eggAccessories

The Woo2

Woo2

WooDoggies, an egg enthusiast, wanted a quick way to raise the large grid to the egg’s felt line.  He contacted us after seeing a raised set-up we designed for Nature Boy, of Dizzy Pig fame. 

For WooDoggies, we designed a two ring set-up that goes direct and sets the grid at the felt line.  He liked it, so we named it after him – the WooRing!
 
Well, as inventors do, we could not leave the WooRing alone and started tinkering. From our efforts comes the Woo2, a piece that still goes direct at the felt line, but now offers an indirect cooking option too.   Plus, with the addition of the Woo2 Extender, an additional grid can be positioned above the felt line for two level cooks. 

The “nuts and bolts” of the Woo2 design are:

• Overall height is 3.75 inches.
• The Woo2 places the large grid a smidge below the base’s felt line. 
• Ring diameter is 17.375-inches OD, matching the center diameter of the fire ring.
• Six vertical studs connect the two rings and support the upper ring.
• The rings and studs are 1/4-inch, round bar, 304 stainless stock
• Two Woo2 Crossbars support the indirect piece(s) or 16.5-inch Nickel Plated Grid.
• The Woo2 can sit on an 18.25-inch grid on the fire ring.
• There may be a slight wobble with the Woo2 on the fire ring. The wobble has no impact on cooking. 

These are the fast and reasonably hot cooks: brats, ABTs, hamburgers, spatchcock or cut-up chicken, veggies and such.   The height of the grid is a smidge below the felt rims.  Grilling here is much easier when compared to grilling at the fire ring.   Handling food, tongs and spatulas is effortless, as the grid is elevated and easy to get to.  Plus, controlling the temperature is less demanding.   You have better temperature control since the grid is 8 inches above the lump, when the firebox is loaded.   

The set-up is straightforward and takes less than one minute to complete.  The Woo2 sits directly on the fire ring.  To set the grid, just drop it on the Woo2, so the Woo2’s top ring slips inside the grid’s outer band.  It’s that easy!  

The exciting new addition with the Woo2 is the ability to go indirect in a matter of seconds.  All you need is a pizza stone and/or 14 or 16-Inch Drip Pan (Pan), as they act as the indirect piece.  Plus, you get to pick the size and shape of the indirect piece, so you have better control over the air circulation in the egg.  Round or square, all the indirect piece needs to do is fit inside the Woo2’s frame.

The set-up is quick and easy.  Here is what you need: Woo2, large grid, pizza stone and/or Pan.

Key points on this set-up are:

• No need for the platesetter. 
• You have better control over the air flow, as you choose the size & shape of the indirect piece.
• Uniform air circulation around the egg, no legs to block air movement.
• Access to the lump during the cook is quick. Just lift the loaded Woo2 out and the egg is empty. 

What to do:

1. Add the lump and smoking wood  (you can fill the fire ring) and light the lump.
2. Set the Woo2 on the fire ring.  Make sure the four short posts point up.
3. Add the two Woo2 Crossbars by slipping the hooked ends over the short vertical posts. Hooks facing in or out, it does not matter.
4. Place the grid on the upper Woo2 ring.
5. If you are using a stone, set it on the grid to warm up.
6. When you are ready to start the cook, using hand protection or grid lifter (Lawn Ranger):

• Lift the grid/stone (remember the pieces are hot)  and drop in the wood chunks;
• Place the stone & drip pan on the Crossbars;
• Replace the grid on the Rig;
• Load the meat and begin the cook.

Two low & slow cooks are pictured below: butts and brisket flat.   The cool thing about both these cooks is, if you want to access the lump or empty the egg fast, all you need to do is (with hand protection) slip your fingers under the grid and Woo2’s top ring, lift up five inches to clear the felt rim and rotate out.  The egg is empty.  Remember to keep the Woo2 Level while moving.

It’s hard to tell from the pictures above just how much room there is for the air to circulate.  Hopefully, the pictures below will provide a better visual on how you can control the air circulation. 

     
12-inch stone                                                                14-inch stone

As you can see with the two stones, the air circulation is virtually unobstructed for 360 degrees – all around the stone.  This is the best method we have found for uniform circulation.  If you need to section off or block an area (hot spot), a piece of folded foil does the trick.  

          
16-inch pan                                                 14-inch pizza stone under pan    No stone just the pan

When you look down at the 16-inch pan on the Woo2, you say - no way the air can circulate.  When you look from the side, you can see there is ample room for air circulation.  And remember, this opening is 360 degrees, all the way around the fire ring and pan.  Without a stone, the pan sits 1/2-inch above the fire ring. With a stone, the pan sits 1.125-inches above the fire ring.  Plus, the pans we offer have a tapered side edge, as pictured. 

In the picture below, the 14-inch stone is pushed toward the camera for a better visual of the set-up. In actuality, the stone would be centered on the Woo2 and the set-up would look like the above picture: 14-inch pizza stone under pan.

          
Nearly 3-inches of open air      
                                   
With the stone and pan as the indirect piece, there are nearly 3-inches of open air between the bottom of the pan and the top of the large grid.  With a pan only set-up (no stone), the open area is approximately 3.5-inches.

The pan does not have to be round.  Pictured top right is an old aluminum baking pan we use with ribs and brisket cooks. The pan is 10.5-inches by 15-inches with rounded corners.  Dimensionally, this is about the biggest pan that will fit.   If you search for a rectangular pan, please remember, even though the package dimensions say 10x15, the pan may actually be (more than likely is) bigger.  We are currently searching for a bakeware supplier who can provide us with an acceptable rectangular pan.

 
Woo2 Extender on the BGE porcelain grid

             
        Extender holder a 16.5-inch grid at the felt line                      Woo2 indirect with Extender and 16.5” grid

The Woo2 Extender gives you the ability to add a second grid above the main (large) grid.  Also, it’s handy for cooking hotter and higher in the dome. Or, you can slip a drip pan (indirect piece) on the main grid or lower crossbars for an indirect set up.

Throughout the pictorial you see a couple different Extender prototypes. We tried a number of different shapes and sizes to conform to fabrication and use requirements.  The Extender pictured above is the final design, as it offers the greatest flexibility, minimizes interference on the lower grid and is cost effective.

Note:  When using the Extender on the Woo2, the BGE thermometer can get in the way.  See here for ways to minimize the challenges of the thermometer.  We recommend you remove the BGE thermometer and use a remote thermometer.  It is ok to leave the thermometer hole open or simply fill the hole with a broken toothpick.   

To set the Extender, just align the four vertical legs to the crosswires on the grid and slip on the Extender.  It’s that easy!  

The “nuts and bolts” of the design are:

• Sits on the large grid (BGE or Stainless) or Woo2 Hangers.
• Overall height is 3.5 inches.
• The working space between grids is 3.25 inches.
• The distances between legs are 10 and 12-inches, outside diameter.
• The material is 1/4-inch stainless round bar.  
• The top bracket is 8 sided but not octagonal.

Some may wonder why we did not design a ring set-up for the Extender.  Well, we considered a ring set-up, but concluded:  

• There is no need for a ring on the bottom grid.  It will just get in the way. 
• A ring on top is one dimensional. It won’t hold anything smaller than the ring’s diameter.  Plus it can get in the way, see butt picture below.  

Key points on this set-up are:

• The four vertical leg supports are pushed out from the center for minimal interference on the lower grid.  There is enough room between the legs to fit a brisket or couple of racks of ribs on the lower grid.
• The top bracket is designed to hold a variety of grids and, at the request of one egg enthusiast, kabobs.
• To minimize wear and tear on the lower grid’s crosswires, the legs supports can set on different crosswires and they slide back and forth.
• To quickly access the lower grid, just lift the Extender/Grid off and set it on a heat resistant and level surface.  Remember to use hand protection with hot pieces.
• The Extender can be use outside the egg as a staging platform. Just set it on a level surface.

Two points that you need to know:

1. Cooking multiple butts above or below the Extender: 
1. Above the Extender, plan on one butt.  The dome’s shape makes it a tight fit for two butts.
2. Below the Extender, there is approximately 3.375 inches of room between the bottom of the Extender and the top of the lower grid.  Chances are the Extender will rest on the butts on the lower grid until the butts shrink under the Extender.
3. See three tier cooks below for optional set-ups on butt cooks.   
4. If large butt cooks is your thing, you might also consider the Adjustable Rig/Spider combo.

• We’ve found that with continued use (from bumps & drops) the Extender frame can twist a little, causing it to sit slightly unbalanced when not supporting a load.  Also, we found, when it is weighted with a reasonable load, the Extender returns to a level platform. 

   

      

The round grid is the 16.5-Inch Nickel Plated Grid.  Or, if you’re a rib fan, try the 13x17.5-inch Oval Grid.  Two grids of ribs are possible: set-up the Woo2 for an indirect cook and use the Extender with an Oval Grid on top. The ribs can lay flat which is great for foiling in the smoke-foil-grill (3-1-1) method.   


On the brats, you can see pink spots.   We experimented with a “set it and forget it cook.”  The brats went on and were never touched - no flips or turns!  They cooked for nearly an hour under the set-up pictured, 325 degrees grid/dome temp and cherry smoke.  We turned the brats over just before pulling them to take the picture, bottom side.  As you can see, nice grill marks.  The pink spots are a result of the brats touching each other during the cook: rookie mistake, LOL!

 

 

Three Grid Cooks:  Yes, it is possible but it’s a busy cook. The configuration, bottom to top is:

1. Spider holds the indirect piece in the fire ring;
2. First grid is on the fire ring;
3. Woo2 sits on the first grid;
4. Second large grid is on the Woo2;
5. Woo2 Extender sits on the second grid;
6. 16.5” or Oval grid is on the Extender.

 

If you are looking for an easy way to add smoking wood to the lump during a raised grid cook - here you go.  The set-up uses the Woo2, Woo2 Hangers, an Oval grid and/or optional Woo2 Extender. 

Note: The 13x17-Inch Oval Grid is off center to the Woo2, as the Grid is supported by the Hangers.  

Remember, with the Extender you may need to use a remote thermometer. With the netted turkey breast, we used the BBQ Guru and Maverick ET-73.  It took a couple seconds to drop the pan under the turkey breast to go from direct to indirect.  The pan is sitting approximately 1/2-inch above the fire ring.

Key points on this set-up are:

• It’s such a simple set-up.  Honestly, we found it by accident, cooking a spatchcook chicken of all things.
• The 13x17.5-Inch Oval grid is the cooking grid.
• The Oval Grid creates an open space at the front of the egg to access the lump.
• Stable cook platform.
• No need for the platesetter.
• The Woo2 Hangers drape over the upper ring, spaced to securely hold the Oval Grid or Extender.

What to do:

1. Light the lump.
2. Set the Woo2 on the Fire ring.
3. Set the Woo2 Hangers on the Woo2’s upper ring.
4. Place the 13x17.5-Inch Oval Grid on the Hangers or add the Extender then Oval Grid.  When you are ready to start the cook;

• Drop wood chunks on the lump
• Load the cook and begin.

It’s a good idea to set the lower Crossbars with either cook, just in case you need to drop a 14 or 16-Inch Pan or stone to go indirect.  To drop wood chunks, just push the indirect piece to the back of the egg and slide it back when finished.  It’s a toss up, which offers faster access to the lump: 1) sliding the indirect piece to the back of the egg; or 2) lifting the Woo2 set-up out of the egg for full access.  Choice is yours!