Weather, covers and winter

Rain, covers and the cold

The manual and Kamado Joe's cold-weather blog, then owners for the last step.

1. Cover the grill once it is cool to the touch: the manual calls a cover the best protection.
2. Stand it out of direct drafts and where water cannot trickle onto it (the manual).
3. Leave the Kontrol Tower's rain cap on: it keeps rain from running down inside.
4. Before winter, deep clean and run a clean burn (Kamado Joe's blog).
5. In the cold, use more charcoal and allow longer to heat up. "If you're looking, you're not cooking."
6. After a wet or freezing spell, heat slowly and stay below about 200 °C at first. Owners and other kamado makers say fast heating can crack damp ceramic.