Am I Doing Something Wrong?

Tired Jim

I've been firing up my egg using an electric starter for about the last year and, all in all, have had good results. It's apparent from reading the forum that most eggers use either propane or mapp. My question is what are the advantages/disadvantages of each (ignoring the obvious one of electrical access proximity)? I just get the feeling that I am missing something.

ChefRD

Tired Jim,
I'm not sure what most other Eggers use, but here's my story.
I have tried propane to light the lump, and with all the sparking it does, I soon decided I didn't like it.
I have not tried Mapp, but I'm told it only sparks more. Not something I wanted to try.
I used the chimney with paper on my old charcoal grill and did not like all the papers ashes that kept flying around after you first got it going and dumped the coals/paper mixture on your fresh coals. I just didn't like all the extra ash.
I've used the little Weber white 'foam' type cubes from Lowe's for 10 years now and seem to like them for their simplicity and convenience. Can't beat them for dependability and the price. And they are available at several places around here. (SW michigan)[p]Now, after 'all' these years, my local Wallyworld 'finally', got in some Greenheat Gel fire starter and I got a couple bottles.
So now, as of last month, that is my favorite. Very easy to squirt a glob on the coals, lights instantly and continues to burn with no aftertaste that I could discern, and starts the fire before the meat is ready. [p]So after playing with the torch and all the sparking and ducking and dodging of the glowing embers, I went back to the simple stuff.
I like the greenheat and the weber cubes better since I can just light it off and go back into the house and prepare the meat while the egg is warming up.[p]Like it was noted earlier, opinions, are just that.
HTH,
ChefRD.[p]

Eggecutioner

Tired Jim,[p]I would say your doing nothing wrong. If what your doing is working for you and your happy with the results, you have the answer already. I have tried Propane, BGE started cubes, webber starter cubes, and a Acetelene torch. The latter was the fastest, but not practical. I use the webber cubes 90% of the time. I have tried the others but I like the cubes.[p]I have not tried the green gel (or found it). I did see at Home Depot last week that they have some RED gel. fire place and BBQ starter. I haven't tried that either.[p]

Bobby-Q

Tired Jim,
For me it's almost a matter of time all the time. Sometimes I have things planned out enough that I could lay in the electric starter and wait for it to fire things up (I did this for quite a while until it snapped in half one day and I haven't replaced it). Usually I'm in a bit of a hurry and have to kind of rush things along. It's kind of silly when I look at it because I work from home and should have all the time in the world to start the egg, but alas the mapp gas in the guru golf club is my lifesaver.

Toy Man

I pretty have done the same as ChefRD and had gone back to using the Weber cubes when I could no longer find the Green Heat at Walmart.[p]However I just received the BBQ Guru propane club and after 2 uses, I like it. Sure starts a fire fast when used in conjunction with a small fan.[p]Not sure if I will continue to use it or go back to the weber cubes.[p]Toy Man

locolongball

Tired Jim,[p]I use MAPP Gas, and love it. Lite the lump right in the middle for about 15secs, and I'm ready to go.. That's it. Awesome.

WooDoggies

Tired Jim,[p]In my experience, no matter what method of fire starting you use, it will always take about the same amount of time to get a clean burning fire.... so go with the method you're most comfortable with... it will produce the same results in the end.[p]I used an electric starter for a couple years and could count on a hot bed of coals in 8 minutes... and switched over to the sawdust/parafin starters only after the the elements on the electric fell apart..... now I'm stuck on the sawdust starters.[p]By the way, I like your handle. :~)
John

fishlessman

<p />Tired Jim,
nothing wrong with using what works for you. for me the electrical access would be a problem. i would need extension cords to reach my egg, and my fire pit. i find the propane and mapp torches to be handy for this as well as soldering the occasinal water pipe and for lighting campfires when away from everything. the mapp torches light faster, but have plastic parts that are easily melted if you dont watch what your doing. the propane is slower. i just invert it in the lump and stand back to avoid the sparks.

katman

Tired Jim,[p]I've never used the electric starters, but I've used the chimney, webber cubes, green heat and the guru club with propane. I like the club the most, but nothing wrong with electric or any other method.

Crab leg

ChefRD,
I too love the Green Heat, but as someone posted here last year, NEVER ADD GREENHEAT TO AN ESTABLISHED FIRE!!!!
They had a flame suck back up into the bottle, and, well, you can guess that the next few minutes might have been more than a little exciting, followed by a trip th the dry cleaners if you know what I mean. I love the Green Heat and use it almost exclusively, but I thought that the previous disclosure should be thrown out there. The stuff burns almost invisibly, so you gotta be careful!
Seth