How to Light a Charcoal Chimney

[JGo37]

Months ago I started a vote on whether to spend the extra $$ to get the igniter option on a Weber Performer. jfmorris commented that he uses his igniter no matter what charcoal cooker he's going to use, and I had an epiphany when I read that again today.

I bet everyone has an old one or two of the pictures below. And an old grate. But - when I browsed this today I found out you can buy a single burner for ~ $ 12.00, or the turkey fryer stand without the stock pot for ~ $ 15.00. You can buy a small square grate for ~ $ 10.00

I realized today that I've got a couple universal chimney lighters in my shed that I've never used until today, and they're pretty cool and good at it too.

[Fire Art]

Mine is a double it also stands in for 32x14 flat top

[EdF]

Those will get the job done, for certain!

[Mudbeaver]

I still use wadded up newspaper, have thought about using the side burner on my gasser but figure why make a mess of it

[JGo37]

I would hesitate to use a cooking burner, but my turkey fryer stand is great!

[Mudbeaver]

Is it a lot faster than using newspaper? I have the Weber chimneys and they light up pretty quick

[JGo37]

I'm usually doing a low and slow, so I only need 3 minutes of high propane-fueled flame before I dump the chimney and let it catch up to ~ 235F and hold it.

[Cheef]

I just use a Weber starter cube. Works way faster than newspaper and don't have all the ash blowing around.

[JGo37]

When I use a cube I put it in the middle of the chimney and use a long fireplace match to light up, and that's it.

[jfmorris]

I’ve got a couple of burners that I use for brewing, but don’t leave them out by the grills in the rain, but they could certainly be used as a charcoal starter like that.

[JGo37]

Works well if you have a full chimney to heat up. I usually use the small Weber chimney - more than enough to slo'n'lo'.

[Steve R.]

This definitely is a good way to do it, and I use mine for this on occasion. I don't like using newspaper because of the ash that blows around. Weber starter cube on a couple of bricks is my go-to method. I really like the idea of the starter cube inside the chimney.

[JGo37]

I saw Fireman laying his on the top of an SnS, and starting putting mine inside the charcoal stack. The ash from the cube that is usually left on the grate disappears.

[EdF]

I've got a package of these Rutland starters - they work really well. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

[JGo37]

How many squares does it typically take?

[EdF]

I have the chimney of insanity from BBQ Dragon. One does it. And one does it for the Ooni Pro and for the KBQ to get the charcoal bed up, even without the chimney.

[JGo37]

Well then that's a lot of lights for the $$. I'll have to try them.

[ecowper]

I have a propane tank because of our Blackstone pizza oven ..... so, for $12 I can add a single burner and never have to worry about newspaper or firestarters again? ..... F’ing brilliant

[JGo37]

WOW - so glad you think so. Now go catch me a sockeye, will ya?

Yeah - it was an epiphany. A real 'Duh' moment... Made me feel smart and stupid at the same time.

[EdF]

I get it JGo37 , We have one of those "Cajun" something or others that we got for boiling sap down to maple syrup, and it's killer!

[Troutman]

Side burner on my gasser....

[jecucolo]

I ran out of starter cube the other day and used 3 pieces of newspaper and it really take about the same amount of time to get the chimney started.

[JGo37]

It seems always breezy here. I used to use paper, but spreading ashes all over annoys me.

[ckreef]

I just blast my MAPP torch under the chimney for 30-60 seconds and job is done .Used this method earlier tonight.

[JGrana]

Side burner on my gasser....

I use the "sear" burner on my gasser. It'd didn't do a very good job at searing meats anyway - and the stainless steel grate fits perfectly on the top of my KBQ firebox ;-)
Remove the grate, set the chimney on top for 3-4 mins - done.

[cmschroeder456]

I use the side burner on my grille most of the time. It makes a absolute mess, but it gets the job done quick. Only problem is the transfer to the smoker, which usually leaves some burn marks in the deck.