Other Fuels (besides Kingsford Original) on the PBC

[Mark Williams]

Just ordered a bag to check it out. $19.95 plus free shipping at https://humphreycharcoal.com/

[Alabama Smoke]

Mark, I saw this advertised recently but have never tried it. Please do report after a few uses. I would really like a good unbiased report and thanks!!

[ByTor]

a recent episode of Shark Tank featured a compressed wood charcoal called Prime 6 that is sustainable, burns hotter and leaves very little ash. I was wondering if anyone has tried it in the PBC?

[barbequeN42]

I recently purchased the PBC. I have been using a WBS but wanted to smoke a full packer. The first cook on the PBC was a disaster. Using KO, filled the PBC and started with 42 in a chimney. Left the vent at 1/4 open, as we are at 1200Ft. Outside temp was 32. It spiked at 330 but settled at 280, however at about 4 hours temp began dropping to 200 and hit the stall at 140 BUT all the charcoal had burned up. I pulled the brisket, reloaded with charcoal and started again. Also cut it in two and wrapped in foil with a little broth, to fit on the grate. 2.5 hours later hit 200 and placed it in cambro for 45 minutes. End result was tough and dry. Called PBC and they believe KO has changed their product, and it now burns faster(this was not their first complaint). They suggest using Weber briquette, as lump burns too hot for brisket. Difficult to get other brands up here. Anyone else finding the same issue with KO on a long cook?

[jecucolo]

Depending on size of brisket 6 hour in pbc is a little short but not for a small brisket. What grade was the brisket? Some brisket are tough? Did you leave it wrapped in faux cambro for a couple of hours? Dry brine?
I used kingsford original recently and I did notice that the charcoal seemed to burn hotter. It also seems to take longer to light, but that could be weather. If it happens again you might finish it in the oven at 250.
Hang in there. We all have bad cooks.

[bocaboy]

I'm a new owner of a Pit Barrel Junior (PBJ) and have had the same problem getting the heat under control. I think the trick is that the charcoal holder has to be full. Filling it only 2/3rds or ½ will definitely not give you the heat you need.

As for Kingsford, I use the "Blue Bag" and find it lights and burns beautifully.

[Cheeze-O-Matic]

I pull the grill and spin my basket making sure to knock the ash off the coals whenever my temp drops below 225'F in my PBC

[fzxdoc]

Well that's disconcerting to hear, since KO has been a good charcoal in the PBC for me. I've switched to Weber briquettes for longer cooks, though, and haven't used KO for a long cook in quite a while. I continue to use it for shorter cooks, though, and haven't noticed a difference in burn time. But then I wasn't really looking.

When I did use KO for longer cooks, I easily got at least 8 hours out of an overfull basket with 42 coals removed for the chimney lighting step.

Kathryn

[KuKuPuffs]

Hi! New member here and my very first post!

I've always struggled with Kingsford Original. My PBC always likes to stay in the 200-225 range when I use it. I've tried lighting to coals longer, I've tried doing the 10-10-10 method. I've tried opening my vents bigger (i'm at sea level), I even leave the lid open until I can basically grill on it but once I put the lid on, the PBC will start to drop steadily. Eventually i always have to crack the lid a bit once it fall sunder 200 just to get the temps back up over 250 every hour or 2. Not exactly set it and forget it

I read Lump Charcoal tends to burn hotter so I gave B&B Lump Charcoal a try. I set my vents back to the suggested 1/4 vent open. I filled up the charcoal basket with lump and try to pack it in as best I could then removed enough to fill up the chimney with it (didnt' count how many due to irregular size)

I lit the chimney for about 25 minutes until the top later just barely turned white and dumped it in. Loaded up 2 racks of ribs and had a much better experience. Just from the start I like the smell of the Lump Charcoal over Kingsford. It smells cleaner and more woodsy.

Temperature with my thermoworks smoke
Hour 0: 280
Hour 1: 242
Hour 2: 257
Hour 3: 250
Hour 4: Tragedy

For the first time ever, both racks were so tender they fell off the hooks and into the charcoal basket. They were single hooked only since I never had this issue when using Kingsford. The ribs got a little charred as I estimated it was in the basket for about 5 minutes.

Just wanted to share my limited B&B Lump Charcoal experience. I'm going to double hook next time and probe check early at Hour 3.

[RonB]

Welcome to The Pit.

[fzxdoc]

KuKuPuffs , this is not the first time that I've heard that some people living at sea level have trouble keeping the PBC in the higher temperature range where it usually likes to live. Some have had to nearly close the lower vent to get the draw they need for the fire to stay well lit. And for some, like you, even that doesn't work.

Is it possible that you are not storing the KBB in a humidity-free environment? For example, I store mine in large closed Rubbermaid bins in the garage. The worst batch of KBB I ever used was a couple of bags bought at a local Dollar General store--they were sitting in a display outside on the sidewalk. The price was good so I bought some. It was a struggle to get those briquettes to light robustly and to stay as hot as I had come to expect in the PBC. Who knows how long they had sat out in the elements before I bought those bags? In addition, some people report similar findings with charcoal that they are reusing from a previous cook.

Whatever the issue you have with KBB, it's good that you found a solution in using lump charcoal. I hope you have many happy cooks with it and come to enjoy using your PBC for all the great food it can turn out. And remember that gravity is not always your friend in a PBC. Double hooking is good insurance. But then I expect you know that well by now.

Kathryn

[Cheeze-O-Matic]

If it's been stored outside for a while, I toast the charcoal by putting the bag in the trunk of my car for a few days before a cook to reduce its moisture content.

[fzxdoc]

Now that's a good idea, Cheeze-O-Matic . Your own personal charcoal roaster.
I had a batch of KBB bought from a Dollar General store at a super great price. Unfortunately, the charcoal had been stored outside on a pallet. It took a looooong storage time in a Rubbermaid bin in my garage to get that stuff to dry out well enough to cook with. I could have just tossed it in the trunk of my car and parked in the sun for a couple of days and been done with it. Good to know.

Kathryn

[Duanessmokedmeats]

Have mine in my shed, which acts as a hot house in the summer.

[DennyWoo]

I've had a different experience with the Kingsford Professional. I fill the basket and take out 40 coals to light in the chimney. I stuff a few chunks of wood into the basket. After 13-15 minutes (not exact since I judge how the coals are getting ashed at the top) then I dump the lit coals into the PBC and immediately get the meat into the drum and get the lid on tight. After about 30 minutes, the drum settles in around 250 degrees +/- 10 degrees. It will pretty much stay in that range until I take the lid off. I've had up to 10 hours on 1 basket using this method.

[HawkerXP]

Thanks for sharing.

[bbq_esq]

My local bbq shop had Fogo lump (yellow bag) so I grabbed a few bags to try it out. Did some short ribs, sausage, chicken and baby backs over the weekend. I thought it was great. Burned long (though none of these were all day cooks), temps were usually around 250 with the vent 1/4 open, and seemed to produce a very clean smoke. Way better than the cowboy bag I tossed. Lot of sparking as the chimney got fully lit, but didn't seem to affect anything.