Maintaining heat

[David82]

Hi, 

New to the forum and a BBQ novice in need of advice on maintaining heat!

I bought a Weber chimney starter last Summer having previously struggled to start my BBQs off. I love how simple it is to use but having recently started using it on my 57cm Weber Bar-B-Kettle I've noticed the temperature appears to drop not long after placing charcoal in the BBQ. Ive been using Big K charcoal briquettes and stacking the white coals on one half of the grill, leaving the other half for indirect. 

I generally leave all three vents open underneath and the vent on top open and positioned above the indirect half of the BBQ. 

Is there anything I need to consider when maintaining heat? If I lose heat can I just add more briquettes directly to the BBQ and if I do that do I need to stop cooking until the additional briquettes have gone white? 

Any tips or advice on this would be much appreciated! 

[Adi dassler]

Are you putting lit coals onto unlit coals? This will help fuel the glow for longer periods.How big is your chimney? As your using a 57cm grill if you are using a small chimney you may record a higher heat when you initially put your hot coals in but it drops when its stabilised. How long do you leave it until you put meat on the grill? I'd leave it a good 20 minutes and get my temp about 30° higher than I'd originally want it. Which big k briquettes are you using? I had some from the range the ones in the black bag and they were rubbish. Maybe look at big k ach15 lumpwood,morrisons have got it in at £20 for 15kg,heatbeads are supposed to be very good or big k coco shell briquettes. Hope this helps

[David82]

Hi Adi, 

 

Thanks for your reply! 

I'm not putting lit onto unlit so that'll be the first thing I try. My previous barbecue was much smaller than the current one so one chimney of charcoal worked pretty well. The chimney doesn't appear to be that big, it's a Weber and cost £20 so I guess they have bigger and more expensive ones.

I tend to leave the grill 20-30 minutes before cooking. I've only cooked on my new barbecue twice and neither time has the meat really sizzled when placing over the coal (I like to seal chicken thighs over direct then move over to zone 2). The coals came in a black and red bag. It did cross my mind that they might not be good enough but a bad workman and all that! I'll experiment with different coals too! 

Thanks for the tips, just need the rain to stop now so I can try again! 

[U can do that again]

Welcome,  Mr Charcoal lumpwood worked ok for me in bullet smoker, trying coconut briquettes for long cooks at present, downside is lots of ash. Have a local artisan charcoal near me in Kent, like small cooks with it , good heat, clean smoke, downside is it isn’t cheaper.

Won’t repeat earlier post of today about how I am working out what works for me, just check it out in the relevant section.

[Adi dassler]

If your kettle bbq is much bigger just remember that youre going to need more fuel. If you want a sizzle you will need to get your bbq hot .Ive got a pro q and if im grilling i fill the basket with coals then add a kettle full of hot coals,one of the best things I've learnt over the last year is once you have finished your cook,close of all the vents which in turn saves coals which if stored in a dry place you can reuse.

Edited July 23, 2020 by Adi dassler

[adventuredon]

I sprinkle my chimney starter on the unlit coals at the end I want them to start  burning from, as well as some just in the basket to keep everything going.  I also try to keep a channel between my vent an where I place my basket of coals to sustain that airflow initially