Will briquettes stored for 5+ years perform different than new?

It was rainy today so I watched a bunch of bbq'ing videos... in one it was suggested older briquettes could burn differently but they didn't elaborate if it would burn faster or slower. I'm pretty sure the comment was focused on the age of the briquette and not changes in formulation.

In my case today I started using a 2-pack of standard Kingsford that has been stored in my garage for maybe 8 years, give or take a couple years. It looks fine and burned OK, but I did have some temp fluctuations of 50 to 75 degrees and was wondering if old briquettes were behind that. Could have been due to a handful of other factors too.

So...old briquettes...any downside to know about ?

I bought a kettle off of Craig's List and the guy threw in a bag of Kingsford, but he warned me that the bag was at least 15 years old, bottom line the coals worked fine, no problems.

As Rich says, it can be old and still be good. I keep mine in the garage and although it tends to get humid here in the summers, winters are dry. So many reasons you could have experienced those fluctuations, it would be hard to say it was the briqs.

Keep it dry and it should be good for a long time IMO.

Humidity around the time of use might have more effect. Ten year old product well protected, not left in the rain, should be just fine, I’ve never had a stash last that long though. I rotate stock and seem to have to do some sort of re arrangement every time I turn around in my garage! More stuff needs better use of space!
I tend to temp variations might have been weather related more than charcoal based.

I but a year's worth at one of the Big Box sales. They are stored in my carport, on top of some plastic shelves. I've never had any problems. I do rotate the older ones to the top of the stack each year.





BD

???? First world problems...

It's charcoal after all, light it and use it. Just don't tell the meat how old it is...the meat won't know the difference...