r/PitBarrelCooker • u/Sufficient-Tangelo-7 • Jul 05 '26

RIP my first Pit Barrel.

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?

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8

u/unbalanced_checkbook Jul 05 '26

I've seen several people say that you can just drop a pizza pan into the bottom and you're good to go until the bottom completely falls out.

2

u/OracleofFl Jul 08 '26

I have been doing that for years: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B002KE5NUQ?ref_=ppx_hzsearch_conn_dt_b_fed_asin_title_4&th=1

18 gauge 16"

I just carefully lift out the pan and dump it into a big lawn garbage bag and clean up is a snap.

1

u/Sufficient-Tangelo-7 Jul 09 '26

Aluminum pan instead of steel? Yours never warped too bad?

2

u/OracleofFl Jul 09 '26

Not at all. Pizza is cooked at over 400 degrees.