Let's Talk BBQ
Outdoor Cooking Equipment => Grills & Smokers => Charcoal Smokers => Topic started by: smokeasaurus on October 02, 2012, 06:51:16 PM
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There has been some curiosity over the clean-up of the Pit Barrel Cooker. I remember when I had my 75 gallon, 100 lb BDS, cleaning was a chore. I would have to use a scraper hooked up to a long handle and mix all the ash and fat together into a stinky sludge. Poor it out on some newspaper (always got breezy when I did that) after that I would lay the drum on its side and climb partially in and wipe out the sludge from the side of the drum.
I expected the same experience but I figured this is a 30 gallon drum and easier to handle and not as deep!!
So yesterday I had the -6- chicken halves in it and I kind of wondered all day at work what kind of mess awaits me!!
Please keep in mind that there is no way to extinguish the charcoal...it all burns down.
I started cleaning at 3:30 p.m.
Here is the bottom of the barrel right after I slipped out the two pcs of rebar
(http://i1213.photobucket.com/albums/cc469/s1cott11/001-174.jpg)
I took out the charcoal basket and used a whisk broom to clean it...here is 8 lbs of Kingsford ashes
(http://i1213.photobucket.com/albums/cc469/s1cott11/002-118.jpg)
Dumped the ashes in the trash can. Used a wide paint scraper and scraped up the bottom of the barrel and re-dumped the used just -1- paper towel and wiped up the bottom and the side of the barrel where I poured the ashes out.
(http://i1213.photobucket.com/albums/cc469/s1cott11/003-85.jpg)
Ready for the next cook!!
(http://i1213.photobucket.com/albums/cc469/s1cott11/004-55.jpg)
The meat seems to drip right on the coals no matter where I hang it on the rebar. The reason why the dripping fat does not put out the fire is 20 minutes went by when first lighting the coals and the fire burns from top to bottom.
Oh, total cleaning time including taking pictures and just cleaning like I normally would: 3:30 to 3:38 8 minutes!!!!! :)
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I bet you miss cleaning out your old BDS right? ;D ... Nice simple cleanup... nice pit too.
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Robbie, this barrel cooks completely different than our BDS cook. Where the DBS/UDS can run for hours at 225, this sucker power cooks...haven't even had wood in it yet!!
Can you get that picture off the BDS forum where I am inside my drum with just my boots hanging out or did Rocky do away with the BDS forum??
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Didn't visit for over 3 months so my account was deactivated. Sorry bud. Oh and you might convince me to pull the trigger lol.
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We have been "drumming" for a while now!!
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Kewl! 8) Nice and easy clean-up. You gotta love that.
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Good info Smoke. Your putting me closer to the edge now ;)
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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i use a big turkey pan underneath my coal basket. real easy clean up.
(http://i1269.photobucket.com/albums/jj593/mak1star/Drumming%20Two%209-15-12/drumming2784.jpg).
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OK, things just got easier!! I have some 18" wide HD FOIL you cant get at Sams or Smart & Final so I lined the bottom of the barrel with it before the poke chop cook. Since this is a 30 gallon barrel it is easy to reach in to the bottom.
After removing the charcoal basket it was just a matter of rolling up the foil. The bottom was spotless!! This is handy if someone has a bad back or doesn't have the strength to shag the barrel and dump the ashes in the pan. This barrel is a beefy little sucker and weighs in the 60 lb range so for some folk it might be too much to carry it around. Another benefit of the foil is that you dont get that ash trail along one side of the barrel after dumping.
The foil on the bottom makes the PBC faster to clean than a Weber with the OTG system!!
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Since using my noggin and foiling the bottom of the PBC..here is the best way to clean it..in under 5 minutes
OOOh what a mess!!
(http://i1213.photobucket.com/albums/cc469/s1cott11/002-133.jpg)
steadily lift out the charcoal basket and dump in a trash can you moved next to the PBC so you are left with only ash
(http://i1213.photobucket.com/albums/cc469/s1cott11/003-91.jpg)
crumble up the foil and chuck it out
(http://i1213.photobucket.com/albums/cc469/s1cott11/004-60.jpg)
Look at that clean barrel
(http://i1213.photobucket.com/albums/cc469/s1cott11/005-34.jpg)
Please keep in mind with the PBC you cant choke the coals down so the coal has to completely burn out!! Don't rush it and make sure the ashes are cold before cleaning..............
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I like the time you took to show the cleaning procedures of your cooker. I might do that with my ceramic grill so people know what to expect before they purchase one. Nice job Smoke!!
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i'm thinking a pizza pan on the bottom would work also.
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but you would have to lift it out carefully to clear the grate hangers about halfway up the barrel..just sayin.........
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but you would have to lift it out carefully to clear the grate hangers about halfway up the barrel..just sayin.........
Or pull it out slice by slice ;)