I have a question guys? I have only been cooking with charcoal for about three months on my used burgandy performer craigslist find. I love it by the way and so does my family! I still have my red Genesis Jr on standby though! I bought a bag of regular Kingsford the other day and did not notice till I got it in my car that it had a 3 inch tear in the bag. Being in a hurry I didnt take it back but wondered if the charcoal could have absorbed moisture? When I used it tonight for the first time it didnt seam to burn good or get as hot. I had to keep addding more and it went out fast when I was done. Should I just toss the rest of the bag and get a new one? Also is it best to store charcoal in an airtight container in the bag? Or can I store it in the srorage bin on the performer? Thanks for the help.
Dean Miller

i am not sure if the hole in bag affected the charcoal.

But i store charcoal in my performer charcoal bin and always cover my performer and charcoal is fine. The rest of charcoal, i keep in my cabana in backyard and it stays fine as well.

Hope this helps

elmo

I just crumple up the bag and store in garage....I wouldnt think the rip would cause any troubles.....You would be able to tell if the bag got soaked....Dont throw away....Use it up....and compare to next bag....

What are you comparing it to? If you were using lump charcoal before, the Kingsford blue bag won't be as hot. If you give the bag a good shake, some black dust should come out, or if you dig around some should get on your hands. If there is any spongy or slimy feel to the charcoal and a lack of dust it's been wet at some point and I would toss it.

Keep in mind that different brands can burn differently, and may take different vent adjustments, burn times etc. I definitely noticed a difference switching from Kingsford blue bag to competition.

As for storage, I've never had a problem just throwing the bag in the storage bin on my performer. Even on the occasions when I can't get the grill covered before a storm hits, the table keeps rain out of the charcoal.

Thanks for the help everyone! I will probably try some more tomorrow just to see how it works again. Tonight I was grilling a black forest eye of round. Grilled one a week ago and it was amazing! This time I just couldnt seem to keep the temps as stable and I got it a little over done but still good. I have only used blue bag Kingsford. I do have one bag of the competition type but I havent used it yet. What difference if any will there be when I use it?
Again thanks for the help.
Dean Miller

I find that the competition burns a little hotter with less ash, and it definitely smells better than blue bag.

I keep a bag in the Performer's storage, and another bag in a Kingsford Kaddy:
http://www.amazon.com/Kingsfor...id=1257171752&sr=8-2

Home Depot carries these, or did during the summer.
The Kaddy has been rained on many, many times, and never leaked to the inside.