Burn Test: 1984 Kingsford vs. 2020 Kingsford

[Chris Allingham]

Sherman, set the Wayback Machine to 1984. Let's conduct a burn test of 1984 Kingsford versus 2020 Kingsford. Which lights faster? Which burns longer? Which produces more ash by weight and by volume? What are the differences in the composition of the ashes? We're going WAAAY down the rabbit hole on this one. Enjoy!

https://www.virtualweberbullet.com/burn-test-1984-kingsford-vs-2020-kingsford/

 

[BFletcher]

It would be awesome if Sherman could bring us all together for this experiment

 

[RDean]

Nice experiment! I would be curious if we could detect a taste difference.

 

[Tony-Chicago]

Great job. Data show a few interesting differences. More coal confirmed. Finer ash in newer. Nice work.

 

[Brian_D]

I was wondering what happened to this bag of charcoal from the post from last year. Thanks for updating!

 

[Brad Olson]

It would be awesome if Sherman could bring us all together for this experiment

And take us back to 1984, too!

 

[Mark Foreman]

Nice job Chris....
Thank you for doing the test.
Hmmm ... 1984 - I had a mono colored hair. Geez.

 

[Rich G]

That was a fun read, Chris, thanks! Do you count the number of times your wife rolls her eyes at you when you are doing this type of stuff?

R

 

[J Grotz]

Thanks Chris. That was very interesting and informative. The 1984 formula looks a lot like the current Weber Briquettes.

Sadly, it's a reminder of why I kinda sorta broke up with Kingsford. I remember the "new Coke" Kingsford scandal 14-15 years ago when they brought the ridges in for the first time. People around here, including myself, were hoarding the old formula. I bought some K-Pro a couple months ago because it was on sale at Costco. It's okay. It burns way too fast, so it's relegated to burger and dog duty. I won't be buying more after it's gone.

Any idea if the current long-burn formula is similar to this 1984 formula?

 

[Chris Allingham]

Any idea if the current long-burn formula is similar to this 1984 formula?

I did a burn test of Kingsford Long-Burning in 2017. I don't have any info that says the formula has changed since then.

Kingsford Long-Burning Charcoal Briquets & Weber 100% All Natural Hardwood Charcoal Briquettes Burn Test 2017 - The Virtual Weber Bullet

We conduct a burn test of new Kingsford Long-Burning Briquets & Weber 100% All-Natural Hardwood Charcoal Briquettes for burn time and ash production.

www.virtualweberbullet.com

 

[Chris Allingham]

Do you count the number of times your wife rolls her eyes at you when you are doing this type of stuff?

Actually, it makes her happy because it gets that old K bag wrapped in a black plastic garbage bag off the garage floor and gone. Until I replace it with another project waiting to happen.

 

[Joe D - BBQ Joe]

I had a few bags of a store brand charcoal at one time stored with some bags of Kingsford. After a few years, 4 or 5 I think, I opened the store brand bag and found that the charcoal had pretty much disintegrated to the point of being unusable. Never saw anything like it. Not wet, and the Kingsford stored next to it was okay. So the fact that the 1984 Kingsford burned at all I guess is good.

 

[Rich Dahl]

Thanks for sharing that test Chris. Very informative as to how Kingsford has updated something as basic as charcoal.

 

[Chris in Louisiana]

After a few years, 4 or 5 I think, I opened the store brand bag and found that the charcoal had pretty much disintegrated to the point of being unusable.

I treasured my last bag of Stubb's, which sat in my shed for a few years until I broke it out for an overnight cook.

Even though it had not been moved, there was a ton of dust in the bottom of the bag. It obviously started breaking down with time.