One of the great lessons we learned from our father was how to use a charcoal chimney. It's easy to use and eliminates the need for lighter fluid completely! See how easy it can be to have nice hot coals waiting for you without all the hassle and how to make your own if you don't plan on purchasing one...
LIke our parents before us, we've used a charcoal chimney for almost as long as we can remember. It was a staple around our home and has continued to have a place in our outdoor cooking routine even after we had left the nest.
Don't think that just because you live in an apartment or don't have a full size charcoal grill that you don't need one, it's a must for anyone cooking over coals and gets your fire ready faster and more efficiently. They usually retail between $15-$25 and will last the average backyard or balcony cook 10 years or more (if it's not left out in the rain). It's basically a metal cylinder with a grate inside to allow for airflow.
You simply place a few sheets of newspaper under the chimney, below the grate and unlit charcoal into the cylinder above the grate, until it reaches the top. Light the newspaper (in a few places through the holes on the bottom of the chimney) and it will ignite the charcoal all the way to the top. Your coals are ready when they are at least 50% charred, but usually 10-20 minutes will do the trick, just enough time to get things ready for the grill! The chimney helps it burn hotter faster, which means you'll have delicious food in your tummy sooner!
Here's a video we found on YouTube that demonstrates this process beautifulyl!
Make sure to keep an eye on your fire for the first few minutes to ensure that the coals did catch the fire and that you can see embers down inside. Please don't stick your snout down next to the coals as they will be quite hot, even if they don't look it yet! Once you've dumped your coals into your grill, allow it to cool before storing. Your chimney can be used while sitting on your grill grates, on concrete or asphalt or any other heat safe surface you have available to you. Make sure it's out of reach of children and pets that might be passing by!
If you aren't into buying one off the shelf, we did find a few tutorials on making your own out of a coffee can and wire hangers. We're personally in the mindset that it looks like more pain than it's worth, but if you're a die hard diy-er, then it might be right up your alley!
(Images: Flickr users Wired2Cash & Michael Dietsch under the Creative Commons license)
Soda Recipe: Homemade Ginger Ale
Recipe: Spring Fruit and Nut Tabouli
Good Food to Share 
The Big Book of Small, Cool Spaces 
Apartment Therapy Presents 
The Eight-Step Home Cure 
TW Salt Mill by Wil...
The Ultimate Used Furniture Cleaning Kit
Ana Creates a Community at Home
If you have a large grill, get two chimneys, so you don't have to wait!
Excellent tip, thanks jumpyfroggy!
My dad swears by these, too--when he found out I didn't have one, he went out and bought one for me. They work wonderfully and are much better than lighter fluid!
If you're in England, don't use The Guardian...for some reason it doesn't burn.
Can't live without mine- I prefer charcoal to propane, and it's fool proof. So much easier than fluid.
I love mine, but I actually still use some lighter fluid -- I splash the newspaper and then squirt a bit on the charcoal from the top, too. When I don't use lighter fluid at all, I sometimes end up with very slowly smoldering newspaper and barely or not-at-all lit charcoal. The fluid seems to all burn off well before it's time to cook.
A good way around that kenboy is to light the paper in multiple places, say 5 or 6 (or hold it up above your head while lighting although we should officially tell you we can't support this idea since it's not exactly safe... even though we've been known to do it a few times) and get more of the paper lit, it can help get things going a little quicker!
We've been using one ever since Alton Brown recommended them and we bought our first grill. We use a little cooking oil on the newspaper to get things started seems to work every time and use lump charcoal. I know Alton also does some cooking just on top of his, too but we haven't done that yet.
These are the best. I've advocated them for years. So much better than food that tastes like lighter fluid. I'm not sure why more people don't use them.
We burned a small quantity of charcoal the other night for a batch of s'mores, and used the charcoal chimney for the entire burn. It kept the heat focused in one area for toasting the marshmallows.
i am a gas griller myself, but even i know to use a chimney if i am going to use coals. Thought everyone knew about these?
I grew up in a "charcoal-only" home and my dad has used one as long as I can remember. It usually helps to kind of roll the newspaper into long crinkly chunks instead of just crumpling them up into balls. But either way, ditch the lighter fluid!
Tip from an old chimney user (chimney and user both old!):
If the newspaper is packed in too tightly in the chimney, it will be hard to light and only smolder. Better to crumple it loosely, allowing space for air to circulate and encourage burn.
Happy grilling :)
Excellent article, full of great tips! Also thanks for linking to my tutorial at http://www.opentutorial.com/Make_a_charcoal_chimney . You are correct it was a pain to make that chimney (actually pain in the fingers) I made that chimney in July of 2006 and it lasted me until summertime of 2008. I then decided to buy a larger commercially built one. It cost me less than $15 and with all the money I saved from buying lighter fluid it was a bargain!
We burned a small quantity of charcoal the other night for a batch of s'mores, and used the charcoal chimney pipe for the entire burn. It kept the heat focused in one area for toasting the marshmallows.