cruzmisl Posted July 21, 2009 Report Share Posted July 21, 2009 HI All, I thought I read somewhere that the draft door works better if the prongs attached to it are cut shorter. Mine doesn't slide freely especially when hot. Any ideas? Thanks, Joe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mguerra Posted July 21, 2009 Report Share Posted July 21, 2009 door slide Remove the door, polish the prongs with something like 3M Scotchbrite, smear on a tiny bit of anti-seize, clean the door opening of any ash or objects that prevent it from fully sealing, replace the door. If you don't know what anti-seize is, go to an auto parts store and ask for it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Firemonkey Posted July 22, 2009 Report Share Posted July 22, 2009 Actually, just cleaning them well will get them sliding smooth. I dont think i would put anti seize or any other oil on them as it will either gum with the heat, or give the next load of ash something to stick to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruzmisl Posted July 22, 2009 Author Report Share Posted July 22, 2009 That was my thought. Lots of ash down there. I tried PAM but it didn't work and that's canola oil with a high smoke point. One thing I notice with my new cooker is that the latest gen firebox really gets the draft door area HOT! Maybe cause it's larger and closer to the door. Any ideas what to use to clean the draft door tubes? I looked all over for a wire pipe brush that would fit but couldn't find one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Firemonkey Posted July 22, 2009 Report Share Posted July 22, 2009 Hell yeah the door gets hot in the new one! It sizzles like a hot frying pan when water splashes on it. It is the lower basket that hangs down lower, not much higher than the door actually. It burned up my knobs on the new grill, but the old style basket has never had that issue, though it doesnt hold as much coal. I think the stainless may even be slightly yellowed from the heat For the tube, I have never had to clean the inside of the tubes, and if I did, I would have just twisted a paper towel and pushed it through to knock any ash ou. All I have ever done is clean the rods on the door with a damp rag. If you have one, try running a magic eraser over them if they are really nasty. If there was ash in my tubes, I would have just used the door slides to push the ash out, and then wiped them off again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Conodo12 Posted July 22, 2009 Report Share Posted July 22, 2009 I had a bit more grease than I was counting on after one cook (pork shoulder). The grease made its way into the darn tube. I used several pipe cleaners (remember those?) saturated with Simple Green. Cleaned everything up like new and they glide like the day the KK came out of the crate! Give it a try! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruzmisl Posted July 22, 2009 Author Report Share Posted July 22, 2009 I'll give it a go. I may order some of these tube brushes but not sure the correct size http://www.torringtonbrushes.com/stainl ... ushes.aspx I was thinking 7/16" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
primeats Posted July 22, 2009 Report Share Posted July 22, 2009 Or a gun cleaning brush? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruzmisl Posted July 22, 2009 Author Report Share Posted July 22, 2009 Ahhh! Good thinking. I'll check my kit. I know I have one for a 40cal might be one bigger in there. Update-I only had a 40cal brush for my handgun and it fit perfect. Thanks for the idea! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scouterpf Posted July 22, 2009 Report Share Posted July 22, 2009 I just saw this post. Me thinks that one of my unused gun brushes might work. I have used strips of "scotch brite" green that I have cut and pushed through with a small aluminum tube the few times that I cruded things up, also have used the "scotch brite" to 'polish' the solid bars. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeffB Posted July 22, 2009 Report Share Posted July 22, 2009 Interesting timing on your post as I just recently (as in yesterday) was experimenting with the sliding of my draft doors. When clean (with 3M scotchbrite), mine slide pretty well, but after a cook they are a little difficult to pull out and require a little jiggling back and forth to move. In my cooker I noticed that the tubes were not perfectly straight (angled slightly out front to back) when viewed from above. So, I used the handle on the spring tensioning tool (that comes with the cooker) to slightly tweak each tube in a little bit. That seems to have helped but I haven't cooked yet so I have no idea whether it will last. I can imagine there is a great deal of movement in the metal down there given the temperature fluctuations. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeffB Posted August 6, 2009 Report Share Posted August 6, 2009 Just a followup to my last post... I would not recommend anyone "tweak" the tubes like I did to get the door to slide more freely. A proper seal of the draft door seems to require some tension in the system. If you remove all tension then it simply doesn't seal properly and you will have trouble controlling your temperatures. I have since re-adjusted my tubes (back to the way they were) and just live with needing to jiggle the door a little to get it out (when the tubes get dirty). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruzmisl Posted August 6, 2009 Author Report Share Posted August 6, 2009 Thanks for the update. I find if I keep the tubes and rods clean it works better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
primeats Posted August 6, 2009 Report Share Posted August 6, 2009 I did the same thing 2 years ago, forgot about it until you mentioned it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeffB Posted August 6, 2009 Report Share Posted August 6, 2009 I did the same thing 2 years ago' date=' forgot about it until you mentioned it[/quote'] Which thing are you referring to? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sanny Posted August 6, 2009 Report Share Posted August 6, 2009 This thing. ... So' date=' I used the handle on the spring tensioning tool (that comes with the cooker) to slightly tweak each tube in a little bit. [/quote'] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
primeats Posted August 6, 2009 Report Share Posted August 6, 2009 I thought as you did that the tubes were a little tight and binding so I "tweeked" them and almost royally screwed up the air flow control. I quickly bent them back before the next cook. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeffB Posted August 6, 2009 Report Share Posted August 6, 2009 I thought as you did that the tubes were a little tight and binding so I "tweeked" them and almost royally screwed up the air flow control. I quickly bent them back before the next cook. Okay. That is what I thought you were referring to but just wanted to make sure -- nice to have validation that the behavior I saw was not just a figment of my imagination. Hopefully I didn't do any damage to the welds which hold the tubes to the frame. Metal doesn't generally mind a little bending but bending back and forth is never good. If worse comes to worst I am going to have to learn how to weld stainless steel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
