Chasing temps with the IQ110 and a Akorn Kamado

[Rackovanz]

So I had my first smoke today, I did three slabs of baby backs. I started my fire in the recommended way of building a volcano out of lump and starting just a small section in the very top. Temp came up nicely, I set the IQ to 250 with, after the temp settled I was directed to ramp it up to 275. I hit 275 and then 280 then 290 then topped out at 309. Eventually it calmed down and started to fall. Then it bottomed out at 213. I opened the top vent a little more and it balloned to 308 again.

I am looking for guidence on what to have the vent on top set at, how to build the fire (if I did it wrong) and what other pointers guys who have a egg and the IQ.

Thanks for the help.

Zachary

[Untraceable]

Close off some of the intake on the IQ and close off the chimney a bit more. It overshot because it wasnt able to snuff out the fire enough when it stopped its cycle

[Rackovanz]

Thanks for the reply, I had the IQ set on 1 and I had the vents only open a very very small amount and it was having trouble heating up. The temp only made it to 241 and then started to fall. Thats when I opened the top up.

[JS-TX]

With these type of cookers it's best to nurse the temp up slowly so it doesn't over shoot so much... have had many battles with my keg and stoker.

[NorthwestBBQ]

Yes, it is harder to bring temps down then up with a pit controller.

[captndan]

Personally I don't like the volcano method in a Kamado. I do just the oppecent. (spell check sucks). I put the lump on the outside of the fire bowl and a small piece in the middle. You gotta take it slow with a Kamado.

[Gnaws on Pigs]

I don't usually have any trouble at all keeping my akorn at temp all day without a temp-controlling device. Sounds like you're overcomplicating it. Get your vents set right and it'll go all day with only a couple minor adjustments. Smoked butts for 10 hours on mine last weekend, no fancy IQ thingy, only touched the vents maybe twice for minor adjustments all day, and it held right in the 250-260 range like an oven. It took me a few tries to learn how to get it to temp and keep it there, but once I did, it is the easiest cooker I've ever had to keep temp on. Usually after I have it where I want it at smoking temps, the bottom and top vents will both be somewhere around .5 to 1. I try to keep the top a little more open than the bottom if I can.

[Rackovanz]

Thanks for all of the advice, I would like to get the IQ working since I just spent 139.95 on it. I bought it based on the advice of a friend of mine. Gnaws I see your point tho. I think I will try to smoke a chicken today and do it the old fashion way to see how it works. If anyone had been able to use the IQ and the Akorn together and had it work I would love to hear from ya. Like i said I just don't want to have wasted the money.

[Rackovanz]

Well I gave it another shot, I lit one piece of lump and set the target temp on the IQ to 200 to bring it up slow. Where do you put the thermometer probes? I have them in the center, could I be getting a false reading because it is right over the flame? I have a diffuser (pizza pan) in place. I am currently at 289, 291. With the top vent at a setting of one. I have not touched the IQ it is still set at 200 with a damper setting of 1. I am about to call them and talk about refunds..... Just hit 297 while typing this. 298. Getting frustrated. Just hit 300 a full 100 degrees over the setting that I wanted to achieve.

306. GRRR

[Gnaws on Pigs]

That's a good temp to smoke chicken at, though. Never used one, so I don't know. But you should be able to hold temp much better than that without the thing.

[captndan]

Does your IQ have the little washer at the end of the hose?

[Will work for bbq]

I don't have an IQ, I do have a Guru which works flawlessly on my WSM's either bringing the temp up or down. When I tried to adapt it to my acorn it was an epic fail. first it wouldn't bring the temp up very fast, it turns out it was because of the air gap between bowl and cooker was just channeling the air around the lump and out the top vent instead of through the lump and stoking it. Then once I figured that out and decreased air flow it would over shoot not matter what I did with the top vent then as it attempted to bring the temp down the coals would go out by the time the temp dropped enough for the Guru to stoke again (this was while trying to see if the Acorn could hold 225 steady). I have given up (for now) and just control the temp manually.

[rossmatt06]

I had the same issue with my stoker. I had to damper down the top vents quite a bit or the temps would swing ALOT. With the egg I've heard of people either getting up to temp and then turn on the draft controller or setting the temp low and let it overshoot up to your set point. I usually close the exhaust on the egg most of the way and set the temp for 200. It will overshoot to around 230-250. I change my set point to 250 and away we go. The stoker has a 10 cfm fan and I think it's way too big. The partyq is much smaller and creeps up on the set point very slowly. I can set it for 250 and let it do its thing.

[Rackovanz]

Thanks for the help. I smoked a butt last night using just the manual control of the pit and it went pretty smooth. I will try using the IQ tomorrow night on another butt. I will post up my results and let you all know.

[Rackovanz]

I was able to smoke a butt at 245ish all night using manual control. I find that maybe the IQ over complicates an issue that does not need it. :( I feel like I wasted 139.00