Lump Charcoal On SALE at Home Depot

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Cheap, consistent, and controllable. Not crazy about the latest reformulation though. Too much ash and only lasts about 80% as long as the previous formula in my experience. The 120 lbs I have left are the previous formula. I use it on long smokes and will be sorry when it's gone. The new formula is good for the grill, but on 12+ hour smokes I'm actually looking for something else.

Have you tried the kingsford pro/comp? I switched to that a few years ago and have been pretty happy with it. The Costco I go to has 18lb twin packs for $15 so it's a pretty good deal.
 
Have you tried the kingsford pro/comp? I switched to that a few years ago and have been pretty happy with it. The Costco I go to has 18lb twin packs for $15 so it's a pretty good deal.
Yeah I have. My Costco had the same deal so that is why I decided to give it a try. I noticed it burns quite a bit hotter than the regular Kingsford Blue, so I have only used it for hot/fast cooking. One of these days I may try using it in the WSM. That Costco price was the best I've seen for it though.
 
The Naked Whiz is kind of the "go to" website for charcoal information.  I can't post the link to the Naked Whiz website due to Forum rules, but do a Google Search for "charcoal briquette comparison."  When the results come up look for "Lump Burn Time and Ash Production Comparison."  That is a head-to-head comparison test on the Naked Whiz website of two types of briquettes and three types of lump.  For those engineers out there, like me (by education only), the test results are very telling. 

So, why not just shift to lump?  Cost.  Volume wise, a full load in my 22.5" WSM is roughly 1/2 bag of whatever charcoal I'm using.  Kingsford, when purchased on sale (check Lowes and HD Tuesday, 5/23), only costs $2.50 per load.  Royal Oak Lump, when purchased on sale, costs $5 per load.  A long smoke of 17-22 hours will use up a full load, and often requires a recharge of cold fuel (1/2 to a full chimney). 

I generally use 40-60 lbs a month of charcoal in my WSM and Kettle combined, roughly 2-3 bags.  My philosophy is "never pay more than you need to, but get the highest value possible for your money."  Until the recent reformulation, Kingsford was meeting my philosophy.  Now, I'm shopping for another inexpensive value brand.
 
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Looks like a great price. I may buy some to use with my Royal Oak Lump to "fill-in-the gaps" allowing less air space (for temperature consistency) and lower my overall cost too!

Thanks for sharing! Just curious... Do these have that wonderful aroma in the bags that the RO Lump Charcoal has?

Michael
 
Looks like a great price. I may buy some to use with my Royal Oak Lump to "fill-in-the gaps" allowing less air space (for temperature consistency) and lower my overall cost too!

Thanks for sharing! Just curious... Do these have that wonderful aroma in the bags that the RO Lump Charcoal has?

Michael
No aroma at all.  This time of year my sniffer is kind of broken with allergies, but I did not detect any aroma. 

Kingsford has been changing their formula over the last few years, two changes in recent memory.  They've changed the bag weights too for the value bag.  A bag used to weigh 24 lbs, then 21.6, then 20, now 18.6.  There are other bag sizes too depending on the vendor.  For that reason I look at price per pound. 

Side note: Kingsford BB (previous formulation) weighs .8 oz per briquette.  The RO briquette weighs 1.0 oz exactly.  I'll pick up one twin pack of KBB when the sale hits just to see what the weight is of the new formulation.  I've burned up all I had so I can't weigh one.     
 
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I use just briquettes in my smoker at this point, but I do use Lump in my grill. Basically the briquettes last a BUNCH longer, and I use a UDS so its not easy to refill. Need the briquettes to do brisket and Butt cooks for sure.

Of the lump I've used, one called "Fogo" has been the best, and Red Oak a close second with Cowboy scoring pretty low IMHO.

I think Kingsford pulled a sneaky move on us, because they now sell a special "longer burning" formula, which actually appears to be the same formula that Kingsford Original was a few years ago, and as other mentioned the "original" bags are using a different formula that burns much more "ashy" and not as long as it used to. Looks like they downgraded their "original" to charge us all more for a "new" longer lasting special formula which may have been the actual "original".

They also make flavored wood briquettes, and though I haven't looked at what's in them, I used the Cherry one and Hickory one for a cook, and they burned quite nice and clean, but didn't last very long. Didn't really impart any flavor into the food though.

At any rate, ill swing by Home Depot this week to see if ive got a lucky store still doing the sale. Mine is pretty low traffic, so I find they do sales that others don't when they get overstocked. Either way I need a few bags of Briquettes, so it wont be a wasted trip

 
 
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Brand switch complete. Lowes has Royal Oak Premium Ridge Briquettes on sale through 5/24 at $4 per 15.4 lb bag. Just picked up 10 bags. That 26 cents a lb.

OK! I bought 10 bags of the Royal Oak Ridge Briquettes at Lowe's tonite per your recoomendation. $4 a bag for 15.4 lbs. that's an amazing price!! I have seen it for anywhere from $8.97 to $18.97 for same sized bag. What's really cool is that I hust lowered my $cost/lb of fuel to $0.34 vs $0.51/lb before this purchase (just lump). I MAY HAVE TO GO BACK AND GET SOME MORE!

Two questions though. . .

1. Is the bag plastic-lined internally to protect against humidity? Humidity down here in New Orleans stays near 100% all summer.

2. How long will this keep in un-air conditioned garage closet??
 
Wow! $4/bag for charcoal, that's awesome! Anyone used the Royal Oak Charcoal Briquettes before? Those of course are not the lump that this post was started in regards to. At any rate, it looks like they are offering them at the same price on their website, not sure about shipping.


Let me know if you guys have used the Royal Oak Briquettes before, and what you think about them in comparison to Kingsford Briquettes. Not sure I can pass that price up.
 
 
Wow! $4/bag for charcoal, that's awesome! Anyone used the Royal Oak Charcoal Briquettes before? Those of course are not the lump that this post was started in regards to. At any rate, it looks like they are offering them at the same price on their website, not sure about shipping.


Let me know if you guys have used the Royal Oak Briquettes before, and what you think about them in comparison to Kingsford Briquettes. Not sure I can pass that price up.
I used them last year they burned real nice,I picked up 6 bags today.Still have a lot of the new KBB that was on sale a few weeks ago&Embers Charcoal I haven't tried yet

Richie

My Dry Storage 

 
Wow that sounds like FUN Kam59. Tell us what you know about Royal Oak please? I think I have a new CRUSH on them. LOL[emoji]128563[/emoji] Just seems like, from everything I am reading, they have less fillers, and more natural, than Kingsford!
 
Wow that sounds like FUN Kam59. Tell us what you know about Royal Oak please? I think I have a new CRUSH on them. LOL[emoji]128563[/emoji] Just seems like, from everything I am reading, they have less fillers, and more natural, than Kingsford!
The Chefs Select we use has very little binders and that is tomato paste. Basically it is compressed lump with rather large grooves in it for air flow. The ash deposit is about like lump and burns super clean. You can order the Chefs Select through your local Do-It Best hardware center and they will drop ship to the store for no freight fee.

https://www.doitbest.com/products/838136?via=57c731ba69702d410a004db4,57c731ba69702d410a004db6
 
The Chefs Select we use has very little binders and that is tomato paste. Basically it is compressed lump with rather large grooves in it for air flow. The ash deposit is about like lump and burns super clean. You can order the Chefs Select through your local Do-It Best hardware center and they will drop ship to the store for no freight fee.
https://www.doitbest.com/products/838136?via=57c731ba69702d410a004db4,57c731ba69702d410a004db6

I was hoping you could illuminate us on why Royal Oak charcoal is better than Kingsford, and others. I am not trying to be disrespectful, but like most members on here, I am not on a professional cooking team, do not earn money for this, and will never pay 2x or 3x the money for charcoal just because of words on a bag. Can you elaborate WHY should I pay 2x the price for This charcoal vs std RO?
 
Wow! $4/bag for charcoal, that's awesome! Anyone used the Royal Oak Charcoal Briquettes before? Those of course are not the lump that this post was started in regards to. At any rate, it looks like they are offering them at the same price on their website, not sure about shipping.



Let me know if you guys have used the Royal Oak Briquettes before, and what you think about them in comparison to Kingsford Briquettes. Not sure I can pass that price up.

I am with Travisty here... Anyone out there use Royal Oak Ridge that can illuminate us on how this particilar briquette compares to others or the RO Lump Coals?
 
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I was hoping you could illuminate us on why Royal Oak charcoal is better than Kingsford, and others. I am not trying to be disrespectful, but like most members on here, I am not on a professional cooking team, do not earn money for this, and will never pay 2x or 3x the money for charcoal just because of words on a bag. Can you elaborate WHY should I pay 2x the price for This charcoal vs std RO?
First I do not get paid to use their product you have to earn a spot on their team and believe me pay days in the competition BBQ world are far and few between and very few make a living at it.

I started using Royal Oak Chefs Select back in late 2007/2008 when I was searching for a charcoal that was more natural and did not want the flavors that the binders produce. It is a great alternative to lump if you are not wanting to pay high prices for lump. Actually a friend turned me on to it he is a chemical engineer that is overboard on chemical additives and refuses to use Kingsford at all. You cannot walk into a store and buy it in fact on the bag it says for food service not for resale. As of right now the only way you will see it is if you order it and I used to order it before Royal Oak accepted me onto the team.

I am not a rep for Royal oak I prefer to use only their natural charcoal I have used the red bag and when it is on sale yes it is a great buy just as the other brands are. If you are happy with using charcoal with more binders then the red bag is for you, if you would like to try a different style then you may want to try a more natural charcoal and judge for yourself. You may find that you are correct and it is not worth it for you to spend the extra on another type or brand.

I have also tried Kingsford comp and have used their blue when I was in a bind in my opinion the two are not enough difference to justify the price increase it is just a branding thing.

A little lengthy but I hope this is the enlightenment you were asking for. 
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First I do not get paid to use their product you have to earn a spot on their team and believe me pay days in the competition BBQ world are far and few between and very few make a living at it.
I started using Royal Oak Chefs Select back in late 2007/2008 when I was searching for a charcoal that was more natural and did not want the flavors that the binders produce. It is a great alternative to lump if you are not wanting to pay high prices for lump. Actually a friend turned me on to it he is a chemical engineer that is overboard on chemical additives and refuses to use Kingsford at all. You cannot walk into a store and buy it in fact on the bag it says for food service not for resale. As of right now the only way you will see it is if you order it and I used to order it before Royal Oak accepted me onto the team.
I am not a rep for Royal oak I prefer to use only their natural charcoal I have used the red bag and when it is on sale yes it is a great buy just as the other brands are. If you are happy with using charcoal with more binders then the red bag is for you, if you would like to try a different style then you may want to try a more natural charcoal and judge for yourself. You may find that you are correct and it is not worth it for you to spend the extra on another type or brand.
I have also tried Kingsford comp and have used their blue when I was in a bind in my opinion the two are not enough difference to justify the price increase it is just a branding thing.
A little lengthy but I hope this is the enlightenment you were asking for. :smile:

Great answer! Points!

We're still eating on an 18 lb turkey I smoked last weekend, or I'd smoke something with the Ridge. I am going to conduct a burn and ash experiment today, using the Ridge and the KBB old formula. Pics and details to follow later today.
 
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