Which fuel do you use and why?


 
I use a lot of lump for high heat but I am using more and more Stubbs recently. Not a fan off kbb because of the high ash volume and the foul smoke and smell during start up. I know it's cheap but for an extra $4 a bag I'll stick to Stubbs.
 
Royal Oak across the board.
Royal Oak Chef's Select briquettes for the WSM.
Royal Oak Hardwood Lump for the Weber Grills.

Little or no initial white smoke.
 
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Enrico I started with KBB my first couple of years smoking then moved to Stubbs and kings ford competition. In my opinion I like the competition and Stubbs better then the KBB. Naturally the next step would be lump. Thank you everyone for the input. I love this forum and all the helpful incite it provides to all of us.
 
Stubbs briquettes for WSM - I like the consistent shape for even burning, and the low ash content.

Rockwood lump for grilling - higher heat. I added another charcoal grate bolted at 90° to keep the smaller pieces of charcoal in.
 
I tried using Frontier brand of lump charcoal recently, but I was glad when it finally disappeared.

Briquettes for me - usually Kingsford.
 
Rusty James said:
I tried using Frontier brand of lump charcoal recently, but I was glad when it finally disappeared.

Briquettes for me - usually Kingsford.
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@Rusty - There's actually two types of Frontier lump, one Mexico or South America I forget what the label said and I think the other is US. I bought 14 (I think) bags of the US and one of the other, thank god I only bought one of the other as it stunk. I really like the US, in-fact, going to see if I can do another bulk buy for more bags this time around. Good stuff IMO.
 
LarryR said:
@Rusty - There's actually two types of Frontier lump, one Mexico or South America I forget what the label said and I think the other is US. I bought 14 (I think) bags of the US and one of the other, thank god I only bought one of the other as it stunk. I really like the US, in-fact, going to see if I can do another bulk buy for more bags this time around. Good stuff IMO.
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My bag may be South American wood from some research I did a while back. The charcoal did OK for a while, but then it would cool off unpredictably, and even die out in places.

Maybe the Mexican version is better stuff.
 
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Charlie L said:
I use a lot of lump for high heat but I am using more and more Stubbs recently. Not a fan off kbb because of the high ash volume and the foul smoke and smell during start up. I know it's cheap but for an extra $4 a bag I'll stick to Stubbs.
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I saw Stubbs at Walmart recently, and yes, it was higher than Kingsford. Sounds like it may be just the thing for smoking though.
 
KBB, once the fire is started the charcoal itself really doesn't have an odor, ash is not an issue for me, I will have to pick up the bottom section and dump it in the pail after every cook no matter how much/little ash is there.
Consistent burn times, goes on 50% off sale 2-3 times a year, I have no issues or complaints with the KBB.
 
I currently use Kingsford Competition. Mainly because when I was new to the WSM, there was a huge sale of the competion brickets at Costco, so I bought a bunch. As a side benefit, the competition is natural and does not have other stuff in it.
 
I use Kingsford Blue Bag (I like to stock up when they have the cheap prices on the 2 pack) for grilling, and use Royal Oak lump for smoking.
 
I will use pretty much anything. I do stay away from brands that members on this board say are no good (cowboy and frontier), but to me fuel is fuel. I always have some KBB around because I can't pass up a good deal. Generally, I like lump best just because there is less ash to deal with. I've use the extruded coconut and was very impressed, but it was expensive and hard to get. I've use the RO lump the most (of the lumps) and have been happy with that. Now I get the GFS brand which I believe is store branded RO. Like I said, it's all good.

If I smoked or grilled with charcoal a lot, I'd probably stick with KBB. I don't think there's anything that is good that is cheaper when they run the holiday sales. However, I grill on my gasser and the amount of smoking I do isn't enough for me to worry about cost so I try different brands and don't care too much whether it's lump or briquettes.
 
Depends on which cooker, years ago I bought a small green egg, and used only lump with it, tried several different brands. For grilling mostly Royal Oak briquettes, sometimes
Kingsford competition. In the WSM usually Royal Oak briquettes, and sometimes K blue bag if its been on a good sale. I am usually more particular about my wood choice than
charcoal choice.
 
BrianCal said:
I use Kingsford Blue Bag (I like to stock up when they have the cheap prices on the 2 pack) for grilling, and use Royal Oak lump for smoking.
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I saw an eight pound bag of this, yesterday, at Walmart. I thought it was briquettes, but when I picked it up, it was light as a feather. I almost purchased the bag considering how plump it was, but I backed out at the last minute.

Maybe I should give Royal Oak Lump a try for smoking?
 
I use different kinds of lump on my WSM's and Performer...

• Rockwood
• Wicked Good
• Ozark Oak (stocked up before they went out of business)
• Fogo
• Basques Sugar Maple

My use of lump is purely personal preference since it's what I'm accustomed to using, and I have nothing against briquets.
 
Royal Oak lump charcoal for my 14.5" WSM. You have to pack it tight to get a nice consistent burn. If it is too loosely packed then you will have issues. I learned that from some kamado guys. Plus I can cook all night in one as long as I use lump charcoal as the low ash production keeps the charcoal from clogging up especially in winter.

I use a cheap walmart brand briquett as royal oak actually makes them. I use them for my 22.5" WSM as it's a fuel hog. It cooks nice just consumes a lot of fuel.
 
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