- Oct 24, 2016
- 1
- 10
Greetings all, I'm a newbie to the forum and other than owning a Green Egg for the past two decades (and kicking some serious (pig) butt on that!) I'm a newbie to the world of smokers outside of the egg.
I ran across this thread and figured it might be cool to "meet" some of you guys and get some tips here and there.
I currently live in Decatur, GA just outside of Atlanta.
On that note, I've got two projects that I could use some advice and/or thoughts on.
The first, is a sad story that I hope to make better with a little help. I purchased a BGE back in '93 for my grandmother (who interestingly is now 93 years old....) and it was one of the original clay BGEs. It's been a great smoker over the decades that I've cooked tons of stuff on. I recently moved it around on the deck and after rolling it into place I went to open it and a large portion of the base broke off below the hinge. I've attached a picture of the carnage.... Fortunately the dome survived and the base itself is intact, just minus a 4" deep chunk around the back half.
So here's the question: I've purchased some refractory cement and my HOPE was that I might be able to form a new piece to fill in the part that broke off. I still have some of the part(s) that remained in bigger chunks but I figured it would be better to just mold an entire new piece. What're your thoughts on this? This is the part where the hinge ring clamps to attach the dome and base so there would be more stress on this part than the rest of the base so having never used the refractory cement I wasn't sure how "structural" it would be....
Note: BGE will give me a great deal on a replacement base but neither they nor I are sure if the size will be compatible since my dome is about 1/2" larger diameter than the new ceramic bases. My thought is that it would work, BUT if the refractory cement idea would work that'd be the cheapest option (with the best back-story.....)
Now, here's the NEW project question: I recently bought a house and behind this house the previous owners had built a MASSIVE fire-pit/fireplace. This thing is epic and under a metal awning and everything. There are ledges built into the brick that I could put in a grate for direct grilling, but I was wondering if anyone had any thoughts on how to build a smoker "attachment" or meat-box that I could potentially port the smoke over from the pit. Not being a pro here, I wasn't sure about the best distance to keep the smoker box from the fire source to allow the best indirect heat AND smoke to work its magic on the meat. I've attached a picture. Please note, the fire in the pit was for fun and I understand that big fires are not for smoking. :) (And no, the mailboxes do not get any heat....they're just for storage of matches, paper etc.....unfortunately....)
So, thanks in advance!
I ran across this thread and figured it might be cool to "meet" some of you guys and get some tips here and there.
I currently live in Decatur, GA just outside of Atlanta.
On that note, I've got two projects that I could use some advice and/or thoughts on.
The first, is a sad story that I hope to make better with a little help. I purchased a BGE back in '93 for my grandmother (who interestingly is now 93 years old....) and it was one of the original clay BGEs. It's been a great smoker over the decades that I've cooked tons of stuff on. I recently moved it around on the deck and after rolling it into place I went to open it and a large portion of the base broke off below the hinge. I've attached a picture of the carnage.... Fortunately the dome survived and the base itself is intact, just minus a 4" deep chunk around the back half.
So here's the question: I've purchased some refractory cement and my HOPE was that I might be able to form a new piece to fill in the part that broke off. I still have some of the part(s) that remained in bigger chunks but I figured it would be better to just mold an entire new piece. What're your thoughts on this? This is the part where the hinge ring clamps to attach the dome and base so there would be more stress on this part than the rest of the base so having never used the refractory cement I wasn't sure how "structural" it would be....
Note: BGE will give me a great deal on a replacement base but neither they nor I are sure if the size will be compatible since my dome is about 1/2" larger diameter than the new ceramic bases. My thought is that it would work, BUT if the refractory cement idea would work that'd be the cheapest option (with the best back-story.....)
Now, here's the NEW project question: I recently bought a house and behind this house the previous owners had built a MASSIVE fire-pit/fireplace. This thing is epic and under a metal awning and everything. There are ledges built into the brick that I could put in a grate for direct grilling, but I was wondering if anyone had any thoughts on how to build a smoker "attachment" or meat-box that I could potentially port the smoke over from the pit. Not being a pro here, I wasn't sure about the best distance to keep the smoker box from the fire source to allow the best indirect heat AND smoke to work its magic on the meat. I've attached a picture. Please note, the fire in the pit was for fun and I understand that big fires are not for smoking. :) (And no, the mailboxes do not get any heat....they're just for storage of matches, paper etc.....unfortunately....)
So, thanks in advance!
