Make a charcoal chimney

From OpenTutorial

Lighting charcoal briquettes without lighter fluid is easy with this homemade Charcoal Chimney

Contents 1 Materials Needed 2 Making the Charcoal Chimney 2.1 Placing the holes 2.2 Making a Wire Mesh 2.3 Making the Handle 3 Warnings 4 Usage Notes 5 Bibliography 6 Amazon's Related Products 7 See Also 8 External Links

[edit] Materials Needed

• 1 #10 tin can (coffee can)
• 1 can opener
• 1 church key
• 2 Wire coat hangers
• 1 drill with a 1/8" drill bit
• 1 pair of diagonal cutters
• 1 pair of needle nose pliers

[edit] Making the Charcoal Chimney

[edit] Placing the holes

• Begin with a clean #10 tin can remove any labeling that may be on the can.
• With the can opener remove both ends to form a basic chimney (Fig 1)

• Using the church key make a series of triangular holes on one side of the can separated by about 2 inches (see Fig 2.) (this side will be referred to as the bottom)

• Drill two sets of eight holes about 3 inches from the bottom of the can (see Fig 3.) with about 3/4 of an inch separating the 2 holes in each set

• Drill 4 holes for handle (see illustration)

[edit] Making a Wire Mesh

• Open the coat hangers and straighten with the pliers
• Cut the coat hanger into 12 8 inch pieces using the diagonal cutters
• With the pliers form a hook at one end of each of the 12 pieces of wire about 3/4" in diameter

1. Thread the straight end of the wire through the can to it's opposite hole making sure to thread the hook end into it's corresponding hole

• Insert the hook into the the hole nearest it and using the pliers, on the inside of the can bend the wire so that it cannot be removed from the can (see Fig 5. for what this should look like)
• Repeat the inserting process for all the holes, you may have to drill additional holes and place additional wires to make a tighter mesh depending on the size of charcoal you plan to use. (I had to do this, see Fig 5.)

[edit] Making the Handle

• For the handle drill 2 sets of two holes, one set at the top of the can and another near the mesh. Drill the sets vertically
• take the remainder of the coat hanger and fasten it in the same manner done when creating the mesh (See Fig 6.)

[edit] Warnings

• Be careful, I cut myself twice while building this be smarter than me, use gloves.
• I make absolutely no claim to the safety of this project, make it and use it at your own risk. There are professionally built Charcoal Chimneys on the market (see #Amazon's Related Products below.) Please consider buying one if for any reason you feel uncomfortable about making your own.

[edit] Usage Notes

• This particular design lights enough lit charcoal to fill a small barbecue, perfect for cooking a few burgers at a time. If you need to fill a large barbecue then you may want to make more than one of these or consider purchasing a larger one.
• To see this Charcoal Chimney in action go to Light charcoal without lighter fluid

[edit] Bibliography

• ( ISBN 1563058669 ) The Barbecue! Bible: Over 500 Recipes
• ( ISBN 0761120149 ) How to Grill: The Complete Illustrated Book of Barbecue Techniques
• ( ISBN 1558322973 ) The BBQ Queens' Big Book of Barbecue

[edit] Amazon's Related Products

• ( ASIN B00004U9VV ) Weber 87886 Chimney Starter
• ( ASIN B00004RALR ) Weber 751001 22 1/2-Inch One-Touch Gold Charcoal Grill, Black
• ( ASIN B000F64UKA ) Big Green Egg BGE Premium Natural Charcoal 20lbs, - CP

[edit] See Also

• How to Light charcoal without lighter fluid

[edit] External Links

• Chimney Starter Wikipedia Article