Here's One The Worst Ways To Light Your Grill When You BBQ

There's a primal thrill that comes when you douse your charcoal briquettes with lighter fluid and then throw on a match, sending up the flames. You may feel like you're doing the right thing to get your coals grey, hot, and ready to grill. After all, it's probably how you saw the grill lit up when you were younger. For many years, it was the most popular method for lighting a charcoal grill, but now, science and grill pitmasters say this is one of the many mistakes people make with charcoal grills.

Not only is lighter fluid bad for the environment, but studies have found that petroleum-based lighter fluids can transfer harmful chemicals to food after only 10 minutes of cooking, especially if the coals aren't completely ashed over. While newer formulas burn cleaner, the chemical smell still has a way of lingering in the air and sometimes on the food. When it comes down to it, do you really even want to risk cooking with something that has a warning label for ingesting or inhaling the product when there are more efficient ways to do it?

When a Redditor asked, "When grilling, how do you light your charcoal? Do you use lighter fluid or fire starters, and why?" the replies were overwhelming on one point: Skip the lighter fluid and grab a chimney. That's how Alton Brown lights his charcoal grill, with the addition of some cooking oil drizzled on some old newspaper to speed up the process.

A charcoal chimney runs about $10 to $20 — roughly the same price as a 32-ounce bottle of Kingsford lighter fluid — but it's a one-time purchase that'll last for years. It's also safer to store around the house, unlike lighter fluid, which needs to be kept in a well-ventilated area that's out of reach for kids and away from sources of heat. A chimney is also a time saver. It usually takes 15 to 20 minutes for your charcoal to heat up, and it's a one-time light. With lighter fluid, you might light it, watch it flame out, get impatient, and spray on some more to speed up the process. In that case, you have to wait longer for the gasoline-like taste to burn off, and you risk inhaling the fumes. Your traditional lighter fluid grilling routine might be hard to break, but once you realize how efficient and easy the chimney is, you'll wonder why you bothered with the liquid fuel in the first place.