As stated, the first one was seal the lid. There was massive smoke loss coming from the cook chamber that needed to be stopped. The other is that the temperature controller was WAY off. Set point at 235, actual temp showing on the controller was 235, and the real temperature per my Maverick 732 was 213. The differentials were pretty constant from 20 to 25 degrees lower than what the controller indicated. This put the ribs far behind schedule and I had to run the temp to 400 in order for them to get finished in time for dinner.
Robert
Good luck, but I already have an idea of what they are going to tell you.
1. The lid is not intended to be smoke tight, or airtight. Two pieces of metal against one another will not form a smoke tight seal. There will be smoke leakage along the length of the seam.
If it's not water tight, or air tight, then it won't be smoke tight. Smoke is going to escape from where the lid meets the rest of the cooking chamber. At least two people I've seen in here and elsewhere have already been told by
Rec Tec that some leakage is "designed in".
https://www.rectecforum.com/threads/should-i-seal-my-rec-tec-grill-answered.16/
I didn't believe it either, and placed gasket material around my lid. Which I now wish that I hadn't, as it doesn't last.
But talk to anyone with a
WSM, and they'll tell you that they leak smoke from around their lids.
Indeed, one of the few things which won't leak lid smoke, is a Kamado. And a lot of that has to do with the heft of the lid and the felt gaskets.
Your BGE and my Kamado Joe don’t leak smoke from around their lids. But then they are Kamados with heavy ceramic lids and felt gaskets on the top and bottom halves of the cookers.
2. You mention that your Maverick was reading 213 when the indicated temperature was reading 235.
A few questions.
What was your Maverick 732 calibrated against and up to what temperatures?
That’s about a $60.00 piece of equipment. How much can it be trusted? Or better yet, what assurances does one have that it’s accurate and the grill’s reported temperature isn’t?
If it was calibrated against boiling water and ice baths, well, boiling water and ice baths may not do it. How accurate is it at the ranges at which it was being compared against the second thermometer, namely the grill's thermometer.
Before you read this post further, google
"Maverick
accuracy issues", and read up on what you find.
Where was the temperature probe of the Maverick placed and the Maverick's reported temperature taken? Center of the grill? How about the right or the left of the grill? Was there any food on the grill when it was being taken?
Here is an image of my Stampede using one probe from my Thermaworks Smoke, and two probes from my Weber iGrill. In other words, taking the temperartures at 3 different spots on the grill at the same time and comparing them against the grill's reported temperature.
I divided the grill into 3 zones. In other words divided the cooking surface into 3rds, and set the temp probes in the middle of those 3 zones.
The grill is set for 250°F. It is reading 250°F
The Thermapro probe is in the first zone. It's reading 251°F. The iGrill probes are at the 2nd and 3rd zones. They read 247°F at the same time that the one in the middle of 3rd zone is reading 269°F.
But as you can see, they don't all read the same. And the hot spot on my grill seems to be at the middle right zone. There is a discrepancy of 19° vs what the grill is reporting.
But a few things deserve consideration. First it's not a given that any two thermometers are going to read the same at any given point in time and in the same temperature ranges. Especially two made by different manufacturers. My
Thermoworks Smoke is accurate to within plus or minus 1.8°F at temps from -4 and up until temps of 248°. Above 248°F and up to 392°F, it's not as accurate. It's 3.6°F give or take at those temps and in between. And at least 5.4% give or take above 392°.
The accuracy of my iGrill is different from that, and the accuracy of my BBQ Guru CyberQ temperature probes are different still.
Secondly, the area where the temperature is being taken comes into play, as well as if the probe taking the temperature itself is resting on metal. I usually use cork to rest my temperature probes either on or through. Not the metal clamps which are designed to flip into the
grill grates that come with most aftermarket thermometers.
How high off of the grates was the temperature probe of the Maverick placed?
Finally, if you just want the temperature of your Bull to read more in line with your Maverick, well then it is a simple matter to do that.
However that said, even if you do manage to "match" the two by following the recommended procedures outlined by
Rec Tec in setting your temperature offset, well then I can tell you from a good bit of experience, that the temperature that your grill is reporting and the temperature that your aftermarket thermometer is reporting, likely will not 100% match throughout any great length of time.
Someone described that, attempting to get these grills to match in all zones across the grates, in all conditions, to a reported reading of an aftermarket thermometer, as a rabbit hole. I can tell you that it most certainly is just that.
