A common frustration shared by thurifers (and sacristans) is effectively lighting charcoals. In olden days, sacristies often had a coal or wood burning stove for heat, from whence embers could be easily extracted for use in the thurible. In the early twentieth century, some sacristies were equipped with a gas burner for lighting charcoals, but later these fell out of use or were deemed unsafe because of their open flames.

Today, charcoals are customarily lit with matches, wicks, wooden tapers or even candles, and then finished off by laboriously blowing over the coals. This time-consuming (and usually dirty) method often results in unevenly lit charcoals whereby the imposed incense barely burns. Not only is the symbolic value of the smoking incense disappointingly lost, but so too the church’s financial investment.

An easy, quick, safe, relatively clean, effective, and economical solution to overcome the difficulty of lighting charcoals is the use of a portable electric range, or burner. This inexpensive burner is available in two versions, a radiant coil or radiant plate; either unit costs around $20.00 and will give years of faithful service.

Sacristy placement of the burner

It goes without saying that every sacristy should have a suitable charcoal preparation area that includes the other thurible items such as charcoals, tools, incense, and the boat. This area should also possess a hard-surfaced and fire-proof floor to guard against errant sparks; of course, unprotected combustible items should not be kept in its proximity.

A portable electric burner can be placed on any flat surface, but as a safety precaution against lit fragments that might stray, I recommend putting it on a metal baking pan. If you intend to take up my suggestion to use real charcoals (as will be discussed below), a device for cutting the charcoals is essential, unless your church’s thurible is akin to the famous Botafumeiro of Santiago de Compostela!

One such device is a preparation stand consisting of a heavy-gauge steel box resting on legs in which the burner is placed; a person with basic welding skills can easily construct one of these. The stand can also include a shaft from which to hang the thurible and a shelf for holding tools or the spent charcoal receptacle. Such a stand provides an efficient and safe area for all of the tasks necessary for preparing charcoals.

Charcoal preparation stand

Self-lighting

A variety of “self-lighting” charcoals can be purchased through religious supply companies, or even local venues. These come in two different shapes, round and square. In both cases, the upper side of the pressure-formed charcoal contains an igniting chemical that reacts to either an open flame or direct contact with a high degree of heat. The side permeated with the igniting chemical is formed either as a star, rim, or stamped with the company’s logo. Some of the most popular brands of self-lighting charcoals are: Self-Lite Charcoal, Three Kings, Swift Lite, and Instant Lite.

To light these charcoals, place them on the burner’s heating element with the igniting side face down.

After about five minutes when the side is evenly gray, transfer the charcoals to the thurible then cut them into halves with a screwdriver.

It is best to chop self-lighting charcoals in the thurible, as they tend to shatter into small pieces which are difficult to transfer.

Also, when chopping the charcoals in the firepot, be sure to support the bottom of the thurible (e.g., on a flat surface) so the chains and their brackets are not unnecessarily strained.

There are several drawbacks to using self-lighting charcoals, the least being that they are rather expensive compared to real ones.

Other cons include the fact that they burn up quickly, can be difficult to keep lit, do not burn very hot, and can even explode from time to time. The latter occurs because an air bubble can be compacted in the charcoal when being formed under high-pressure; when heated, the air expands causing an outburst of flying lit charcoal pieces.

Real charcoal briquettes

Briquettes (you know, the kind you grill with) are comparatively more effective and cheaper; for example, a 10lb bag of charcoal usually sells for under $10. Real charcoal also has the advantage of burning hotter and longer, while partially-consumed coals can usually be retrieved from the disposal receptacle and relit. Its preparation though does require some extra equipment and steps.

Real charcoal briquettes

As mentioned earlier, ideally a metal box on a stand should be used; the box’s walls allow for cutting the charcoals easily while preventing any lit fragments from escaping. The heavy-gauge steel also acts as a heat dissipater should the thurifer choose to store any lit charcoals or sizeable fragments for future use during the ceremonies. If a stand cannot be had, a baking pan with high sides can be used, but it should be placed on a fireproof layer of stone, porcelain, or quarry tile to prevent accidentally singeing the counter top.

To light real charcoals, when the burner has reached its maximum temperature, place them on the burner and when the bottom side is completely gray, flip the charcoals over. When the other side is also completely gray, remove the charcoals from the burner and place them in the box or pan. Using a flat-head screwdriver, chop the briquettes into quarters; this is done by centering the screwdriver on top of the charcoal, and while loosing grasping the handle in one hand (usually the left), strike the top of the screwdriver’s handle with the open palm of the other hand. With some practice, this action can be done without much force and noise.

When putting the charcoal quarters in the thurible, laid them evenly across the firepot with the hot spots facing up to maximize the burning area. This will ensure that the incense imposed will be completely consumed and not wasted.

As for storing charcoal briquettes, a metal bucket, or old-fashioned coal scuttle, is recommended; the bag in which the charcoal was purchased or plastic trash cans are flammable hence should be avoided.

Regular maintenance of the burner

An electric burner is basically maintenance free, except for occasionally removing carbon residue which can act as an insulator on the heating element.