All in favor of Sterno...say aye

[cigarman20]

Having tried many ways to light charcoal... I am sold on sterno. I read several posts on Wkc (@hawgheaven et al) and thought I'd give it a try.  Never going to use crumbled newspapers or Weber cubes again. Two cooks in, barely touched the sterno and I'm saving $$. No better way to go!


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[AnyThingGrilled]

Thanks for the post, I have never thought or heard of that it makes perfect sense. Post a pic of your setup or provide a link please.


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[cigarman20]

Couple of pics to show how I've used it under my chimney...


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[LiquidOcelot]

Those can be used multiple times yeah?

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[cigarman20]

Yes, the 6.5oz can of Sterno states a burn time of 2.25 hours. The coals I started this evening had 10 minutes of burn time before I pulled the can. That would yield approx. 14 starts. I think I paid less than $5 at Kroger for two cans. Probably a lot cheaper in bulk on line or perhaps at Walmart.


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[addicted-to-smoke]

And also cheaper than using Weber cubes.

91% isopropyl alcohol soaked in a cotton ball also works great, but you have to worry about evaporation.

[cigarman20]

I'll definitely give that a try this week. Thanks


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[YardBurner]

Great!  If I start stockpiling Sterno
my wife will accuse me of
making squeeze!!

[AnyThingGrilled]

Is there a danger of too long of a start? That's a lot of flammable liquid/gel and I have a track record of getting sidetracked.... Beer please.


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[addicted-to-smoke]

Is there a danger of too long of a start? That's a lot of flammable liquid/gel and I have a track record of getting sidetracked.... Beer please.

It's my understanding that when you light Stereo, you've lit the "whole thing," right? All fuel is exposed from its own flame, except that since it's a gel, not all of the fuel is actually exposed until the surface burns away. That's why it has a controlled burn time.

So a charcoal spark or chunk falling into the can isn't going to introduce "extra" heat or flame per se.

I'm a solid 70% confident with that answer.

[Jed.cook]

Anyone tried this? It says it has a two hour burn time. At $1/can, that'd be pretty darn economical.

https://www.dollartree.com/Fancy-Heat-Canned-Fuel-2-8-oz-Cans/p326227/index.pro


-Jed

[putoluto]

Ya, I think of sterno as like a gelatinous candle. Light the wick and it burns until the fuel is out (wax, gel) or you extinguish it.

Is there a danger of too long of a start? That's a lot of flammable liquid/gel and I have a track record of getting sidetracked.... Beer please.

It's my understanding that when you light Stereo, you've lit the "whole thing," right? All fuel is exposed from its own flame, except that since it's a gel, not all of the fuel is actually exposed until the surface burns away. That's why it has a controlled burn time.

So a charcoal spark or chunk falling into the can isn't going to introduce "extra" heat or flame per se.

I'm a solid 70% confident with that answer.

[LiquidOcelot]

My grandma gave me a bnib 12 pack of sterno. Havnt tried it yet. Will bring them to the west coast meet if anyone there wants to try one out

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[YardBurner]

Had an old tin sitting around and gave it a try.
Works like a charm!
I've lit about 10 chimneys so far and
barely made a dent in the fuel level.

Use gloves to remove and recover.
Started to use tongs but they didn't
feel secure enough.
Didn't want drop it and have that burning
gel splash all over a composite deck!  YIKES!

You'd never see the flames until it was too late.