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CapnBry
Jul 15, 2002

I got this goin'
Grimey Drawer

Nosthula posted:

As an example, I was able to keep the grill dead on 225 for 18 hours without messing with it.
Isn't that a digiq though in your second photo? Cheater!

To emphasize what you said about the temperature getting stuck around 155-160F, here's a graph from my grill controller showing the plateau around 170F:


I love my big green egg too, I use about 4lbs of charcoal to cook 15lbs of boston butt which takes about 14-18h on the smoker. I don't soak my wood when cooking with wood chunks because all it does it make the surface wet, but if I use chips (for fast cooking things) I definitely soak them.

We used to have a smoking thread. I'm not sure if there is a new one though.

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CapnBry
Jul 15, 2002

I got this goin'
Grimey Drawer

mindphlux posted:

hey tell us more about your comptroller project. I trolled your website for a while and dug up some of your source files and project log, but I need more detail! does it work? is it finished? is it ethernet enabled?
I haven't been updating my blog at all, I've got 10 different articles half-written and I never seem to have time to finish one. The project is continuously progressing though.

Overview:
The project is called HeaterMeter on GitHub and has expanded from the Arduino + WiShield + Breadboard to be mated with a WRT54GL router which provides the WiFi and logging. Arduinos just don't have the power to store a lot (50KB) of data and serve up web pages. The AVR still handles all the grill control and has an LCD and buttons on the front, but the router running OpenWrt handles all the network connectivity web serving and logging.

The insides look something like this, the small HeaterMeter board can be pulled out and built into a standalone device with no network connectivity for a price of probably $50 (plus probes).


And looks something like this in action


Writing for OpenWrt is somewhat cumbersome and even jumping from the 2KB of RAM on the Arduino to 16MB of RAM in the router, I still am constantly running out. That's why I'm extremely excited for the RaspberryPi which I've already started designing an addon board for. It would replace the router as the web host and data storage. For $25, it doesn't have built-in WiFi, which is a requirement from my point of view, but I'm hoping one of the cheap $10 USB wifi will work with it and not be too obtrusive.

I feel that automatic temperature controls are incredibly useful. It does feel like cheating, not going and tweaking vents slightly every 30-60 minutes, but dammit I like to sleep and drink!

CapnBry
Jul 15, 2002

I got this goin'
Grimey Drawer

PainBreak posted:

Foiling your meat when it begins the plateau stage can significantly lower the cook time. A recent study found that the "mystery" behind the plateau was really just the meat sweats. Literally!
Wow thank you for linking that article. I have always be skeptical of the rituals we use when doing long BBQs, mostly because everyone has their own bible. The sponge experiment sold me and then the water-pan-in-the-oven was akin to the Plateau Higgs-Boson.

Now it makes me wonder about using a smoker after the first couple hours at all. I usually foil at about the 8 hour mark and this is basically saying that I could be done by then if I foil at the two hour mark. Astonishing!

Ok now what about ribs and the 3-2-1 method? 1-2-and-a-half-1 anyone?

CapnBry
Jul 15, 2002

I got this goin'
Grimey Drawer

Nosthula posted:

My mind is officially blown. I am definitely going to try this the next time I cook a shoulder. Wonder how much time I need to account for using this. 1 hour a pound maybe?
Yeah me too, I am excited to check it out. I was planning on doing some live pit testing of some new code in my HeaterMeter this weekend, so I think I'll throw a small (6lb or so) butt on the grill to see how it works! I never have a problem finding friends who will eat my test meats.

Also, Nosthula, I hope you don't find my post accusatory about the digiq-- it was just supposed to be a joke and conversation starter. Lots of posts in this forum about sous vide and I feel like the ATC is like bringing technology to the smoker in a similar way. Lookout Harold McGee, we're, crashing your BBQ!

CapnBry
Jul 15, 2002

I got this goin'
Grimey Drawer
Progress report! At the grocery store they only had 5lb butts and I was all "pff that's not a man's piece of meat" so I got a whole one instead, 8.41lbs. It went on a 225F big green egg at 9:45am with a simple rub. Seven hours later, at 4:45pm it was at 154F so I wrapped with aluminum foil. The two green lines in the graph are two food probes.




code:
9:45am  36F
10:45am 59F moving 23F/hr
11:45am 95F 36F/hr
12:45pm 117F 21F/hr
1:45pm  130F 13F/hr
2:45pm  140F 9.5F/hr
3:45pm  147F 6.8F/hr
4:45pm  154F 6.8F/hr
I would normally be looking at another 8-10 hours from this point so let's see what happens.

Too right about the high-tech hillbillies though. I've always had an affection for electronic circuits because my dad (a flight technician on a Navy P3-C) assembled a bunch of small projects with me as a kid. I'd wanted to pick it back up again and learn about microcontrollers but didn't really know where to start. When I got the idea for an electronic grill control (which initially was envisioned as something you'd hook a full PC up to) it seemed like the perfect place to start. It is a lot of fun and a real conversation piece when I have people over for a BBQ.

CapnBry
Jul 15, 2002

I got this goin'
Grimey Drawer
After wrapping in foil, the slope of the temperature started rising again after about 30 minutes. It dipped as low as 6.2F/hr, but did not enter the plateau at all! I was excited about the success of the experiment until about 3 hours later when it was clear the temperature climb was slowing again. Eventually, it did plateau except this time at 190F.

One food probe hit 190.3F then slowly started going down, the second was at 188F and climbing 2.1F/hr. The foiled butt had filled with liquid to the point it was leaking out of the seams everywhere.

Overall View


Last Hour Zoom


Some Meats


It seemed to be pretty close to done despite falling short of 195F where I usually take it off the BBQ. Flavor seemed alright too. I'm a little on the fence about the idea still though. Clearly it does speed cooking time, but I'd prefer if it didn't hit that stall at the end. If I would have had my wits about me I would have opened up the foil and let it go open for an hour just to see if it went down further or finished up. Overall cooking time was 12.5h.

code:
8.41lb bone-in boston butt
9:45am  36F
10:45am 59F moving 23F/hr
11:45am 95F 36F/hr
12:45pm 117F 21F/hr
1:45pm  130F 13F/hr
2:45pm  140F 9.5F/hr
3:45pm  147F 6.8F/hr
4:45pm  154F 6.8F/hr -- foiled here
5:45pm  160F 6.6F/hr (bottomed out at 6.2F/hr)
6:45pm  170F 10F/hr
7:45pm  178F 7.6F/hr
8:45pm  183F 5.2F/hr
9:45pm  187F 3.5F/hr
10:15pm 189F 2.1F/hr

CapnBry
Jul 15, 2002

I got this goin'
Grimey Drawer

PainBreak posted:

I have a theory... I think by foiling the butt, you didn't lose enough water weight to go above 190F while maintaining a cook temp of 225F. Outside of the foil, the water would be evaporating much more rapidly. If you raised your temperature to 240, I think you'd hit that magic 195F...but that "magic" number might have changed, since you've changed your method...
I think you're right. I think I got to a point there was so much liquid, so close to boiling that it was starting to escape and cool off the product. I think next butt I'll try going with a 225F pit until the butt hits 150F, foil, and up the temperature to maybe 240F.

I forgot to weigh the final product, mainly because I had been drinking all afternoon. Like my friend Todd's mother, I bet the butt retains more water weight.

CapnBry
Jul 15, 2002

I got this goin'
Grimey Drawer

Astronaut Jones posted:

Have you considered making a HeaterMeter?
drat right, HeaterMeter for Life!

The hardware for merging a HeaterMeter with a RaspberryPi with a wifi dongle is done, just working on a case prototype now. The new Pi version has everything mounted on the PCB so it's easier to build, and doesn't require extra hardware to flash. Just write an SD card, pop it in and it programs the microcontroller automatically. Smaller, cheaper, and a lot easier.

The alarm code is in but the notifications to email/SMS/twitter/etc aren't done yet. I may sound like I'm selling this project but actually I'm just the sole developer of it and like people to use it because it is badass.
New HeaterMeter Raspberry Pi thread

CapnBry
Jul 15, 2002

I got this goin'
Grimey Drawer

davey4283 posted:

I usually smoke brisket @ 225f for 4 hours, then foil and transfer to the oven and bake @ 225f for another 6 or 7+ hours. Then for the last hour, I uncover and let the bark harden. After about 3 or 4 hours the meat becomes saturated with smoke and doesn't really absorb it anymore.
I made my first decent brisket this weekend with this method! My brisket has always been pretty dry, so I did it on the smoke for about 4 hours at 225F over a drip pan (which I put a pint of beer in). I then put it in the drip pan (which was practically dry) and left it on until the internal temperature hit 200F, took it off and let it sit covered for a couple hours down to internal temperature 160F. Delicious and tender and not dry for the first time. I had been leaving it on the smoke for a few hours longer before.

TouchyMcFeely posted:

What are the chances someone is selling or will sell a HeatMeter project kit?
I doubt I'll ever put together a kit-- there's just not enough interest and I'd hate to get stuck with a thousand dollars in parts that nobody wants. I've tried to make a "cart" with all the needed parts in it, but neither Mouser nor DigiKey carries all the parts or similar replacements.

That said, I am working on a writeup that provides step by step instructions on what to buy and how to assemble it, with photos of all the assembly steps. I'll check back in once that's done and maybe it will make more sense.

CapnBry
Jul 15, 2002

I got this goin'
Grimey Drawer
I know it might be sacrilege here but a friend in the restaurant industry recently turned me on to shortcutting ribs. Apply the dry rub then foil them and put them in a 300F oven for an hour and a half then remove the foil and take them to the grill. Smoke them at 250F for about 1-2 hours until they are done (the bones on the smaller ribs wiggle somewhat freely when you twist them). The longer cooking time of the 3-2-1 sort of method always left them too dry for my taste and this strikes a better balance for me.

For those considering a HeaterMeter build, I wrote out a build guide and I'm hoping you can take a look at it. HeaterMeter Assembly It isn't complete quite yet but if you can take a look and let me know what parts you're still sensing confusion on, I'd appreciate it so I can fill it out. The only things left to do are to build the "buy this" lists from Digikey/Mouser. I'm hoping this makes it more approachable.

CapnBry
Jul 15, 2002

I got this goin'
Grimey Drawer

CHiMPY posted:

I think both sites want almost $40 in shipping, one of them wanted to charge me twice because some of the items were on back order.
Assuming they do free US shipping (or even just standard rates), add on another maybe $30 to ship the whole lot over and it would work out about significantly cheaper.

It is an idea I was considering, then again I could probably find most of the electronics locally.
I might go check out the local shops after the long weekend and see what I can find then just order the rest from the US.
I'm the jerk that created HeaterMeter and a lot of the parts are off the shelf kinda stuff, easily replaced. The difficult parts are: the rPi connection header, the 4-way switch, the mono headphone jacks, the LCD, and the 5V switching regulator in a TO-220 package. If you can find someone down under that carries those sort of parts but need help picking the right part, I can help. Also I think I have all the parts except the blower motor and PCB in my box of crap so you've got options.

CapnBry
Jul 15, 2002

I got this goin'
Grimey Drawer

jonathan posted:

4 hours cook time at 300. ... Prepared the veggies and side dish and pulled it at 165.
I may catch flak here for saying this but flavor aside, you can produce fall-apart-tender pork butt at 300F. I make a cuban pork that is cooked at 300-325F (in the oven) and it becomes tender enough it is hard to pick up with tongs because it is so loose. The true secret to tenderness is the final temp. Gotta get to at least 190-195F (depending on the piece of meat) and 195F-205F if you can. That will get you to Tender Town.

At that point is it flavor, and I smoke all my butts at 225F because: 1) it dehydrates the meat more, giving you more intense flavor. 2) You spend longer absorbing smoke in the lower temps (I think this can be debated but meat absorbs smoke better at lower temps). 3) Longer with a dry exterior gives you more browning and again better flavor. 4) Slower heating gives all the meat time to get tender all over.

You can't rush great barbecue but you can definitely get more tenderness by just cooking to a higher temp, although to some detriment of the more outer and more inner bits, and almost positively with some degree of lesser flavor.

CapnBry
Jul 15, 2002

I got this goin'
Grimey Drawer
Yeah nice work, Chimpy. He had a really hard time trying to source compatible parts from places down under, so there's no excuse for you American types!

CapnBry
Jul 15, 2002

I got this goin'
Grimey Drawer
On the subject of automatic temperature control units, I'm the developer of an open source project called HeaterMeter. I've just released all the specs for the latest hardware revision and to get rid of some of the crap on my desk, I'm giving away one of the development units. If you have an account on tvwbb.com, I'd recommend hopping over there and posting to the thread for a chance to win.

HeaterMeter 4.2 Giveaway

For those unfamiliar with the HeaterMeter, it is a device I started working on about 4 years ago because I thought the Stoker was too expensive, and didn't have features I wanted (like wifi and graphs). I've now spent several thousand dollars of my money making incrementally better devices. It costs about $150 to build one, plus probes which you may already have, and is a fun DIY electronics project with no prior soldering experience necessary. I hope this isn't too much of a plug, but hey it's free stuff and it's not like I'm sort of 2014 regdate. I know at least one other goon uses a HeaterMeter.

CapnBry
Jul 15, 2002

I got this goin'
Grimey Drawer
I know we all usually make full-on BBQ here, but dammit this is the slow smoking meat thread and I slow smoked this meat.


It's a boneless pork butt that was on sale, brined then seasoned with the basics (salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder) and a little thyme. Smoked it on lump with a couple oak chunks at 275F until 170F internal temperature (~4 hours), foiled it with half a dozen crushed garlic cloves and a few sprigs of rosemary. Pulled it off at 190F (~6 hours). Defatted the juices from the aluminum foil and made a pan sauce with a cup of white wine. So drat delicious and not my typical pulled pork go-to. Served with some roast fingerling potatoes and asparagus.

I really just wanted to test a HeaterMeter part that I had 3D printed, which I will post a picture of because we all like gadgets too right? It is a Offset Rotary Damper that incorporates a servo damper with a blower to regulate the pit temperature.

CapnBry fucked around with this message at 23:30 on Jun 19, 2015

CapnBry
Jul 15, 2002

I got this goin'
Grimey Drawer

Ahdinko posted:

How are you attaching that blower and damper thingy? So far all I've done so far is place my blower really close to the inlet and managed to melt it. I might around with some thin sheet metal on my last smoker and cut some holes, but that smoker was £30 and I'm scared to ruin my £250 WSM
I just stick it in the door of my BGE. This is my other RotoDamper which has the same metal plate and a 1" EMT (metal) conduit fitting on it. It's been as high as 700F without any sign of distress.


Here's a thermal image of the white blower with a 300F pit and 20mm of aluminum linking them. (aluminum covered in blue tape for emissivity). As you discovered, the vertical surfaces get hottest, but at that distance it is below 50C which is perfectly safe.


For WSMs I think most people affix it to a dog bowl then attach the bowl to the vent using a toggle bolt.

CapnBry
Jul 15, 2002

I got this goin'
Grimey Drawer

Ahdinko posted:

Sorry yes I completely forgot to mention it was for the heatermeter.
That thing you linked looks sort of like it, although I think it wants to be right angled

Edit: Like this I think : http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Right-Angle-PCB-Chassis-Mount-2-5mm-Mono-Jack-Socket-NA25M-10-pcs-/251008812872
Anyone know if the pin positions are a standard thing or if it varies from part to part? They need to go on the right side of this PCB: http://store.oshpark.com/products/heatermeter
You should probably ask over at the HeaterMeter forums about stuff like this (things that don't include glorious pictures of meats!). There wasn't any "standard footprint" I could find for 2.5mm mono jacks so it is unlikely you'll find a drop in replacement.

However, those ebay items you've linked look like the other model that CUI makes, which is the same thing except with a slightly longer input that's threaded instead of the smooth one we normally use. I actually used to use these back in the days when HeaterMeter used a Linksys router as the base (or at least the look identical to those). Like I said, the footprint varies by manufacturer and model though so the scale might be wrong, but they do look right to me.

CapnBry
Jul 15, 2002

I got this goin'
Grimey Drawer

ixo posted:

I'm moving from California to Colorado. I'm terrified of trying to transport my BGE without damaging it. Should I just disassemble it and wrap it in thick blankets, or is there a better method? Alternatively, does anyone in the bay area want to buy a large BGE?
I didn't move that far, but when I moved I took apart my Large BGE (mainly because there was no way I'd be able to lift it assembled). I put the insides down first then the lid down on top of that, then the giant base on its own, upside down. Everything went under a table in the moving van. Just don't drop it or ram it with a lay-z-boy. When I took it apart, I used 2 zip ties on each side of the hinge to keep it from exploding open with the force of 1,000 suns when I released the lid and making it nigh impossible to reassemble. It still works perfectly, I can't tell the difference between its operation at the new ICBM address.

Going back to BBQ restaurant discussion. I've always wondered how that works. I mean if I make pulled pork I figure around 14 hours plus a rest. When does a BBQ joint cook their food to be able to have food available by lunch? Is that yesterday's BBQ, and today's will be done at like 9pm?

CapnBry
Jul 15, 2002

I got this goin'
Grimey Drawer
I usually pull it off, and let it rest until the temperature drops 5-10 degrees, then do the sear. It works even on giant 7lb roasts with a very small chance of overcooking beyond the very surface. Searing works best at the end too, because you've dried out the surface over the cook, removing browning's worst enemy. I cook all my beef and pork roasts at 275F. Pull steaks at 125-130F then let them rest, and finish stovetop in cast iron with some oil. I've had too many problems with not putting enough fuel in the BGE to get it up past 600F for the sear without starting to peter out.

I feel like cooking steaks any way besides on a grill is a waste of meat. With a sous vide machine, sure it is cooked perfectly but I just miss the flavor that comes from that delicious smoke. What's the point of texture with no flavor!

CapnBry
Jul 15, 2002

I got this goin'
Grimey Drawer
I'm making some ribs today and testing a HeaterMeter damper I build for my dad (whose name you might be able to guess). I always always always make my ribs by doing 2-3 hours on grill, then 1-2 hours in foil and then a quick bit of time on the grill to dry the exterior. I was considering just doing the whole time today at 250F just with them laying on the grill. It's been so long since I haven't done the foil method, I can't remember why I don't just do it this way. Someone want to talk me out of ruining dinner (i.e. should I always foil ribs)?

CapnBry
Jul 15, 2002

I got this goin'
Grimey Drawer
I haven't made ribs on the grill without foiling them since before the war. All the internet hullabaloo about the 3-2-1 method got me thinking I was wrong about how I was doing it. I should have known better though, because the 3-2-1 method always made overcooked ribs for me, which is why I switched to the 2.5-1.5-0.3954 method I use all the time now. You all are hating on steam, but braising is what makes braised short ribs so delicious! It can't be all bad, right? That said, I did not foil these, although I did put some foil under one side because it started to cook a little too fast due to my inattention. I did always hate foiling ribs just because you can't tell when they're almost done so it's a crapshoot when it comes to overdoing them.

So here's my ribs cooked at 250F for 5 hours, no foil. They were a lot better than I was expecting. In my mind, the foil "seals in moisture!", right? Perfectly cooked but not as moist as I'd like, should I up the temps and go for shorter time? It feels silly to be asking these questions considering I make BBQ almost every other week. Ribs have somewhat eluded me though. I did not brine them or salt rub them in advance due to lack of time.

CapnBry
Jul 15, 2002

I got this goin'
Grimey Drawer

Vulture Culture posted:

The smoker cooks the outside of the meat. The outside of the meat cooks the inside of the meat. Higher temperatures will pretty much never give you a moister end product unless you're overcooking the food to begin with and the black exterior signals you to pull it off heat faster. Hell, the only reason people don't just sous vide everything is because the flavor and texture are awful.

250F is a dandy temperature for ribs, if that's actually accurate. (You're not using the cheap dial thermometer that came glued onto your grill, right? You're measuring the air right around the ribs with a good thermometer?) How are you determining "perfectly cooked"? Are you actually doing a spot read on the internal temp to make sure they aren't overcooked?

With that stuff out of the way: how was the source meat you were working with? Some ribs are just gonna be tough and there's nothing you can do about it except get your hands on better ribs.
I based my "perfectly cooked" on the texture of the meat. How it wasn't overcooked to the point it just falls apart when you try to pick it up, but not underdone so all it's all chewy and doesn't want to come off the bone. The 250F is measured with a bare thermocouple in the dome of green egg and the temperature was maintained within 5F by the HeaterMeter for the duration of the cook except when the lid was opened.

Sometimes when I make ribs just right they're just so drat moist. I'm still working out what makes that happen, and also how to pick ribs at the grocery store because I just go for the meatiest looking ones.

CapnBry
Jul 15, 2002

I got this goin'
Grimey Drawer

sellouts posted:

My dome temp and my rack temp can be shockingly different in certain situations.

If you have a heater meter why not put a thermometer on the grill itself?
Because the temperature can be shockingly different :v:

I've done numerous tests with probes all over the place, exhaust cap, dome, touching grill, above grill, grill edge, and the results vary. Sometimes the dome temp is hotter, sometimes the grill temp is hotter. You can even see them swap during a cook. It's quite comical that I have such a successful project that controls the grill temp within 5F for 20 hours straight... yet the temperature inside the grill varies 20+ degrees easily and that's just at that one point. If you measure it somewhere else you get a completely different set of data!

So the reason I measure it at the dome is that it doesn't matter, and it's out of the way there, you don't have to worry about meat being too close to it and influencing the temps, and it's less probe to localized uneven heating.

CapnBry
Jul 15, 2002

I got this goin'
Grimey Drawer

Vulture Culture posted:

This is the most :psyduck: thing.

You aren't cooking your meat in all of those places. You're cooking your meat where your meat is. If your meat is influencing the temperature around your meat (:confused:), that is still the actual temperature around your meat.
Ah yes I see exactly your point now. Yes that's right, what you want to do is control the temperature at the meat. What is needed is a grid system of temperature sensors which are not affected by being in too close proximity to the meat you're grilling. Then, you ignore the positions on the grid where there isn't anything cooking, average the temperature from the other sensors and feed that into your control loop.

However, we can't do that. Only measuring the temperature at one point at grate level doesn't tell us the whole story. What if there's more fire under the sensor? The temperature at other places is now too low. If there is more uneven burn away from the sensor it can get a lot hotter everywhere else than the sensor indicates. In my example where I said that sometimes the grill is warmer, sometimes the dome is warmer, how can that be? Well, the sensor sometimes is over a hotter part of the fire than the overall average, and sometimes it is over a cooler part than the overall average. This is how I can say "it doesn't matter"-- unless you're doing a more complete analysis of the overall temperature at different points at the grill level simultaneously, you're only in the ballpark of what temperature your meat is cooking at.

When I say you can see 20 degree differences, that's at grate level as well. A large ceramic diffuser doesn't solve all problems. It's a fire. Sometimes it goes more this way than that way due to the sizes and orientations of the lump. Reading from the dome might give more of an average temperature in my mind. In actuality it doesn't matter, because if there's 20 degree difference between the right side and the left side, and later it will be the opposite, it all averages out.

I could make one single point on my grill be the temperature I want and ignore everywhere else, but if I do that then what does it matter where that point is If we can agree that not all points are that temperature and all points swing around a central average.

If we do not agree that all points at the grill level are different temperatures then I say we should compare data in the interest of mutually advancing BBQ through proper experimentation and not just "clip the thermometer to the grill grate because that's the most accurate" which I can prove it is not.

CapnBry
Jul 15, 2002

I got this goin'
Grimey Drawer

ada shatan posted:

Thank you. Thank you so much. I've spent years tweaking over temps at a single point only to come to the same conclusion - 250 at point A is nothing like 250 at point B. The key is to work for a temp at a certain point, try to remain consistent in your measurements at that point, and adjust your strategy based on the results you achieve at those temps at that point.
Yeah see, this is exactly right. My statement that it doesn't matter where you take the reading is really more like "just be consistent and adjust using your results".

I needed to do some other testing so I thought it would be fun to illustrate how probe placement is a little important, but dome vs grill level doesn't matter. Behold the test setup! 3 probes at grill level, run through wooden clothespins and held roughly an inch above the grill at different locations. 3lbs of lump charcoal were loaded into a freshly cleaned Large Big Green Egg and lit with a weber starter cube. All probes have undergone a 1000+ point calibration to be within 1F of each other.


  • Center - A probe located centrally over the big green egg ceramic disk (or is it a disc?). This probably would be the A#1 duke of positions to place your control thermometer it weren't taken up by all the inconsiderate meat we're trying to cook. We'll use this probe as our reference we're trying to track.
  • Far - This probe is located off to the side, but with the last 3" of probe shielded by the ceramic. This is a typical location a probe would be placed if the grill had food on it.
  • Close - This probe is also off to the side but you dumbass, the tip is in the draft of the fire. This probe experiences most of the unshielded heat of the fire and is where the "Far" probe might end up if things get knocked around
  • Dome - The orange line is a bare thermocouple in the dome, which I am claiming to be "just as good as at grill level".


There's a lot of churn here over 6 hours. Clearly the gray probe ("Close") is never in a good position to asses the temperature compared to the light green ("Center" ) probe. The dark green ("Far") probe is closer, sometimes following the Center probe, but sometimes moving in the opposite direction with temperature differences exceeding to 20F. EDIT: The big dip down in the middle is where I opened the lid to take a picture of the probes.

Let's compare average temperatures starting at the first time the orange probe passes the red setpoint line.
code:
         Avg      Error from Center
Dome -   249.2    -7
Center - 256.2    0
Far -    262.0    5.8
Close -  280.4    24.2
Given that we can't place our thermometer right in the middle of the grill, the dome temperature is 1.2F difference from being at grill level. 1.2F over 6 hours is virtually the same, especially considering the probes are only calibrated within 1F of each other. The dome temperature has less maximum deviation from the center location too. As a caveat, "Dome" is not the dome thermometer. That thing is a piece of poo poo and read anywhere from 240F to 290F through the course of testing despite being literally attached to the thermocouple.

In conclusion, I assert that you do not need to measure your BBQ temperature at grill level. If you can get it situated centrally, that's probably the best. However, a shielded position at grill level or a thermometer located in the dome, with only a 6 degree difference in either place, roughly equivalent. A probe tip which is exposed in heat currents is definitely a bad idea. EDIT: Unless you've arranged the majority of the meat to be exposed to those heat currents in which case this would be the ideal place to put your thermometer, which you couldn't because the meat is there and you'll have to read it from somewhere else which won't be the same temperature so you're hosed again.

CapnBry fucked around with this message at 14:46 on Sep 12, 2015

CapnBry
Jul 15, 2002

I got this goin'
Grimey Drawer

Vulture Culture posted:

Unless that's where your meat is, because the thermometer measures actual heat and the convection affects the meat.
Right. I've edited my post to include your insight. If you've arranged a majority of your meat exposed to the heat current as opposed to shielded by the ceramic heat diffuser then you'd want to place your thermometer there. Too bad you've got meat where you need to take the temperature reading and would need to place the thermometer somewhere else, which as we've seen will be at a different temperature especially in this case where you're getting direct heat.

If you want to pile up all your BBQ in the most volatile, unevenly headed areas of your grill surface, then my suggestion would be to not do that. Maybe we have two different ideas on what the temperature should be, I ideally want to know an average of the grill area and you want to know what might be the hottest?

CapnBry
Jul 15, 2002

I got this goin'
Grimey Drawer

Flash Gordon Ramsay posted:

•It's a giant spike instead of a small probe
•I don't want to have to unlock my phone and launch an app to see where the temp is
Yeah the giant spike is really crazy but it has to hold all the goodies. Also it is sealed and therefore the battery is not replaceable so you're buying a ticking clock. They battery lasts 48 hours though and after 300 recharge cycles you should see at least 75% of that right?

As far as unlocking the phone, this is a bluetooth device and there's going to be an API so I am hopeful they don't just mean "you can poll our servers every 5 minutes LOL". If it is pushing out updates every 10 seconds then I can pair it with a HeaterMeter and use it as input which means you now can have a physical device that works anywhere in bluetooth range as well as have an iPad or laptop or pebble app connecting to that over wifi. They also have a Meater Link but I already have LinkMeter/HeaterMeter which already has all this software written, so I am kinda excited about it.

But that probe is as big as my dick. If you tried to put it in the average person's steak they sell at the grocery store you'd have to wrap the steak in duct tape first so it doesn't explode when you slide it in.

CapnBry
Jul 15, 2002

I got this goin'
Grimey Drawer
These are the best because not only can you pull pork wearing them and not feel any of the heat, they're also great for getting things off the grill or rotating racks of ribs or any other number of at-the-grill manipulations. You're not a robot, why would to try to flip racks of ribs using pairs of metal tongs when you've got perfectly good dexterous mammalgrips? Also you don't have to worry about ribs breaking apart as you pick them up off the grill with tongs because when slightly overcooked them or something. Sure, Bear Claws are really cool but they just shred pork. I even use these as hot mitts to pull boiling stuff off my gas stove, because unlike the cloth mitts, these won't turn into boiling hot deathmittens if you spill boiling water all over them.

On Amazon they are often on sale for under $10. EDIT: And to wash them I just keep them on and wash my hands with Dawn soap.

CapnBry
Jul 15, 2002

I got this goin'
Grimey Drawer

Mercury Ballistic posted:

I am trying to mount a blower to the bottom of my WSM. I saw one person use a cleaned out can (as in can of baked beans) and a toggle bolt through one of the three holes. My only concern with that method is that I suspect both the can and toggle bolt are galvanized. Is the temps there still below the 400F or so that makes this a problem or is there a better DIY way?
I used to think it wouldn't make a difference but now days I feel like I wouldn't chance it. You can remove the zinc by soaking it in acid, distilled vinegar works just fine. It turns the color but the zinc will just bubble right off overnight.

CapnBry
Jul 15, 2002

I got this goin'
Grimey Drawer

Glambags posted:

Are there recommendations for temperature control devices? BGE has the DigiQ and I think people have talked about the IQ in this thread. I'd like to get something eventually so I won't have to baby the smoker as much. Is a temp control device worth it or will more experience smoking make it unnecessary?
I may be biased, being the developer behind a controller project, but I think they're awsome. Sleep all night without getting up to check on stuff every hour? So good. Fancy graphs and temperature gradient detection? Most likely completely unnecessary but fun to show off. A remote read thermometer that works from anywhere you go? Awesome! Also SMS / email notifications and all that jazz.

If you're into DIY projects, HeaterMeter.

CapnBry
Jul 15, 2002

I got this goin'
Grimey Drawer

vulturesrow posted:

How hard is this for someone with little electronics experience?
It is all through-hole soldering and designed to be approachable by people who have no soldering experience and built in a single evening. That said, I've seen photos of some pretty bad soldering jobs so maybe my idea of what constitutes entry-level soldering is somewhat optimistic. I'm not an Electrical Engineer or a HAM radio maker or an Apex Tech graduate and it takes me about under 90 minutes to put one together start to finish. If you don't want to build your own, there are people who can build one for you but I have no idea what they charge for that.

CapnBry
Jul 15, 2002

I got this goin'
Grimey Drawer

BeastOfExmoor posted:

Are the Ivation or Thermopro's on Amazon any better?
Not either of those, but Thermoworks makes some awesome 'Pro Series' probes that go with their ChefAlarm device. The great thing about these probes is that they have a little spring stress relief on each end, and the probe metal tubes are more or less sealed to prevent water intrusion. I prefer the straight probes myself and haven't had any of their probes go bad yet (over 3 years so far), including their first version which was not quite as stout. I've only had 2 Maverick probes go bad in probably 20 years of use, but I have bought a ton of probes (Maverick/Ikea/Auber/etc) for testing with HeaterMeter and I can say that without a doubt the Thermoworks are the best built I've ever worked with. I was about to say that they don't make a remote-read (RF wireless) version but it appears they now do, The Thermoworks Smoke.

I haven't used this device specifically, but if it is as good as other Theroworks products, this will definitely signal the end of people recommending the Maverick / Redi-check on their list of indispensable grill equipment. Too bad it is pricey AF.

Many times the reason Mavericks fail is because they get moisture inside the thermowell and because they are made with only one wire, it can cause a short to the shield. Zero ohms reads as a very high temperature and thus the HHH reading. Sometimes they can be salvaged by putting the probe end in the oven at 275-400F for several hours (any time you're roasting anything for a while).

CapnBry
Jul 15, 2002

I got this goin'
Grimey Drawer

BeastOfExmoor posted:

Haha. Just out of curiosity, how's that one? Can't beat the price.
Oh it was pretty garbagey. I thought the same thing on the price, even if you discard the main unit and just use the probes. However they were pretty fragile and I couldn't even get good consistent readings with the probe. I bought two thinking they'd be usable but I threw out one without even opening it, and the other is in my "test" storage box and hasn't been touched in years.

And $99 isn't pricey AF overall, but compared to a Maverick that costs half as much it is. I know many people even balk at the $50 price tag on that, but I can't imagine who would want to do low and slow without a remote read thermometer so it is a requirement in my book.

VERTiG0 posted:

If it had the capability to use, say, 3 or 4 meat probes along with the pit probe, well poo poo, why doesn't that exist?
(cough) HeaterMeter (3 food probes + 1 pit probe, wifi-based, optional thermocouple)

CapnBry
Jul 15, 2002

I got this goin'
Grimey Drawer

Colostomy Bag posted:

Can someone log temps around every hour when smoking a 9lb or so pork butt. Danger zone is 40-140 @ around 2 hours. I'm going to hazard a guess and say it will sit around 4 hours in the danger zone at 225.
This is only 7lbs but the starting point was 11:22pm ~40F and it passed 140F at 3:27am. And I am still alive to tell the tale!


The side I am more worried about is when you pull a dozen pounds of pork and put it out for people to eat. It sits for an hour or more at room temps and people want to take the leftovers home. Make sure you reheat the poo poo out of it and don't blame me if you get sick, but take all you want because I am not going to chance that.

CapnBry
Jul 15, 2002

I got this goin'
Grimey Drawer

lifts cats over head posted:

I think it's safer after the cook because, as said before, the byproducts are the main threat so it's like hitting reset. Also smoking can act as a preservative. Admittedly I'm not an expert on this though.
Yeah I agree. I feel like cooking meat well beyond the pasteurization limits (145F for longer than 30 minutes down to 1 second at 191F) makes it pretty much clean. After that hot food must be kept above 140F according to USDA guidelines, and anything that's gone below 140F should be thrown out after 2 hours (or 1 hour if the ambient temperature is over 90F). Of course, if you reheat it back up to 200F I feel like that's probably ok but I usually don't want to deal with it. Besides, everyone loves taking home baggies of BBQ right?

CapnBry
Jul 15, 2002

I got this goin'
Grimey Drawer

EngineerJoe posted:

Saw this genius on reddit today


As a person who lights their grill with a propane torch as well, for a moment this seemed like a little bit of genius until I thought about it. And if that's a large BGE that's also roughly enough lump to smoke butts for a week.

CapnBry
Jul 15, 2002

I got this goin'
Grimey Drawer

Moey posted:

Start making charts.
How can anyone make good BBQ without a graph. It's like the #1 nerd thing to do with something that takes all day. Why am I not watching this on a website with a graph? Where did I go wrong in life?

Of course, HeaterMeter users have had graphs with flames for almost 8 years now. Fake edit: Oh I guess the flames are in the number areas. HeaterMeter users have graphs next to flames. (Yellow areas are lid open)

CapnBry
Jul 15, 2002

I got this goin'
Grimey Drawer

Mikey Purp posted:

Yeah, what Doom Rooster said for pizza. I bought some fire bricks and make a raised platform on the grate (like this: |_|_| ) which I set the pizza stone on top of. Doing that moves the whole pizza up closer to the top of the kamado and gets you a little bit more reflective radiation on the top, which helps a bit.
Oh man that's a really good idea. I've done a number of pizzas on my egg and haven't been 100% pleased with how they came out. Better than my oven but the crust edges never seem to get brown enough before everything goes melty. I'll try your brick lift because that just makes sense.

I posted a while back here about making pizza in 90 seconds at 750F on the egg, saved here for posterity. TL;DR it burned!

CapnBry
Jul 15, 2002

I got this goin'
Grimey Drawer
Ribs. ribs. ribs. ribsribsribs. Ribs. ribs. ribs. Look at the size of this rack of spareribs! Smoked these yesterday and some rib tip that I had left over from making another dish that I wanted St Louis style last month. The rack was over 5lbs! That is one generous pig.


Smoke 'em up! They just barely fit on the egg.


Just 6 short hours later... a little smaller due to shrinkage and also I cut off and ate the end bits when they were done.


Roll that beautiful rib footage!

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CapnBry
Jul 15, 2002

I got this goin'
Grimey Drawer

Colostomy Bag posted:

Looks great. What is your temp monitor? Looks like a Heatermeter but only one button.
Thanks! I get nervous posting photos because I see so much really great BBQ in this thread I get a little self conscious wondering if mine can make people as hungry as their photos make me. I think these came out great and will keep me fed for a week.

The controller is a HeaterMeter 4.2, which has a 4-way switch instead of 4 individual buttons. Both my 4.3s (one thermistor / one thermocouple) don't have cases because I'm always switching them between Pis and pulling SD cards out of them so they rarely get used for actual eating.

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