Why are my coals not burning?

R

RustyGrill

Knows what a fatty is.
Joined
May 27, 2010
Location
Lancaste...
A little help for a charcoal grilling newb, please.

First a little background and details. I've been gas grilling for about 10 years or so. Been getting more serious about my grilling for the last few years. Last summer, I was fortunate enough to get a OTG for free:becky:. I went through several months of using lighter fluid (sorry, I've since seen the error of my ways), but have switched to a Weber Chimney earlier this year.

At the moment, almost all my grill usage is fast and hot grilling. I've been using Kingsford charcoal lately, after discoving the generic cheap stuff in the grocery store sucks in many ways. But, even with the Kingsford, I'm noticing the next day when I clean my grill that anywhere from 12-20 coals are only semi-burned. Is this normal?

Possible relevant details: I'm not pouring the coals out of the chimney until I have some pretty good greying of the coals on top, I'm usually grilling with the vents wide open, and it's almost always pretty darn windy out here (no, I don't currently have any windbreak, but I'm working on it).

Thanks,

Rusty
 
I would just suggest leaving it in the chimney a little longer than you do now and see if that fixes it. I don't have that problem but I do let it burn a good while....
 
I leave mine in the chimney close to 30 minutes.
Then when I dump them out, I use my tongs to locate
ones that have the least ash on them.. and place them
in the hottest part. This seems to get them all.
 
The only reason that I have leftover coals in my kettle is that when I am done grilling I shut down all of the vents snuffing out the fire...
 
Captain P.J. said:
The only reason that I have leftover coals in my kettle is that when I am done grilling I shut down all of the vents snuffing out the fire...
Click to expand...

Yep. If your running WOT (wide open throttle, as in all vents open) and you have unburned chunks of charcoal left, I believe you have an issue with your charcoal. Could be humidity or it has gotten wet.
 
I've had this happen lately when I had a lot of juices dripping on the meat and I skimped on charcoal. I think they stay lit better when I have more tighter together, but I could be wrong, and I'm sure the unbearable humidity of this summer plays a factor as well.

You ought to just shut it down when you're done though to use the leftover charcoal to supplement your next cook. As long as it all stays lit during the cook, there's no issues, right?
 
Kevin said:
Yep. If your running WOT (wide open throttle, as in all vents open) and you have unburned chunks of charcoal left, I believe you have an issue with your charcoal. Could be humidity or it has gotten wet.
Click to expand...
The seal on my Weber is pretty tight... I my 20+ years of using Kingsford, in a variety of weather, I can still snuff it out and have some charcoal left... (also I keep my lump and kingsford charcoal in the garage...) If your grill is hot enough to cook your meat and you have some charcoal left even better!!
 
Thanks for all the suggestions guys. There is a possibility that moisture has gotten onto the coals while in the bag (I have two young kids that like to play with the hose), but meat juices might be the more likely of the two. I seem to recall that the left over coals tend to be clustered in one area, instead of miscellaniously scattered. I would think wet coals might be more random.

FWIW, I have a lousy seal on my lid. It was a little bent out of shape when I got it. Still working on bending it back into shape.

I'll try leaving the coals in the chimney a bit longer. With the wind I get out here it takes over 30 min just to get some ash on the top coals. I normally try to wait until they are pretty much ashed over.

I'll be doing some grilling tonight, so I'll let the chimney burn a bit longer than usual and see if that helps.

Thanks again!
 
I regularly have leftover coals, especially when grilling (compared to low-n-slowing). I don't worry too much about it, because I can always reuse them

Please keep in mind, though. Old gray coals look a lot like freshly lit, ash covered, hotter than the sun coals. You can tell the difference, though, if you pick them up with your fingers...
Trust me
 
Hey Rusty, welcome. A chimney makes a huge difference, in every way. I've read your original post several times. Maybe I missed something, do you get the cook time you need with only 12 to 20 coals being used? If you do, you've got a super efficient grill. If not, then it's airflow or wet coals.

I really hope I read the original post right, or I'll hear about it.

Matt
 
MOS95B said:
I regularly have leftover coals, especially when grilling (compared to low-n-slowing). I don't worry too much about it, because I can always reuse them

Please keep in mind, though. Old gray coals look a lot like freshly lit, ash covered, hotter than the sun coals. You can tell the difference, though, if you pick them up with your fingers...
Trust me
Click to expand...

I almost always shut all the vents when I'm done cooking and reuse the charcoal; I'm generally surprised when I open a kettle back up and there aren't coals in it...
 
el_matt said:
Hey Rusty, welcome. A chimney makes a huge difference, in every way. I've read your original post several times. Maybe I missed something, do you get the cook time you need with only 12 to 20 coals being used? If you do, you've got a super efficient grill. If not, then it's airflow or wet coals.

I really hope I read the original post right, or I'll hear about it.

Matt
Click to expand...


Hey Matt, thanks for the welcome!

I'm typically using a full chimney when grilling. I'm sure you're correct, though, that it's either wet coals or airflow. Getting off on a related tangent for a moment: can fairly high winds (say, sustained 20+ mph, with gusts on top of that) cause airflow problems?
 
A full Weber holds I believe approx 100briquettes, so 12 to 20 is not bad. Like already mentioned, I also save the unburnt coals for a fast cook like a steak.
 
{Midnight ☼ Smoke};1361526 said:
A full Weber holds I believe approx 100briquettes, so 12 to 20 is not bad. Like already mentioned, I also save the unburnt coals for a fast cook like a steak.
Click to expand...


I've never bothered counting the coals in the chimney, but I'm curious. I think I'll do that one of these days. I decided last night to just go with the flow; I closed the vents after the food came off and now I have LOTS of leftover coals to use tonight!
 
Yes, winds will increase the burn if your intake vents are opened up. It will also decrease the internal temp. I typically move my UDS into the dog kennel on windy days. That has a double effect, it keeps the wind off of my smoker and it warms up the kennel. Lars and Winston like it!

So, do you only have 12 to 20 coals burned, or left over?

Matt
 
el_matt said:
Yes, winds will increase the burn if your intake vents are opened up. It will also decrease the internal temp. I typically move my UDS into the dog kennel on windy days. That has a double effect, it keeps the wind off of my smoker and it warms up the kennel. Lars and Winston like it!

So, do you only have 12 to 20 coals burned, or left over?

Matt
Click to expand...


I usually have 12-20 unburned/semi-burned out of the whole chimney. Which I guess isn't bad if the chimney does indeed hold @100. Sorry I wansn't more clear (2x :icon_blush:).

I need to learn how to use my vents. This is a bit more interactive than gas grilling, but a lot more fun. I'm enjoying the learning curve. My gas grills see very little usage nowadays.
 
One thing with the briquettes is the ash tends to stick to the coal and can actually snuff out the fire before the coals burrn away completely. There are some shakers and such to knock the ash off, but that tends to send it up with the heat and onto the food. I'd suggestrying the limp charcoal. Burns hotter, nire even, less ash and no chemical binders to shape the things. I find lump also imparts a much better flavor on the food. Using the vents to shut down the fire will allow ou to use fairly little amount of coals for each cook.
 
Captain P.J. said:
The only reason that I have leftover coals in my kettle is that when I am done grilling I shut down all of the vents snuffing out the fire...
Click to expand...

What he said. I do it deliberately and use what is left for the next fire. I just pour the new coals on top. If you leave you vent open they will all burn down to ash.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

I
Issue with Memphis Pro Pellet Grill
Replies
2
Views
324
Vision
V
R
Coals burned down vs charcoal
Replies
11
Views
681
SmokinAussie
SmokinAussie
M
Are there any good "long burning" charcoals?
Replies
15
Views
2K
TC Smoke & Que
T
J
My Annual Deer Grind.......
Replies
18
Views
742
SmokeOCD
S
K
Portable grill for camping
Replies
16
Views
1K
rymorg
R
Back
Top