Jamie Purviance, author and grillmaster, keeps the lower vents of his charcoal grill open at all times. The top vents can be partially closed to reduce flare-ups or the temperature of the grill.
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TRANSCRIPT
A charcoal fire needs air to burn. Most of the air is coming from the bottom of the grill and you want to make sure to leave those vents open all the way, all the time. Now the vents on the top of the grill, they should be open all the time as well. But you may want to close them half way, just to limit the amount of air getting into the fire. You’d do that, for instance, if you’re having flare ups or if you just want to reduce the temperature of the grill a little bit. Even if the vents on the bottom of the grill are wide open, sometimes they can clog with ash. So it’s a good idea every forty-five minutes or so to sweep the ashes out of there so that the air can flow through.
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