Safe Grilling Practices

Summertime means grill time. Thanks to new technologies, grilling, whether with charcoal or propane, has never been safer. Still, you need to take some precautions every time you're at the grill. Below are some tips to keep you safe and keep grill time fun time:

Grilling Safety

1. Follow the instructions in your owner's manual on safely lighting and operating your grill.

2. Keep your grill at least five feel from anything combustible, including your house, your garage, treated wood, a wood deck, a patio, or a porch. And for goodness sake, never grill inside a garage.

3. Never use a grill indoors (and this includes the garage) or under a covered patio.

4. Never add lighter fluid to a fire that's already been lighted. The time to add this is before you light the fire.

5. Never use a grill that wobbles, leans, or is in any way unstable.

6. Never store a propane tank in an enclosed space including your house, garage, or storage shed.
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7. Keep sleeves and garments out of the line of fire. Wear appropriate clothing when you grill.

8. Keep a fire extinguisher close by in case of a mishap. We hope you'll never have to use one, but you really never know.

9. Never pour water on a grease fire. Instead, cover a charcoal grill and close all vents. Turn off gas grills at their source.

10. Keep children and pets away from a hot grill.

11. When you've finished using a charcoal grill, close the lid and all the vents. If you've been using gas, turn off the LP tank and then the burners.

Food Safety

1. Wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water before starting any meal preparation and after handling fresh meat, fish, or poultry.

2. Thoroughly defrost foods in the refrigerator, never on the countertop.

3. Use a clean spatula or tongs to remove food from the grill.

4. Place foods removed from the grill on a clean plate.

5. Always grill ground meats to at least 160 degrees and grill all poultry to 170 degrees to ensure killing any bacteria.