Independent comparisons. We may earn from shop links. More info

Charcoal BBQ tongs length: about 40 cm on a kettle

Updated: 22 October 2026

You are stood at a kettle with a pair that felt fine at the hob, and your knuckles are already warm. Charcoal asks for more reach than a frying pan, and it asks for a different tool if you rearrange the coals rather than turn a sausage. About 40 cm is the food-tong length to shop for. A longer coal rake is optional. A fireplace log tong is neither. The listings are on the [barbecue tongs comparison](/hub/grill-accessories/barbecue-tongs). Peter F. used the amazon.co.uk listings captured on 21 October 2026. A qualifying purchase through our links can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

You are stood at a kettle with a pair that felt fine at the hob, and your knuckles are already warm.

Our top picks

Hotec Hotec (two 12 in)

Best overall

Hotec Hotec (two 12 in)
6.8/10about £10.99
View offer
Weber Weber 6317 (40 cm)

Rank 2

Weber Weber 6317 (40 cm)
7.6/10about £11.26
View offer
DAILY KISN DAILY KISN (17 in)

Best value

DAILY KISN DAILY KISN (17 in)
7.4/10about £7.99
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.Why charcoal asks for more reach
  2. 2.What 40 cm looks like in the listings
  3. 3.Moving coals is not the same job
  4. 4.Keep the steel off the coals between turns

Why charcoal asks for more reach

A kettle puts the food in a round bowl of heat. Smoke & Soil treats about 35–40 cm as barbecue length and under 30 cm as too short. Those are guides. The 28–30 cm tongs in this set are kitchen tools. The wider buying order is the buying guide. Extra length is not automatically safer past about 45–50 cm. Weber's Precision pair, outside this set, is 45.5 cm at £26.99, not a minimum you must buy.

What 40 cm looks like in the listings

Weber 6317 is titled 40 cm, the details say 40.6 by 4.4 cm and 210 g, and the price is £11.26 with 4.7 from 2,043 reviews. Weber UK lists the same model at 40.5 cm and £11.49. The DAILY KISN one-piece is 17 inch, written as 43.2 by 3.7 cm, 191 g, £7.99. The seller's line about tips above 315°C is not a coal measurement. The review text is copied onto a £11.99 title that says two pieces while the details say one item. Hotec is 12 inch, 30.5 cm, at £10.99. Extodry's longer tong is 12 inch at £9.97. ZHIYE is 28 cm. Under the 35–40 cm guide, those are a second pair for the plate, not the only charcoal tong.
Hotec Hotec (two 12 in)

Testsieger

Hotec Hotec (two 12 in)
6.8/10about £10.99
View offer

Moving coals is not the same job

A 40 cm food tong can bank a shallow kettle bed if you then put the tong down. Wash it before it touches cooked food. How to bank and wash is how to use BBQ tongs. If you rake a deep bed or pull ash out of the bowl, Napoleon UK lists charcoal tongs at 20 inch, 50.8 cm, and a 63.5 cm rake, at £34.99, for coals and ash. You would not serve a sausage with that rake.

Keep the steel off the coals between turns

Netherton Foundry says not to leave tools in the flames. A silicone strip on Weber 6317, or the anti-slip strip on the DAILY KISN pair, slows heat. It is not a licence to park the tool in the coals. Soft tips, including the ZHIYE pair that UK reviews call hard plastic, stay off the kettle. GOV.UK still says never barbecue indoors, in a tent, under an awning, or in a caravan, whatever length you bought.

Common questions

Are 12 inch tongs enough for charcoal?
They are a compromise. Hotec at 30.5 cm and Extodry's 12 inch pair sit at the bottom of, or under, the 30–40 cm range Joseph Joseph publishes. UK reviews use the Extodry 12 inch tong at the barbecue, so people do cook with them. For a kettle, keep the 12 inch pair as the second tong.
Is 17 inch or 40 cm the useful length?
Both, when the listing's width is real. Forty centimetres is the round figure in the UK guides and on Weber 6317. Seventeen inches is 43.2 cm on the DAILY KISN details, with a 3.7 cm width you can believe. A 17 inch title with a 43.2 cm width, or a bullet that also offers 7, 9, and 12 inch, is not the same measurement. Use the row that prints a plausible width.
Can I move hot coals with the food tongs?
You can bank ash-grey coals to one side, which is the Waitrose step, if the bed is shallow and you wash the tong afterwards or keep a second pair for the food. You should not leave the tong in the coals. Napoleon's 50.8 cm charcoal tongs, at £34.99, are sold for coals and ash when the bed needs a real rake.
Do I need a separate coal tong?
Not for a normal kettle cook where you only push the coals aside once. You need one if you regularly rebuild the fire or pull ash. The food tongs here cost £7.99 to £11.99. The Napoleon coal tongs are £34.99 and 50.8 cm. Buy that tool for the fuel.
Is 17 inch too short for a wood fire?
One review in the HE-SANQI file says 17 inches is too short for a wood fire. That file is mostly not from the UK, and the comment is a single report. A kettle of briquettes is a smaller heat than an open wood fire. If you cook on wood, look at a longer coal tool. Do not read one comment as proof that every 43 cm tong fails on a standard barbecue.
Should silicone tips go over charcoal?
No. Soft tips with a stated ceiling around 220–230°C are for coated pans. Steel heads are the charcoal choice in this set. A silicone handle on an otherwise steel tong, such as Weber 6317, is a grip. It can go over the grate if you do not rest the head in the fire. Hard plastic sold as silicone, which is the ZHIYE review story, stays indoors.
Are fireplace log tongs the same thing?
No. Log tongs are a hearth tool, often heavier and shaped for wood, and they were not kept in this food-tong category. They are the wrong surface for sausages. Use a 40 cm steel food tong for the meal, and a charcoal rake if you need to move fuel.

Related pages

Stainless or silicone tongs

Barbecue tongs

Best barbecue tongs UK: Weber 6317 or the £7.99 pair

Best BBQ tongs UK: length, head, and a second pair

How to use BBQ tongs: turn once, then wash the raw pair

Sources

Public UK sources from the research digest, used with the amazon.co.uk listing figures in the display file. Page date 21 October 2026.

  1. FSA: BBQ food safety (retrieved 21 October 2026)
  2. FSA: common BBQ blunders (retrieved 21 October 2026)
  3. NHS: burns and scalds (retrieved 21 October 2026)
  4. GOV.UK: fire safety outdoors (retrieved 21 October 2026)
  5. Regulation (EC) No 1935/2004 (retrieved 21 October 2026)
  6. Weber UK: tongs 6317 (retrieved 21 October 2026)
  7. Joseph Joseph UK: essential BBQ tools (retrieved 21 October 2026)
  8. Food Standards Scotland: cleaning (retrieved 21 October 2026)