It’s summer season and couldn’t be a better time to fire up the barbie and relax in the sun with your friends, family and loved ones. However, don’t forget that barbecues do involve fire and raw meat, and can create a safety hazard for your home. Keep these tips in mind for a well-deserved and fun, but harm-free summer.
1: Keep Smoke Away from Guests
Smoke coming off of your grill is not healthy for your guests to inhale, especially while eating, drinking and talking. Intentionally keep the eating area away from the BBQ and consider moving it depending on the direction of the wind on the day of your party.
2: Keep Clothes and Hair Out of the Way
Clothing and hair can easily catch fire, especially when your attention is diverted while cooking and talking to your guests. Make sure you are not wearing a shirt with long or dripping sleeves and keep any long luscious locks carefully tucked away.
3: Keep Pets and Children Away
One benefit of throwing a barbecue get-together is the convenience of being able to include your children and your pets, who are difficult to bring to restaurants and elsewhere. But they don’t have quite the knowledge and experience that adults do with fire. Plus, they have a tendency to get under your feet, or into things they ought not to. Make sure someone is keeping an eye out and keep activities for them far from the grill.
4: Clean Grill Regularly
Each time you use the grill, clean it with a proper grill brush to remove excess grease. Also, be sure to remove grease from the grease trap. Even residual grease is fire-friendly enough to cause an energy-build up great enough to spread a fire to your home. Insects and spiders also love grease and can nest inside the tubes, causing a flashback fire.
5: Keep Meat Refrigerated Before Cooking
You must keep meat at a cool temperature until you grill it because bacteria, such as the infamous Salmonella, will grow on warm raw meat. Such bacteria can cause food poisoning and sometimes even extreme sickness in the worst of cases.
6: Keep a Thermometer on Hand
Meats like poultry and pork should be cooked to at least 75 degrees Celcius, and even a medium-rare piece of beef should be cooked to 63 degrees Celcius. Eating partially raw meat can also cause you to eat unwanted bacteria and become ill.
7: Be Prepared in Case of Emergency
Accidents can always happen. That’s why this is the most important safety tip. If something goes wrong, you need to know what to do. Make sure you have baking soda on hand and a fire extinguisher in case of a fire. Also, make sure you know how to use it as there will be no time to learn in an emergency. In the case of food poisoning, get to a doctor immediately and have a poison control number on hand.
Sydney Heaters and Pizza Ovens offers a wide range of BBQs you can purchase in addition to their woodfired pizza ovens to host for get togethers. Just make sure to remember these tips so that you can barbecue responsibly with your friends and family this summer.
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