The side light method - The most effiecient way to light a charcoal smoker or grill


 
Timothy F. Lewis said:
So why use a torch to solder the fount on the lantern? Why not use an iron?
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Didn't have one big enough. Then it comes down to which will be more useful in the long run, a propane torch or a high wattage soldering iron. As pointed out previously, the torch has a multitude of uses. The soldering iron, not much unless you're an electrician. I'm also not sure the iron would have made a difference. I don't think the kerosene ignited directly from the torch flame. I think it got hot enough to ignite on its own. I'll be the first to admit my soldering skills are seriously lacking. I probably got the fount a lot hotter than it needed to be.

I honestly thought the kerosene had fully evaporated and if there was any remaining in the folds it would be so little as to not be an issue. It's not like it exploded. There was just an unexpected whoosh when it ignited. I let it burn off.

Aside from the open flame around containers that used to hold flammables, I think the lesson here is to always buy the painted kerosene lantern. The paint helps fill the voids in the seam. I saved a couple bucks with the unpainted one but ended up spending more on solder than I saved on paint. On the plus side, I now have a propane torch for various projects around the house, including the lighting of individual briquettes when needed. I used it for that on my last "snake" cook.
 
JayHeyl said:
Didn't have one big enough.
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Not sure if you could have bought one at any ole big box store with enough thermal mass to do the job either. I had some pretty good sized irons at work, and I've yet to see anything bigger than a hobbyist Weller (in the stores) around here. Course, one could always order one for $300.00... :eek:

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RemoGaggi said:
Why does the body and lid have to be on when using this method? Is there a significant difference if you do it with the lid off?
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With the body and lid on you are pre-heating the entire smoker. Thus allowing it to get up to temp quicker.

Another benefit to the torch method is you get no white smoke. Clean thin blue smoke right from the start.
 
timothy said:
It has more than one use, sweating pipes, stripping paint, loosening up rusted bolts etc and even making a creme brulee.:)
Mine was never a uni-tasker, it was in the garage for years for other projects, until I got the idea to use it as a charcoal starter..
Tim
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Maybe for you, but I've never done any of those things.
 
Bill Elwell said:
Fastest? I would have thought that would be a flamethrower...
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Short of a thermonuclear reaction, I don't think anything will beat a shower with liquid oxygen for getting charcoal ready to cook. Seriously, combustion combines three factors -- heat, fuel, and oxygen. If any of the three aren't available in sufficient amounts, the combustion will be restricted. With the flamethrower you've got loads of heat and fuel, but oxygen is still limited to what's available from the atmosphere. Pouring liquid oxygen on charcoal with some kind of heat source, like just a lit cigarette, you've got fuel, heat, and a huge supply of oxygen. And with liquid oxygen, there's none of that petroleum aftertaste like there is with the flamethrower.
 
JayHeyl said:
Short of a thermonuclear reaction, I don't think anything will beat a shower with liquid oxygen for getting charcoal ready to cook. Seriously, combustion combines three factors -- heat, fuel, and oxygen. If any of the three aren't available in sufficient amounts, the combustion will be restricted. With the flamethrower you've got loads of heat and fuel, but oxygen is still limited to what's available from the atmosphere. Pouring liquid oxygen on charcoal with some kind of heat source, like just a lit cigarette, you've got fuel, heat, and a huge supply of oxygen. And with liquid oxygen, there's none of that petroleum aftertaste like there is with the flamethrower.
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Big impressive flames, not really that fast. The coals are hardly ashed over.
https://youtu.be/MDHHfJBTaqY
 
JBooker said:
Big impressive flames, not really that fast. The coals are hardly ashed over.
https://youtu.be/MDHHfJBTaqY
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Watch to the end of the video I linked. Using charcoal and a bucket of liquid oxygen he melts a cheap portable grill into a molten pile of metal.

Ash accumulates when there's nothing to remove it. The combustion was so violent when the LOX was being poured that the ash was carried away. If you look carefully after the pouring stops, ash begins to form over the entirety of many of the coals, it doesn't work outward from a single point like it would normally as the coal catches fire. This all-over ashing is a clear indication the whole surface of the coal is actually burning. It was interesting that one coal right on top of the pile appears completely unburned. I also think his pouring technique could use a little work since the coals around the edge appear largely untouched. Not that I think I'd have done a better job. With that much flame and sparks flying everywhere I'd have probably dropped the bucket and headed for safety. You can certainly see why fire marshals declare LOX to be an incendiary device and make such use a violation of fire ordinances.
 
Were they using it to start the charcoal or was it already lit and just playing with liquid oxygen? Id say its already lit, but you don't really get a good view. That grill at the end is a heavy duty pie tin, and some antenna tube for legs. You could fold it in half with your hands.

The video I posted was actually lighting, and you can see the wood on top of the pile is some what charred but its not burning. All that violent burning and sparks going up in the air is your burning charcoal.
 
JBooker said:
Were they using it to start the charcoal or was it already lit and just playing with liquid oxygen? Id say its already lit, but you don't really get a good view. That grill at the end is a heavy duty pie tin, and some antenna tube for legs. You could fold it in half with your hands.
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I read somewhere that at least one of the fires in that video used a lit cigarette as the ignition source.

I'm aware the melted grill was very flimsy. That's why I originally referred to it as "cheap portable". But even cheap, flimsy, fold-in-half-with-your-bare-hands grills require a goodly amount of high heat before they collapse into a molten pile.
 
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