It used to be that barbequing was a summertime activity. With gas grills, barbequing has become a year round family event. When you do grill out, make sure to follow a few safety guidelines to your family time happy and healthy.

Before you ever light that grill, get it checked out. People are injured by fires and explosions every year as a result of faulty grills. Check all connections and hoses on the propane tank and the grill itself. Cracked hoses or leaking valves should be replaced.

Start with a full propane tank. Keep it upright and stored outdoors in a cool, dry place. Storing propane tanks in cars or near flammable gases is not recommended. Heat will make the gas inside the tank expand, possibly escape through the relief valve, and fill the car or building where it is being stored.

The area where you use your grill should be nicely ventilated. Grill use is not recommended under awnings, on covered porches or decks, or under any other enclosure. Trapped carbon monoxide gases are lethal.

After the grill has been inspected, turn your attention to the food. People don’t realize that food safety is important. Undercooked food introduces bacteria into the system that could make you very sick.

Keep raw meats cold. When grocery shopping for barbequing supplies, let the meat be the last item that put into the cart. If you want, keep a cooler full of ice in the car for the meat. Always go straight home so that the meat never reaches room temperature.

If you plan on cooking the meat right away, keep it in the refrigerator until the grill is ready. If any part of the meat is still frozen, thaw in the refrigerator or in the microwave. Make sure not to use the same dishes or utensils for raw and cooked meat. Also, separate the marinade to be brushed on food during cooking from the marinade to be used for the raw meat.

Do not cook meat directly over the highest flame. This will lower if not eliminate a good deal of the charring of the meat. Trimming excess fat from meats will also help with the charring problem. Pre-cook the meat to shorten the grilling time.

Once the food is removed from the grill, it shouldn’t just sit on the table. Keep the food warm on a cookie sheet in the oven. Food should not sit out more than an hour or two before it is refrigerated to prevent spoilage.

Grilling out is a great alternative to using the stove every night, especially when the weather is warm. While you grill, remember to be safe and clean. Cook all meats thoroughly and store them appropriately to avoid food-borne sickness.

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Grilling out has become a pastime for most folks. The smell of freshly grilled chicken, hamburgers, and hotdogs makes mouths water for miles around. If you are a barbecue chef, building your own barbecue pit would be the piece de resistance.

Building a brick barbecue is not for everyone. If you don’t know anything about brickwork, find a friend or relative who would be willing to help. If you promise them the first steak off of your new grill, they may consent to do the labor for free.

The barbecue pit should be located near the house. Make sure that there are no trees or overhangs in the vicinity of the barbecue pit. The grill should be faced in the direction of the wind. The person using the grill will not want the smoke to blow back in his face or in the direction of the house.

Start with the base. For a simple base, remove grass from the area that you intend to use for the barbecue pit. Level the ground by adding a layer of sand and tamping it down. Cover the sand with large stone pavers. Make sure that the area is large enough for the size barbecue pit that you are designing.

For a more detailed base, you will need to dig a square area that is at least four by four feet. The area would then be filled with wood pieces that are level with the bottom of the hole. Cement will cover the wood followed by rebar for reinforcement and another layer of cement.

Once the base that you choose is finished, begin to design the actual barbecue pit. Take into consideration that you will need a place for the fire pan and the grills. There should be ample space between the fire pan and the grills for proper cooking without burning.

To get the correct positioning of the bricks, lay them down (without mortar) to make sure that the base is level. Set two layers of bricks in the design that suits you. When the bricks are in the desired position, draw a chalk line to outline the bricks.

Mix your mortar. Mix and spread the mortar inside the chalk outline in an even layer. Put down a layer of brick. Add mortar between each adjacent brick. Once the first layer is finished, check again to see if the bricks are level.

Layer your bricks. Continue to layer the brick until you get to the height for the fire pan. Place several pieces of rebar between the layers of brick to create that space. Add two more layers of brick and layer more rebar for the grills. Build up the sides until the design is finished.

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