General Tips on Shipping a Kettle

[Mike Stavlund]

I see a lot of talk here about shipping Kettle grills, and I was hoping to hear some tips.

I think I saw a thread somewhere that recommended getting a new Weber shipping carton from stores like Home Depot that do free assembly (and therefore end up with a bunch of empty boxes), which obviously sounds like the way to go. But how viable is that option? Do stores usually have some sitting around, or what?

Also, could the experienced shippers here give me a rough idea of what it might cost to ship a Kettle? I did a search on UPS.com, and they said that shipping 32lbs. from Chicago to Washington, DC would be about $35 bucks. That seems pretty low to me, given the size of a grill box.

Just wondering how this all might work. You see, there is a sweet old 22" Kettle that is in great shape, sitting out behind my wife's grandmother's house. It's been in her family for two generations, and cooks like a dream, and there's a small chance that I could send it to myself in a couple of weeks...

 

[AJ S.]

Dimensions, weitght and destination all factor in to the cost.
USPS has good rates if the box is not oversize.
To insure it gets there in one piece, use a sturdy box. Soemthing that the roundness of the bowl won't cause the box to fail. I like bubble wrap. Others say a combination of bubble wrap and packing peanuts are a good way to go.
Whatever you do, use tracking and insure it if the value is there. I like to use USPS delivery confirmation. I think it helps keep the PO honest.

 

[Brian O'Neal]

Mike I have sent a few grills, lately and AJ actually shipped me a grill. I shipped on out in a Weber box that they had actually shipped me a bowl lid in. That box only cost me $20 to ship it to California. It was prob a little lighter than a whole kettle. The Kettle AJ sent me cost around $30, but his box was slightly larger. So if you could score a Weber box it will be between $20-35. The nice part about the Weber box is that is has the packing material so the grill will generally get there safe. It wouldn't hurt to call a few places and see if they might have a box. Home Despot, Lowes, Ace, any place that builds grills for people.

 

[Jeff Kolodziejski]

Mike...Ive shipped out several 22 "kettles before and your pricing seems about right provided you dont use some box that REALLY oversized. An original Weber box would be great, but Ive found most stores that display Weber grills also crush the boxes right away that the grill came in. You can go to any shipping store and get a box too. A 24 X 20" box is perfect for a 22" kettle. Ive seen a box thats 24 X 24 that you can trim down to get the right height you need too.
The best way is to pack it like Weber does. If you have never unpacked a new kettle, they take the lid and turn it upside down into the bowl. The most important thing is to cushion the lid between the bowl before you set it in. I usually cut strips of cardboard and fold them over the lip of the bowl all the way around. Then set the lid upside down into the bowl. This will cushion it so that no paint gets chipped up. Then I wrap bubble wrap around the rim of the bowl and lid to cushion it from side to side movement.
I then take the charcoal and cooking grate and ziptie them together. I'll set them on the bottom of the box with a piece of cardboard on top of that for the kettle to sit on so the leg sockets dont rest against them. The rest of the stuff like the legs and wheels can be bubble wrapped and tucked in the open spaces left around the kettle. Fill the remaining open areas with popcorn packing or crumpled up newspapers. I havent had one damaged yet! Good luck

 

[Stuart S]

The best advice I can give you, and trust me on this...don't ship it with UPS and try to pack it in an original box using the original packing material.

Shaun sent me a mint crimson kettle from California packed expertly in a reinforced furnace box with heavy duty strapping and cardboard sides and it arrived ripped open, very dented and scratched.

It took three months of arguing with UPS for them to refund the money for the grill plus the shipping and a gorgeous grill is now ruined.

 

[Shaun R]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Stuart S:
The best advice I can give you, and trust me on this...don't ship it with UPS and try to pack it in an original box using the original packing material.

Shaun sent me a mint crimson kettle from California packed expertly in a reinforced furnace box with heavy duty strapping and cardboard sides and it arrived ripped open, very dented and scratched.

It took three months of arguing with UPS for them to refund the money for the grill plus the shipping and a gorgeous grill is now ruined. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>I still lose sleep over it Stuart. Is there any hope for it at all?

 

[Stuart S]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Shaun R:
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Stuart S:
The best advice I can give you, and trust me on this...don't ship it with UPS and try to pack it in an original box using the original packing material.

Shaun sent me a mint crimson kettle from California packed expertly in a reinforced furnace box with heavy duty strapping and cardboard sides and it arrived ripped open, very dented and scratched.

It took three months of arguing with UPS for them to refund the money for the grill plus the shipping and a gorgeous grill is now ruined. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>I still lose sleep over it Stuart. Is there any hope for it at all?

</div></BLOCKQUOTE>

To be honest with you I haven't unboxed it yet

With work and photography jobs I just haven't had time to look at it and I did score that red kettle 5 minutes from my house as well...

Getting the garage sorted out this week is very high on my wife's list of anti-divorce chores so I'll let you know how it looks.