I have not noticed that small pieces of lump increase the heat. They do seem to shorten the cook significantly.
Low and slow on the egg is the most challenging aspect for me. There’s only one dish I do that with, and I happened to make it last night: apple wood roasted tri-tip. This cooks at a temperature of 225 to 250 (closed grill, raised grate, direct heat). I find far easier to heat an egg than to try and cool one down.
I usually light just a very small center of the lump (silver dollar size, using a looft lighter) and leave the lid open for a bit. As soon as the smoke clears and I start feeling even marginal heat (just a few minutes), I shut the lid, close the daisy to about 1/4" or less and close the bottom vent to about 1/8". Shortly thereafter I’ll typically see about 100 to 150 degrees, and from there on out, watch it like a hawk. If the needle is moving too slowly, open things up a hair, but if it’s moving quickly, get things as close to closed as you can without actually extinguishing things. Any kind of wind whatsover makes this more challenging. I can usually bring it up to a low cooking temp in the low to mid 200’s within about 25 minutes of lighting it. YMMV.
