How to Use a Charcoal Chimney Starter

[schova]

I feel like he dumped the coals a bit early. I would wait til they are more lit up?

[canon21100]

I learned the hard way not to use these chimneys when barefoot. It's quite easy for some small coals to fall on the patio when you dump them, not fun to step on I can assure you.

[Boyka63285]

why do you use the paper?

[knight6]

@Boyka63285 the paper underneath burns quickly and gets the fire going underneath the charcoal to let the charcoal ignite. the metal can keeps the fire underneath the charcoal and lights it from the bottom up.

[Boyka63285]

@Boyka63285 how long do i need to hold the coals in the chimney?

[Siddhattha72]

Thanks for the video. I bought one of these but it had no directions, so I built a little fire with sticks first and then put the chimney on top. Your way is much faster, obviously!

[marktrenkle]

You don't wait for the charcoals to ash first? Most would recommend you do that, but I guess whatever makes your steak go from red to brown works.

[darkdefender85]

I just got one of these and had no idea how to use it! Thank you for this video!

[inthecrapper]

what kind of grill is that?

[sniperkj]

Thanks for the informative video.

[SoCalDude805]

By the time the flames get to the top, the bottom coals already have half their burn time wasted. Anybody else have that problem? How long should hot coal burn for, 1 hour?

[paulobaka]

@SoCalDude805 Dont worry about the bottom ash. You will still get a good 50-60 minutes out of the coals. I was worried bout the same thing when I started.

Taking the coals out too early will be detrimental to cooking and flavor.

[knight6]

does that work with lump charcoal as well?

[yukshee]

How to Overcomplicate Stuff 101----This is utter bollox...6 pile in the charcoal add about 6 lights and sod off to have a drink. Come back and cook. FFS

[ENP1980]

thanks man!

[wickedwahine76]

My sister & I live in California.... the Wind was really blowing, but WE were determined to BBQ today!!!. This new "Toy" for the Webber was great!!! We did Steaks, Chicken, Corn and Asparagus.... yum. So it does indeed work, even in the Winds LOL ;-)

[enchauva]

Thank you for the tutorial!!! Now it's time to grill without any lighter fluids!!!! :D

[1Nekit1]

Minecraft

[1melizana]

first time I ever heard this. That's a great product. I never liked using char fluid. Sometime I would use a propane torch but even that takes time and effort. Very nice!

[whoopingchow]

Great! Now I won't be emasculated at the grill! Thanks for the video :D

[MandoXAug]

THANK YOU!!!!!!



[microchrome]

I agree! You weren't going to cook with those? Removed way too soon. Hell, I never use gloves... Unless it was a CHEAP knock off chimney then yeah, gotta use em but not really with a weber starter. Gotta wait till ALL the coals are white or your gonna taste that burning charcoal smell on the grill. Another 5 minutes should do it.

[aytacct]

Thanks for posting :D

[MsToasterlady]

The Argau Camping Toasters would be a great accessory

[klined]

pro-tip: a little neutral veggie oil on the newspaper really helps

[401504]

Thanks for the video! Happy Grilling!

[Trashfished]

Do you squirt the charcoal starter fluid through the holes on the side?

[redmartianresident]

Sore throat that day I guess.

[juano1953]

I place the chimney with charcoal on top of a one burner gas stove for a minute or so to start it .No paper ashes flying around. Takes 10 min or so.

[marcoscafe]

You should try using a Kindl-Stone with your charcoal chimney. Search for Kindl-Stone on YouTube.

[migkillertwo]

I like using a leaf blower or a shop vac a lot more

[unguebopelu]

This chimney looks bigger than the ones i have seen in walmart and target and kmart, is it a bigger chimney? and where can i find a larger one if any.

[klined]

@unguebopelu

home depot sells the weber brand charcoal starters. I have one, all I use

[SthealthRaider]

can i use firestarters instead of newspaper :S??

[toofpick151]

@SthealthRaider I use the little wax firestarters all the time with this and it works fine.

[her209]

I wish Weber made it where the bottom falls out instead of having to dangerously pour out the charcoal.

[AlexisFather]

thx

[208lilmorenalinda208]

thnks thats nice im going to get one now..

[djgambitron]

thanks to Steven Raichlen's "Barbecue-U" & "Primal Grille" shows for the original heads up on chimney starters (charcoal starter & instant light cubes are hideous!) & the general "keep it clean, keep it oiled" rules and the inspiration to buy my 1st grille & a chimney starter today.

just wanted to see a clear demo of how to use one & this one does it. i was just going to wad up a bunch of newspaper balls, but saw the donut technique elsewhere in a text page.

the BEST hotwings are GRILLED!!!

[LexusC916]

why did they do this when some people don't like charcoal like me!!!

[gotlogg]

@LexusC916... LOL you are smrt

[duncbot]

god, pandurate....  relax

[darkknight17]

Mr Charcoal Guru I cannot thank you enough for posting this. Thank you

[SonicBoomC98]

I recently started using one. I've been intending to for a couple years now. THe food has a great flavor. I think I was cooking too early when I Was using fluid I wasn't waiting long enough for hte charcoal to get read and white. So, do you all put your paper in a doughtnut? I usually just pack it it loosely and flat

[knight6]

@SonicBoomC98 it probably doesn't matter if the paper is in a doughnut or not, but making the paper in a doughnut allows air to get in the middle of the chimney when lighting the paper.

[GinaShay]

I was on a site and I saw a C/S and I am going to buy one. Thanks for the video! I am going to show my fiance that I can grill! In his face!

[TnTtv15]

Thanks for the tutorial. I've always wondered how these worked.

[dwightinutah]

To store charcoal long term...5+ years in 6 gallon buckets, is it recommended to put desiccant packets to make sure moisture does not ruin the charcoal? Or will the charcoal remain moisture free if sealedin a 6 gallon bucket...the kind that people store foods in?

[pandurate]

You're supposed to use grilling gloves/mittens when handling the hot chimney starter. This is common sense and is also mentioned on the Weber chimney starter's product packaging. You also removed the charcoal too soon--the top coals were not ashed over much if at all.

[grillingguru]

Yes, grilling gloves are ideal.

But I disagree with your second comment. If you wait too long, when there is abundant fire at the top of the chimney you start to loose charcoal. It burns very fast and if you even step away at that point for a few minutes you can see a noticeable reduction in the height of charcoal in the chimney because its burning off. Thats wasted charcoal. If you dump a bit early there is no harm, the rest will light slowly in the grill, giving you longer lasting heat.

[pandurate]

It's not wasted charcoal. Wasted charcoal are the ones that never get hot enough to cook with. Weber disagrees with you so that's pretty much "enough said".

[grillingguru]

Actually, they do get hot enough. Just sitting in the grill next to other hot coals, they start burning too in no time.

[grillingguru]

Oh, and also, if you haven't done any slow cooking (bbqing) or smoking before, you need to keep a low level of heat up over hours or longer. You add new, unignited coals on top of or next to your hot coals and they ignite just fine over a short amount of time. So to say that they never get hot enough to cook with is simply misinformed.

[BigBoss7777777]

@grillingguru Hi, what can I use in place of newspaper? I don't seem to have any.

[80Fantasma]

@grillingguru

Preach it Brother!

+1

[SonicBoomC98]

@pandurate I don't think it was too early. I know I used to leave mine til the top was completely on fire and ashed over but it seem to make my charcoal burn too fast. And it wasn't as hot. Its like it skipped white and ashy and went straight to gray and wasn't as hot

[klined]

got the weber one, so far so good

[ShadowJesus2009]

awesome:p

thanks:D

[shoeshining]

thanks i'm bbq'ing for the superbowl and just bought one of these chimney's and this really helps!

[amirkhayn]

thanks man,it really helps

[rhpersona]

Well, I gotta say this work well for me today. Before I had so many problems. It seemed so trivial but I was wrong. I don't have to use lighter fluid anymore. Because of you, I am a good arsonist now.

[wittenbergdoor]

this guy needs to clear his phlegm

[oggleman]

awesome video i'm grilling out on labor day and haven't used my grill or chimney in a long time

[BboyGrimm]

i wait til i see gray ash on the top but good vid

[plastik892]

Nice video and just what I was looking for. :) Great yard, love the natural flag stone and growth between it.

[klrscout]

You rock! I just poured the first load of charcoal in my barrel smoker.

[Blackened75]

UDS's rule!

[melvinhartwinkle]

I've found that using Weber fire starters (wax parafin cubes 24 in a box for $3.89) and using only 1 not 2 as recommended on the box, works perfect! No ash flying around from burning newspaper and even lights when wet. Trust me on this one.

[tuksonrider]

Hard wood charcoal DOES burn very hot, produces a nice smoke, BUT... it burns very fast. Natural charcoal burns ALOT longer, but you get a more charcoal taste rather than a wood smoked taste.

I think the charcoal was poured out a little too soon, but that's just my opinion.

[MacsCanfly]

how long does the Charcoal stay hot for?

[matt4270]

Briquettes stay hot for quite a while! Natural wood products more so. Lump charcoal, which is flatter and more "flake like" ( don't know how else to describe it!) burns hot,but inconsistently, and consumes itself fast! Go with natural briquettes! Usable Heat w/ natural close to 2 hours in my Weber 22.5!

[lml46]

Glad to see this video. I have a chimney charcoal starter and have used it 3 times, thinking each time what a PITA it is! That's because I didn't know to put the paper in the very bottom compartment....lol, I thought it needed to be inside the container with the charcoal directly touching the newspaper. What a schmuck I can be at times...

[unabonger777]

I climbed the mountain and received the wisdom of the guru.

[revoltagainsttheodds]

Thank you for the video

[kode1303]

Is there really anyone who don't know how to use a starter? I guess there is ...

[matt4270]

Good video! I have both the Weber CC, and the"other" discount CC you have in the picture on your site, and the Weber makes the other look like a childs toy! I use a can of Sterno instead of paper (less initial smoke), and with natural wood charcoal, it's hot enough to get it going pretty quickly. Thanks!

[roughrider119]

Great job. Very helpful. Thanks for the tip.

[sniperskull69]

thanks :)

[BigDhtl]

i must purchase one of those

[Goech]

I'd use fire starters instead of news paper. You won't have nasty bits of burned paper flying around then.

[neverhadachance6]

thank you for taking your time for the video. i seem to have problems with the the taste of the lighter fluid. this is a big help

[Jangosha]

Thanks for the tips. Just what I needed!

[rubber314chicken]

oh, and I don't think you should pour it so early.

[rubber314chicken]

1) thanks for the tip about doing a donut shape

2) use real charcoal. its lumps of charred wood.

[josh4974Seipher]

Very well done Sir. I appreciate the posting. Thanks for the help!

[grillingguru]

No problem! I'm glad it was helpful.

[dicerolls7]

Sir, thank you so much!!

[six25]

I'm a total newbie. I just bought a chargriller but don't know how to use the smoke stack and the damper circle. Can anyone help? Thanks!

[devlshlizzy]

Thank you so much - we had bought one of these charcoal chimney's but my husband had gotten impatient waiting so ended up dumping and lighting it lol.

So of course after following your example I got to yell up the stairway what a She-ra I was since I was able to get it going and staying lit. Ah vengence lol.

[BarbecueTricks]

nice video... i guess you are a gas only advocate?

[setmefree4ever]

JUST WHAT I WAS LOOKING FOR!! THANK MAN! the instructions from the starter i bought do not explain it like you do.

[PropagandaBuster]

Thanks! This is why I love YouTube.

[electrophile19]

Looks great! I'm a grillin gal all year round, so I'll have to get me one. :-)

[attizzatoio]

Can you use another method...visit on you tube write il barbecubo is an innovative system...

[ratnick]

Can you re-use the same charcoal over and over again ?????? Or how many time can you re-use them ??

[WineTastingsGuide]

If you have a good, tight grill that you can close up after you are done cooking, by closing the lid and all the vents, you can snuff out the charcoal. You can throw that old charcoal back in the chimney next time you grill. It might not be enough but you can add some new briquettes to make up for it. If you cook for a long time though they will burn out completely and you'll need all new charcoal the next time. Hope this helps!

[ratnick]

Thanks ! I just got a weber today, First time using charcoal.

[WineTastingsGuide]

Great! The weber kettle grills are awesome, outstanding for the cheap price. They have good temp control if you learn to use the vents and when you are done cooking simply close the vents on the bottom and on the lid and close the lid tightly and the coals will extinguish very shortly, leaving briquettes that you can use next time.

[hilltopjack]

thanks dude your a lifesaver.

[PaulyCracker]

What type of matches are those? Are they strike anywhere?

[grillingguru]

They were just standard fireplace matches. Not strike anywhere I don't think.

[PaulyCracker]

When do you know that hardwood lump charcoal is ready? Does it take long? I'm new to grilling. I enjoy your website too!

[grillingguru]

I'm glad you all found this useful! It really is the easiest way to get your charcoal started quickly and without any toxic chemicals.

[DeeAnimal1014]

Great vid, very helpful - thanks!

[MrBBQ57]

Another great buy is at Lowe's for 5 bucks!!

It's called Cowboy Hard Wood,,,2 great Charcoals to get!!

[MrBBQ57]

I got a 20 pound bag of charcoal for 3 bucks!! At Home Depot. It's called Rancher. A Great buy!!

I love using the Charcoal Chimney Starter,,,IT'S THE BEST!! I Drove to Wal-Mart to buy it after I saw this video,,,THANK YOU!!

Another great thing about it, it's protected from the wind when I light it with a long nose wind resistant jet flame BBQ lighter ;-)

[631959]

If you get in a pinch and need to get your charcoal going quick . Get a 3lb.coffee can , cut both ends out and put it on top of your chimmney . It will cut your start time in half . If you need a little extra charcoal put it on and fill it to when you start your chimmney.