Spring has sprung which means longer evenings and warmer weather. As the temperature increases, you’re likely to be spending more time outside and this means you’ve probably started to look at your summer furniture – namely your BBQ.
A BBQ is such an integral part of most people’s summer garden plans that it’s important to get a good one, but that’s easier said than done. BBQ’s can be exceptionally expensive when you get to the higher end models, but does that mean they’re necessarily better than cheaper options? Here are five things you need to consider when buying a BBQ.
Metal Type
The first thing to consider when buying a new BBQ is the material the grill is made from. Stainless steel is most often used for gas grills because it looks good and performs well. It’s food safe and is typically very easy to clean and maintain, but there are other types of BBQ’s out there.
Wood and charcoal burning grills are the classic choice, but cast iron BBQ’s are also available. These are exceptionally enduring and long-lasting, but they’re often harder to clean which puts some people off.
Overall, metal types don’t matter too much, so long as you’re not looking at a galvanized metal BBQ. Galvanized metal typically has a zinc coating, and when zinc is ingested it can be harmful to your health, so for this reason it’s essential that if you come across a galvanized BBQ or accessories, turn the other way!
Size
The second most important to thing to consider when buying a new BBQ is the size of it. If you have a small family or rarely entertain people, a small BBQ will be sufficient, but for those with a large family to accommodate, you’ll need a larger grill area if you’re going to avoid delays in everyone eating together.
You’ll also want to think about how much storage space you have. If you live in an apartment with a balcony or if you only have a small garden, you likely won’t be able to fit in a large BBQ. In this case, a smaller electric BBQ might be your best bet as they’re typically compact and small-space friendly.
Features
There are those who turn into absolute professionals when the time comes to BBQ, and there are those who are looking for something that does the bare minimum. If you’re not after anything too fancy, a very basic model with nothing more than a grill plate and a hood will suffice, but for those who take things slightly more seriously, here are some of the features you’ll want to think about:
- Warming rack – this will keep your food suitably warm until it’s time to eat it
- Fat tray – some BBQ’s have fat trays that collect the melted fat to aid cleaning
- Temperature gauge – these will enable you to precisely cook food to an exact temperature
- Hooks – eliminate the risk of putting your tongs down and losing them by investing in a BBQ that comes complete with hooks to hang cooking utensils on
- Shelves – having a storage shelf will mean you can simply grab a plate or sauce from under the BBQ without having to go back inside
Moveability
If you live somewhere where winters are harsh, you’ll want to be able to move your BBQ freely from your garden to your shed or undercover area. For those who live alone, being able to do this single-handedly is important, therefore buying a BBQ with wheels is a good move. For those who BBQ extensively or who live in a temperate climate where BBQ’s can be kept outdoors, wheels are less of a necessity as the BBQ is likely to act as more of a permanent feature.
Budget
Not everyone has thousands to spend on a BBQ, and that’s okay. There are plenty of BBQ’s available for those who are working on a budget, but beware that some cheaper options will lack certain features.
If you plan on using your BBQ frequently, it might be worth saving to get a better model since you’ll get more use out of it, but there’s nothing wrong with a cheaper option if you likely won’t be using it very often.
So, now you have all this information, what model BBQ will you be looking at for the summer?