BGE - A couple of questions?

[tortaboy]

I'm in the market for a XL Big Green Egg. One thing that sold me is that of all the Kamado's on the market, BGE probably has the best chance of being around in 10-20 years? I'm going shopping either next weekend, or the weekend after. Not sure if i'm going to place it into a normal woooden table, or have a brick/rock table built for it.

After spending hours last night doing internet research, here are some quesions that I'm pondering. I want to do this once, so I'm trying to make sure I don't have buyers remorse.

Here are some questions for current BGE owners:

It sounds like the BGE is being shipped with a known defect (Inferior gasket). Why would they not do a simple fix and include a higher end gasket on new models?

Do many dealers offer setup? Is this option something I should expect?

If I have a brick stand built with an area to place the egg instead of a circle cut into a table top, will the BGE wobble when I lift the lid?

[TOPPER-Q]

Tort,
I own a lrg BGE, and have owned it for 20 years. Have replaced every thing on it except for the outside. Have replaced the gasket twice. It takes a putty knife, ten minutes, and abot twenty bucs, and SHAZAM!!!! new egg. The " re-do " cost me 325.00 and that included a cast iron grill and indirect heat shield, plus all the guts. The worst thing was I lost 20 years of seasoning. That " re-do " was performed 1 month ago. Yes they will set it up for you, and the brick idea is a bad idea, just for the fact that if it did fall you would have a 1300.00.-1400.00 scrambled egg. get the table and put on casters, and you'll never look back.
P.S. use only lump, and don't use lighter fluid ever.

[Big George's BBQ]

Not everyone has a problem with the gasket. For those who have had gasket burnout some replaced it others have not. Mine is partially gone and the Egg still works like a champ. As long as the area is flat that you are resting the Egg on I doupt it will wobble They are pretty heavy. It is a good idea to raise the egg a little for air flow- yopu can use the 3 ceramic feet that come with the Egg, or use some washers. I have a large and love it. Remember to break it in with a low temp cook- this helps the gasket. Have fun

[deepsouth]

i've had my large egg for years now and i'm still on my first gasket. my mini is still on it's original gasket. only my small that i bought used has a fried gasket, fried by the guy that owned it before me. the top is also offset a bit, which i expect might have caused the fried gasket, but i haven't been bothered to mess with any of it yet as it hasn't affected any of my cooks.

[Big George's BBQ]

Are you talking about a brick platform or something to place the Egg in that is surrounded by at least 3 sides- the latter is what I thought you meant

[swibirun]

I have had my Egg going on 4 years now. My original gasket had some issues after six months. I got a replacement but despite cooking on it 3-4 times a week ever since (high temps and low/slow) I haven't felt the need to replace it. My wife has had her Large Egg 1 1/2 years and it's gasket is still in perfect shape.

As far as the wobble, I have both of ours sitting on a paver in a table with a circle cut out for it and have no wobble issues. Not sure how the XL does in a similar situation.

[R2Egg2Q]

Not sure about why BGE sticks with the stock gasket. They will send you a free Nomex gasket that handles higher heat as a replacement if you fry yours & you call them. My stock gaskets lasted about 1 1/2 yrs.

The XL does NOT come with the ceramic feet. It apparently has something to do with the distance between them being too great with the weight & concerns over the center of the bottom being unsupported. If the brick is level there should be no wobble. You'll find you won't fling the lid open anyway as doing so can send your metal top flying off.

I know Eggs By The Bay offers a delivery option but I don't know the price. If you haven't checked them out I'd recommend you do. Eggfest is on June 23rd in your city. I'll be cooking there on an XL. Hope to see you there.

[CrackerJack from KC]

Well I have had an XL BGE for about 2 weeks, and considering the cost of the thing, replacing a gasket for $30 is not something you should worry about. I would have continued to use the old gasket if it wasnt about 10 years old and leaked out the back.

(btw, if you do get an XL BGE and replace the gasket, unhook the springs before you do it.)

[Big George's BBQ]

If there is an Eggfest in your area see about getting a Demo if they are not already spoken for You can save some money that way

[Abelman]

Originally Posted by R2Egg2Q

Not sure about why BGE sticks with the stock gasket. They will send you a free Nomex gasket that handles higher heat as a replacement if you fry yours & you call them. My stock gaskets lasted about 1 1/2 yrs.

The XL does NOT come with the ceramic feet. It apparently has something to do with the distance between them being too great with the weight & concerns over the center of the bottom being unsupported. If the brick is level there should be no wobble. You'll find you won't fling the lid open anyway as doing so can send your metal top flying off.

I know Eggs By The Bay offers a delivery option but I don't know the price. If you haven't checked them out I'd recommend you do. Eggfest is on June 23rd in your city. I'll be cooking there on an XL. Hope to see you there.

I've had mine 4 years now and had a gasket problem at the beginning. It was a dealer issue. As for getting a new one, this is the email I got from them today as I need to replace mine again. I think I'll jsut do a rutland gasket.

"The gasket is considered a normal wear item and should be replaced regularly (yearly). We do have a nomex or high heat gasket available now. You can purchase one from your local dealer or from the Big Green Egg retail store. I am sorry but this is not a warranty item that I can provide you free of cost.


Sincerely,


Duane"

I asked why they don't use a quality gasket from the get go but he didn't answer that question.

I still love my BGE but the gasket is the only problem with it. Just frustrating that it's so simple and inexpensive yet that's the place that gets ignored from the manufacturing standpoint.

[smokeylips]

Before you buy check out http://www.komodokamado.com They are works of art with top notch customer service!!! You wouldn't be disappointed. I have had mine 2 years no problems but anyone that has the smallest issue he's there for you.

[tortaboy]

Originally Posted by Big George's BBQ

Are you talking about a brick platform or something to place the Egg in that is surrounded by at least 3 sides- the latter is what I thought you meant

Yes. I was talking about a brick enclosure surrounded by 3 sides.

[tortaboy]

Originally Posted by Big George's BBQ

If there is an Eggfest in your area see about getting a Demo if they are not already spoken for You can save some money that way

I thought about doing that, but I've been wanting to play with a Kamado for awhile now, and the weather is turning "Bbq perfect".

I rationalize for a long time, but once I make a purchase decision, it's usually a short time until I get what I want. The Eggfest isn't until the end of June...(Insert impatient mod).

[tortaboy]

Originally Posted by Abelman

I've had mine 4 years now and had a gasket problem at the beginning. It was a dealer issue. As for getting a new one, this is the email I got from them today as I need to replace mine again. I think I'll jsut do a rutland gasket.

"The gasket is considered a normal wear item and should be replaced regularly (yearly). We do have a nomex or high heat gasket available now. You can purchase one from your local dealer or from the Big Green Egg retail store. I am sorry but this is not a warranty item that I can provide you free of cost.


Sincerely,


Duane"

I asked why they don't use a quality gasket from the get go but he didn't answer that question.

I still love my BGE but the gasket is the only problem with it. Just frustrating that it's so simple and inexpensive yet that's the place that gets ignored from the manufacturing standpoint.

This is amazing to me.

Considering this is a higher end purchase and the fact that there is a lot of competition entering the market, you would think the BGE company would be smart enough to solve this problem by including a better gasket.

I'll bet BGE could take a $50 price increase and advertise that the new and improved egg now comes with a high temp long lasting gasket.

The gasket issue has been one of my biggest considerations on why I have waited this long to purchase. It sounds like it's the only flaw on the egg. It may be an easy fix, but after spending all that money....why should it even be something you need to think about?

[tortaboy]

Originally Posted by smokeylips

Before you buy check out http://www.komodokamado.com They are works of art with top notch customer service!!! You wouldn't be disappointed. I have had mine 2 years no problems but anyone that has the smallest issue he's there for you.

I thought about this for a long time. When I consider the cost of an enclosure for an egg plus the cost of the egg itself, it's probably more expensive to buy the egg!

But, 20 years down the road, I'm betting the BGE company still makes parts for their cooker. Do you think the KomodoKamado will be around in 20 years?