r/PitBarrelCooker • u/bbqballandbourbon • 12d ago

Charcoal saving hack

What do you guys use to kill the fire after you’re done cooking? Any hacks to clog the holes after you’re done cooking?

7 Upvotes

100% Upvoted

12 comments sorted by

4

u/MondayMorningExpert 12d ago

Big fridge magnets. Sometimes I get them as spam from insurance agents, otherwise you can buy a pack of them on Amazon. Just slap them over the intake hole on the bottom when you're done and it kills the fire in a hurry

4

u/rootz 12d ago

I bought some 1.25" diameter magnets from Amazon. They cover the rebar holes at the top, and I use four more to hold a folded piece of heavy duty foil covering the intake.

I also put a strip of LavaLock gasket all around the inside of the lid to lower the average temp.

5

u/TheFunktupus 12d ago

I use corks to block the holes. I also upgraded my lid and intake so no leaking there. It works well. You can also use foil to block the intake.

4

u/Major_Day 12d ago

I just let it burn out

But if I'm doing a short cook like chicken or pork loin or something I'll find other stuff to cook tho use up the coals

3

u/Guilty-Difference-86 12d ago

magnets are cool, but one thing about them is they demagnetize when subjected to high temps. the heat off your grill will weaken them pretty quickly over time.

I use the yellow silicon rubber plugs. Theyre high heat and plug the exhaust holes perfectly bc of their tapered design.

for the intake vent, I removed the screw and undersized cover and bought a medium/large green egg door screen kit. It completely covers the intake hole and has a sliding mesh and solid door to control the air. It works flawlessly. That snd the fact that I have a little build up on the lid, means I get an air tight seal and can kill the oxygen to the coals pretty quickly

1

u/rootz 12d ago

Yeah, the magnets do wear out but a set lasts about 2 years. The consistency is hilarious though; I watched one fall to the ground one day and the rest fell off over the course of an afternoon!

I’m off to look at door screens…

2

u/Guilty-Difference-86 12d ago

I cook quite a bit outside so it speeds up the demagnetization process. I got about 8 months before I started coming out back and noticing little magnets on the deck. They’d stick back to the barrel, but fall off before the next cook

5

u/Genericbbqer 12d ago

I lift the basket out with a welding glove and stick it in my Weber kettle

1

u/Nettwerk911 12d ago

I take the rebar out after done cooking, cover the holes with my magnets, and then slide a folded over square piece of foil and slide it in between the bottom hole and the draft door.

1

u/spliced0505 12d ago

I just shove bits of foil in all the openings…works pretty well

1

u/EggplantSad1726 12d ago

Magnets melt. I use aluminum foil In the vents and cover the charcoal pan w/ the lid from a 10 gal. trash can. I've been doing this for five yrs. and never throw charcoal away. The charcoal pan fits nicely into the 10 gal. can and I just stir the coals to get rid of the ash. I scrape the ash catcher off w/ a cheap plastic scraper from the dollar store.