My UDS and I are complete failures!!! - Page 4

Black Dog BBQ · 04-24-2012, 03:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by El Ropo

Another thing I just noticed. You mentioned using 8 lbs of lump, how are your starting your fire? I only drop 10-12 lit briquettes on top of a full fire basket of tightly packed lump with wood chunks buried within the pile of unlit lump. It's called the minion method. The fuel will slowly burn down, providing a very long and very clean cook.

May be a combination of both factors.

This is a good point! I had the same issue at first.

Dr. Endo · 04-24-2012, 04:04 PM

Ok, well, it's been over an hour, all my vents are closed off and the temp is still 325. I can concieve that there is very minor leakage around my pipe fittings becuase I haven't JB welded them yet. Would that be enough to cause that high temp? Could my leaky lid cause those kind of temps?

razrbakcrzy · 04-24-2012, 04:08 PM

You now have too much coal lit. It will probably take closing off the exhaust to really bring the temp down. But just for a little bit about 5 minutes should do it. it will remain hot but you will snuff out some of the not completely involved coals... you need to come up to temp slowly. Only about 10 lit coals or about 1/4 -1/3 chimney lit lump, close 2 intakes at about 200°, it should rise another 50-75° and settle about 250-275°...

Dr. Endo · 04-24-2012, 04:59 PM

Ok, so the temp now is 307. It's come down 15 or 20 degrees. I have all the air cut off but the temp is very slow coming down... I guess I should just leave it all closed for a while to let the temp come down and then open them up again to see if I can make teh temp steady at the 220 mark. I probably have extinguished all the coals though. I guess I'll find out when I open the vents again at 220. I'll get it figured out. (hopefully) There probably really isn't an easy fix once you get too many coals lit.

HogFan · 04-24-2012, 05:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by razrbakcrzy

If you really want to use the side therm. you need a third grate about 2" above the coal basket. then set a 16" pizza pan on it. Then your heat will get deflected towards the outside of the barrel more. I use several digital therms. (3) I got from Bed, Bath and Beyond, (2 or 3) from Wal Mart and Target and I am going to buy atleast (1) from Ikea just to try it out...

most tend to use the maverick brands and a thermopen for probing for tender ness and temping...

Or split the difference.......and use a perforated pizza pan so some heat goes through the middle and some around the perimeter of the pan for more even heating from the center of the cooking grill to the perimeter.

My advice, don't JB Weld the pipe fittings......ditch the pipe fittings and convert to magnets covering your inlet holes. That's what I did. The magnets are always stuck to the barrel so you don't lose them. When you take the caps off the pipe, you have to worry about misplacing them. More difficult to remove the pipe after you use JB Weld on them <smile>.

Dr. Endo · 04-24-2012, 05:40 PM

all vents are closed... temperature is 313. Is it possible that the coals could get enough oxygen from a mildly leaky lid? I really thought that the temp would have gone down by now. Any thoughts?

Wampus · 04-24-2012, 05:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lemur

10-12" turkey termo

+1
I actually use 2 of them, 1 directly under each cooking grate. They're cheap if I need to replace em and easy to use! I get real temps from the center of the drum!

Jackinkc · 04-24-2012, 05:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dr. Endo

all vents are closed... temperature is 313. Is it possible that the coals could get enough oxygen from a mildly leaky lid? I really thought that the temp would have gone down by now. Any thoughts?

If everything is closed down, and it's still staying around 300 for a long period of time, there is oxygen getting in there somehow. Someone mentioned earlier to put foul around the lid. I would see if that calms it down....

Wampus · 04-24-2012, 05:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dr. Endo

all vents are closed... temperature is 313. Is it possible that the coals could get enough oxygen from a mildly leaky lid? I really thought that the temp would have gone down by now. Any thoughts?

That's probably exactly what's going on. Until mine got nice and seasoned & seal up better, I just wrapped wide masking or packing tape around the joint between the lid & drum to seal the air off. Try that. I'll bet the drum will be cold in an hour or less.

rolfejr · 04-24-2012, 05:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wampus

+1
I actually use 2 of them, 1 directly under each cooking grate. They're cheap if I need to replace em and easy to use! I get real temps from the center of the drum!

Just a quick OT question. When you use the 12" thermos, how do you get the charcoal basket in and out of the UDS?

Dr. Endo · 04-24-2012, 05:56 PM

Ok, well, I decided to make some lemonade from my lemon and just through some potatoes and corn wrapped in foil into the UDS. 300-350 sounds like some good baking temps to me. lol. I was joking with my wife and told her to whip up some homemade bread or rolls and we can just make it a dinner - minus the meat of course.

Happy Hapgood · 04-24-2012, 06:14 PM

Lump does burn hotter than briquettes. You might try the same experiment with some K-Blue, Minon method. I don't have a UDS but use a WSM. Big difference in fuel temps. Also go for the tightest air seal possible. That way, all or most air is controlled by you at the vents.

The Maverick ET 732 is a Mighty thing at a good price.

Good Luck!

ps: Your burnt offering looked a lot better than my 1st one.

El Ropo · 04-24-2012, 07:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rolfejr

Just a quick OT question. When you use the 12" thermos, how do you get the charcoal basket in and out of the UDS?

You insert the thermo probes through a hole in side of barrel (air sealing grommet optional). When removing or inserting grates/fire basket, you simply pull the long probes out till they are barely inserted. Then drop basket and grates in, then push thermos back into position.

The UDS is a set and forget setup. Meaning you should never have to open it up in the middle of a cook to mess with coals, so this process only has to be done once for each cook. A lot more accurate readings, and gives you peace of mind that the temps you are reading are dead nuts on.

Not OT at all, a valid question.

HogFan · 04-24-2012, 08:13 PM

So what is holding the long cook probe parallel? Doesn't it sag and hang down or do you just push it in far enough to balance? Where can one find a rubber groomet that works well for this?

vafish · 04-24-2012, 08:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HogFan

So what is holding the long cook probe parallel? Doesn't it sag and hang down or do you just push it in far enough to balance? Where can one find a rubber groomet that works well for this?

Every turkey thermometer I have seen comes with a clip to hold it on the edge of the pot.

I drill a small hole in the UDS for the probe, drop the charcoal basket in, put the thermometer probe through the hole, then slide the clip up snug to the inside of the drum. Holds the thermometer in nice and level. When you want to take things out you just grab a hold of the thermometer head and pull back on it.

Another option is to use a metal valve stem. remove the valve from the middle and the turkey thermometer will fit right through it. The 1 1/2" length is enough to hold the turkey thermometer level.

04-24-2012, 04:08 PM	#48
razrbakcrzy is one Smokin' Farker Join Date: 09-13-11 Location: Fort Smith, Ar.	You now have too much coal lit. It will probably take closing off the exhaust to really bring the temp down. But just for a little bit about 5 minutes should do it. it will remain hot but you will snuff out some of the not completely involved coals... you need to come up to temp slowly. Only about 10 lit coals or about 1/4 -1/3 chimney lit lump, close 2 intakes at about 200°, it should rise another 50-75° and settle about 250-275°... __________________ [SIZE=2][B]Jim Boston[/B][/SIZE] [B][COLOR=black]Current Smoker[/COLOR][/B] [COLOR=red]"The most reliable, easiest to make at home, Smoker [B]"The UDS"[/B] W/ an Auber temp. Controller w/ 20CFM Blower.[/COLOR] [FONT=Arial][B]Future Smoker [/B][/FONT] [FONT=Arial]$5438.25 Total BYC Smoker!![/FONT] [SIZE=2]Some people spend an entire lifetime wondering if they made a difference in the world. But, the Marines don't have that problem. [/SIZE] [SIZE=1]Ronald Reagan, President of the United States; 1985 [/SIZE]

04-24-2012, 06:14 PM	#57
Happy Hapgood somebody shut me the fark up. Join Date: 03-17-12 Location: Shreveport, Louisiana Name/Nickname : Mike	Lump does burn hotter than briquettes. You might try the same experiment with some K-Blue, Minon method. I don't have a UDS but use a WSM. Big difference in fuel temps. Also go for the tightest air seal possible. That way, all or most air is controlled by you at the vents. The Maverick ET 732 is a Mighty thing at a good price. Good Luck! ps: Your burnt offering looked a lot better than my 1st one. __________________ Cooking Equipment: Weber WSM, Weber GA, Weber Spirit E-310, Weber 22" OTG Charbroil Oilless Turkey Fryer Wife LuzziAnn 1956 model. Ink Bird IBBQ 4T Wi-Fi Temp Monitor, Superfast LSU Purple Thermapen & ThermaPop, Party Q Ink Bird Sous Vide, HF Flame Thower My Motto these days is "Low Stress, Low Drag". The Artist Formally Known as Toast

04-24-2012, 04:04 PM	#47
Dr. Endo Is lookin for wood to cook with. Join Date: 04-09-12 Location: Nolanville, Texas	Ok, well, it's been over an hour, all my vents are closed off and the temp is still 325. I can concieve that there is very minor leakage around my pipe fittings becuase I haven't JB welded them yet. Would that be enough to cause that high temp? Could my leaky lid cause those kind of temps?

04-24-2012, 04:59 PM	#49
Dr. Endo Is lookin for wood to cook with. Join Date: 04-09-12 Location: Nolanville, Texas	Ok, so the temp now is 307. It's come down 15 or 20 degrees. I have all the air cut off but the temp is very slow coming down... I guess I should just leave it all closed for a while to let the temp come down and then open them up again to see if I can make teh temp steady at the 220 mark. I probably have extinguished all the coals though. I guess I'll find out when I open the vents again at 220. I'll get it figured out. (hopefully) There probably really isn't an easy fix once you get too many coals lit.

04-24-2012, 05:40 PM	#51
Dr. Endo Is lookin for wood to cook with. Join Date: 04-09-12 Location: Nolanville, Texas	all vents are closed... temperature is 313. Is it possible that the coals could get enough oxygen from a mildly leaky lid? I really thought that the temp would have gone down by now. Any thoughts?

04-24-2012, 05:56 PM	#56
Dr. Endo Is lookin for wood to cook with. Join Date: 04-09-12 Location: Nolanville, Texas	Ok, well, I decided to make some lemonade from my lemon and just through some potatoes and corn wrapped in foil into the UDS. 300-350 sounds like some good baking temps to me. lol. I was joking with my wife and told her to whip up some homemade bread or rolls and we can just make it a dinner - minus the meat of course.

04-24-2012, 08:13 PM	#59
HogFan is one Smokin' Farker Join Date: 03-21-12 Location: Arkansas	So what is holding the long cook probe parallel? Doesn't it sag and hang down or do you just push it in far enough to balance? Where can one find a rubber groomet that works well for this?