Charcoal Usage Guide

[Billy W]

Being new to charcoal grilling, I have no problem experimenting, but was hoping someone could point in the right direction to find a guide of some sort that explains or recommends how much charcoal should be used for a cook.
I remember seeing somewhere that 12-15 pieces of charcoal will maintain a 220 to 250 degrees for smoking, so I am assuming that there must be other guides out there for saying grilling burgers, chicken, brisket, ribs, etc..
I have been using 3/4 to full chimneys and feel it's overkill when I grill up 4 burgers and some hot dogs.
What does everyone else use when grilling basic easy stuff like the above mentioned.
Plus it would help me conserve some charcoal. Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks,

Billy

 

[Regina S]

Hey Billy, Cooks Illustrated, The Webers grilling cookbooks, and Steve Raichlin grilling books all have the info about how much to use. You will fine tune it for yourself and it will become second nature. If you don't want to buy them just go to the bookstore and peruse them to get a general idea. I don't think using 3/4 of a chimney is overkill for burgers and hot dogs, but that is just my opinion.

 

[Corey Elks]

hope this helps
http://help.weber.com/manuals/...pes_62620_012811.pdf

 

[Joe S.]

For smaller cooks I cut down to about 25 - 30 briquettes and I get plenty of heat.

 

[Tim Harcoff]

I've found it's better to use a little too much than too little. You can always adjust the air--flow to reduce heat, but it's hard to increase heat after you've started cooking.