• working on DNS.. links may break temporarily.

Bbq Guru Help on WSM 22.5

A

ayb97

Well-known member
Joined
Jun 11, 2014
Messages
24
Reaction score
4
Points
0
Location
Cental, NJ
I finally. took the plunge and bought a guru for my 22.5. This weekend I took it for test run with a pork butt and don't know if I was doing something wrong or what, but I expected better. Maybe I'm not doing something right. I figured I would post here and try and get some help. I started out with a full ring of Kingsford charcoal and dumped three quarters of a chimney of lit charcoal in the middle. There was no water in the water pan.all events were completely closed except the top one which was a hundred percent open. The vent on the Guru fan was a 100% open. the temperature slowly climbed and after a half hour was it about 150 degrees. I had to kick the vent and door open to get the temperature to rise faster. Am I expecting too much from it how long does it normally take to bring up to 250 degrees. After I finally hit my 250 degrees it seems like I was playing vent games all day. The temperature on the pit would go down to 240 and I would have to open one of the bottom vent to get it to stabilize again. Then it would reach 250 again and after a little while the temperature would be up to 260 270 and I would have to close the vent again. Any input would be appreciated. Thanks guys.
 
ayb97 said:
I finally. took the plunge and bought a guru for my 22.5. This weekend I took it for test run with a pork butt and don't know if I was doing something wrong or what, but I expected better. Maybe I'm not doing something right. I figured I would post here and try and get some help. I started out with a full ring of Kingsford charcoal and dumped three quarters of a chimney of lit charcoal in the middle. There was no water in the water pan.all events were completely closed except the top one which was a hundred percent open. The vent on the Guru fan was a 100% open. the temperature slowly climbed and after a half hour was it about 150 degrees. I had to kick the vent and door open to get the temperature to rise faster. Am I expecting too much from it how long does it normally take to bring up to 250 degrees. After I finally hit my 250 degrees it seems like I was playing vent games all day. The temperature on the pit would go down to 240 and I would have to open one of the bottom vent to get it to stabilize again. Then it would reach 250 again and after a little while the temperature would be up to 260 270 and I would have to close the vent again. Any input would be appreciated. Thanks guys.
Click to expand...

Did you make sure the slide on the Guru was open? From the factory it comes closed...

The slide is located right where the guru goes into the wsm adapter. without the slide being open there is no airflow... Common mistake with many first time users.
 
Sounds like the vent on the guru was closed and not open?
That much coal lit should have taken no time.
 
I have the 10cfm fan and my 22 holds rock solid temps. I pretty much do the same thing you do except I leave one bottom vent wide open until I am within about 20 degrees of my target temp. I then close the bottom vent and it is where I need it within a few minutes. Never takes more than 25-30 minutes to get to 235 or so. It takes longer for me to get TBS than it does to get to temp.
 
IamMadMan said:
Did you make sure the slide on the Guru was open? From the factory it comes closed...

The slide is located right where the guru goes into the wsm adapter. without the slide being open there is no airflow... Common mistake with many first time users.
Click to expand...


He said the vent on the Guru fan was wide open so I assumed he was talking about the slide, but that was my first thought too.
 
I got the digiq dx2 with 10 com fan. I made sure the vent on fan was open. But when I was taking it off I noticed it was closed. I don't know if I closed it when taking it off or closed it by accident when I was installing it.
 
ayb97 said:
I got the digiq dx2 with 10 com fan. I made sure the vent on fan was open. But when I was taking it off I noticed it was closed. I don't know if I closed it when taking it off or closed it by accident when I was installing it.
Click to expand...

Well that'll definitely do it. I've done that before and it's the first thing I check now. I think you'll find that the Guru is the ticket next time you use it.
 
Any wind today? Mine come up in about 45 min, but I only start with 12 lit. 3/4 chimney sounds like a lot to me.

One day I could not get temps up to save my life. Turn the lid around so that the top vent was facing downwind and bingo! Another thing I read and it makes sense it to let the guru bring it up to temp without other vents open. By doing so, it is actually learning the pit for each cook to prevent over shoots. I know in your case you were just trying to get temps up, but when things do work out might be something worth considering.
 
I also vote on a closed fan slide
 
with nothing but top vent open its hard to dial in. bet your next cook will reward you.
 
Thanks guys. Like I said maybe I closed the guru vent when I was installing it. Ill give it another shot next weekend and make sure to double check that vent. Ill let you know how it goes. Ill take any other advice for using the guru to its potential. JeffR you really only start with 12 lit? How long does it usually take to bring up to say 250?
 
IamMadMan said:
Did you make sure the slide on the Guru was open? From the factory it comes closed...

The slide is located right where the guru goes into the wsm adapter. without the slide being open there is no airflow... Common mistake with many first time users.
Click to expand...

ayb97 said:
I got the digiq dx2 with 10 com fan. I made sure the vent on fan was open. But when I was taking it off I noticed it was closed. I don't know if I closed it when taking it off or closed it by accident when I was installing it.
Click to expand...

ayb97 said:
Thanks guys. Like I said maybe I closed the guru vent when I was installing it. Ill give it another shot next weekend and make sure to double check that vent. Ill let you know how it goes. Ill take any other advice for using the guru to its potential. JeffR you really only start with 12 lit? How long does it usually take to bring up to say 250?
Click to expand...

Very common mistake..... Your next cook will be right on target..
 
Since acquiring the guru I haven't taken notes like I used to. Without it I would be to about 230 in about 30 minutes. From there I am starting to shut down vents to get to 250-275 slower. Keep in mind I run a clay sauce and no water so YMMV.
 
ayb97 said:
Thanks guys. Like I said maybe I closed the guru vent when I was installing it. Ill give it another shot next weekend and make sure to double check that vent. Ill let you know how it goes. Ill take any other advice for using the guru to its potential. JeffR you really only start with 12 lit? How long does it usually take to bring up to say 250?
Click to expand...

Using lump I pour about 10-15 in the indention I make in the center and with all vents wide open it's up to 250* in about twenty minutes. When I get within about 20* of my set temp I close all the vents except the top one and the vent on the fan which I normally run it halfway open. I leave it this way throughout the entire cook letting the digiQ dx ii run the show.
 
Another guy told me to use the minion method but instead of putting the can in the center put it right in front of the vent where the fan vent is and put your lit charcoal there. Any thoughts?
 
hey guys. I just wanted to follow up on my second cook with the my new guru. As you guys have stated I must have had my damper on the fan closed because this time it worked like a charm. I started with 20 lit and kept all vents open until it reached 240. Took about 30 minutes. then I shut all the vents and she settled in to 260 in 10 minutes. Perfect. Then it was set it and forget it. Thanks for the help. Although, when I was taking all the probes off and putting them away, I pulled the alligator clip off the pit probe and the whole probe piece came off leaving nothing but the wire. It came off pretty easy too. I wasn't yanking hard or anything on the alligator clip. Has this ever happened to anyone else? Think Guru will replace it? The unit is only 2-3 weeks old. Can it be fixed?
 
kds9547 said:
I have the 10cfm fan and my 22 holds rock solid temps. I pretty much do the same thing you do except I leave one bottom vent wide open until I am within about 20 degrees of my target temp. I then close the bottom vent and it is where I need it within a few minutes. Never takes more than 25-30 minutes to get to 235 or so. It takes longer for me to get TBS than it does to get to temp.
Click to expand...

This works for me as well.
 
I gotta say WHY IN THE HECK does anyone use a controller to get their pit to temp?

Use it to keep temp but not to get it there. What is this BBQ world coming to. :roll:
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

H
Guru
Replies
5
Views
509
hightpt
H
2
Temperature issues pellet conversion kit
Replies
19
Views
2K
2002sheds
2
Headgear
New Stick Burner Help
Replies
16
Views
829
cayenne
cayenne
S
Buckboard ham
2
Replies
24
Views
710
stickman
S
Headgear
I May Have Ruined Some Wood!
Replies
19
Views
1K
Headgear
Headgear
Back
Top