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How to light a kettle barbecue

Updated: 23 October 2026

The kettle is on the patio and the coals are still in the bag. On a small bowl the usual mistakes are petrol, both vents shut, or a chimney filled for a 57 cm grate. This is how to light a kettle barbecue of about 37–47 cm and put it out. The [mini kettle barbecue comparison](/hub/grills-and-barbecues/mini-kettle-barbecue) holds the seven listings. These steps assume a garden or open patio. A balcony or tent is the [balcony page](/hub/grills-and-barbecues/mini-kettle-barbecue/sub/mini-kettle-barbecue-balcony). Peter F. followed Weber, Napoleon UK, Fire England, the NHS and London Fire Brigade. We did not time a cook. A purchase through our links may earn a commission. Updated 23 October 2026.

The kettle is on the patio and the coals are still in the bag. On a small bowl the usual mistakes are petrol, both vents shut, or a chimney filled for a 57 cm grate.

Our top picks

Weber Weber Compact kettle 47 cm

Best overall

Weber Weber Compact kettle 47 cm
8.8/10about £49.49
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Weber Weber Original kettle 47 cm

Alternative

Weber Weber Original kettle 47 cm
8.1/10about £111.24
View offer
HOMION HOMION 43 cm kettle

Rank 3

HOMION HOMION 43 cm kettle
7.8/10about £28.99
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.Light it without petrol
  2. 2.Run the vents on a small bowl
  3. 3.Put the coals out and keep them outside
  4. 4.When this page hands over

Light it without petrol

One person is in charge. Children and pets stay back, and the kettle stays attended while the coals are live. Have water ready before you strike a light. Set the kettle on level ground, outdoors. Weber asks for at least 60 cm from fences or walls, and that gap stays 60 cm on a 43 cm bowl. Fire England says never use petrol or paraffin. A firelighter or a chimney starter is the light. Napoleon’s UK note, for their kettle, is a pile of charcoal, bottom vents open, firelighters, and about 15–20 minutes to grey ash. Weber treats a chimney in thirds as a size-dependent guide, with both vents open while the coals catch. As a rule of thumb, keep a chimney filled for a 57 cm kettle out of a 38 cm bowl. Keep the lid off, or the vents fully open, until the coals are ashed over. Then put the food on and close the lid if you are cooking lidded. Which bowl you bought is on the buying guide.

Run the vents on a small bowl

The bowl vent feeds the coals. The lid vent lets heat and smoke out. Weber says to light with both open, then change the lid vent in small steps and wait about five minutes. Shutting both while food is on the grate starves the fire. That extinguishes a kettle. It does not hold a low roast. Fire England uses about 5 cm of charcoal as a starting depth. On a 37–43 cm bowl that bed is already a full fire. Weber’s high band, around 230–290°C, is a starting point for a Weber kettle, not a reading you can demand from a trolley with no lid gauge. Most cooking on this size is direct: food over the coals, lid on, vents cracked open. A small grate has little cool zone beside a full bed of coals. A lid thermometer reads air under the lid, not the centre of the meat. Use a probe when the meal needs an internal temperature.
Weber Weber Compact kettle 47 cm

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Weber Weber Compact kettle 47 cm
8.8/10about £49.49
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Put the coals out and keep them outside

London Fire Brigade says an extinguished barbecue can keep producing carbon monoxide for hours. The NHS says not to use a barbecue indoors or in a tent after the flames have gone. Leave the kettle in the open. A kitchen, an occupied shed, and a garage with the door down are the wrong cooling spots. Put the fire out with water. Fire England wants that water nearby from the start, and ash kept out of plastic bins until it is cold. Never leave it unattended, and never use it indoors, in a tent, or on a balcony. Which listing to light is the best mini kettle page. It does not move the coals indoors.

When this page hands over

If someone who was near the smoke struggles to breathe, is confused, unconscious, weak, or has chest or muscle pain, call 999. Those are the NHS thresholds for emergency carbon monoxide symptoms. For milder symptoms you suspect are carbon monoxide, get outside first and use NHS 111. If the fire itself is beyond a bucket of water, call 999 for the fire service rather than experimenting with the lid.

Common questions

Should I use firelighters or a chimney?
Either, and neither involves petrol or paraffin. Firelighters under a pile, bottom vent open, follow Napoleon’s UK note: about 15–20 minutes to grey ash on their kettle. A chimney follows Weber, with both vents open while the coals catch. The thirds fill depends on size. On a 38 cm bowl, a chimney packed for a 57 cm kettle is too much. That limit is a rule of thumb, not a timed test on these listings.
How open should the vents be?
Open both while you light. The bowl vent is the air in. The lid vent is the heat out. Once the coals are ashed, Weber says to adjust the lid vent in small steps and wait about five minutes. Closing both vents during cooking puts the fire out. If the kettle is racing, reduce the lid vent and wait before you close the bowl vent as well.
How much charcoal goes on a small bowl?
Start from Fire England’s about 5 cm depth, and treat Weber’s chimney fractions as a size-dependent guide. A 37–43 cm bowl is full at that bed. A load built for a 57 cm kettle will spill and run hot. If the first cook is fierce, use less next time, with the vents still open enough to keep the fire alive. These sources give no single weight in grammes for a 38 cm grate.
Why did the fire die when I shut the vents?
The coals ran out of air. Both vents shut is how you extinguish a kettle, at the end of the cook. Open both vents if the coals are still live. If they are dead, you are relighting. Weber’s note is small lid-vent changes, about five minutes apart. A vent that only moves when the bowl is cold, which UK reviews mention on one budget trolley here, will not help once the metal is hot.
How do I put it out?
Douse the coals with water, stay outside, and wait until the ash is cold. Fire England wants water nearby from the start and warm ash kept out of plastic bins. London Fire Brigade says carbon monoxide can continue for hours after the flames die. Leave the bowl in the open, not in a tent, caravan, occupied garage or the house. If water does not put the fire out, call 999.

Related pages

47 cm kettle versus 57 cm

Mini kettle barbecue

BBQ on a balcony UK: charcoal kettles are ruled out

Best mini kettle barbecue in this amazon.co.uk set

Mini kettle barbecue: check the bowl diameter first

Sources

Public UK sources on carbon monoxide, smoke control, outdoor fire safety and solid-fuel barbecue construction, plus Weber UK pages for the 47 cm Compact and Original and for charcoal temperature. Prices, stars and review counts are the amazon.co.uk lines saved with this comparison. Scores are not a laboratory cook. Retrieved 23 October 2026.

  1. Weber UK Compact Kettle 47 cm, model 1502054 (retrieved 23.10.2026)
  2. Weber UK Original Kettle 47 cm, model 1502192 (retrieved 23.10.2026)
  3. Weber UK — how to control charcoal temperature (retrieved 23.10.2026)
  4. NHS carbon monoxide poisoning (retrieved 23.10.2026)
  5. GOV.UK smoke control area rules (retrieved 23.10.2026)
  6. London Fire Brigade carbon monoxide safety (retrieved 23.10.2026)
  7. Fire England outdoor fire safety (retrieved 23.10.2026)
  8. BSI BS EN 1860-1:2024 solid-fuel barbecues (retrieved 23.10.2026)