Hello all,

I have a CharBroil 18 1/2" grill, kettle style. $5 garage sale brand new.

The first time I cooked with it, after many years of gas, I didn't use
enough coals and it went cold after the meat juice hit the coals. I
watched a few videos online and now I fill approx 1/2 the unit up almost
to the grill and leave the other 1/2 as my safe zone. It seems to work
great with one exception.

After I light the coals and let them get hot I plop on the meat. The first
side gets a great sear quickly but when I turn the meat over the coals
seem to have gotten cool and it takes much longer, 2x-3x, to get any sear.

It seems like there isn't enough oxygen getting to the hot coals.

Is it possible that I put too many coals in?

Is it possible they are too close to the meat and that's cutting the
oxygen, air flow, off?

I grill using no lid and with all the air vents open on the bottom. The
CharBroil has 4 holes in the ash catcher.

I use Kingsford, I know but it's what I had, and Royal Oak Hardwood
Chunks, which I'm out of at this time.

Any suggestions please.

Thanks in advance,
Steve

On Aug 21, 11:04 am, SteveSch > wrote:
> Hello all,
>
> I have a CharBroil 18 1/2" grill, kettle style. $5 garage sale brand new.

I'm completely ignorant of this brand and model, I'd bet the majority
here don't have a familiarity with this unit, would you mind finding a
link for us to look at so we can discuss this more intelligently? I
know enough to not assume it's exactly like a Weber.

>
> The first time I cooked with it, after many years of gas,

Sorry to hear that. But glad your suffering is over. What did the
doctor proscribe that got rid of your gas?

> I didn't use
> enough coals and it went cold after the meat juice hit the coals. I
> watched a few videos online and now I fill approx 1/2 the unit up almost
> to the grill and leave the other 1/2 as my safe zone. It seems to work
> great with one exception.

Not real clear here, does this mean you put in enough coal to fill one
side half way up?

>
> After I light the coals and let them get hot I plop on the meat. The first
> side gets a great sear quickly but when I turn the meat over the coals
> seem to have gotten cool and it takes much longer, 2x-3x, to get any sear.
>
> It seems like there isn't enough oxygen getting to the hot coals.

That would be a good bet. OR, you're letting the coals light waaaaay
too long. I'd bet the former.

> Is it possible that I put too many coals in?

Probably not. But again, I don't know your unit and where the coals
go.

> Is it possible they are too close to the meat and that's cutting the
> oxygen, air flow, off?

Extemely unlikely.

> I grill using no lid and with all the air vents open on the bottom. The
> CharBroil has 4 holes in the ash catcher.

Do you mean to say that the bottom of the unit has 4 intake holes
where the air comes in? Remember, we don't know WTF this thing looks
like.

> Any suggestions please.

Not knowing how it's put together....... take a shotgun, some 2XX and
perforate the thing, that'll increase the air flow.
Seriously, air flow, air flow, air flow. No air, no fire. Low air, low
fire. Clean it out of ashes, open the intakes fully.

On 22-Aug-2007, Tutall > wrote:

> On Aug 21, 11:04 am, SteveSch > wrote:
> > Hello all,
> >
> > I have a CharBroil 18 1/2" grill, kettle style. $5 garage sale brand
> > new.
>
> I'm completely ignorant of this brand and model, I'd bet the majority
> here don't have a familiarity with this unit, would you mind finding a
> link for us to look at so we can discuss this more intelligently? I
> know enough to not assume it's exactly like a Weber.
>
> >
> > The first time I cooked with it, after many years of gas,
>
> Sorry to hear that. But glad your suffering is over. What did the
> doctor proscribe that got rid of your gas?
>
> > I didn't use
> > enough coals and it went cold after the meat juice hit the coals. I
> > watched a few videos online and now I fill approx 1/2 the unit up almost
> > to the grill and leave the other 1/2 as my safe zone. It seems to work
> > great with one exception.
>
> Not real clear here, does this mean you put in enough coal to fill one
> side half way up?
>
> >
> > After I light the coals and let them get hot I plop on the meat. The
> > first
> > side gets a great sear quickly but when I turn the meat over the coals
> > seem to have gotten cool and it takes much longer, 2x-3x, to get any
> > sear.
> >
> > It seems like there isn't enough oxygen getting to the hot coals.
>
> That would be a good bet. OR, you're letting the coals light waaaaay
> too long. I'd bet the former.
>
> > Is it possible that I put too many coals in?
>
> Probably not. But again, I don't know your unit and where the coals
> go.
>
> > Is it possible they are too close to the meat and that's cutting the
> > oxygen, air flow, off?
>
> Extemely unlikely.
>
> > I grill using no lid and with all the air vents open on the bottom. The
> > CharBroil has 4 holes in the ash catcher.
>
> Do you mean to say that the bottom of the unit has 4 intake holes
> where the air comes in? Remember, we don't know WTF this thing looks
> like.
>
> > Any suggestions please.
>
> Not knowing how it's put together....... take a shotgun, some 2XX and
> perforate the thing, that'll increase the air flow.
> Seriously, air flow, air flow, air flow. No air, no fire. Low air, low
> fire. Clean it out of ashes, open the intakes fully.


On 22-Aug-2007, Tutall > wrote:

> On Aug 21, 11:04 am, SteveSch > wrote:
> > Hello all,
> >
> > I have a CharBroil 18 1/2" grill, kettle style. $5 garage sale brand
> > new.
>
> I'm completely ignorant of this brand and model, I'd bet the majority
> here don't have a familiarity with this unit, would you mind finding a
> link for us to look at so we can discuss this more intelligently? I
> know enough to not assume it's exactly like a Weber.
>
> >
> > The first time I cooked with it, after many years of gas,
>
> Sorry to hear that. But glad your suffering is over. What did the
> doctor proscribe that got rid of your gas?
>
> > I didn't use
> > enough coals and it went cold after the meat juice hit the coals. I
> > watched a few videos online and now I fill approx 1/2 the unit up almost
> > to the grill and leave the other 1/2 as my safe zone. It seems to work
> > great with one exception.
>
> Not real clear here, does this mean you put in enough coal to fill one
> side half way up?
>
> >
> > After I light the coals and let them get hot I plop on the meat. The
> > first
> > side gets a great sear quickly but when I turn the meat over the coals
> > seem to have gotten cool and it takes much longer, 2x-3x, to get any
> > sear.
> >
> > It seems like there isn't enough oxygen getting to the hot coals.
>
> That would be a good bet. OR, you're letting the coals light waaaaay
> too long. I'd bet the former.
>
> > Is it possible that I put too many coals in?
>
> Probably not. But again, I don't know your unit and where the coals
> go.
>
> > Is it possible they are too close to the meat and that's cutting the
> > oxygen, air flow, off?
>
> Extemely unlikely.
>
> > I grill using no lid and with all the air vents open on the bottom. The
> > CharBroil has 4 holes in the ash catcher.
>
> Do you mean to say that the bottom of the unit has 4 intake holes
> where the air comes in? Remember, we don't know WTF this thing looks
> like.
>
> > Any suggestions please.
>
> Not knowing how it's put together....... take a shotgun, some 2XX and
> perforate the thing, that'll increase the air flow.
> Seriously, air flow, air flow, air flow. No air, no fire. Low air, low
> fire. Clean it out of ashes, open the intakes fully.


You guys that are trying to help can take a look here. It might give you
some idea. From what I can tell, it seems to closely resemble weber's
design(s).

http://www.onestopshopcatalog.com/thr-1850.html

--
Brick(Save a tree, eat a Beaver)

On Wed, 22 Aug 2007 06:29:22 -0700, Tutall wrote:

> I'm completely ignorant of this brand and model, I'd bet the majority here
> don't have a familiarity with this unit, would you mind finding a link for
> us to look at so we can discuss this more intelligently? I know enough to
> not assume it's exactly like a Weber.

Sorry.
It is just like the one here with the two holes as the bottom vents.
http://www.acehardware.com/product/i...ductId=1290227

The little round thing on the bottom catches the ashes and is removable.
That is where the 4 vent holes are located.
http://www.academy.com/index.php?pag...262-02367-1850

> Sorry to hear that. But glad your suffering is over. What did the doctor
> proscribe that got rid of your gas?

Flavor enhancement.;-) Actually I got tired of not being able to cook when
it's cold, or windy, out. The gas grill just didn't have enough heat to
sear the meat. On nice calm days, over 70, it worked fine. Still nowhere
near the flavor of coal. The gas grill was a gift from my family many
years ago. I'm sorry to say I am sure I offended a lot of them over the
years of using that grill. The good news is all is well and my wife says
she'll never do it again. And she does notice the flavor difference too.

>> I didn't use
>> enough coals and it went cold after the meat juice hit the coals. I
>> watched a few videos online and now I fill approx 1/2 the unit up
>> almost to the grill and leave the other 1/2 as my safe zone. It seems
>> to work great with one exception.
>
> Not real clear here, does this mean you put in enough coal to fill one
> side half way up?

Pretty much all the way up to the grill. The coals almost touch 1/2 of the
grill surface. It would be hard to get any more coals in the hot half of
the grill.

>> After I light the coals and let them get hot I plop on the meat. The
>> first side gets a great sear quickly but when I turn the meat over the
>> coals seem to have gotten cool and it takes much longer, 2x-3x, to get
>> any sear.
>>
>> It seems like there isn't enough oxygen getting to the hot coals.
>
> That would be a good bet. OR, you're letting the coals light waaaaay too
> long. I'd bet the former.
>
>> Is it possible that I put too many coals in?
>
> Probably not. But again, I don't know your unit and where the coals go.
>
>> Is it possible they are too close to the meat and that's cutting the
>> oxygen, air flow, off?
>
> Extemely unlikely.
>
>> I grill using no lid and with all the air vents open on the bottom. The
>> CharBroil has 4 holes in the ash catcher.
>
> Do you mean to say that the bottom of the unit has 4 intake holes where
> the air comes in? Remember, we don't know WTF this thing looks like.

I'm sorry about that. I couldn't find a photo on CharBroil's website. It's
amazing how few photos I can find of this thing. Probably a bad sign. It
is just a toy. Now that I've had time to cook a few times, I plan on
buying a Weber Kettle soon.

>> Any suggestions please.
>
> Not knowing how it's put together....... take a shotgun, some 2XX and
> perforate the thing, that'll increase the air flow. Seriously, air flow,
> air flow, air flow. No air, no fire. Low air, low fire. Clean it out of
> ashes, open the intakes fully.

I will drill a few more holes in the sides. Thanks for your help.

Steve

On Aug 22, 7:56 am, SteveSch > wrote:
> On Wed, 22 Aug 2007 06:29:22 -0700, Tutall wrote:
> The little round thing on the bottom catches the ashes and is removable.
> That is where the 4 vent holes are located.http://www.academy.com/index.php?pag...oducts/outdoor...

Ugh, looks like that's the problem allright.

> I will drill a few more holes in the sides.

That should do it. Can't go wrong with too many either.

Webers are great grills and all, but......
My favorite style of grill is the barrell or box type. As long as it's
a decent design. What those wider grills allow you do to is a better
chicken. Weber and their ilk pretty much force you to put chicken
right over the coals, or only use half the (smallish) grill.
With a wider cooking space that's not an issue. My big 42X20 allows me
to put a fire in the middle and arrange 4 half chix around the fire.
Barrell or box cookers also have adjustable fire grates which is
another nice bonus. I had a inexpensive one that I used for 5 years
before upgrading that's about the price of a Weber kettle. It's the
same brand as what Brick's got. And for $80 you can order a side
firebox to use for BBQ. A versatile cooker, pretty cheap.


BRICK! What the hell's the brand name of your cooker again?

On Wed, 22 Aug 2007 09:12:11 -0700, Tutall wrote:

>> I will drill a few more holes in the sides.
>
> That should do it. Can't go wrong with too many either.

I am going to be using it in a couple of hours. I decided to just pull out
the ash catcher and put a metal pan under it. That should give it plenty
of air to check it. I am working over dirt so there's no problem there.

I'll let you guys know how it works.

Webers are great grills and all, but...... My favorite style of grill is
> the barrell or box type. As long as it's a decent design. What those
> wider grills allow you do to is a better chicken. Weber and their ilk
> pretty much force you to put chicken right over the coals, or only use
> half the (smallish) grill. With a wider cooking space that's not an
> issue. My big 42X20 allows me to put a fire in the middle and arrange 4
> half chix around the fire. Barrell or box cookers also have adjustable
> fire grates which is another nice bonus. I had a inexpensive one that I
> used for 5 years before upgrading that's about the price of a Weber
> kettle. It's the same brand as what Brick's got. And for $80 you can
> order a side firebox to use for BBQ. A versatile cooker, pretty cheap.

I am planning on building a smoker like this one:
http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/sh...ghlight=Smoker

I also just missed an old gas grill someone was discarding. I want to get
a larger one and refit it for coal. That way I can have the heat at one
end and the meat at the other when needed. I can even use gas ignition
like the big boys. LOL

Should be real easy. Put a few close-able vents in the sides and top, and
add a stainless mesh to hold the coals. Metal pan to catch the ashes, get
a real grilling rack and it should be ready to go.

Anyway I'll let you know how it goes tonight.

Thanks again,
Steve

On Wed, 22 Aug 2007 12:43:55 -0600, SteveSch wrote:

> I am going to be using it in a couple of hours. I decided to just pull
> out the ash catcher and put a metal pan under it. That should give it
> plenty of air to check it. I am working over dirt so there's no problem
> there.
>
> I'll let you guys know how it works.

Well let's just say it got, and stayed, plenty hot. I actually had to
spread my coals out a little because they got too hot.

Thanks again for the help.

Steve

On 22-Aug-2007, Tutall > wrote:

> On Aug 22, 7:56 am, SteveSch > wrote:
> > On Wed, 22 Aug 2007 06:29:22 -0700, Tutall wrote:
> > The little round thing on the bottom catches the ashes and is removable.
> > That is where the 4 vent holes are
> > located.http://www.academy.com/index.php?pag...oducts/outdoor...
>
> Ugh, looks like that's the problem allright.
>
> > I will drill a few more holes in the sides.
>
> That should do it. Can't go wrong with too many either.
>
> Webers are great grills and all, but......
> My favorite style of grill is the barrell or box type. As long as it's
> a decent design. What those wider grills allow you do to is a better
> chicken. Weber and their ilk pretty much force you to put chicken
> right over the coals, or only use half the (smallish) grill.
> With a wider cooking space that's not an issue. My big 42X20 allows me
> to put a fire in the middle and arrange 4 half chix around the fire.
> Barrell or box cookers also have adjustable fire grates which is
> another nice bonus. I had a inexpensive one that I used for 5 years
> before upgrading that's about the price of a Weber kettle. It's the
> same brand as what Brick's got. And for $80 you can order a side
> firebox to use for BBQ. A versatile cooker, pretty cheap.
>
>
> BRICK! What the hell's the brand name of your cooker again?

Tutall, what you must have is the Chargriller Pro. My New Braunfels
Silver Smoker came with a firebox as did all it's siblings. The "Silver"
model was about $175 and it's big brother the "Black Diamond" was
a little more. I think Nick has a Black Diamond. It's nearly twice the
size of the "Silver" in sheer grill area. The thing about an offset is that
you either love them or hate them. I don't think there is an inbetween.
If/when I upgrade from my "Silver" it will be a Tejas or Klose of about
20 X 40 grill size.

--
Brick(Save a tree, eat a Beaver)

"Brick" > wrote:
> On 22-Aug-2007, Tutall > wrote:
> > On Aug 22, 7:56 am, SteveSch > wrote:
> > > On Wed, 22 Aug 2007 06:29:22 -0700, Tutall wrote:
> > > [ . . . ]
> Tutall, what you must have is the Chargriller Pro. My New Braunfels
> Silver Smoker came with a firebox as did all it's siblings. The "Silver"
> model was about $175 and it's big brother the "Black Diamond" was
> a little more. I think Nick has a Black Diamond. It's nearly twice the
> size of the "Silver" in sheer grill area. The thing about an offset is
> that you either love them or hate them. I don't think there is an
> inbetween. If/when I upgrade from my "Silver" it will be a Tejas or Klose
> of about 20 X 40 grill size.

Close Brick. I have an NB Cattleman. Grill is 16" x 28", firebox 13" x 16".

We use it both for smokin' and for grillin' over the coals. We love it!

--
Nick. Support severely wounded and disabled Veterans and their families!

Thank a Veteran and Support Our Troops. You are not forgotten. Thanks ! ! !
~Semper Fi~

On 22-Aug-2007, Nick Cramer > wrote:

> "Brick" > wrote:
> > On 22-Aug-2007, Tutall > wrote:
> > > On Aug 22, 7:56 am, SteveSch > wrote:
> > > > On Wed, 22 Aug 2007 06:29:22 -0700, Tutall wrote:
> > > > [ . . . ]
> > Tutall, what you must have is the Chargriller Pro. My New Braunfels
> > Silver Smoker came with a firebox as did all it's siblings. The "Silver"
> > model was about $175 and it's big brother the "Black Diamond" was
> > a little more. I think Nick has a Black Diamond. It's nearly twice the
> > size of the "Silver" in sheer grill area. The thing about an offset is
> > that you either love them or hate them. I don't think there is an
> > inbetween. If/when I upgrade from my "Silver" it will be a Tejas or
> > Klose
> > of about 20 X 40 grill size.
>
> Close Brick. I have an NB Cattleman. Grill is 16" x 28", firebox 13" x
> 16".
>
> We use it both for smokin' and for grillin' over the coals. We love it!
>
> --
> Nick.

Hmmmm. My NB Silver is 16 X 32 in the main and 16 X 16 in the firebox.
I've grilled with mine a couple of times. But it's too much trouble for just
Nathalie and I. We only eat one steak at a time. I got good mileage out
of it once when TFM° and Kili came around. We grilled corn, steaks and
a couple of spatchcocked chickens that time. We cooked some pot-
atoes in the coals as well. Like I said, if/when I upgrade it, it'll have to
be a Tejas or Klose to replace it.
--
Brick(Save a tree, eat a Beaver)

Tutall wrote:
> On Aug 22, 7:56 am, SteveSch > wrote:
>> On Wed, 22 Aug 2007 06:29:22 -0700, Tutall wrote:
>> The little round thing on the bottom catches the ashes and is removable.
>> That is where the 4 vent holes are located.http://www.academy.com/index.php?pag...oducts/outdoor...
>
> Ugh, looks like that's the problem allright.
>
>> I will drill a few more holes in the sides.
>
> That should do it. Can't go wrong with too many either.
>
> Webers are great grills and all, but......
> My favorite style of grill is the barrell or box type. As long as it's
> a decent design. What those wider grills allow you do to is a better
> chicken. Weber and their ilk pretty much force you to put chicken
> right over the coals, or only use half the (smallish) grill.
> With a wider cooking space that's not an issue. My big 42X20 allows me
> to put a fire in the middle and arrange 4 half chix around the fire.
> Barrell or box cookers also have adjustable fire grates which is
> another nice bonus. I had a inexpensive one that I used for 5 years
> before upgrading that's about the price of a Weber kettle. It's the
> same brand as what Brick's got. And for $80 you can order a side
> firebox to use for BBQ. A versatile cooker, pretty cheap.
>
>
> BRICK! What the hell's the brand name of your cooker again?
>
>
>
>
CharGriller?

SteveSch wrote:
> On Wed, 22 Aug 2007 09:12:11 -0700, Tutall wrote:
>
>>> I will drill a few more holes in the sides.
>> That should do it. Can't go wrong with too many either.
>
> I am going to be using it in a couple of hours. I decided to just pull out
> the ash catcher and put a metal pan under it. That should give it plenty
> of air to check it. I am working over dirt so there's no problem there.
>
> I'll let you guys know how it works.
>
> Webers are great grills and all, but...... My favorite style of grill is
>> the barrell or box type. As long as it's a decent design. What those
>> wider grills allow you do to is a better chicken. Weber and their ilk
>> pretty much force you to put chicken right over the coals, or only use
>> half the (smallish) grill. With a wider cooking space that's not an
>> issue. My big 42X20 allows me to put a fire in the middle and arrange 4
>> half chix around the fire. Barrell or box cookers also have adjustable
>> fire grates which is another nice bonus. I had a inexpensive one that I
>> used for 5 years before upgrading that's about the price of a Weber
>> kettle. It's the same brand as what Brick's got. And for $80 you can
>> order a side firebox to use for BBQ. A versatile cooker, pretty cheap.
>
> I am planning on building a smoker like this one:
> http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/sh...ghlight=Smoker
>
> I also just missed an old gas grill someone was discarding. I want to get
> a larger one and refit it for coal. That way I can have the heat at one
> end and the meat at the other when needed. I can even use gas ignition
> like the big boys. LOL
>
> Should be real easy. Put a few close-able vents in the sides and top, and
> add a stainless mesh to hold the coals. Metal pan to catch the ashes, get
> a real grilling rack and it should be ready to go.
>
> Anyway I'll let you know how it goes tonight.
>
> Thanks again,
> Steve
>
>
That drum smoker is the way to go.

On Aug 23, 4:52 am, Shawn Martin >
wrote:
> Tutall wrote:

> > BRICK! What the hell's the brand name of your cooker again?
>
> CharGriller?- Hide quoted text -

Yeah, it was the Chargriller Pro I was thinking of.