Location for Big Joe III

[Nicolaus]

I have been try to decide between keeping my BJIII in the garage and wheeling it out into the driveway and keeping it outside year round on the composite deck. I’m leaning toward keeping it on the deck year round.

Another thought I had was to keep the BJIII beneath the deck on the cement patio below it. The distance between the patio below and the composite deck above it is 9 feet. This would certainly be convenient, as it would provide a fair amount of shelter from the elements while still being outside. However, I tend to think such a setup would be less than safe, so I’m not inclined to do it. Would anyone be able to offer any advice on this matter?

[Johnny Booth]

The code in my area is that from the grill surface to the ceiling must be at least 5 feet. That may be ok from a safety perspective; but if you do a lot of searing and high heat cooks, you might stain the underside of that composite deck with smoke, or grease vapors.

[FireMan]

And, and, and ya juss might have neighborhood ctritters sniffin yer deck.

[jfmorris]

I'm in the camp of keeping it on the deck or on the patio under the deck, rather than the garage. I don't know how sturdy that cart you have is, but the ones I've seen on the floor model of the Big Joe III at Lowe's was pretty puny given the size and weight of the ceramics. My concern is if there is any lip or transition from garage to driveway, that you will one day catch a wheel in the transition and the cart will tip, and the kamado spills and breaks. We had a club member here a few years back do just that with a kamado going in and out of a garage for his condo in the Chicago area - don't remember his name now - but it was a cautionary tale for Humpty Dumpty to say the least. And he went to a kettle after that broken kamado happened.

If you put your kamado on the patio under the deck, I don't think heat will be a huge factor, but I think smoke and grease build up could be. In winter and sometimes in rainy weather I will roll my SNSGrills Kamado under a pavilion with a metal roof, and it sits directly under the horizontal 2x8 members that support the rafters, which is at 8' rather than 9'. I've not thought about it, but no wood has burst into flames yet. Heat disperses quickly as it rises in free air. If you can hold your hand 5 feet above the top of your kamado while it is cooking at high temp, then the deck should be ok too.

I will say that the ceiling fan at that end of my pavilion is dirty looking compared to the one at the other end, due to spinning while I had the kamado under there smoking, and the blades are caked up basically from grease which in turn attracted dust. I need to take them off and soak them (plastic blades on these outdoor fans). Because of that I tend to use the kamado under the roof less than I did, and I have a patio umbrella with a stand that I use instead. It is just tall enough for me to stand under, so that fabric is less than 8 feet above the kamado, and even searing a steak or lighting a chimney in the kamado has yet to cause an issue.

So I think from a heat perspective you may be fine, but you want to consider the grease that is in the smoke that will be going up through your deck, which could in turn show up on the top side. THAT SAID, my dad ran an offset smoker under a deck for 15 to 20 years, and I never heard him complain about grease on the deck. But his deck was about 10 feet above the concrete below if I had to guess. He also at one point installed that corrugated plastic translucent roofing material under the deck, tilted at a slight angle away from the house, so that he could grill down there without water going through the deck and getting him wet.

[STEbbq]

I would agree on using the deck or patio. I have Meathead’s BGE and no deck so I keep it in the garage. I have some small wood splits that I have glued together for getting over the garage lip. It works great but I certainly wouldn’t bother if I had a deck.

[LA Pork Butt]

I don’t know where you live or your typical weather conditions, but I would default to the least amount of moving as possible. The best would be to move it not at all. If it is exposed to the weather you will want some kind of covering. You will want to explore the possible solutions. I am leaning toward the deck for cooking and serving in the same area.

[Oak Smoke]

From floor to ceiling under our screened in porch is 9 ft. I have a Big Joe and a KJ classic both under there. I have had no issues at all. I do have a heavy duty pedestal fan nearby that will suck air across them and blow it outside. It’s amazing how much screening will slow air flow. I’ve grilled and seared on both of them with no noticeable staining on the ceiling. The only time I move them outside is to do a hot cleaning burn.

[Johnny Booth]

Yep. I use a fan too. It definitely helps with smoke and grease. The breeze does not always cooperate to clear the smoke. 👍