Lump quesion


 
D

David Guthrie

New member
So, my 20+ year old 18” wsm is getting old. The inner grill attachments are breaking, and won’t hold the lower grill…there is a bunch of rust that seems to be welded on. I’m looking to get the larger 22 inch to have more room. I was reading the manuals on line, and saw that they only recommend using charcoal briquettes, and not to use lump. I have only ever used lump in my wsm. I can only assume that they are worried about the higher heat of lump vs briquettes. Has anyone ever had an issue using lump in their WSM? I don’t plan on switching to briquettes 😩😩
 
I would guess that the reason would be briquettes are more uniform and slower cooler burning as to give you a better more predictable burn and temperature. I never used lump in my WSM. I am sure there is no problem doing so as long as you control it to your liking.
 
There's no problem except it's oddly sized. It's either huge pieces or little tiny shards usually. It also burns faster and irregularly.... It also does not nest well together and you can't get that much into the coal ring... Not good attributes for consistent long cooks. I used it once when it was all I had on hand.
 
David Guthrie said:
So, my 20+ year old 18” wsm is getting old. The inner grill attachments are breaking, and won’t hold the lower grill…there is a bunch of rust that seems to be welded on. I’m looking to get the larger 22 inch to have more room. I was reading the manuals on line, and saw that they only recommend using charcoal briquettes, and not to use lump. I have only ever used lump in my wsm. I can only assume that they are worried about the higher heat of lump vs briquettes. Has anyone ever had an issue using lump in their WSM? I don’t plan on switching to briquettes 😩😩
Click to expand...
I only burn lump in my 2 kettles.....98% of the time I use some sort of basket and the heat source is not located directly against the side of the kettle. Not that I think that makes a difference. If you ask me, lump burns excellent, can cook hotter ( for steaks or something ) and offers better flavor for the cook.......I wouldn't change for any reason....I would expect the same from you.
 
I should have added that I use lump more for grilling and briquettes and wood for smoking. Just personal preference as lump is less uniform and faster burning.
 
Yeah, I used lump for 20+ years. My issue is that the inner grill attachments are breaking, and won’t hold the lower grill…there is a bunch of rust that seems to be welded on. 😩

[Intended to be humorous, but probably not that funny]
 
In my 18 WSM I like using a mix of lump and briquettes. It provides good cover and some holes get filled in with the smaller lump pieces. I've had good results. I also mix in some B&B logs.
 
David Guthrie said:
Has anyone ever had an issue using lump in their WSM?
Click to expand...
Nope, been using it since 08 on my WSM's.
There are some good all natural briquettes out there like B&B, Cowboy ( used to be Stubb's ) Kingsford pro etc.
Those B&B char logs mentioned up thread are really good for smoking. I use them in my Auto Kamado, Son uses them in his gravity fed.
 
I only use briquettes in the WSM.
I only use lump in my Auto Kamado
I use whatever catches my fancy in the kettles.
 
timothy said:
Nope, been using it since 08 on my WSM's.
There are some good all natural briquettes out there like B&B, Cowboy ( used to be Stubb's ) Kingsford pro etc.
Those B&B char logs mentioned up thread are really good for smoking. I use them in my Auto Kamado, Son uses them in his gravity fed.
Click to expand...
How is that Auto Kamado treating you?
If memory serves, you posted last year when they went on sale at Walmart and I bought one.
It was a learning curve, but I have it dialed in now and really like it.
 
Rick P said:
How is that Auto Kamado treating you?
If memory serves, you posted last year when they went on sale at Walmart and I bought one.
It was a learning curve, but I have it dialed in now and really like it.
Click to expand...
I've been using it more. Recently I got a smokefire and was on that kick for awhile.
I'm trying to mod a joetissere on the char griller.
 
Scott Smith said:
Yeah, I used lump for 20+ years. My issue is that the inner grill attachments are breaking, and won’t hold the lower grill…there is a bunch of rust that seems to be welded on. 😩

[Intended to be humorous, but probably not that funny]
Click to expand...
After 20 years, I'd be surprised if there wasn't rust and totally doubt that using lump is the issue. Weber has never used the very best stainless for all parts (especially bolts) and my 15-year experience with them (better than most others) is that rust is pretty typical. Ignore, refurbish if you want, buy a new or used WSM and use what you like for cooking.
 
David Guthrie said:
Has anyone ever had an issue using lump in their WSM?
Click to expand...
Yes. I have a brand of lump that runs to pretty large pieces, and I was having a lot of frustration keeping a good temp overnight. I switched to briquettes, and things are better. I mostly use the coffee can method of lighting the coals, and that method relies on the adjacency of the charcoal pieces to keep a good fire going. I guess the lump was just too variable. Oh well.
David Guthrie said:
So, my 20+ year old 18” wsm is getting old. The inner grill attachments are breaking, and won’t hold the lower grill
Click to expand...
My 18" is also over 20 years old. I recently was quoted over $40 from Weber for those three replacement vertical brackets that hold the two grill grates and the water pan. I found some sturdy stainless steel stock at Lowe's and just bent it the same as the original. It works fine. Other than the cylinder/body itself, there aren't many parts on that grill that have not been replaced.
 
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