Need some advice on transporting grills

[grhafer30]

I could sure use some advice on transporting Weber kettle grills to dealer locations and a few outdoor events to perform grilling demonstrations for Weber throughout Pennsylvania. I was a grill demonstrator last summer, which was a real blast, and the number of gigs I have for this year has doubled (so far).

To get to the next level, I feel I need to transport my own grills too because I don't always find the equipment on site to be sufficient. I'm replacing my car with a truck, as a result. What's the best way to transport the grills so I ensure a damage-free trip. Do I use ratchet clamps, and if so, how? I have some moving blankets. Should I purchase a truck box to haul equipment like spatulas and the like so I don't have to restock equipment week to week.Any advice on ramps: needed? I will occasionally need to transport a Ranch Kettle.

Any tips you would give me will be appreciated. I'm a novice with trucks--I'm getting a Honda Ridgeline Black edition--as I've never owned one before and I'm 61! (Very  exciting to be getting one, by the way!) My wife joins me on most cooks, so it's something I would like to take intro retirement.

Gary

[jcnaz]

That sounds like a fun gig!

I typically transport kettles in the bed of my truck with the bowl rim resting on a rubber mat, wheels up. The grates go under the lid and also sit on the mat. This keeps them from tipping over and doesn't put any stress on leg sockets, but it can be messy.
I have also transported kettles upright, with the lid secured with a bungee cord to keep it from blowing off.

I have a few questions before I would offer any suggestions:

How many kettles would you be transporting at one time?
How much wear and tear on your kettles will be acceptable?
How much time will you have to assemble and prepare the kettles before you use them?
How much time will you have to clean and disassemble before loading them again?
Will you have to transport any hot ashes or coals?
How heavy and awkward of an object can you and your wife safely lift together?

[Cellar2ful]

I have a Honda Ridgeline and love it. It has a lockable bed storage area inside and beneath the bed. It is dry storage and is great for transporting charcoal when it's raining.  You can use a plastic Rubbermaid storage bin to store and transport your tongs, spatulas and assorted cooking equipment.  If you want to transport it in the lockable storage, just make sure you buy one that fits inside.  My favorite feature is the Ridgeline tailgate.  Being able to open it like a car door makes it so much easier to load items both into the bed and lockable storage area without having to lift or lean over the tailgate.

I transport my kettles bowl down, with the legs and wheels facing upwards.  I place the charcoal grate on the bed, then the cooking grate, then place the kettle upside down with the bowl over the two grates.  The lids I stack on top of one another, using a moving blanket folded between each one to prevent damage.  I keep the kettles close to the rear of the truck cab with the front leg facing the rear tailgate.  I learned early on to strap the kettles down with the wheels aligned to cut through the wind. I run a tie down strap from a lower tie down on the truck, up over the triangle and then back down to the opposite side tie down.  The wheels can catch the wind and tip the kettles over if transported near the tailgate.  Dog dish ash pans should be removed and transported in the lockable storage.  They can blow out of the bed.  Ash bucket type catchers do not have that problem and can be left on the kettles.

When transporting more than two kettles, I place a moving blanket down on the bed to keep the kettles from moving.  They have a tendency to shift and slide on the hard plastic bed liner of the Ridgeline.

I have also transported several Ranch kettles in my Ridgeline.  They are easy to load and transport and can be done by one person if needed. The ashpan should be removed and placed in the lockable storage.  I leave the lid on and use two tie downs.  One to secure the lid to the bowl and one to secure the bowl to the truck bed.

jcnaz posted some good questions.  I would not recommend ever transporting a kettle with hot ashes or coals.  I can't tell you how many times I have watched trucks and SUV's  burning in the Oakland Coliseum parking lot after sporting event tailgate parties.  Also, several times I have responded to truck fires on the freeway that the bed contents ignited from ashes blowing out of a kettle being transported with hot coals and ashes.  It is a recipe for disaster.

[james1787]

jcnaz posted some good questions.  I would not recommend ever transporting a kettle with hot ashes or coals.  I can't tell you how many times I have watched trucks and SUV's  burning in the Oakland Coliseum parking lot after sporting event tailgate parties.  Also, several times I have responded to truck fires on the freeway that the bed contents ignited from ashes blowing out of a kettle being transported with hot coals and ashes.  It is a recipe for disaster.

Interesting point. While I haven't had the need (yet) to travel and cook with a charcoal grill but I have always wondered about this. What is the best way to remove / quickly extinguish the ash so that you can safely transport the grill after cooking?

[YardBurner]

for the ashes, a 16 gallon oval galvanized tub
https://amzn.to/2TMV5Hn
and a couple of 5 gallon jugs of water or a garden hose
would make short work of it.
The oval shape is easier to dump the grill into
and takes up less space in the truck than a round tub.

For the tools hit Harbour Freight and pick up one of these
with drawers.  I have the larger one.  It hold an incredible amount of stuff
and is built like a tank.  The drawers have individual latches so the won't open
during transport.  Much easier than digging around in a truck box.

https://www.harborfreight.com/tool-storage/tool-carts.html

[YardBurner]

BTW.  This sounds like a pretty neat gig!

[Cellar2ful]

for the ashes, a 16 gallon oval galvanized tub
https://amzn.to/2TMV5Hn
and a couple of 5 gallon jugs of water or a garden hose
would make short work of it.
The oval shape is easier to dump the grill into
and takes up less space in the truck than a round tub

YardBurner is spot on with this advice.

[PotsieWeber]

I was at a garage sale & someone had a box of those clear really thin trash bags you see used in like 55 gallon garbage cans that janitors push around to dump smaller cans into.  They said $5 for the box of 2000, so I bought it. 

Whenever I go to look at a kettle, I now throw a couple in the car to bag the kettle for a MESS FREE experience. 

.... but it can be messy.

[grhafer30]

Wow. What a wealth of information! I'm going to start out small, with just a few kettles and any warm ash will be dumped into an excellent ash can I got from Tractor Supply. But you've given me lots to explore.

I'm thinking I'll use the trunk in the Ridgeline to transport refrigerated items from FoodSaver bags since it has a drain plug   I have a bunch of moving blankets I got from Harbor Freight. Thank you all so much for the tips.

Is there anything special I should look for in ratchet pull-downs?

I just got a call yesterday that my truck will be ready today.  Can't sleep lol