Lighting Charcoal

[chadcar]

What is your preffered method for lighting charcoal?
I don't care for lighter fluid, and would never use the pre-soaked, match light stuff.
I've been using a chimney starter, but it seems like the bottom layer turns to ash before the top even grays.
What do you guys do?

[stephy]

Don't really care for lighter fluid either.....OK.....

This is a HVAC trade secret, so it is not to be shared with those not in the trade...:p

I use my UniWeld double barreled Mapp torch........

:D
Stephen

[jpw23]

I use a chimney starter too....I just set it on the gas burner that came with my turkey cooker....really speeds things up!

[chadcar]

Don't really care for lighter fluid either.....OK.....

This is a HVAC trade secret, so it is not to be shared with those not in the trade...:p

I use my UniWeld double barreled Mapp torch........

:D
Stephen

I have used the mapp gas torch too, but I always forget to put it back in the van.:mad:

[dhvac]

that wont be a problem after long because you will need it on the job and it will be on the deck, you will be stuck buying another for the job then that means you never have to put the first one back in the van :D

thats how i ended up with 3 mapp gas torches :D



when i used charcoal i made a starter out of a piece of round pipe holes drilled in the bottom put a screen right above holes set charcoal on screen and burn a few pieces of newspaper/ cardboard under it then spread that charcoal out of the starter over the charcoal that was in the grill

if you dont get it let me know i will explain better

[James 3528]

http://www.kingsford.com/images/KIN_MatchLight.jpg

ready 10 minutes after lighting. I lite the bag and buy the small bags and don't keep parts of bags because they lose there gusto if the bag is open

[stephy]

Damn James.......

If I had a station wagon full of hungry kids' I could understand.......

Match Light.......

Jeeze......

:D :D :D
Stephen

[James 3528]

What part don't you understand?

[smokin68]

Kingford Mesquite is where it's at........



oh yeah I use lighter fluid also, and I light it with a Lighter!


Just don't buy the lighter fluid that comes out like a paste....crap. Don't leave the charcoal outside either, if it picks up humidity it's much harder to get going.

[chadcar]

I used match light once.



Once.



Never will do it again.



By the way,
Home Depot has some all natural hardwood charcoal for $4.00 per 20# bag. The manufacturer claims that it burns hotter than Kingsford and lasts as long as 37#'s of Kingsford. They also compare ingredients. The hardwood stuff only has hardwood carbon. Kingsford includes several petroleum probucts, a little bit of actual charcoal, and some sawdust (to make it look natural). Plus it costs $9.00 for 18#'s. I have tried that hardwood stuff several times, and I like it so much that I recently bought 100#'s of it to get me through a couple months.




I suggest everyone with charcoal sense does the same thing. It's much easier and more predictable than lump charcoal and tastes better than Kingsford's-type chunks of chemicals and ash. And much cheaper. 100#'s for $20.;)

[rimek]

I used to use the acetylene turbo for the same reason- gas didn't do have the charcoal taste, and lighter fluid stunk too much. So I got this:

http://www.weber.com/bbq/pub/grill/2007/charcoal/Performer.aspx

Uses standard propane cylinder to light off charcoal, and I use the lump stuff too- just cut yourself a screen out of expanded metal lath to keep the small lumps from falling through the regular grates.

[rimek]

The lump stuff actually tastes like a whole different method, some if it looks like the hardwood flooring, but it also will go out when you're done if you pop the lid on and you can use the coals again for your base layer next time. And you don't need to empty the ash bucket near as often as with the regular briquettes. Good stuff, maynard.

[Whale4]

http://www.nakedwhiz.com/lump.htm great info for lump here made the switch to lump about 5 years ago and love it, P.S I dont know why that smiley is there my fat fingers must have hit it by mistake

[James 3528]

If you are going to use charcoal then you are going to have to use a ignition method. Anyone with a spec of brain will wait for pre-soaked bagged charcoal to burn off the fuel just as anyone with a spec of brains would wait for added fuel to un-presoaked to burn off. I also used oak soaked wood strips I cut to cook steaks over. If you have to worry about charcoal cost you need to open a can or sardines instead and give the grill away. I have about 4 different kinds of charcoal and use them all. I use the pre-soaked most of the time because it is handy and although I like my park grill, loading it with lose charcoal is a pain.

[Green Mountain]

I made a chimney started out of a piece of 6" sheet metal duct about 12" long.

[fgp6889]

i dont use charcoal i buy wood hickory for wood burning split and light get the stuff thats good n seasoned and youll not need anything else either like the ease of charcoal and live with the taste or use gas with wood chips but i know thats not the way to do it in real mans land,,,end all conterversy buy a "electric" grill what a waste that'd be,build a fire throw it on so easy a cave man can do it

[green_apprentice]

i dont use charcoal i buy wood hickory for wood burning split and light get the stuff thats good n seasoned and youll not need anything else either like the ease of charcoal and live with the taste or use gas with wood chips but i know thats not the way to do it in real mans land,,,end all conterversy buy a "electric" grill what a waste that'd be,build a fire throw it on so easy a cave man can do it


so what are you saying? cave man are
not smart? im telling my mommy. LOL.

[jayhawker]

I have a set of 48 mirrors that all focus light from the sun on to one piece of charcoal once the first one is going you can keep adding charcoals at the rate of one every half hour and less than 24 hours you have a great bed of coals!

[zzonko]

The electric coil starter works best IMHO. Just plug it in, put yer coals in a pyramid on top of it and 10 minutes later you have glowing coals.

[hal parker]

Have for years used #2 fuel oil. Cheap, fast and smelly

[mark beiser]

But half the fun of grilling is dumping half a can of charcoal lighter fluid on it and lighting it off. :cool:

[magoo5150]

I use a chimney starter but set it on my fish fryer burner and put it on high flame. Coals are ready to dump in the grill in about five minutes. Works great for me.

[dave and julie]

I use gasoline which is also cheap and has the additional benefit of being more exciting to light.

[hearthman]

There are some videos floating around by some college whiz kids using a few gallons of liquid oxygen dumped onto a charcoal grille. It takes about 3 seconds to reduce the grille and coal to a small scorched spot on the ground.:eek: They had it on the college's website but had to remove it for the lawyers' sake.

Several versions of it out now.
Have fun Googling!
Hearthman

[viceman]

when i was a kid my dad always used gasoline. i loved watching him toss in the match. :D

[orion242]

>But half the fun of grilling is dumping half a can of charcoal lighter fluid on it and lighting it off.

Making sure to coat the inside of the grill also, cleans everything off!

[hvac_superman]

Turn on the gas, one push of the button and grilling in 5 minutes. Call me inpatient.

[jpw23]

petroleum products are poison.....why do this to yourself?

[smokin68]

After getting impatient with some charcoal that wouldn't stay lit(damp probably), I used my propane roofing torch. Fast.......and quite the site. Worked out so well I now keep it by the grill. Thought about this thread after I did this.......

[dave and julie]

petroleum products are poison...

So is the adult beverage held in my other hand while I BBQ.

[btcstudenthvacr]

Beer = poison :eek: were all gonna die...o wait we are all gonna dye someday.
I got the rusty trusty chimney starter. If I was to buy a new one I'd make one out of stainless or buy one out of stainless. I never have had any issues using good old newspaper and a long reach lighter. I even recycle the old coals out of the grill and add some fresh on top coals ready in 10-15 min.without that nasty k-1 flavor.

[idontgetit]

Life is a terminal desease!

Briquets piled up, squirt on fluid, light with extended lighter, squirt more fluid to get flames high enough to singe soffit, throw lid on, open vents, brush singed hair from arms while smelling the burnt hair, give Tim Taylor grunt and wait about 8 minutes.

Any more questions ? :D

[dave and julie]

that nasty k-1 flavor.

I only use K-1 if I am out of gasoline. If you let it burn off throughly, you won't have any flavor problems. If you are in a rush you should just pan fry your hamburgers.