3 hrs. later I go out and the smoker is still to hot to touch.  I use some lump in the bottom of the cause the Beads are tough to get lit.  Keep Smokin!

Danny


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## wade (Jul 8, 2015)

resurrected said:


> Cheers Danny.
> 
> I steered away from briquettes as I read somewhere it's best not to use them as you don't know what is in them.


This is very true for the cheap supermarket briquettes. You can usually even smell that they are not too good when you light them in a chimney.

With premium quality briquettes, like Heat Beads or Weber Premium, you will mot get any off-smells or flavours. I will bring some along to the smoking weekend if you would like to try them?


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## resurrected (Jul 9, 2015)

Thanks for the replies guys.


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## smokin monkey (Jul 9, 2015)

Try The Range' they have 4kG bags for £6.99, might be as cheap if you don't need to pay postage?


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## resurrected (Jul 10, 2015)

My nearest range is 20 miles away unfortunately.


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## kc5tpy (Jul 10, 2015)

The Range ships.  Buy bulk to save postage.  Keep Smokin!

Danny


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## osprey2 (Jul 10, 2015)

Just to add I planked some salmon tonight. Used about 20 heat beads, lit about 17:00. Its now 21:15 and they are still warm.


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## kc5tpy (Jul 10, 2015)

Those darn things are worse than the energiser bunny!  Keep Smokin!

Danny


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## resurrected (Jul 10, 2015)

KC5TPY said:


> The Range ships.  Buy bulk to save postage.  Keep Smokin!
> 
> Danny


But they don't have the heat beads to buy online (unless I'm doing a dumb Brit search).


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## wade (Jul 11, 2015)

Even WOWBBQ only have them at list price at the moment (£6.99) however if you buy 5 or more bags the shipping is free.


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## resurrected (Jul 12, 2015)

I found a branch of the Range about half hour away so picked up four bags of beads. 

I'd put some pork on in the morning and realised I may run out of lumpwood. 

I was right [emoji]128556[/emoji]. Got back and the temp had dropped to 180. So I started her up again. 

Pork cooked but I thought was just a little dry compared to the previous one. 

Now I'm not sure if that was down to the drop in temperature or the cut (I used a pork belly rather than shoulder).













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Rubbed and going in the fridge. 













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Lifting off the rack. 













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Just before covering in foil for an hour. 













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Pulled, ready for serving.


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## smokin monkey (Jul 12, 2015)

Is that 180'C? could be temperature to high, try for around 105'C (220'F)

Belly is possibly not the best for Pulled Pork, could be wrong, and I am sure some will come along and tell me so!


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## wade (Jul 12, 2015)

It looks good but as you say it does seem a little dry from the photo. Great attempt though.
Yes, pork shoulder is what you ideally need for pulled pork as it has the right muscle fibre structure for pulling and fat marbeling rather than large streaks of fat. For pulling you also need to cook it much lower than 180 C. You can pull belly but i find that it has too much visible fat runnong through the meat and less muscle bulk.
As Steve suggests, you also need to be looking at temperatures of around 110-115 C.
The most important thing though, how did it taste?


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## resurrected (Jul 12, 2015)

No, no, that's 180F.  It may have even dropped a little lower before I stoked it back up to between 230-250F.

I just bought the belly to try something different. I could tell as soon as I started to pull it that the structure of the meat was completely different to the shoulder I'd done previously. Tasted fine though. 

Another rung of the ladder to learning climbed.


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## wade (Jul 12, 2015)

180 F?  that is only 82 C. How long did it take to get up to temperature? That could be one of the reasons it was a little dry. You should be aiming for 225-250F


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## resurrected (Jul 12, 2015)

​


Wade said:


> 180 F?  that is only 82 C. How long did it take to get up to temperature? That could be one of the reasons it was a little dry. You should be aiming for 225-250F



Wade,

I possibly was not to clear in my first post as to what occurred.

The bullet was at 230F when I popped tge meat on. Realising I would need some more fuel, I popped out to buy some (The Range). When I arrived back home tge fuel had burnt down quicker than I expected and the temperature had dropped to the aforementioned 180F. Obviously, I've no idea how long it had been this low. Anyway I  heated some lumpwood and also used some beads to get the temperature back to 230F.

Sorry, if I was a little confusing earlier. Hopefully I'm now making sense. :30:


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## wade (Jul 12, 2015)

Phew! - that sounds much better. Yes it can be a pain when that happens. Allowing it to get too cool for a short period of time is much more preferable than allowing it to get way too hot 
	

	
	
		
		



		
			






That is why I first bought my data logger. It records the meat and smoking chamber temperature every 60 seconds and I can download it in real time to my PC if something unexpected happens. When you first do this you then realise just what effect taking the lid off the smoker actually has on the internal temperature.


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## resurrected (Jul 12, 2015)

Whats the data logger, Wade?


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## smokin monkey (Jul 12, 2015)

Oh Oh, wait for Wades description, be easier reading War and Peace!  :biggrin:


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## resurrected (Jul 12, 2015)

Smokin Monkey said:


> Oh Oh, wait for Wades description, be easier reading War and Peace!  :biggrin:



I love Tolstoy, so should be a good read [emoji]128521[/emoji]


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## kc5tpy (Jul 12, 2015)

YEP!!  NA NA NA! he will go on FOREVER!  Be careful what you ask for!

Wade; you know I am "jerkin your chain"!  Have fun my friend.

Danny


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## wade (Jul 13, 2015)

resurrected said:


> Whats the data logger, Wade?


Huh - it is a good thing that I can cancel out the background static on here. They just have no respect 
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	





Anyway - I know that you are interested, but to help keep the attention of the unwashed masses I will try to keep it brief.

I use ThermaData TCD http://thermometer.co.uk/data-loggers/1001-thermocouple-therma-data-logger.html. It works really well and produces great graphs.

Here is the post from when I first got it. http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/170160/new-toy-data-logger

Don't worry about Steve and Danny. They will both settle down when they get their new boxes of crayons.


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## resurrected (Jul 13, 2015)

That looks a cool but of kit. 

I'm a bit of a gadget freak but I think I'll steer clear of that though, as it seems a little OTT for my use.


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## osprey2 (Jul 13, 2015)

Epic post Wade. Nurse says I have to put myyyyyyyyyyy


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## kc5tpy (Jul 13, 2015)

Pretty colours!  I am trying to stay in the lines!

Danny


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## smokewood (Jul 14, 2015)

Excellent post Wade,  another bit of kit on the wish list,  I just need to be able to justify it,  but unfortunately I can't.

My latest toy is a new log splitter. 

Boys and their toys Eh


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## wade (Jul 15, 2015)

smokewood said:


> Excellent post Wade,  another bit of kit on the wish list,  I just need to be able to justify it,  but unfortunately I can't.
> 
> My latest toy is a new log splitter.
> 
> Boys and their toys Eh


Hehe - I don't know what you mean. They are essential tools that we just cannot do without 
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	





At least that's what I tell Joyce. I think she believes me.







I love looking at the log splitters when I visit the local wood fairs. I have always wanted one of those 
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	





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