r/PitBarrelCooker

So I’ve kept my pit barrel fairly clean. I’ve stored it outside with a cover and would empty the ash the next morning after it had cooled down. Over time it developed some very small rust holes and I patched those with JB Weld. Well after first cook of the year I went to empty the ash and a giant fist sized hole appeared. Only option is to replace the entire bottom or weld a plate to it. I think I might just buy a new Pit instead. Any suggestions on preventing this rust from happening?

I’ve had a really good time with general grilling like chicken, burgers (quick grill cooks). But, I have trouble with longer cooks. Things like briskets. Temp always wants to climb to around 400 (which is why it’s great for short cooks). I have to choke every opening with foil to keep it to 280. Before you say I have to do the opening size correctly, I’m serious when I say I have only a pinky of opening for the grill to keep 280. I have a 20lb weight on the lid as well. If I follow the instructions for my elevation it easily hits 400. I’ve tried every pull method and meat is always dry. I’ve done everything with this grill and temp is high + meat is dry. Fat renders perfectly but the meat is always dry. I’ve never had issues with my offset. Saw influencers praise the PBC for great flavor and humid environments but man for the life of me I cant get long cooks with low temp with this thing.

Im intrigued from both pit barrel and the argentine barril. My only doubt with the pit barrel are the health issues connected from the fat burning directly on the charcoal with all the fumes issues. There are some way to reduce those issues while cooking with it?

Thinking of ordering the PBX from academy. Pit Barrel Cooker website is sold out of the ash pan. Do you guys have any ideas to get one?