Weber kettle snake method

[levo83]

Hi guys, having trouble getting my kettle up to temp. It is climbing slowly, just wondering what my bottom 3 vents should be set on? I have the top vent fully open


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[1buckie]

I most often start with everything full open, then pinch the bottom vents some as it rises to NEAR where it's needed to run for whatever particular cookup....

What charcoal, how thick of a pack on the chain, is the charcoal good & dry, are you using soaked wood by chance, what's the general weather like, how is the temp monitored / determined ?


All questions that may have some effect.....

Pics of what's going on available, by chance?

[levo83]

Hey buckie, thanks heaps for reply! I cracked the bottom ones fully and it finally hit 225! Meat is in (boneless pork shoulder) Lid is on and temp is at 205 and climbing slowly again. Do you recommend a heat shield?

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[levo83]

Weather is pretty chilly, temp by wireless probe, apple chunks soaked and dry beads & charcoal!

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[1buckie]

Sometimes the charcoal/ heat beads can soak up moisture just from the air....my part pf the question there was "did they maybe catch some from some recent rain/ damp weather".....were they stored good & dry?
It can happen pretty easily.....charcoal is like a sponge for air moisture, so that can be a part of a sluggish burn....

If chilly weather, that will play some part....fuel has to work that much harder to do it's job.....same with the charcoals working up against the wood....if wood is soaked, it must work a lot harder to burn off the moisture, then consume the wood pieces...

If you have dry wood, set that in & pull the dampened pieces....if that can be done without too much trouble.....

Like so, maybe:

(this was for bean pans, but setting the food & the grate out can work for adjusting fuel or other reasons)

The "temp by wireless probe" is at the grate level then?
If so, then some added lit coal to the burning front may get you up a bit higher.....I'd like to run at 260~285f at the food level for this kind of cook.....trying to aim at 225 well, if your therm or therm placement gives you just 10 degrees misread somehow, you're cooking at near the boiling point of water....things just won't move along fast enough to get done in a reasonable time frame.....

This is what you want to look for....8~9 coals burning or about ready to start....





That SHOULD get you up above 250~260f & keep things moving along.....don't be worried about the short time it takes to add coals or remove wood (if that's done) the Kettle will recoup very soon after & you'll be motoring along !!!!

[1buckie]

Just noticed something else......when the meat goes on, the fire has to work thru that drop in temp from the COLD mass it's just encountered.....there will be some drop, but don't despair....it'll rebound after a bit....

@levo83

I'll check back in & see how it's going, OK?

[mhiszem]

How'd it turn out?


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[1buckie]

How'd it turn out?


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Yeah....  @levo83 

How did it go?


Don't keep us in suspense .......