Published 3 August 2026 · Tested by Ben Austen · Affiliate disclosure
All the long cooks I’ve done on my Big Green Egg Large — pulled pork, pork belly burnt ends, bone-in pork loin, lamb rump — have been indirect, which means a kamado deflector sitting between the fire and the meat. Twenty-plus cooks in, and the stock ConvEGGtor (ceramic deflector) that came in the box has done everything I’ve asked of it without a hint of trouble.
Which is really the answer to “which kamado deflector do I need?” for most BGE Large owners: the one that came with your grill. If you own a Kamado Joe Classic Series, the same logic applies — the Divide & Conquer system in the box gives you multi-level cooking as standard. Upgrading past the stock kit only makes sense when a specific cook you want to do can’t be done with what came with the grill.
The aftermarket ecosystem around kamados is real though — and the most common reason to touch it is replacement, not upgrade. Ceramic deflectors are heavy, they run hot, and they crack. Sometimes it’s a slow hairline that grows over cooks; sometimes it’s a proper break because you dropped it moving the grill, or a thermal-shock split when a hot deflector met cold water in the wash. Whatever the cause, needing a new one is common. LavaLock at ~$60-80 US, generic cast-iron plates at £30-50 on Amazon UK, or a fresh OEM ConvEGGtor from BGE UK at ~£110-135 are the routes back to a working setup.
Beyond replacement, upgrades are the other reason to buy aftermarket. Kamado Joe’s Slo-Roller changes what reverse-sear roasts look like. BGE’s Dual Zone Deflector Kit lets you run indirect and direct on the same fire simultaneously. Third-party makers — Ceramic Grill Store, LavaLock — build kit specifically for BGE Large owners who want multi-level rigs, firebox-level two-zone cooking, or raised secondary grates without buying another manufacturer piece. And a generic cast-iron plate on Amazon UK covers the budget end for whoever just wants a physical heat barrier at low cost.
Key takeaways
- The ConvEGGtor that came with your BGE Large is doing the job. Twenty-plus cooks on mine — pulled pork, pork belly burnt ends, bone-in pork loin, lamb rump — and it’s held up without a crack or a chip. If you already own a BGE Large in the UK, you already own the deflector most cooks need.
- Upgrade kits earn their money for specific cook patterns, not everyone. BGE Dual Zone Deflector Kit at ~£245 is a real upgrade if you cook multi-protein Sunday spreads (pork loin low-and-slow one side + sausages high-and-fast on the other). Kamado Joe Slo-Roller at ~£169 changes what reverse-sear cooks look like on a Classic. Neither is a mandatory purchase.
- The aftermarket options cover the range from premium to budget. LavaLock at ~$60-80 US is an aftermarket ceramic replacement. Ceramic Grill Store’s 16-inch half-moon ceramic deflectors at $56.99 for the pair (plus UK shipping) are the aftermarket ceramic alternative with more coverage than the OEM ConvEGGtor. A generic cast-iron plate on Amazon UK at £30-50 is the floor if you just need a physical heat barrier.
- The verdict: if you’re a BGE Large owner and haven’t upgraded yet, you probably don’t need to. Buy something when you’ve hit a cook you can’t do with the stock ConvEGGtor — not because the marketing photos look good.
At a glance — nine UK kamado deflectors, August 2026
| Deflector / rig | UK price | Fits | Type | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BGE ConvEGGtor (Large) | Included with BGE Large £1,495; standalone £110-135 approx. | Big Green Egg Large only | Ceramic heat deflector | Every BGE Large owner — this is the stock kit |
| BGE Dual Zone Deflector Kit | ~£245 UK direct | Big Green Egg Large | Two half-moon ceramic deflectors + basket rig | Multi-protein Sunday cooks — direct + indirect at the same time |
| Kamado Joe Slo-Roller (Classic) | ~£169 RRP / £118.93 sale at Gardenbox | Kamado Joe Classic Series | Hyperbolic ceramic airflow insert | Reverse-sear roasts on a KJ Classic |
| LavaLock Plate Setter (Large BGE) | ~$60-80 US inc UK shipping | Big Green Egg Large | Aftermarket ceramic deflector | Replacement or spare — same shape as ConvEGGtor at a lower price point |
| Kamado Joe half-moon ceramic heat deflector plate (replacement) | £27.50 per plate at Birstall UK; £55 pair | KJ Classic I, II, III + Konnected Joe Classic | Ceramic replacement | OEM replacement for cracked KJ deflector plates |
| Monolith Classic split ceramic deflector stone | £38.90 per plate at Black Box BBQ; £77.80 pair | Monolith Classic 55 | Ceramic replacement | OEM replacement for Monolith owners |
| CGS 16″ half-moon ceramic deflectors (pair) | ~£70-85 UK-effective (USD + shipping) | BGE Large with CGS Woo/PSWoo/Adjustable Rig; KJ Classic upper levels | Ceramic aftermarket | Aftermarket ceramic pair with split-zone flexibility |
Prices verified 3 August 2026 against BGE UK direct, Gardenbox.co.uk, BBQ World, BBQ Land, Ceramic Grill Store (US), BBQ Smoker Mods (US), Amazon UK. Aftermarket US pricing shown in USD because UK availability depends on international shipping. Verify shipping cost at checkout — it can change the total significantly.
Big Green Egg ConvEGGtor (Large)
Included with every Big Green Egg Large sold in the UK. If you bought a BGE Large from BGE UK direct at £1,495 in 2026, the ConvEGGtor came in the box alongside the stainless steel grid and the ash tool. If you’re buying a used BGE Large second-hand, verify the ConvEGGtor is included before you agree the price — replacement is around £110-135 depending on dealer.
Twenty-plus cooks on mine and it’s held up without visible damage. Full-day pulled pork at 110°C, pork belly burnt ends at 115°C with a phase-two cast-iron pan finish on top of the ConvEGGtor, bone-in pork loin at 140°C indirect over oak chunks, lamb rump direct-after-indirect (ConvEGGtor OFF for the direct sear, back ON for the resting proteins). No cracks, no chips, no visible glaze wear.
The direct-after-indirect pattern is a real kamado kit insight. Kamado cooking isn’t just “indirect for the low-and-slow, direct for the sear” — the same fire, same session, can do both if you build the sequence right. Cook your primary indirect protein first (deflector in). Take the deflector off for a fast direct cook on the same fire when the main is done (lamb rump, whole trout, sausages searing). The ConvEGGtor comes off and goes back on multiple times without complaint. This is what the stock kit does well.
Best for: Every BGE Large owner. This is the reference piece the rest of the guide compares against.
Buy: BGE UK direct — bundled with a new grill, or standalone as a replacement.
Big Green Egg Dual Zone Deflector Kit
Two half-moon ceramic deflectors plus a stainless steel basket rig that sits on the fire ring. The kit lets you run half the grill indirect (deflector below one side of the grate) and half direct (bare grate over the fire on the other side) at the same time. Big Green Egg sells it as an accessory upgrade for the Large.
Where it earns its money: multi-protein cooks where you want indirect and direct heat available simultaneously without moving the ConvEGGtor mid-cook. A Sunday spread — pork loin sitting indirect on the deflector side while sausages, kebabs, or a fast protein cook direct on the other side. Without the Dual Zone Kit, you’d stage this sequentially: pork loin indirect with the ConvEGGtor in, take the ConvEGGtor out for the fast direct cook when the loin is done. With the Dual Zone Kit, you do both at once and shorten the total cook time.
The caveat: this is a specific-use-case upgrade, not a general one. If you rarely cook multi-protein spreads, or you’re happy staging cooks sequentially, the stock ConvEGGtor does everything you need. If you cook Sunday spreads regularly, the Dual Zone Kit at ~£245 pays for itself in about a season of not-waiting-for-the-first-protein-to-finish. I covered this in more detail in the Big Green Egg Large review after the kit was added to the BGE UK range.
Best for: BGE Large owners who cook multi-protein Sunday spreads regularly.
Buy: BGE UK direct — accessory section of the site.
Kamado Joe Slo-Roller (Classic)
Kamado Joe’s patented hyperbolic ceramic insert. It sits between the fire and the cooking grate, and its curved profile channels heat around the sides of the food rather than up through it. The claim is more even doneness on roasts and better bark development on reverse-sear cooks. Owner threads and long-form UK reviews back the claim up cleanly — the Slo-Roller is a genuine change in how a Classic-size Kamado Joe cooks reverse-sear proteins, not marketing.
For UK Kamado Joe Classic Series owners doing regular reverse-sear cooks (whole chickens, roasts, thick-cut steaks pulled early and seared hot at the end), the Slo-Roller earns its ~£169 RRP quickly. Gardenbox.co.uk currently list it at £118.93 (30% off — likely a stock-clearance sale, so verify at time of purchase). BBQ Land, Birstall, Bedsbbq, and Creative Outdoor Living are the other UK dealers I found stocking it consistently.
I haven’t cooked with a Slo-Roller myself (I own a BGE Large, not a Kamado Joe), so this is Consensus rather than Tested. But the Consensus is strong — this is the accessory that would most tempt me across brand loyalty if I owned a KJ Classic.
Best for: Kamado Joe Classic Series owners doing reverse-sear cooks regularly.
Buy: BBQ Land, Gardenbox, Birstall, Bedsbbq, Creative Outdoor Living — three-dealer check before you buy.
Kamado Joe half-moon ceramic heat deflector plates (replacement)
The Kamado Joe Classic ships with two ceramic half-moon deflector plates as part of the Divide & Conquer system. Ceramics crack. When one of yours does — snapped from thermal shock, dropped during a clean, fissured from a rapid temperature swing — Kamado Joe sells the exact plate that came in the box, individually, as spare part KJ-HDP.
Birstall Garden Centre stocks them at £27.50 per single half-moon plate, in stock, delivered UK-wide. £55 for a full pair. Same OEM part your Joe came with. Fits KJ Classic I, II, and III, plus the Konnected Joe Classic.
Consensus, not Tested — no Kamado Joe here. But the reasoning is straightforward: ceramic plates crack, they’re replaceable, and the manufacturer’s own part is the reliable route. UK KJ dealers (BBQ Land, Birstall, Bedsbbq) carry the same SKU; which one you order from mostly comes down to which you already have a relationship with, or which has stock on the day.
Best for: Kamado Joe Classic owners whose OEM deflector plates have cracked. Replacement, not upgrade.
Monolith Classic split ceramic deflector stone
Monolith is Germany’s mid-market kamado brand, sold in the UK through a handful of specialist dealers. The Classic (55cm) ships with ceramic half-moon deflector stones as standard, part of Monolith’s split-zone system. Same replacement logic as Kamado Joe: they crack, and Monolith sells the exact plate that shipped in the box.
Black Box BBQ (Monolith’s Southeast England dealer) lists the Classic deflector stone at £38.90 per single half-moon plate; a full pair is £77.80. Fits the Monolith Classic 55 model. Monolith owners have fewer aftermarket routes than BGE or Kamado Joe owners — the ecosystem is smaller — so the manufacturer’s own spare is often the only sensible option.
Consensus, not Tested — no Monolith here. If your Monolith Classic’s deflector has cracked, Black Box BBQ is the direct route; BBQ World, Garden Chefs and BBQ Barn also stock the range.
Best for: Monolith Classic 55 owners replacing a cracked deflector stone.
Ceramic Grill Store 16″ half-moon ceramic deflectors (pair)
Ceramic Grill Store’s 15.75-inch half-moon ceramic plates are the aftermarket ceramic deflector that pairs with their Adjustable Rig — or with the BGE Woo, PSWoo, and Kamado Joe Divide & Conquer upper levels. Cordierite mullite ceramic, 5/8 inch thick, sold as singles ($28.50), pairs ($56.99), or full round ($51.99). At 15.75 inches, they cover nearly two inches more than the Large ConvEGGtor’s 14-inch effective diameter — the extra footprint reduces edge hot spots on longer indirect cooks.
Direct from Ceramic Grill Store in Texas, so USD pricing plus international shipping. UK-effective on a pair sits around £70-85 once shipping and VAT land. Not the budget route — a replacement OEM ConvEGGtor from BGE UK at £105 is close on price and cheaper on delivery lead time — but the flexibility genuinely differs. Half-moon design lets you run split-zone (one direct, one indirect), single half (elevated setups), or both together (full indirect with more coverage than a ConvEGGtor).
Consensus, not Tested — no CGS half-moons here. If you’re already running a CGS Adjustable Rig or Woo system, these plates are the intended deflector match. If you’re not already inside the CGS ecosystem, a ConvEGGtor replacement is simpler.
Best for: CGS Adjustable Rig or Woo owners who need the matching ceramic deflectors. Not a first-line pick for BGE stock-setup owners.
LavaLock Plate Setter / Heat Deflector (Large BGE)
Aftermarket ceramic deflector for the Large BGE. Same shape, same function, same fire-ring fit as the stock ConvEGGtor — but from a third-party manufacturer at a lower US price. Sold as a heavy-duty ceramic piece by BBQ Smoker Mods and other US aftermarket specialists.
Why a BGE Large owner might buy this instead of the BGE OEM ConvEGGtor: two reasons, both grounded in the physical reality that ceramic deflectors break. Cooks are hot, ceramic is heavy, and thermal shock or a drop kills a piece. First reason: replacement — if you’ve cracked your ConvEGGtor and the BGE UK price of £110-135 feels steep, an aftermarket ceramic at ~$60-80 US does the same job. Second reason: redundancy — if you cook regularly and want a spare in the shed for the day the current one splits, aftermarket ceramic is the cheaper way to keep a backup on hand.
The caveat is availability. LavaLock and other aftermarket ceramic makers are US-based; UK ownership means US import via a retailer that ships internationally. That’s fine for a planned purchase, less good for an emergency (“cook is Saturday, ConvEGGtor cracked Tuesday” is not what you want to hear from FedEx). If you break your OEM ConvEGGtor and need a replacement fast, BGE UK direct is quicker.
Best for: BGE Large owners who want a replacement or spare aftermarket ceramic at lower cost than OEM, and who can plan for US shipping.
Buy: BBQ Smoker Mods (US, ships to UK).
How to choose
If you own a Big Green Egg Large: your stock ConvEGGtor is doing the job. Don’t upgrade until you’ve hit a specific cook you can’t do with it. The upgrade paths worth considering are the BGE Dual Zone Deflector Kit (if you cook multi-protein Sunday spreads regularly), the CGS 16-inch half-moon ceramic deflectors (~£70-85 UK-effective) if you want split-zone flexibility with more coverage than the ConvEGGtor. If you need a replacement or spare ConvEGGtor, LavaLock at ~$60-80 US is the aftermarket route.
If you own a Kamado Joe Classic Series: the Slo-Roller is the accessory upgrade to consider first — genuine change in how the kamado cooks reverse-sear proteins.
If you’re a first-year owner of either grill: wait. Cook with the stock kit for a season. Learn which cook types you actually do most, which you enjoy, and which you don’t touch. Upgrade decisions made in month three tend to be aspirational — most upgrade kits sit in the shed uncalled after year one.
If you own a kamado plus a kettle: these deflector kits are kamado-specific. Kettle heat management is a different category — see Best UK BBQ For First-Time Buyers and the Weber Master-Touch review for that side of the ecosystem.
Frequently asked questions
Q: Do I need to replace my BGE ConvEGGtor if it develops small chips or cracks around the edges?
No, not for small edge wear. The ConvEGGtor is a heat-deflecting piece, not a load-bearing one. Small edge chips, hairline cracks, or glaze wear don’t affect performance. Replace it if a crack propagates through the full thickness, if a chunk breaks off large enough to change airflow, or if the piece is visibly warped.
Q: Will the Kamado Joe Slo-Roller fit a Big Green Egg?
No. The Slo-Roller is engineered for the Kamado Joe Classic Series (and a separate version for Big Joe III) — the internal geometry is specific to the KJ firebox. Third-party clones exist that claim BGE compatibility, but they’re not the same piece; buyer beware on generic hyperbolic ceramic inserts.
Q: Is the BGE Dual Zone Deflector Kit worth the £245 over the stock ConvEGGtor?
Only if you cook multi-protein spreads regularly. For pulled pork and other single-protein low-and-slow cooks, the stock ConvEGGtor does the job. The Dual Zone Kit pays for itself when you’re regularly staging two proteins at different temperatures on the same fire — at that point the time savings and the flexibility earn the price.
Q: Should I buy the aftermarket LavaLock instead of the OEM ConvEGGtor?
For a replacement or a spare, yes — LavaLock at ~$60-80 US is cheaper than the OEM ConvEGGtor at ~£110-135 UK. For a first purchase alongside a new BGE Large, it doesn’t matter — the ConvEGGtor comes in the box with the grill. LavaLock’s value is for existing owners who need a replacement or want redundancy.
Q: My ConvEGGtor cracked in half. What are my options?
OEM replacement from BGE UK direct at ~£110-135 is the fastest UK route — order Monday, cook by the weekend. LavaLock aftermarket ceramic at ~$60-80 US (plus international shipping) is the cheaper route if you can wait two weeks. A generic cast-iron plate at £30-50 on Amazon UK works in a pinch, though cast iron transfers heat more directly than ceramic and changes cook times slightly. If the cook is this weekend, order OEM; if you have a fortnight, aftermarket saves money.
Q: Where do I actually buy these in the UK?
BGE ConvEGGtor and Dual Zone Deflector Kit: BGE UK direct. Kamado Joe Slo-Roller: BBQ Land, Gardenbox.co.uk, Birstall, Bedsbbq, Creative Outdoor Living. Kamado Joe replacement half-moon deflector plates: Birstall, plus BBQ Land and Bedsbbq. Monolith Classic split deflector stone: Black Box BBQ (Southeast England Monolith dealer); BBQ World, Garden Chefs and BBQ Barn also stock the range. Ceramic Grill Store 16-inch half-moon ceramic deflectors: Ceramic Grill Store (US, ships to UK). LavaLock: BBQ Smoker Mods (US, ships to UK).
Sources and method
Sources for the guide:
- My own Tested-by-Ben cook data with the BGE ConvEGGtor. Twenty-plus cooks across five months, documented in the Big Green Egg Large review. Every long cook plus all direct-after-indirect kit patterns.
- BGE Dual Zone Deflector Kit — covered in the BGE Large review after the kit was added to the BGE UK accessory range in May 2026.
- UK dealer pricing verified 3 August 2026: BGE UK direct (biggreenegg.co.uk), Gardenbox.co.uk (KJ Slo-Roller £118.93 sale), BBQ Land, Birstall, Bedsbbq, Creative Outdoor Living. Black Box BBQ for Monolith. Ceramic Grill Store direct for the 16-inch half-moon pair (US, ships to UK).
- US aftermarket pricing verified 3 August 2026: Ceramic Grill Store (16-inch half-moon ceramic deflectors), BBQ Smoker Mods (LavaLock Plate Setter). UK availability is via US retailer international shipping in each case.
- Consensus material on Kamado Joe Slo-Roller performance, KJ and Monolith replacement plate durability, and CGS half-moon ceramic deflector performance drawn from published owner threads (Reddit r/KamadoJoe, Reddit r/biggreenegg), long-form UK reviews, and manufacturer specification pages.
- Not covered: pizza stones (separate category — heat-conducting stones for direct pizza cooking, not heat-deflecting stones for indirect protein cooking), and any brand I couldn’t verify as available in the UK via US retailer shipping or UK direct.
Provenance and final verdict
I own and cook on a Big Green Egg Large, gifted by my sister Kate for Christmas 2025. The BGE ConvEGGtor pick is Tested-by-Ben across twenty-plus cooks. The BGE Dual Zone Deflector Kit pick is Consensus, drawing on the BGE Large review’s coverage after the kit joined the UK range. The Kamado Joe picks (Slo-Roller and replacement half-moon deflector plates) are Consensus — I don’t own a Kamado Joe. The six researched picks (BGE Dual Zone Deflector Kit, Kamado Joe Slo-Roller, Kamado Joe replacement half-moon plates, Monolith Classic split deflector, Ceramic Grill Store 16-inch half-moon pair, LavaLock Plate Setter) are drawn from physics and published owner reports; I don’t currently own any of them.
Smoke and Lump has no commercial relationship with Big Green Egg, Kamado Joe, Monolith, Ceramic Grill Store, or LavaLock (BBQ Smoker Mods) at time of publication. None of these brands has offered kit, review units, or affiliate commission arrangements. The affiliate links to UK dealers here route through /go/ slugs and carry rel="sponsored" tags per site convention. No commission is earned from any of these links at time of publication — the click-tracking exists so we understand which retailers our readers actually use if we’re eventually offered affiliate terms. See the affiliate disclosure page for full details.
Final verdict: if you own a Big Green Egg Large, you already own the best kamado heat deflector for most cooks — the stock ConvEGGtor is a legitimately excellent piece of ceramic engineering, and my twenty-plus cooks with mine are the evidence. Upgrade to the BGE Dual Zone Deflector Kit if you’re cooking multi-protein Sunday spreads regularly. If you own a Kamado Joe Classic Series, the Slo-Roller is the accessory that would most tempt me across brand loyalty. Everything else here is optional. Buy an upgrade when the cook you want to do can’t be done with the stock kit, not because a listicle told you to.