How much do you open your vents for low n slow?

Charcoal cookers (such as Weber Kettles)
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cs_rlewis
Posts: 31
Joined: Sat Mar 03, 2018 2:30 pm

How much do you open your vents for low n slow?

Post by cs_rlewis »

Usually when I open the bottom and top vents to about 1/8 open, I find the bbq suffocates and dies.
Is about 1/4 open ideal for low n slow?

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Michael_Dunn
Posts: 156
Joined: Mon Oct 25, 2010 1:11 pm

Re: How much do you open your vents for low n slow?

Post by Michael_Dunn »

If you use your bbq like this:
- start with a full load of charcoal
- extinguish fire when finished
- top up charcoal next bbq
- repeat several times over following bbq's

you will likely end up with lots of little bits
of charcoal finding their way down to the
bottom of the pile, and this generally
stifles air flow.

I ended up getting one of those $4 s/s cutlery
drainers from KMart, wired it upside down
to the grate, and haven't had any problems since.
cs_rlewis
Posts: 31
Joined: Sat Mar 03, 2018 2:30 pm

Re: How much do you open your vents for low n slow?

Post by cs_rlewis »

I usually clean my bbq after each use so there isn't much blocking the airflow

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Bill44
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Location: Gorokan, Central Coast NSW

Re: How much do you open your vents for low n slow?

Post by Bill44 »

Top wide open, control it with the bottom vent only. The fire depends on air but it needs the flow to get fresh stuff in and the smoke out.
Bill
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Davo
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Re: How much do you open your vents for low n slow?

Post by Davo »

The kettle acts as a convection oven, fires needs oxygen to burn, that we have established but to limit the oxygen, the fire doesn't burn as hot so we need to damper the air going up into the fire so we close the bottom venting to about a half to a 1/3rd but keep the top open because the act of the hot air going out the exhaust vent pulls fresh cold air from the bottom...it doesn't just come through the bottom vent, it gets pulled through from underneath by the fire desperate for oxygen...it's an interesting cycle...if you close the top vent, the cycle is interrupted, not only will you get a sooty residue on your food because it can't escape but the hot air can't pull the cold air from the bottom....it's the same with the bottom, close it off too much and the cycle is interrupted.

I usually close the bottom to about 30-40% open and if it still gets too hot for what I want to achieve, then I place a small tray of cold water over where the fire is to act like a heat sink....that usually does the trick.
Don't forget that placing a big chunk of cool/cold meat in the kettle will also act as a heat sink until the meat heats up some and it's effect is reduced. Takes a lot of heat energy to heat up that meat.

I also use the minion method or snake method in the kettle, by placing a dozen of hot coals over unlit coals for it to burn down or sideways, this is a much slower process of the fire trying to burn upwards where it quickly lights the fuel above but for a fire to burn downwards takes much longer. Minion method is named after an American BBQ Champion Jim Minion who invested the technique in his Weber Smokey Mountain so that he'd get a longer burn, let me tell ya, by using the Kingsford charcoal briquettes that they use, you need all the technique under the sun to stop them disappearing before your very eyes....but the technique can be used with Heatbeads briquettes and they last longer.....I've had over a 12 hour session in a kettle without having to replenish the coals and by experimenting with the vents, you can make a kettle sit right on it's temp for hours and hours.


Cheers


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cs_rlewis
Posts: 31
Joined: Sat Mar 03, 2018 2:30 pm

Re: How much do you open your vents for low n slow?

Post by cs_rlewis »

Yes I've been using heat beads.
I decided to put marks on the bottom damper to determine how open they are. Maybe I accidently closed off the bottom damper without realising.

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beginner
Posts: 104
Joined: Tue Jul 01, 2014 6:33 pm

Re: How much do you open your vents for low n slow?

Post by beginner »

I've always run the dampers about 1:1 on the kettle, I find it's good for cooks at 130c and up using regular heat beads. To go a little lower the green heat beads burn a bit cooler, or I've helped mates set theirs up with some of the special setups to maintain an even slower burn, it starts to come down to the weather. The kettle is a very versatile machine but for low n slow I reckon WSM is very much their tool for the job, good control throughout the range you want to be in. The kettle will do it too, but you have to trick it into doing it.
12x7
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Re: How much do you open your vents for low n slow?

Post by 12x7 »

I'm assuming you are using a Weber kettle.

Try this site.

https://kettlepitmasterbbq.com/

Use decent briquettes such as original heat beads in the red/orange bag. They burn for a long time.
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