Can I cook without the smoke ring on bge? Trying to get food closer to coals for searing

[floridasmoke1]

I know the fire ring is described as protecting the base from heat. Would I do damage if I removed it to cook at high heat to get the cooking grate closer to the coals?

Tried to do a really quick small steak the other night. I didn’t have a ton of coals and the grill was hot, but I feel like the cooking grate being much higher up away from the coals led to the steak not searing that great.

If I removed the fire ring, I could get the cooking grate down closer to the coals for a better sear.

Or I guess alternatively, I could buy a cheap grate, put it under the fire ring and put my coals on top of that then have the cooking grate on top of the fire ring. Looks like I’d cut out about 5-6 inches between coals and food.

I know I could have just used a lot more coals, but for cases like this where I just have one small piece of meat, I’d rather not use a ton of extra coals if I don’t have to.

 

[JLeonard]

Or you could try this....Get a charcoal starter chimney. Use it to sear steak or small amts of meat. Bout 10 coals or so and use a cooking grate from your BGE.

Jim