Pitmaster's Thoughts on Storing Charcoal in Deck Box

[HotSun]

I have a couple water resistant deck boxes and my charcoal is stored in the garage for now, so I was wondering: is it a good idea to store my charcoal in a deck box? I'm mainly worried about moisture, but I want my charcoal closer to my cooking.

Any thoughts, fellow pitmasters?

[RichieB]

I use this. Bags are in garage. Walk to garage, fill and back. No moisture issues. About 4 chimneys in the bucket.

[HotSun]

ComfortablyNumb , try a kitchen trashcan liner, 13 gallon. Keeps the smell from our cat litter contained.

[HotSun]

ComfortablyNumb , I'm not sure if this is helpful, but the brand we have is Behrens, which we got at Lowes. They have larger sizes (20 gallon, 31 gallon). Maybe they are worth a look, if you can find it locally.

[RonB]

Try storing one bag in the deck box.If ya have a problem, stop. If it works, just bring another bag from the garage once the current bag gets low.

[TripleB]

I keep all my charcoal in a deck bench/box. Been doing this for a couple of years. No issues.

[LA Pork Butt]

I store my lump in metal cans and briquettes in a Kingsford container. The bags are in my deck box.

[Panhead John]

Your deck box should be fine if it’s still dry inside after raining. A lot of us use the Kingsford charcoal caddy, these work great and are very waterproof.

[HotSun]

02ebz06 , it looks like that model is for pellets. I like the spout.

[02ebz06]

Shouldn't be any reason it wouldn't work for charcoal as well.

[kenrobin]

I use them for storing both charcoal and pellets. They are water tight so I haven't had any problems.

[Angryfish]

I live in Central Fla and I have always kept the charcoal in a plastic deck box I picked up at Sams club. I have never had a problem. It’s been raining all day and everything is good to go.

[Bkhuna]

I live about three miles inland from Cocoa Beach. My deck box is in a covered patio. Never an issue.

[HotSun]

Thanks Angryfish ! I used to live in S. Florida, so if you can store it successfully in that humidity, I should be fine.

[JoeSousa]

I have mine in a deck box next to my grills and have never had any issues. Don't know if I would purposely leave it where the sprinklers would hit it but I have never had any problems with the charcoal being to damp or wet.

[smokenoob]

I’m always suspicious of the description “water resistant”

[HotSun]

Yeah, me too. I bought them on seasonal clearance from BJ's, for $25 a piece. See my heavy rain test with pics below.

[Redwng]

I've lived in central FL for a long time and like others have had no issues with my bags of charcoal or pellets in the deck boxes.

[Angryfish]

I even store the newspaper I use to start the chimney without problem

[Mosca]

Mine is in a storage cabinet on the deck. Never had any issues at all.

[HotSun]

Thanks everyone for the feedback! I've had to deal with damp charcoal, but that's another story. I did a test last night on the boxes, when we had torrential rain in the forecast. Here is the result of that field test...

Outside:


Inside, dry as a bone:


I think I should be good. My box will end up looking a lot like @AngryFish's once I load them up.

Thanks again, everyone!

[SheilaAnn]

I have this and it’s on casters. Got it in a fire sale for $20 🙌🏼

https://www.uline.com/Product/Detail/H-5082/Kitchen-Supplies/Rubbermaid-Brute-Ingredient-Bin-23-x-21-x-25?pricode=WA9819&gadtype=pla&id=H-5082&gclid=Cj0KCQjwqs6lBhCxARIsAG8YcDhneWPaA8t2NUa9MsJGt6Wt9XrsA5oCN62adhTy15LR1-6iyV8cFMIaAo59EALw_wcB

[HotSun]

SheilaAnn , yeah, same here when we were a two person shop. Three catalogs at a time.... yikes.

[HotSun]

smokenoob , I'm going to say 'rain resistant'. I've seen rainforest rain, sideways rain, rain drops the size of my fist (okay, exaggeration there)..I'm not sure I believe in rainproof, haha. I'll have to get back to you on this after a full 12 months of our crazy weather.

[Johnny Booth]

SheilaAnn - yeah, too funny. I use them around the house. I bet I have not spent more than $500 with them in 10 years, mostly waste bins and storage containers. 😁

But their catalog makes good bathroom reading. 😂

[tstalafuse]

I store mine inside the cooker itself. The cooker has a cover, remove bag from cooker, pour out what I need, put bag on deck, cook, once everything has cooled down bag goes back in cooker and put the cover back on. No extra cans or worries about leaks.

[HotSun]

I do this as much as possible, but I have some things that just don't fit, like my chimney, and them some other things that are better for a box, like chips, chunks, and pellets. I have a Kamander (kamodo knockoff), so space is at a premium.

[HotSun]

Here's my last post on this topic. The boxes are working famously, through some bad weather we've had. They are roomy enough for by 5 gallon Lowe's buckets, some of my racks, gloves, and other stuff.


Only one question remains: How long before I melt one of these?