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Having a grill at home is convenient because you can cook outside. But what about grilling in garage in inclement weather?
What about when it rains, or it’s windy? Grilling in the rain or winter is also a tricky topic.
Winter is tough on BBQ enthusiasts and forces you to abandon grilling for months. You’re tempted to bring your grill to the garage.
Does it matter if you just pull your grill under the eaves of your house or drag it into your garage?
Is It Safe To Grill In the Garage? The answer is no. While grilling may seem like fun, it also causes risks to you & your home. Never use a charcoal grill, propane grill, or gas grill in the garage. They produce large amounts of carbon monoxide – more than enough to kill anyone. The National Fire Protection Association recommends that you only use grills outside. Consider putting them far away from the home, deck railings, and out from under the eaves on your home and any branches too.
If the weather is not cooperative or in winter, don’t grill indoors and risk your life & that of your loved ones.
That doesn’t mean you should forget about grilling during winter. With electric grills, you can still enjoy BBQs in the coldest months of the year.
You can always use a wifi-enabled grill or Bluetooth or wifi electric smoker Best Wifi Electric Smokers 2022.
It is important to know if is it ok to grill in the garage and what safety precautions should be taken while grilling in garage with door open.
Table of Contents
Is it safe to grill in the garage?
Grilling in the garage is a popular way of cooking for many people. However, there are some safety concerns that should be considered before doing so.
The grill manufacturers recommend that grills be situated more than 10 feet away from any building or flammable structure– including garages, where most people store their grills.
The National Fire Protection Association reports that grills account for one-third of all home structure fires.
The organization also observes that many grill-related fires involve flammable liquids and the presence of children. The NFPA recommends cooking away from the home to help reduce potential fire hazards.
Can You Grill Under A Covered Patio Or Porch?
Safety Concerns While Grilling in Garage
1. Grilling in the Garage will Produce Carbon Monoxide
The first concern is the carbon monoxide levels. Carbon monoxide is a colorless, odorless gas that can cause serious health problems if it accumulates in high concentrations.
The garage door and windows should be left open to allow for ventilation as well as to keep the carbon monoxide levels down.
Charcoal fires contribute to high levels of CO in the atmosphere. This is because when the wood is heated, it releases CO. When large amounts of wood are burned quickly like, in a charcoal fire, much more CO gets released into the atmosphere than if someone had slowly heated it over a long period.
Gas grills also produce carbon monoxide. This gas can cause suffocation in a matter of mere minutes. Simple, uncontrolled amounts of this gas can be fatal even if you’re only partially enclosed.
Opening your service doors or garage doors isn’t always enough to prevent high levels of CO.
Plus, since CO molecules are made of gases, they will naturally flow through vents and, if the volume is high enough, they can spread to other parts of the house.
You don’t realize that your lungs are absorbing unwanted carbon monoxide until it’s too late. Carbon monoxide poisoning symptoms may include headache, dizziness, nausea or vomiting, lack of coordination, and chest pain.
If your garage is attached to the house, then it should be constructed with a type of fire-rated brick. With this in mind, you should have a fire/smoke-rated wall between the two to protect the rest of your house from a fire or smoke.
- Use Carbonmonooxide Detector.
You can always install an electrochemical carbon monoxide sensor in the garage that accurately detects carbon monoxide levels, no matter where the detector is placed in the room.
2. Grill in Garage Could be Dangerous and Lead to a Fire
The second concern is the risk of fire or burns from grease fires and flare-ups. Grease fires are more likely to occur in enclosed spaces like garages because there is less airflow and oxygen available to put out the fire.
It is important not to place anything combustible near your grill while cooking such as cardboard boxes or paper towels.
Sparks or flare-ups caused by grills could lead to a major problem. It’s highly recommended not to grill in the garage.
The propane tanks used in gas grills can sometimes leak and cause fires. For instance, your propane tank is leaking and you’re storing it in your garage.
The leak will easily find its way into your garage, without you even realizing it. When you ignite the grill, it starts a fire. This could cause the entire house to catch on fire and topple.
Grilling in garage with door open does not help much. This is because leaked propane will be inside the garage walls and, if an explosion were to happen, it would happen within the walls. If you’re lucky enough, you can escape through the open door.
Leaking propane is an easy problem to fix. You need to identify the location of the leak and make sure you have a tight seal.
Once you have fixed the leak, you need to ventilate the garage with fresh air by opening windows or doors for about ten minutes before going back inside.
Keeping a fire extinguisher handy is always a smart thing to do, in case something happens! It’s an unfortunate fact that fires happen and they can be difficult to put out. After all, they don’t call them hard-to-reach fires for no reason.
Here is The 4 Best Fire Extinguisher For Grill. If you don’t have a fire extinguisher nearby or handy, here is How Do You Quickly Put Out A Grill Fire Without A Fire Extinguisher.
However, it never hurts to take a few extra precautions and some of the most effective are as simple as having a CO2 monitor and fire extinguisher in your garage. The last thing you want is to be in the middle of a firefight.
3: Barbecue in Garage will cause soot on the walls
The other downside to using a grill in your garage is that the continuous grilling will cause soot to build upon all the walls over time. In addition, this will require you to repaint your walls and that comes with an additional cost.
The negative consequences of using a grill indoors could put not only your own life in danger but the lives of those around you.
These consequences also mean the loss of property. So if you want to stay safe and enjoy your food, cook out there instead!
Can you use a propane grill in a garage?
It is not safe to use a propane/gas grill in garage. Propane grills produce heat, smoke, and potentially dangerous fumes that can build up quickly in a confined space like a garage.
Charcoal and gas grills have the potential to start fires when their usage isn’t monitored. Many models, such as charcoal fluid starters, come with a warning label noting just how flammable they are.
Most garages have common fire hazards, such as gasoline and oil. These can easily ignite and cause a disaster while trying to cook in your garage.
Additionally, clutter-like packaging boxes are dangerous, because they are susceptible to starting fires.
Alternatives to Grilling in Garage
Sometimes the weather won’t play nice and grilling outside in the summer rainy season can be a bummer, but you can use these alternatives to keep you dry.
1. Grill Gazebo Shelter
The Grill Gazebo creates a perfect spot for you to enjoy your day. The gazebo is perfect for any type of weather and provides ample shade from the sun. It features a canopy top and four sides.
The Grill Gazebo is perfect for smaller gatherings, cookouts, or just a place to gather with friends and family. This structure is available in several different styles or you may choose to build your own particular style.
It’s best to be set up some distance away from the house. Doing this will ensure you can grill outside no matter what time of year and never have to worry about rain, wind, or snow.
2. Using Indoor Grills as an Alternative
There is one other option that is safe to use in a garage than the typical propane, charcoal, and lump coal fuel source. This option would be an indoor grill.
The indoor grill is an electric grill that is a safer alternative to traditional grilling sources such as propane, charcoal, and lump coal.
An electric grill operates on electricity to cook food. They are popular because they don’t use flammable fuel sources like propane or charcoal. The only emission from an electric grill is water vapor, which can be vented outside the home.
There are many benefits to using electric grills. One is that they don’t produce any smoke, so they are better for the environment than other types of grills.
Electric grills also have consistent heat, which makes them perfect for cooking something like a steak to perfection.
Electric grills can be expensive, but if you compare them with gas or charcoal grills over the course of their lifetime then electric is usually cheaper in the long run.
There are some positive points as well. They’re usually more lightweight – perfect for transporting to a picnic or if you want to take your grill with you on holiday.
They’re also usually non-stick for easy clean-up. They’re great for apartments because they won’t emit carbon monoxide or have flare-ups like a regular grill.
Can you have a pellet grill for an apartment? 7 Best Small Pellet Grill For Apartments
It may seem like grilling outside in the winter is impossible, but this is not true. If you are careful and plan ahead, grilling in the winter can be safe and enjoyable.
Conclusion: Is it Safe to grill in the garage?
Regardless of how much you enjoy grilling, safety always needs to come first.
Is it ok to grill in the garage? No, you can find alternatives for outdoor grilling without dragging the grill into the garage.
We would not even recommend using grills in the garage with the door open.
Alternatively, if you don’t want an outdoor grill there are also models made for use indoors.
You should be careful with the fire, keep a close eye on it and use a grill cover. We should also make sure that our grill is not too close to any flammable materials.
It is also important to clean up any grease from the barbecue before we leave it for the night or go out for the day.
And finally, it’s important that you should install a carbon monoxide detector in your garage before you start using an outdoor grill there. The detector will allow you to monitor the level of carbon monoxide.
Resources and FAQs:
Do electric grills produce carbon dioxide?
The answer to this question is that electric grills do not produce carbon dioxide. The only emissions they produce are heat and water vapor.
Electric grills are more environmentally friendly than their gas counterparts because they don’t emit any greenhouse gases and smoke.
Do electric smokers catch fire?
There are a number of reasons why an electric smoker could catch fire. One of the most common reasons is because of a short circuit. This happens when the electric current is interrupted and then flows through an unintended path. Another reason is that the heating element in the smoker malfunctions, and this can cause it to overheat.
Electric smokers are convenient to use because they don’t require any kind of flame or gas source to work. They instead work by using electricity to heat up a metal rod that sits inside a cooking chamber. The rod gets hot enough that it heats up whatever meat you put on it and cooks it for you in just minutes.
Is it safe to use a pellet grill in garage?
This is a common question for people who are considering giving up their gas grill and going to the pellet grill. Pellet grills are more environmentally friendly, more efficient, and more versatile than gas grills.
Pellet grills produce a lot of smoke because they burn wood at high temperatures, which is what gives them their flavor profile. While it is safe to use a pellet smoker in your garage with the door open with perfect ventilation, and a carbon monoxide detector, there are still some risks involved. For this reason, I don’t recommend using a pellet grill in the garage.
I am a writer, editor, and publisher of Grillcuisines.com – an online blog dedicated to sharing grilling tips, accessories, and recipes to encourage more people to get outside and grill.
I’m off to find out the different types of grill foods, their seasons, and how to conduct outdoor cooking properly. I’ll also show you some of my grill-worthy cooking tools & accessories!