Kingsford burn times are not what they used to be


 
B

Barry McCorkle

TVWBB Super Fan
This has probably been posted numerous times, but burn times with recently purchased Kingsford is not good. I just got 9 hours with a charcoal ring full in my 18" WSM. Once upon a time, I could get 14 hours holding a 225 - 240° cook temp like I did today. I am beginning to wish there was an alternative to Kingsford briquettes.
 
Yeah, I usually start my WSM around 2AM, and I find myself stoking it up again around noon. That's only been for the last decade or so. Not sure when Kingsford went down hill. ;)
 
I did a 8.5lb pork shoulder on Saturday on my 18.5 wsm. Used Stubbs. 11 hours at 250-275 never even had to stir the coals. I use a dry pan. When I shut it down and took a look at the unused coals probably had another 2 hours. Try Stubbs. I buy my bags at Lowes.
 
I haven't had any trouble with the Kingsford whatsoever. It may burn for less time but it lights faster and I haven't really noticed that significant of a difference in burn time. I'm running a 22.5 but I've done 16 hour cooks with charcoal to spare. Granted if its really windy and cold the burn time can decrease significantly.

If anything they've made Kingsford more like Stubbs with more charwood and less coal.
 
Bought a bag of Stubbs the other day at Lowes. Looking forward to trying it out soon. Value wise though, you can't beat KB's. On sale at Lowes 2 bags for $10 bucks. Hard to beat....
 
Dustin Dorsey said:
If anything they've made Kingsford more like Stubbs with more charwood and less coal.
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I'm with Dustin, I think Kingsford has gotten better, I assume it started with this year's formula (perhaps it was last year, I'm not sure when it changed) I'm getting quicker starts, and a longer lasting burn with less charcoal. I suspect the reason I'm using less charcoal is because I'm being more careful with use than I used to. Before I'd fill my charcoal ring in my 18" WSM to dang near the top and throw on about a dozen fully lit. That lasted well beyond any cook I did (typically large butts taking 12 to 14 hours) I now only fill the charcoal ring about half way up and, however I do throw on more lit charcoal than I used to. I probably throw on two dozen fully lit charcoal. I did a butt last month that took all of 13 hours and after it finished, I cooked whole chicken. Granted, I removed the barrel of the WSM, I put a charcoal grate directly onto my charcoal ring and the chicken on that grate. I covered it using my WSM lid, and that chicken cooked in 1.5 hours at 350+ degrees. After the chicken was done, I left the lid off (to give the thermometer a break) and I bet that sucker stayed hot / pretty warm for another two hours uncovered

I'm thrilled with Kingsford's latest formula :kingsford:
 
I haven't noticed any difference in my burn times with the new KBB and you can't beat the price when it's on sale.
 
Royal Oak lump.

End of story.

Actually, I like Kingsford briquettes, but I find that RO lump burns hotter and produces less ash. I did a 12 hour cook last week on a 8.8 pound bag ($6.78 Walmart) with some coals left over. Smoker temps ran between 250 to 280 (got a bit hotter after removing the lid, or stoking the fire and dumping the remainder of the bag in the ring) with a pan of water and vents about 75% closed.
 
Rusty James said:
Royal Oak lump.

End of story.

Actually, I like Kingsford briquettes, but I find that RO lump burns hotter and produces less ash. I did a 12 hour cook last week on a 8.8 pound bag ($6.78 Walmart) with some coals left over. Smoker temps ran between 250 to 280 (got a bit hotter after removing the lid, or stoking the fire and dumping the remainder of the bag in the ring) with a pan of water and vents about 75% closed.
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I could easily get that with a full ring (KBB) on the 18.5 WSM & proper MM start. What?.... guessing 4 lbs. No water, though. I'll do a fill in the morning & weight it.
 
Robert-R said:
I could easily get that with a full ring (KBB) on the 18.5 WSM & proper MM start. What?.... guessing 4 lbs. No water, though. I'll do a fill in the morning & weight it.
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OK... I just weighed a full ring of KBB for the 18.5. You are correct - 10 lbs. However, that will get lots more than 12 hours @ 250 - 270*. At least 3 hours. It's been a while since I did a long cook.

I have nothing against RO Lump. It's just not the end of the story, imho.
 
These "What Charcoal is better" arguments can go on forever. As long as you are happy with what you're using then life is good.

Have a great week, Eat well, Love long, and enjoy what you have because it can all be gone in the blink of an eye.
 
Robert-R said:
...However, that will get lots more than 12 hours @ 250 - 270*.
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I haven't found that to be the case, yet, but there will be times when I use briquettes in my smoker again. In my (limited) experiences, temps fell off after the 8 to 10 hour mark in spite of stoking the fire and adding a few more coals and opening the bottom vents to 100%. I'm thinking excessive ash buildup played a role in this.
 
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I still use a lot of Royal Oak briq's more than anything else. It works for me, but to each their own.
 
I had a bag of the old style Kingsford in my basement, the 20 pound bag (They sell 18.6# bags in this area now). It got lost in the move, I found it early this summer it was not the new 'crimped' style briquettes like they sell now, it was the old stuff, likely from the 90s, as I've used nothing but lump since then. It burned much longer than the Kingsford that I bought on sale earlier this year. I can't say I noticed it was hotter or with less ash.

I prefer Royal Oak (lump or briquettes) and almost any other lump over Kingsford briquettes, just my opinion. I've also noticed Stubbs now at my local Lowes and plan on trying that soon because I've heard a lot of good things about it on this forum.
 
Ash buildup is definitely something that can happen with Kingsford. Its rare, but I've had it happen, mainly in high humidity.
 
I've often wondered why Weber didn't have some sort of one-touch cleaning system for their smokers to remove excess ash buildup. Maybe it's not a good idea introducing more ways for outside air to seep in.
 
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