Cooked on mine for only the second time this weekend, and halfway through when I opened the lid I noticed that about half of the felt gasket had melted/burned and was coming off (so I ended up cutting the burnt parts off and finishing the cook).

When I bought mine, the dealer had his guys assemble it at my house, so did they screw up putting the gasket on? Hard to believe it would fail after only 2 uses?

Is this my problem or should the dealer come replace it?

What temp were you cooking at? I fused mine together a week ago cooking pizza at 600. I figure the temp rose after I shut it all in and melted it. I don't think they put it together wrong.

It was >600 when it first got fired up, still seems strange though (isn't high temps on of the main selling points??)...

Looks like some good info on the matter here-
http://www.nakedwhiz.com/gasket/gasket.htm

Based on the pics on that link, you are dealing with a fiberfrax-type gasket. They are made by laying ceramic fibers in random mats to make a felt-type mat, and usually stamped or cut out of sheets. To help the fibers to stick together, they coat them with a high temperature thermosetting resin, which if I recall correctly can take temps up to 550 or so continuously. If you are seeing continuous operating temps above 600, that is probably baking off the resin that is holding the gasket on, or the resin holding the fibers together.

Once the resin melts, the fiberfrax will still effectively seal up to like 1200 degrees or so, but it won't be stuck on and can fall apart when you take it apart. It is really designed for flanges and things that aren't taken apart regularly.

I'm really surprised that they don't have a graphite or stainless steel braided rope or similar as the seal on these things.

same thing happened to me...it is a faulty gasket, I called BGE and they sent a nes gasket...a real pain in the Ar-- to replace and time consumimg to remove. Once done it is working fine

Col. A 1976

Col. did you cal BGE directly or did you call your dealer?

They should take care of this. I have had mine over 7 hundy a few times. No issues. I would try the dealer first, then BGE. Worry not my friend, one of them will take care of it.

I have a grill dome. Same thing for the most part. My gasket at least the inner portion is pretty burnt up bur it still seals and holds in heat. When i use a lot of wood i will get smoke coming out of the back near the hinge but it does not seem to have any effect on the performance. I have had mine at 1200 quite a few times.

I burned mine off a couple of years ago using the TREX method of grilling a steak. I put a new one on and it wasn't all that difficult. Make sure you "burp" the egg before you open it and you shouldn't have that problem again.

Dang good steak by the way even with a burned gasket.

you should have got it from Grillin Headquarters in CS,Tx.
they know all the tricks of the trade
told me the first time you cook to keep the temp below 350 for 3-4 hours to let the adhesive on the bottom of the gasket seat and not melt off

Thanks for the tips fellas.

Total BS that A) their stock gaskets suck this bad B) they don't give VERY clear instructions about the ins/outs of first time gasket break in.

How after selling X thousand Eggs would they not replace the crappy felt gasket with something better?


I've seen these and Nomex gaskets talked about as the choice replacements.

Mine's a Primo, not an egg. It's not brand specific.

Just talked to BGE corp.

They are sending me a new Nomex gasket free of charge. I asked them about the Rutland and they did not recommend it as Rutland themselves said their product was not supposed to be used around food.

I asked them why they don't just use Nomex as the standard gasket, he said the felt gasket is much easier to apply during the production phase, and that not enough people have the melting gasket problem to warrant a change.

Bump...

I fried my gasket this week and am considering this new replacement... It is a nomex and kevlar blend... Any thoughts?

linky

^
Put one of those gaskets on a few months ago after scorching my factory one. So far it has proven to be very durable. They are quite thick, so I have actually only put it on the bottom, not the lid of my BGE. Seals great and I figure that gives me another one to use of I ever burn it up.

My gasket is basically toast. I picked up an official BGE gasket at an Ace Hardware in the Woodlands (on Kuykendahl) that sells all kings on accessories but then never got around to putting it on. Frankly I really cant see that its making a big difference one way or the other. I did some digging and about 1/2 replace it and the other 1/2 don't bother.

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I did some digging and about 1/2 replace it and the other 1/2 don't bother.

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To be clear, by fried, I mean my lid is fused shut and I'm going to have to cut it to get it open. so its not really an option for me to not replace it.

I was already thinking about just putting on one side. Glad to hear someone already has done that.

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Total BS that A) their stock gaskets suck this bad B) they don't give VERY clear instructions about the ins/outs of first time gasket break in.

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Like their website and the documentation that comes with the grill.

Big Green Egg First Timer Tips

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DO NOT cook at high temperatures on your first use
This may damage the gasket before it can properly seat itself. Keep the temperature on your first few cooks under 350F / 177C to allow the gasket adhesive to fully cure and adhere to the EGG. If you do happen to damage the gasket, you can easily replace it with a self-adhesive high temperature replacement gasket available from any BGE dealer.

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I fried the gasket on my Primo while cooking pizza at 700+.

Go the Primo website - not the official, but the users forums. There is a guy on there that buys high temp gasket material in bulk. You tell him what grill you have - doesn't matter what brand - and he cuts it off his roll and sends it to you along with detailed instructions for replacing. It's not hard - getting off the old gasket material is the hardest part.

Cost me maybe $13 for the material from him + some high temp gasket sealant.

The material he sent me has withstood many high temps cooks and shows no sign of degradation.

Just call BGE if you have a BGE and they'll send you a replacement for free.

Problem is the gaskets that come on the BGEs and Primos won't stand up to really high temps.

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Problem is the gaskets that come on the BGEs and Primos won't stand up to really high temps.

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But the Nomex replacements they send will.

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Just call BGE if you have a BGE and they'll send you a replacement for free.

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This is not true. I called and the guy basically told me to pound sand and order a new one.