Coal Bed Getting Too Large

[Its_Raw]

I thought I read somewhere in one of the threads about the negative effects of the coal bed getting too large, but I do not recall what the negative effects were. I smoked some ribs over last weekend and the coal bed grew quite a bit. I was able to keep the temperature within a reasonable range, but the fire struggled at times to keep going. I used thinner splits that would burn a bit faster, but I have never had much luck with shorter, fatter splits.

What say you?

Thank you!

 

[mike243]

As the ashes build up it smothers the fire, thats 1 of the reasons bins are made to let the ash drop away from the wood that’s burning

 

[Its_Raw]

Any suggestion on removing excess ash with any without the use of an elevated grate?