A major hurricane is literally hitting our house in Florida as I write this blog post about the best Big Green Egg covers, so listen up because I’ve got some important advice!
This is one area where you definitely don’t want to scrimp now that you’ve got a Big Green Egg of your own. A kamado ceramic cooker is a big investment and one way to take good care of it is to make sure the cover is a heavy-duty layer of protection.
My new EGG with an Acacia wood table nest is going to be exposed year-round on our back deck so the cover has to be top-notch and heavy-duty. While the legendary BGE brand is great in most areas, my initial experience is to buy someone else’s cover. There are many alternatives, and here are some of the best ceramic BBQ grill covers you may want to consider:
Covers & All
You get what you pay for, and this brand has the most high-end cover for a Big Green Egg with a table nest as I was looking to cover. There are three fabric options, including their toughest fabric called Cover Tuff, which is made from PVC-coated 18-ounce 1000D polyester, and the brand says this “is equipped to battle the harshest of weather conditions.” One important element for me was finding an alternative to ugly black if possible, and their brown version is attractive in a back deck setting. These customizable covers, at about $100-plus depending on options, are waterproof and UV-resistant, available in a range of durable fabrics, easy on and off, with tie-down options, and they can be personalized with your name or logo on the front or back side. You know, in case you want it to say BBQ GOD.
Veranda’s Best
The brand that makes durable covers for all types of outdoor furniture and patio sets has a pretty good solution for the average Big Green Egg or Kamado Joe BBQ cooker. I say “pretty good” because even with a thick polyester, water-resistant fabric, the Amazon reviews for this cover cite a lifespan of about 18 to 24 months if you keep your grill exposed 24/7/365, which is what I plan to do. So I’m looking for all-weather, and even these will wear out according to customers. I like the earth-tone, two-tone “pebble” colors far more than the BGE black models. Nothing else about our back deck is black, and in the scorching sun black looks out of place. It’s a 62-inch cover that accommodates an offset table.
Big Green Egg
I started off by grabbing Big Green Egg’s own signature must-have accessories to grill, smoke and bake those masterpieces in style. So while I was at my local Vision Ace Hardware, a gold dealer in St. Petersburg, I quickly added one of their “universal” covers to my cart. Big Green Egg has a wide variety of sizes, and this one fits Large and XLarge with an Acacia wood table nest. After our Opening Night BBQ, I was immediately disappointed when I removed the cover from the package and placed it over our grill. It is super thin, and trust me it is not going to stand a chance in the “Sunshine City” on our deck with year-round exposure. Not only will it break down in the baking sun, but the fit is awkward for my Large EGG, exposing two of the table legs. It is made to fit the rEGGulator top with a little round extension area, but the fit is again awkward there. So while the advantage of BGE is its wide array of shapes and sizes, the actual Large size and thickness were subpar for me. These come with a BGE logo, but it’s just white against black (on one side so your shape must fit) and doesn’t feel like the brand when you look at it.
JJGeorge
It’s not perfect, but it’s at least as durable as the Big Green Egg model, it’s not quite as expensive, and it comes free if you buy their gorgeous red cedar table nest. Judging by their table manufacturing, it’s not a stretch to trust their cover. Mixed reviews on the fit, and it’s kind of annoying that I was hooked in by a company video of their cover in beautiful green, but only black available according to their Amazon page.
Kamado Joe
If you just want a straight-up cover for a kamado cooker that’s on a stand, then go with Kamado Joe for premium protection. The brand that challenged the champion and made Big Green Egg seek improvements has a good reputation for solid components including this cover. It’s heavy duty and limits sun damage and fading. This is one of many types of standalone covers if you search this category, but unfortunately, I did not see a specific Kamado Joe smoker grill cover made for a table option, just for the actual ceramic egg. Reviews show that after 18-24 months the Kamado Joe cover stays sturdy, but since their trim color is red and it will fade, you’ll quickly have a pink and black cover if that’s OK with you. I’m not looking for pink trim on my smoker.
College Style
Kamado Joe’s standalone grill cover may be ideal, but here’s the way to go if you want to show your college football colors. I see Southeastern Conference choices only, but hey that region kind of owns college football these days. It’s about $80 per cover so a little more expensive, but for $20 less you can get the generic version.
Mini Lustrous
For price value, the Mini Lustrous Cover is a good bargain at about a third of the BGE price, and it feels like tent material with grommets to help fasten it in especially bad storms. Like this hurricane. It doesn’t appear to be quite as thick as the Big Green Egg brand version, and I worry that it might even be a little too inexpensive, but here’s what I really like about it: IT’S GREEN. When you buy a Big Green Egg, why would you want a black cover? Be like Kermit and just keep embracing the green. This 60-inch cover is sized just right, and it’s an Amazon Choice listing with lots of happy BBQ chef customers.
No one dominates this market by any means, including the Big Green Egg brand that has been the kamado leader for a half-century, and it’s pretty obvious that any cover is going to have a limited lifespan if you have a Big Green Egg with a table nest exposed to year-round elements. It’s much easier to find a traditional BBQ gas grill cover with amazing quality. So until someone comes along with a dream cover, you just have to shop around and see if the quality looks best for you, and hope to get a couple of years out of it.
