Weber Chimney Starter


 
Rusty James

Rusty James

TVWBB Emerald Member
Hi all,

What is volume of the large chimney?

I will be smoking six chicken halves soon, and according to Chris, he recommends using 1-1/2 chimneys of fully lit Kingsford charcoal briquettes. My chimney is of the Walmart variety, and not as big as the large Weber model.

Would two of mine equal 1-1/2 of the large Weber chimney?

Looks like I my need to use lighter fluid on one chimney load.
 
Well, the on-line dimensions of the Weber are 7.5" (diameter) x 12" high.

volume = d/2(squared) * pi * h = 398 cu in

You could measure your Walmart to calculate the same to compare.

Did I just do math before my first cup of coffee??? :rolleyes::)

[disclaimer: retired engineer....what can I say]
 
Rusty James said:
Looks like I my need to use lighter fluid on one chimney load.
Click to expand...
Can't comment on size as I measure by # of briq's not volume.

DON"T USE STARTER OR LIGHTER FLUID. Absolutely no need. Overlap 3 sheets of newspaper on a counter top so they're about 6 inches wider than if they were directly over each other. Slop a tablespoon of veg oil on the paper and smear it as much as you can over the over-lapped sheets edge to edge.

Roll the papers up jelly-roll fashion, not too tight but not too loose and tuck one end inside the other end so you have a donut.

Put that donut in the bottom of the chimney below the inside rack so the rack is between the paper and the briqs or just on the grate of a hibachi or kettle. I'll sometimes crumple up a fourth sheet and lightly insert it inside the jelly roll.

Light the crumpled up paper and jelly roll from the bottom. Once it's going good, then just place the full chimney on top of the burning mass (do this on your hibachi or kettle grating, not on concrete or asphalt).

It might seem to snuff out the fire when you do this (wait a bit'; if necessary, just re-light if necessary and maybe add another crumpled up paper). That chimney will get so hot, the sides turn cherry red.

Took longer to type this than the actual process I described.

Others use starter cubes. OR a propane burner like home owners use for plumbing work.

Newspaper is free.
 
Lighter fluid is not necessary. Starter cubes or rolled up newspapaper is sufficient. When I use the big chimney, I put a cube at the 12-3-6 & 9 o'clock positions, put the chimney over them & away she goes, [starter cubes are cheap as chips, & I don't like newspaper ash attacking me if it's a bit windy].
 
Erik Tracy said:
Well, the on-line dimensions of the Weber are 7.5" (diameter) x 12" high.

volume = d/2(squared) * pi * h = 398 cu in

You could measure your Walmart to calculate the same to compare.

Did I just do math before my first cup of coffee??? :rolleyes::)

[disclaimer: retired engineer....what can I say]
Click to expand...


My math is rusty (hence my name ;)), but I figured 248 cubic inches for my Walmart chimney (6.5 d x 8.00 h) - which is about 62% capacity of the large Weber model.

Looks like I'll need a little over two of my chimney loads to equal one and a half of the large Weber chimneys.
 
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Len Dennis said:
DON"T USE STARTER OR LIGHTER FLUID. Absolutely no need. Overlap 3 sheets of newspaper on a counter top so they're about 6 inches wider than if they were directly over each other. Slop a tablespoon of veg oil on the paper and smear it as much as you can over the over-lapped sheets edge to edge.

Roll the papers up jelly-roll fashion, not too tight but not too loose and tuck one end inside the other end so you have a donut.

Put that donut in the bottom of the chimney below the inside rack so the rack is between the paper and the briqs or just on the grate of a hibachi or kettle. I'll sometimes crumple up a fourth sheet and lightly insert it inside the jelly roll.

Light the crumpled up paper and jelly roll from the bottom. Once it's going good, then just place the full chimney on top of the burning mass (do this on your hibachi or kettle grating, not on concrete or asphalt).

It might seem to snuff out the fire when you do this (wait a bit'; if necessary, just re-light if necessary and maybe add another crumpled up paper). That chimney will get so hot, the sides turn cherry red.

Took longer to type this than the actual process I described.

Others use starter cubes. OR a propane burner like home owners use for plumbing work.

Newspaper is free.
Click to expand...

I'm trying to follow you, Len, but my brain is not registering for some reason. I've used paper and cubes in the past with good success, but I find that cubes work the best. However, your paper rolling technique looks like it may produce a hotter fire than just using one sheet. Do you roll these three sheets at the corners?



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Many thanks for your responses, all. I seldom use lighter fluid anymore, but I thought I might need it to light extra coals in the pit while lighting a load in the chimney too.
 
Put them on top of each other, offset by two inches or so. Then roll in a big sausage (like a jelly roll). Then bend in a circle and insert one end (a bit squished) so it fits inside the other end. Push it together so it forms a big O . Like a donut. It's the oil that will give you a better (and longer) start.

All I can say is, don't ever use lighter (or fire starter) fluid.
 
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Did the hot & fast chicken today, and I thought it came out pretty well according to all that ate it. Cooked four chicken halves at first on the top grate, and ate dinner while two more smoked. Before loading the last batch, I added another chimney of hot coals.

This last batch cooked faster than the first, and it showed on the thermometer (breast at 190 degrees). I'm sure the meat tastes fine, but the breast will be drier I'm sure. I coated the raw chicken with Slap Yo Daddy rub about an hour before smoking - which is a very good rub, indeed! It reminds me of eating BBQ potato chips, lol.

EDIT: Had a little trouble extinguishing my coals. I let the WSM sit for two hours with closed vents, but when I removed the stack and stirred the coals, the center was still lit. I also noticed a crack of daylight at the top of the door (actually had it inverted with the latch on the bottom). I assume that tiny crack may have been responsible for the still-lit coals. On the other hand, the 18" model has a lot of air volume inside, so maybe my situation is not unheard of.

Outside of heavy seasoning, is there an economical way to better seal the door without investing in a seal kit? Seems like the home centers should have some kind of hi-temp substance to remedy this.
 
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TonyUK said:
Lighter fluid is not necessary. Starter cubes or rolled up newspapaper is sufficient. When I use the big chimney, I put a cube at the 12-3-6 & 9 o'clock positions, put the chimney over them & away she goes, [starter cubes are cheap as chips, & I don't like newspaper ash attacking me if it's a bit windy].
Click to expand...

Tony,
Big chimney = Weber chimney ?
If Yes, do you use 4 cubes to lite it??
More than me. I thought I was excessive with 3 of those. Now Im more serene! ;)
 
Erik Tracy said:
Well, the on-line dimensions of the Weber are 7.5" (diameter) x 12" high.

volume = d/2(squared) * pi * h = 398 cu in

You could measure your Walmart to calculate the same to compare.

Did I just do math before my first cup of coffee??? :rolleyes::)

[disclaimer: retired engineer....what can I say]
Click to expand...

Drink a cup of coffee and run those numbers again. 3.75 squared x pi x 12. = 530 cubic inches. Give or take a briquette. 😀
 
Larry D. said:
Drink a cup of coffee and run those numbers again. 3.75 squared x pi x 12. = 530 cubic inches. Give or take a briquette. ��
Click to expand...


My numbers were off too.

My chimney holds 265.47 cubic inches instead of 248.

That means that my chimney only holds 48% capacity of the large Weber chimney - which means I would need three of my loads to equal 1 & 1/2 of the large Weber chimney.

That's a lot of coals - for me anyway.
 
Enrico said:
Tony,
Big chimney = Weber chimney ?
If Yes, do you use 4 cubes to lite it??
More than me. I thought I was excessive with 3 of those. Now Im more serene! ;)
Click to expand...


One starter cube works well for my chimney, although the large Weber chimney might need more.
 
Rusty James said:
Excellent idea, Charles!

I don't suppose the flames have to touch the coals?
Click to expand...

Turkey fryer works great too. You can get them closer to the flames if you flip the grate in your chimney starter. Some guys just pry it out and then back in. If you have a dermal or grinder just knock the heads off the rivits and replace them with bolts.
 
Thanks, JBooker. I'll keep the modification in mind, although I don't have a turkey fryer to speak of.

I thought about drilling a few .25" holes in the cylinder of my existing chimney, but I was concerned about rust. I do have some hi-temp grill paint, though, unless that may be taboo for health reasons.
 
I use the weber lighter cubes with my weber chimney. for a full chimney I use two lighter cubes. for a half chimney I typically use one. I have a cheap-o brinkman gas grill with a side burner but it doesn't light my chimney well. On my grill flame doesn't touch the charcoal and its no faster then cubes. Plus the benefit of a gas grill Is easy clean up and fast to light. lighting the chimney creates a lot of ash where you don't want it. Not a huge deal to some but I'd just rather light my chimney on the charcoal grate... only one place to clean up ash!

Good luck
 
I bought some starter cubes as a throw in to get free shipping on an Amazon order.
Used one just to try it out.
Threw a few briquettes on the grate to keep the cube from melting through and sat the cube on top, lit it and dumped a bunch of briquettes on top. Pretty much had a blazing inferno in no time.
Can't imagine needing more than one.

In regards to the question about the side burner flame needing to touch the briquettes.... I never thought about that before.
I just sit the chimney on the burner grate and light it.
 
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