Question - Best Charcoal for Long Smokes

WilliamD said:

"There was torrential downpour but the temp outside was around 65 - 70 deg. "

Well there you have it....The WSM is a non insulated smoker and I would say the Torrential Downpour Sapped all the energy from the smoker and those KBB coals!

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WSM's collect rain pretty well too.

Kingsford is the go to for me, mostly because i get it cheap and buy bulk when on sale. That said, a lot more ash and (as noted by others) does not do well cooking higher (300-350) temps. on Betty (Humphreys). Once there it does fine, but takes a looooong time to get there (sorted this out using a large flame stick to CC).
Stubbs has a lot less ash and seems to be about even for me in getting up to temp. and staying there. Cost is significantly more. (As in for an 8 lbs. bag of Stubbs i am paying the same as i do for 36 lbs.of KF when on sale.)
Lump burns hot and may need to be reloaded sooner, price is consistent with Stubbs.
All good options for long cooks, account for weather and conditions.

Hope all that helps. If not Click here for a more complete comparison.

I've always had good luck using KBB in my 14.5 WSM and my kettles.

Wsm

THoey1963 said:

Yeah, I would think you have other issues to look at besides your fuel if you are only getting 6 hours off a full basket of charcoal. I had my 22.5 run for around 24 hours on a full basket before. Even in bad weather, I can't see that dropping to a quarter.

Did it actually need more fuel, or did it ash over and just need a couple of love taps to the legs to knock the ash off?

I built a fire basket for mine (see link in my signature). I would fill it to the top with charcoal and use the flame thrower to light 6 - 8 coals on either the middle (unassisted) or the vent side (when using the Pitmaster IQ 120). It would slowly burn through the rest of the coals as needed. I also had the gaskets and the SS door, so my WSM was very well sealed.

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It was almost completely burnt out.I'd really like to do and over night cook with the WSM?
Maybe fill the basket more next time and see how long it burns?

Thanks DanB

I turned my grate / ring into a basket and if I was doing a long cook, I would fill it up to the top of the ring with charcoal. If I remember correctly, I usually just filled it up. My WSM had the SS door and gaskets, so when I shut her down, I saved a lot of charcoal.