Moving w/WSM


 

Brian Johnson

TVWBB Super Fan
I'm in the early stages of planning for a move and wanted to get some advise on how to move my grills and WSM. The last time I moved I only had an 18" kettle and was able to put it in the back of my SUV. This time I've got two kettles (18" & 22") and an 18" WSM and no flexibility to make multiple drives between locations, so they're going to have to go in the U-Haul w/everything else!

So, the question is: What kind of prep work should I do to get everything ready to go, and how should I plan to pack these precious cookers? For instance I'm thinking I'll take all of my cooking grates, zip tie them together, and put them in cardboard "box". But do I need to disassemble the kettles? Power-wash (or otherwise remove all the "gunk" from) the WSM? Sell them and buy new when I get where I'm going?

Any thoughts/suggestions would be appreciated.
 
I would shrink wrap the lids to the mid section and bowl's and ratchet strap or bungee them to the U haul walls.
Good luck on your move!

Tim
 
Decided (almost a year later...wow) to post an update on my move. I didn't end up doing anything special with the grates. I just shrink wrapped everything and called it a day. I did put the ash catchers and heat deflector inside their respective cookers (wrapping the ash catchers so as not to make a much bigger mess inside). This was a huge move (NC to MT) and while we were able to get the WSM inside the U-Haul, we ended up taking the legs off of the kettles and sticking them in the front seats of my car which was being pulled behind the U-Haul. I was very excited when my genius mother-in-law came up with that idea since each of my cookers is very special to me (my first "big-boy" grill, the grill we got right after we got married, and the WSM I got around my oldest kid's 1st birthday)...

Anyway, everything made it through the move and the 3 months in a storage unit pretty well. The only damage was a couple of daisy-wheel vent tabs that got bent flat. They bent back in place just fine. It's been a little crazy so I hadn't had a chance to break out the WSM yet until this past weekend. Of course, all I was able to do was a much-needed cleaning and burn out get rid of some of the gunk and mold that had apparently developed. I hope to get some ribs or a shoulder (or both) cooked this weekend.
 
Just the thought of moving terrifies me. Much less move across country.

Been in this house 30 years and probably should've sold it and found something else 15 yrs ago, because the neighborhood is deteriorating , but just was not up to the incredible upheaval.

Glad your move went smooth.
 
Twelve years ago we moved from Rhode Island to Las Vegas. Was 6 months in the planning with plenty of yard sales and we still filled an entire moving van after reducing what we had acquired over 27 years in the same house with a walk out full basement. Moving company was complaining they couldn't combine loads with ours. They actually lost money based on the contract. We shipped two cars and moved my 97 year old mother, a 16 year old cat, and flew from Boston to get direct flights. Unfortunately, not knowing better, all my 70's Weber kettle and a bunch of accessories didn't make the trip. Got my first Genesis here of CL when the economy tanked. No plans to move ever again!
 
Just the thought of moving terrifies me. Much less move across country.

Been in this house 30 years and probably should've sold it and found something else 15 yrs ago, because the neighborhood is deteriorating , but just was not up to the incredible upheaval.

Glad your move went smooth.

Yeah it intimidated the crap out of me to, especially the total upheaval... new house, new job, new state, new climate... And to top it off my family and I spent the first 3 months living in separate towns 4 hours away from each other... So yeah EVERYTHING changed on me. Fortunately we were all able to stay (for free) with family until we found a house to buy. It was a hard move, but it did go relatively smooth and we're all happier for it.
 
Twelve years ago we moved from Rhode Island to Las Vegas. Was 6 months in the planning with plenty of yard sales and we still filled an entire moving van after reducing what we had acquired over 27 years in the same house with a walk out full basement. Moving company was complaining they couldn't combine loads with ours. They actually lost money based on the contract. We shipped two cars and moved my 97 year old mother, a 16 year old cat, and flew from Boston to get direct flights. Unfortunately, not knowing better, all my 70's Weber kettle and a bunch of accessories didn't make the trip. Got my first Genesis here of CL when the economy tanked. No plans to move ever again!

We had really outgrown the house we were living in for 11 years, 3 kids will do that to you. We managed to downsize barely enough to fit everything into my car and the 27' uhaul. But it was pretty stressful. Now that we're settled in our new house, my wife has declared we are staying in it until we die!
 
I just bungeed corded them in the back of my pickup truck wrapped in blankets and drove. Beverly Hillbilly style. 5 grills. Went great.
 
Glad your move went pretty well. Like you say, it is a stressful, complicated, unnerving thing to do.

I cannot stand moving. My father was in the Army, and I grew up with frequent moves. Then I followed suit with the Army, and subjected myself and eventually my wife to frequent moves. Once I left the Army, and made it through school, we bought our current home and swore to never leave it. 20 years later I am now contemplating moving again to a warmer winter climate. :confused:
 

 

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