Weber Chimney Starter ?


 
E

Ed Williams

New member
Ok, so i followed the instruction as posted on the Virtual Weber Bullet. I placed a small circular roll of paper in the bottom of the chimney, and then filled the chimney to the top w/ KB. I then lit the paper evenly around the chimney, and within 5 to 10 min. I had flames shooting 12" to 14" above the chimney. Is this normal?

I was going to let the flames die down a bit, but I eventually just poured the hot coals, flame and all into the ring.

This will be my first run on my new 18.5 WSM. Tonight I was just kinda burnin' it in. Tomorrow morning I am planning to cook 2 butts, and meatloaf for the inaugural cook.

Thanks in advance for the help.
 
I would say yes... I always get flames shooting up. They do die down and I usually wait until the top coals are starting to ash over (15 - 20 minutes with a full chimney) before I dump them into the ring.
 
Hi Ed,

Take a look at the article again (http://www.virtualweberbullet.com/chimney.html) and scroll down to the heading, "Lighting A Chimney Starter Using Newspaper". Click on Photo 8. That shows how charcoal should look in the chimney when it's ready to dump out. In the text below that photo, I write:

The charcoal is ready when you see orange color deep inside the chimney starter, flames licking at the charcoal at the top of the chimney, and gray ash just starting to form on some of the charcoal at the top (Photo 8).

If you wait for all of the charcoal at the top of the chimney to be fully ashed-over, much of the charcoal in the bottom of the chimney will be spent, so go ahead and dump the charcoal into your cooker when it looks like Photo 8.
Click to expand...

Have fun,
Chris
 
Thanks, Chris. I really didn't pay attention to that article since I had no issues with my chimney (partly because I had a cheap POS first and bought the Weber because it works so much better). You cover almost all the bases very well, but I wanted to comment about the first item in Safety Tips: "Wear heat-resistant gloves whenever handling a hot chimney starter."

Yes, excellent advice, but you may want to consider modifying it. My Weber mitts are "heat-resistant" and would work ok, but have two problems with them: 1) I'm concerned a stray spark or falling ember might burn right through or start them on fire. Even some of the available "rubber" or poly mitts might share that problem. I carefully turn over the chimney only over the small area of my 18.4 WSM -- that's a tight fit for hands, arms, chimney and hot coals which leads to 2) The Weber mitts are short enough that my bare arms come too close for comfort to that super hot chimney/coals.

I prefer to use a long set of leather glove. They might char, but won't melt or ignite. Mine (from Raichlen) are long enough to cover my entire arm to the elbow.

I do like the Raichlen leather gloves -- and I'm not generally an enthusiast for his products. They (or any leather gloves) are a little expensive and, frankly, I ONLY have use for them when handling my chimney starter, but I think they are well worth it just for that. They make a great Christmas or other "wish list" item -- they get priority from those concerned about your well-being :) .

Anyway, I just thought you might want to suggest something like that as opposed to just "heat-resistant". Or maybe it's just me and my own concern for nasty burns.

Rich
 
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I fill my charcoal ring up to the top, with wood chunks mixed in. I light it in 3 places with a high output propane torch. I let it heat up a bit before putting on the middle section and lid. I leave all the vents wide open, bringing it near my target cooking temperature, then start closing the bottom vents (I always leave the top vent fully open.

I used a chimney starter when I first started, I find this way much easier.

Bob
 
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