Charlcoal Lump vs Briquets

DCFIREMANN

DCFIREMANN

Knows what a fatty is.
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I just recently picked up a Backwoods Smoker and have only cooked on it 5 times. The first 4 were with Royal Oak Lump. Today I am using Stubbs All Natural Briquets. I am having trouble keeping a constant temp where I want it today. But today it is much warmer outside and we have about 10 mph winds. I have purchased a BBQ Guru but have not recieved it as of yet. So next weekend I will have the guru in operation.

So I am looking at the pros and cons of each type of charcoal. Who likes what and what brand. In the past I have only used stick burners.

Be Safe

THE DAWG
 
with a piglet, lump works the best, with the smaller model like the chubby briquets are ok and work well, but the piglet needs lump or a lump hardwood log mix. we use Humphreys lump Charcoal out of PA.. Have Fun with your new toy
 
I've tried all kinds and I've finally settled on Royal Oak Lump. The red bag you get at Walmart. For me it was because it seemed the best bang for your buck. And in a WSM it seems to hold the temp pretty well.
 
i can run the Fatgirl at whatever temp I need to using Stubbs or any all natural briquettes without using the Guru.
This year I am playing with just using wood in it. I don't think its going to be that difficult I just need to figure out how big I am going to want the logs.
 
I have gotten the longest burn time from Wicked Good lump. I am experimenting with the Wicked Good Briquettes, which seem to burn even longer (probably because they burn hotter, and you can put a 50% more charcoal by weight in the same space vs. the lump) but they do leave more ash. The Wicked Good lump also seems to spark less than the Royal Oak.

Burn time probably doesn't matter as much with your Backwoods, but it means extra sleeping time with my offset. :-D
 
I run a Stump's with a charcoal maze and I use either the Royal Oak lump or a lump packed by our regional supermarket. I have always been a fan of the lump over the briquettes. Mostly because of the ash and burn quality.
 
lump vs briquettes is one of those age old arguments that I love to hear debated......lol

I am a huge fan of briquettes. Above everything else, all of the other arguments for and against for me it comes down to consistency. I find that by using a fuel that is a consistent size and shape it is easier for me to have a consistent fire that maintains a constant temperature.
In my experience lump is the most inconsistently sized and shaped fuel source that I can find. I like to use it when I am grilling, but for the extended indirect cooks, I steer away from it.
 
I did use briquets yesterday. Temps were all over the place. When it got hot it got hot. But I have a pallet of briquets and plan on using them. If I continue to have consistency problems I will mix the briquets and lump. I know in Salisbury if I can't get it down it will be lump. I am counting on the Guru making anything I burn in it work! I have never cooked with briquets before but I am going to learn. BTW the Briskets I did yesterday were really good, the ribs on the other hand I used a commercial rub I bought and I am not too happy with the results. But I still have about 10 more days to practice.

Be Safe

THE DAWG
 
In my Brinkmann offset, I've had apparently the opposite experience. I started with lump, and could not control the temps at all. I switched to an all-natural briquette and now I have relatively good control of where it will sit. I think lump just burns too hot and hard for my offset, where briquettes can just smolder for hours.
 
^^^Just my opinion and I don't know Jack!!!^^^ LOL

Thanks for taking the time to do this. Vince
 
I like lump for direct or indirect grilling, because it burns hotter, and quicker. I like briqs for longer smokes or even long indirects. I think they burn longer and hole a more consistent temp.

But......I'm still learning. Just my opinion.
 
Wampus said:
I like lump for direct or indirect grilling, because it burns hotter, and quicker. I like briqs for longer smokes or even long indirects. I think they burn longer and hole a more consistent temp.

But......I'm still learning. Just my opinion.
Click to expand...

Naked Whiz reports a higher burn temp on the Wicked Good briquettes vs. the lump, and my experience seems to bear that out. (Due to a greater surface area, maybe?) With the lump I can burn the fuel all the way down to my grate at full cooking temp (with a Stroker controlled draft.) When I use the briquettes, the ash gets in the way, so temps start to drop when I am down to about 1/4 of a load left. It appears to be a slower decline though, so you get more of a warning from the Stoker alarm. By the time the alarm goes off in the lump, the fire is almost out and you will have a long recovery time.

(I use a 20" Klose with 2 WSM charcoal rings stacked on the Klose fire grate. The 20" firebox is a little small for stickburning, I think.)
 
DCFIREMANN said:
I did use briquets yesterday. Temps were all over the place. When it got hot it got hot. But I have a pallet of briquets and plan on using them. If I continue to have consistency problems I will mix the briquets and lump. I know in Salisbury if I can't get it down it will be lump. I am counting on the Guru making anything I burn in it work! I have never cooked with briquets before but I am going to learn. BTW the Briskets I did yesterday were really good, the ribs on the other hand I used a commercial rub I bought and I am not too happy with the results. But I still have about 10 more days to practice.

Be Safe

THE DAWG
Click to expand...

I am kind of surprised that temps are all over for you, Usually the Backwoods are pretty steady burning machines. How are you burning the charcoal? I usually use a "Minion Method and I get very steady burns with the air intakes open about 1/2" and the exhaust shut down to about an 1/8-1/4 open. Are you running the water pan full or dry?
 
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