Use good quality charcoal. We recommend all natural hardwood lump charcoal. This will give your food the best flavor possible. Most briquette charcoal and automatic light charcoal use binders which give off a harsh smoke. If using the entire 2' x 5' surface, start with 30 lbs of charcoal. (Use 15 to 18 lbs for 2' x 3' fires). Make several small piles and use lighter fluid to light the piles. Once the charcoal starts to turn white, spread the charcoal piles out in an even layer. The charcoal is at its hottest and ready to cook on when it has a thin layer of white ash covering the pieces of charcoal. If cooking for a prolonged period, the fire will need restocking over time. You may wish to have a separate container to start additional charcoal. You will need an additional 10 lbs. of charcoal for each hour of cooking time. Add your supplemental charcoal after it has been burning for at least 10 minutes. Adding unlit charcoal during the cooking process will give your food a harsh taste.