need help with a Jambo Backyard

[waterman7474]

Howdy yall.

New to the board but not my first rodeo. So last week, I was lucky enough to procure a 3 year old Jambo Backyard pit from a local (by some stroke of luck, posted on craigslist the day i started looking) and got it for essentially 1/2 price. I am on a (original) team that participates in the Yaga's Wild Game Cookoff in Galveston TX and am familiar with a wide variety of pits. This one has me scratching my head a little.

Working on my second test run (ribs last and a very small brisket this time) and I am having a hard time figuring out how to run this thing.

The short version is that I can't get it to run in the 225-250 range for more than an hour.

(as per the last owners suggestion, who wasn't exactly a noob) I ran a 3/4 a bag of lump charcoal for 30 min (started in a chimney) till the whole thing got warm, then started adding a stick (post oak) at a time. Pipe set at 1/2 open and the box vent at about a 1/2 inch. I couldn't get it to run much over 200. When needed another stick, went with two, spiked to 275-300+ and stayed there. Closed off the pipe 80% and would stabilize at 250 for an hour or so but would CHEW through the wood and charcoal by the 3rd hour. Kept adding wood every 30-45 till they were done. Using the grate and it seems to burn through the wood like crazy. It almost seems to burn TOO efficiently. I can't get a bed of coals. Just light ash.

This afternoon, this time (as per the previous owners second suggestion) tried a 7lb bag of kingsford to heat it up for an hour. Then started adding the stick. Would stay at 250-275 for an hour or so. By hour 2 1/2, burned through all the charcoal and dropping below 200. Not adding sticks but they are either lit and running 300, or smoldering at 200 and not clean.

Is the grate in the box the problem? Our cooker we use in the competition doesn't have the grate and seems to hold the fire better and longer with a bed of coals. This just seems to burn them out completely leaving a little ash but no coals. to keep lighting. That is unless I am out there jacking with it every 45 min.

What am I doing wrong?

Should I take the grate out and just get a bed going on the floor of the box?

Thanks in advance for the help yall.

 

[mikemci]

Follow oldbill's method.

http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/newreply.php?do=newreply&p=3103348

 

[ShencoSmoke]

Most all Jambo owners will tell you that the jambo sweet spot is between 275 and 300, Some comp cooks cook at 325. I cook hot as well because the pit loves that range. I cooked a rib roast once in my backyard ( I prefer to cook rib roasts at 225) and it was very hard to keep it at 225. In order to keep it there you need to build a very small, clean burning fire and it needed to be tended to almost relentlessly. I start my pit with a chimney of lump and then burn 100% oak splits. Once it sets at 275 you can easily get it to lock in by adding splits every 30-40 minutes. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but your pit hates 225.

 

[DaveAlvarado]

Yeah, if the pit likes running at 275-300, run it at 275-300.

There's nothing magical about 225, except waking up earlier and eating later.

You bought a competition pit, run it at competition temps.

 

[Smokesignalsfromtx]

Yeah, if the pit likes running at 275-300, run it at 275-300.

There's nothing magical about 225, except waking up earlier and eating later.

You bought a competition pit, run it at competition temps.

^^^^^^^this^^^^^^^^

AND keep your exhaust wide open when cooking! Control your temp by the splits you use. It's all about air flow and fire control.

 

[Boshizzle]

How much wind is there? If it's windy, try changing the direction the FB is pointing.

Also, don't be afraid to get some fire and coals in the FB. I like to let the fuel burn down to coals that are very hot. I keep the doors open and sometimes the FB door open while starting the fire. I have found that you need to keep a good bed of hot coals going or the temps will dip.

How seasoned and dry is the wood? The dryer the wood is the faster it will burn. That's a variable that needs to be accounted for too.

One other thing, don't worry about having to crack the FB door open after putting in a new log in order to help it ignite. That's a common practice for cooking with a Jambo.

 

[ShencoSmoke]

keep your exhaust wide open when cooking! Control your temp by the splits you use.

Actually, jambo's are one example of an offset controlled at the stack. Jambo backyards have a set air control on the firebox, they can be adjusted, but you need a wrench. I have never adjusted mine. You are correct, you control your pit temp with the wood, but the fine tuning is accomplished with the damper on the stack. I start mine with the damper wide open and back it down slowly until i hit my desired temp and then it locks in. A slight nudge (1/4" to 1/2") on the damper will drop or raise your chamber temp by 5 deg. Even with a small fire in my FB, if I left my stack wide open I would have chamber temps of 400 deg. plus.

 

[SmittyJonz]

275*is the Best All Around BBQ Temp Anyways.

I love cooking at 300* so Tow that Pit to Tx for your cook off a day early and sell it to me and go ahead and pick up a Pit you like and head on to the cook off. :heh:

 

[SmittyJonz]

Yup that's the Best Solution to your problem................start looking at other Tx Pit Builders. :thumb:

 

[jdbh]

ive never had the prob u r talking about with my jambo it would run at at 225 or 300 if i wanted it was the easiest offset i ever cooked on

 

[Muscrat]

The only thing I would do different that hasn't been mentioned is start the fire with smaller splits that you would be cooking with and not charcoal. Your eating up time if it's an issue plus it's cheaper. Start the fire with a weed burner. All good advice above except selling yours to Smittyjonz. I need to sell him one!! Lol!!

 

[booradley001]

I saw that Craigslist ad and knew someone was getting a great deal. Congrats on the score!

 

[waterman7474]

I think I may have figured it. The speed at which it was going through wood was nagging at me. That and the pile of ash was as fine as baby powder and very well burned.

I talked to a teammate for a little while about the box set up and the way the one we us in the competition is set up and the between the bottom of the box and the top of the grate (the grate is built up on another 1 inch flat stock frame), it is 5.75 inches off the bottom. Our other one is 2.

So I had some extra flagstone around from the yard and chipped away a large piece to fit just so it covers most of the bottom and brings the bottom up 2 inches.

2 Hours in, it is holding between 275-310 and burning much slower. Not sure it is building up coals yet like I want it to but that change made significant progress.

Thanks for all the help.


booradley, nice to know there is someone stuck stuck out here on the moon with me. Being a fellow Aggie, he cut me a better deal than asking

 

[booradley001]

Waterman - what is your wood source for post oak splits? are you getting them in LV?

 

[waterman7474]

That wood guy up by Nellis.

 

[waterman7474]

I was bored and cruizing the site and saw this post I did a while back and thought i'd update.

I kept on with the idea of reducing the air flow in the box so I went to home depot and found some old school red clay bricks and made a layer on the bottom of the box. Then turned the grate over so that there is less than two inches between the grate and the bricks. It now hold very steady at 275 with 1-2 splits every 45-hour.

However....I did a brisket last weekend. It is June...in Vegas and well above a hundred... Started it at 1230 and brisket went on at 2. All was good until it got over 100 (around 10am) and then I was having trouble with the fire again. It would get too hot and go straight to coals. It almost didn't make any smoke. If i added a fresh stick, it would jump up to 315+. I guess I could have let it ride there but I was afraid of drying the brisket out. I ended up fighting with it and letting it go long and then see-sawing down to 220 or so, then new stick and back up to 300.

Pulled it off at 200 and it was a little tough. Probably should have rode the 315 to 203 or so. Maybe next time. I'll throw up a few pics of stuff I've done going back to winter.

Brisket last weekend

Tri-tip, rib, baby back, beef back ribs a month ago

pork but and beef ribs

our set up for the Yaga's Wild Game Cookoff in Galveston this year. 19 years.

Alien motorcycle run in Rachel NV. Ride to the middle of nowhere, drug out the camper and the pit and did it TX style for the desert rats. Did 4 racks, 4lbs sausage, a venison summer sausage stick (don't ask...), and maybe the best beef back ribs i've ever had in my life.

Xmas I did a whole turkey, 1 rack, (store trimed) brisket flat (all I could find out here....it wasn't good), 4 large eggplants and a massive cabbage (core, stand core hole up, cram in 1/4 salt/peppar, stick butter...:clap

That's the just of it. I gotta figure out how to maintain temp in this over 110 crap.....or move back to TX....

 

[pjtexas1]

Food looks great. You don't want to see smoke and cooking brisket to temp is hit and miss. Cook until it's probe tender in the thickest part of the flat.

 

[bbqwizard]

......stuck in Vegas. I may not be stuck here, but can relate on the temp issues considering the amount of heat here. The good thing about it though IMO, is that with these temps you go through a whole lot less fuel

 

[Bludawg]

open the exhaust your killin the draft no draft = no heat

 

[jamaicamon]

Try cooking fat cap up. My Jambo runs at 325-350 and that seemed to help with Brisket and Pork butt.
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