Royal Oak Lump...I don't get it


 
J

J. Wilson

TVWBB Fan
So I've read the great reviews on here....and earlier this year Walmart has a 17#+ bag (the red USA bag) for $10 and I gave it a shot. Loved just the smell of it when I was bringing it home!!.....that's where my love affair ended I'm afraid.

The lump seemed to take forever to light....didn't get near as hot as I thought it would...and didn't even burn up completely. With it not burning up completely makes me wonder how much of it even ignited.

I guess I'm missing something with all the great reviews. Did I maybe just get a bad bag from Walmart? Maybe it was "wet" when I bought it? Now granted I've been mostly a briquette guy so am relatively new to various lump charcoals...and I've used Cowboy in the past and never had these problems so I'm at a bit of a loss.....so I thought I would ask for your guys' input.
 
Got me, that is all I use and haven't noticed that problem. My guess would be a little wet. I store mine in a semi-conditioned space. Charcoal will draw moisture.
 
J.Wilson, imho its way better to buy wood chunks than lump. You can use wood chunks the same way you use charcoal.
 
I like R/O lump and their briquettes as well. Never had a problem with any lump before but it needs to be kept dry. Are you using a chimney to lite it? Once lump get going it burns hotter than briquettes.
 
I have never had problems lighting our using RO lump. My only beef with RO lump is I am tired of paying for rocks that I always find in the bag!
 
The Royal Oak lump that I have been using from Menards comes in a green bag. Their briquets re in a red bag.
Both work fine for me and have for a long time.
 
I've never had a bag of RO lump that was hard to start, but I don't buy mine @ WM, like Bob I get mine from Menards.
Did you have alot of chips/dust when you emptied it in the chimney on startup or when you dumped it in a pile?
That stuff will snuff out a fire, better to shake that out and just use the lump that stays put.
When I buy lump I look for bags that have the shape of a nice fluffy pillow, bags that are flat looking usually means most of the bigger pcs of lump got squashed during handling.

Tim
 
don't think its a bad bag. like all lump, many burn different. you can't judge a lump from one use. suggest you try different things first.
all lumps that I have ever used require a bit longer to light, not a big issue, but the most important thing is that you have to really pack
it in. loose lump will not light nor stay lit.
 
I get mine at WM and have never had a problem. Sounds like you had a bad that had been left out in the rain and then they tried to let it dry.
 
I bought 15 bags of it from Walmart 2 weeks ago. I have used 1.5 bags so far and as always I love the stuff. Other then a lot of sparks I have no issues with it what so ever.
 
Are you using a chimney starter? Mine always lights a lot easier and faster than Kingsford. Plus it's a show with all the popping and crackling. I use one Weber lighting cube under a full chimney and it takes off.
 
I also buy from Walmart and never had a problem with the Royal Oak lump except for the irregular size pieces. Sometimes it pops and sometimes it doesn't.

Maybe just a bad bag.
 
The one thing I watch for with the RO is those brown uncarbonized pcs of lump. They smell like toilet on a minion start but not bad when in a chimney fully lit..

Tim
 
Like using lump and charcoal, just depends on mood and pricing. I have found however, that when I use lump it is best to hand pack the fire ring to make sure there are no large gaps between pieces. An occasional shake and few pieces hand placed here and there insures a better burn in my opinion.
 
The only time I'v eever had a problem with RO lump was when I tried to re-use some that had been in the bottom of the WSM for a little while. It seemed to start ok in th echimney, but as soon as I dumped it, it started going out. I can only figure that it had absorbed a lot of moisture. So now I either won't re-use RO or I'll mix the re-use stuff with fresh.

I can only assume that you got a bag that had either sat there for a long while or it had gotten wet.

Russ
 
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