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The PBC in Cold Weather

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    The PBC in Cold Weather

    This past winter, my brother in-law came down to visit for a week. They are from New York, and I live in northeast Florida. I made a fair amount of BBQ while they were here--certainly remember making a brisket and some ribs, for example. He thought the PBC was the greatest, was all set to go back home and buy one...

    Fast forward to today. He was passing through again (on the way home from south Florida) and said he was all set to get a PBC, but was talked out of it by his friends up in New York who said that the cold weather would kill the PBC during the winter, which is why they all have Eggs.

    So, I certainly cannot speak from experience. I have had my PBC almost two years and absolutely love it. But I certainly don't know personally how it will fair in cold weather. The fact that Noah is from Colorado makes me think it would be fine. But what better place to ask than this forum.

    So, what do my cold weather experts have to say? Is the PBC a winner in both warm AND cold weather, or will the hard chill of a brutal New York winter night make it fall short? (My guess is that it can handle it either way, for what it is worth).

    #2
    superg, While I'm not a PBC owner I feel confident saying that cold is not going to slow down a cooker. Wind and rain but not cold.

    Comment


      #3
      The makers of the PBC are up in Colorado. I've cooked when it was down in the 20's, overnight. No real problems. It is not insulated so the weather has some affect. Certainly not enough to buy an egg.

      Comment


        #4
        What if you put the 30 gal pbc in a 55gal drum in the winter? It would draw warm air in the bottom right?

        Comment


        • Jerod Broussard
          Jerod Broussard commented
          Editing a comment
          Be a neat experiment.

        #5
        It has been cold the last couple of times I cooked in mine and didn't really affect anything. Just had to go slightly longer. That said, pbc has a post for adjusting the vent in cold weather on their website now. In all honesty, unless you live in barrow, Ak, I think that thing is going to be fairly consistent thoughout a whole range of temps. I've cooked in mine @ 20 out and @ 90 out, and really not much difference other than time. But now I did cook one time in rain, and that seemed to affect it a little more. Just put a piece of scrap metal I had laying around on the lid though and back to normal.

        Comment


          #6
          I love cooking in the rain. Moist hot air....booooyaaaa!!!

          Comment


            #7
            Originally posted by Jerod Broussard View Post
            I love cooking in the rain. Moist hot air....booooyaaaa!!!
            Some of my best cooks have been during or right after a hot, steamy, tn summer rain, in humidity so thick you can cut it with a knife. Alas, that's also usually my best fishing so it's always a hard call which to do. LOL

            Comment


            • Jerod Broussard
              Jerod Broussard commented
              Editing a comment
              Light the pit and head for the water.

            #8
            I found that I burn through a bit more charcoal, but I have done overnight cooks in the teens and didn't have trouble.

            Comment


              #9
              supergas6 , I did a cook for my folks on Thanksgiving 2014 in Central, IL on the PBC. It was cold. Started in the low teens in the early morning. The low 20"s was the highest it got during the cook . It cooked a turkey and a pork roast with no issues. If your brother in law wants one, I would not let cold weather deter him.....see the pics I have included....the snow on the ground just adds to the ambience of the cook!

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              Last edited by Gunderich_1; April 8, 2015, 05:54 PM.

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              • Stevehtn
                Stevehtn commented
                Editing a comment
                The pbc has more range than a grand piano. LOL

              #10
              I tell ya Jerod, the pbc would be the ONLY cooker besides a therm controlled pellet or electric that I'd ever have that kinda confidence in. Put on a shoulder and go fish a few hours leaving my precious Q in the hands of my fiancé- and that simply to make sure nothing catches fire. That thing is as consistent, if not more, than the indoor oven.

              Comment


              • Jerod Broussard
                Jerod Broussard commented
                Editing a comment
                I've had to run home on lunch, drop 4 briskets in, head back to work, check back 4.5+ hours later, quite a few times.

              #11
              Thanks, guys. My gut was that temperature would be a minor influence on the PBC, and your experience seems to confirm. Thanks.

              Comment


                #12
                Here's the gist of my cold-weather cook/post from Super Bowl Sunday:

                Yesterday I cut a 9.1 lb pork shoulder in half and the two halves were done in 5 1/4 hours. Wrapped for the last hour or so. If anyone was wondering about low outside temp and the PBC it was 18 degrees F at the start of the cook and 26 when I finished. Didn't seem to be much of a factor for the halves. Every bit as tasty as leaving it whole and waiting another 3+ hours. Problem was it was done 3 hours before game time.

                Don't be afraid of the cold.

                Comment


                  #13
                  Works just fine in snow. Also ended up clearing a nice area as the cook progressed.

                  Click image for larger version

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                  • bep35
                    bep35 commented
                    Editing a comment
                    Now that's commitment!

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