Not sure whether we should change policy on this one, so asking for other opinions. Here's the situation:-
The departing family this last weekend told us that the BBQ gas worked fine on the first night, then ran out, so they changed the bottle, using the spare one we leave them. On the second night it worked for a while, spluttered, then stopped working altogether. Charming family, left the house immaculate, no complaints, didn't call us about it, and just left a note on the repair sheet. During the changeover I discovered they just hadn't attached the new bottle properly. Luckily, the safety feature/ valve had kicked in and cut them off altogether. Once reattached properly, it's working fine. These folks obviously didn't know what they were doing.
My husband has never been keen to leave a spare bottle for them to change themselves for exactly these reasons. He views it as too dangerous, but I pursuaded him otherwise, my view being that there is nothing more annoying than running out of propane in the middle of cooking a meal, and best to leave a spare for them. It's very difficult for us to tell how full the tank is when we hand the house over. We include propane in the rent, but the cost is not the issue, it's the safety aspect.
Anyway, after this incident, I'm now reluctant to leave a spare at all. So if it runs out on the first night, they will need to call us and not going to be very happy to be told when they arrive that the BBQ gas could run out at any moment and no way for us to know. Does anyone else have this situation? If so, how do you handle it?
Suggestions appreciated.
Thanks in advance.
Do you leave a spare bottle propane gas for your BBQ?
Do you leave a spare bottle propane gas for your BBQ?
Waves from America
I think most people know how to change a gas bottle, but could you leave more detailed instructions + some pliars to tighten the attachment for those who perhaps haven't done this before?
Other option (and I don't mean to be flippant, its just its what I have) can't you give them a traditional BBQ instead, no gas required??Much easier.
Other option (and I don't mean to be flippant, its just its what I have) can't you give them a traditional BBQ instead, no gas required??Much easier.
This post touched a raw nerve here - my husband hates barbecues - not the food but the things themselves - he hates gas BBqs and hates the french BBQs you can buy in all the DIY shops - we have finally got a BBQ for this season that he built himself with old stone that matches the house - not a gas bottle in isite and that's the way he likes it!
Thanks for the suggestion to give them written instructions - I'll do that.
On the other point:
By the way, on the subject of BBQ food, I only discovered fairly recently how wonderful it can be when the main oven in our own house broke and the part was on back order. There was snow on the ground at the time, but after a week or so I ran out of meals to cook on the hob, so out came the BBQ. By the time the oven part arrived, some 12 weeks later, I couldn't have cared less - I was sold on the BBQ forever once I had discovered indirect cooking.
Did you ever try roasting a joint of meat on one? You put the heat on the outside burners, but leave the centre burners off - put the meat in a foil tray in the middle and cover with foil. Forget the BBQ sauce, just season as you would for the oven and it produces far superior results - delicious, tender, tasty food - especially joints of lamb - whole chickens - whole fish - fish fillets - roasted vegetables - I wouldn't be without it now - it produces everything you can get in the italian deli at a fraction of the cost! Even baked potatoes taste better!
Ours is a Webber Gold Summit with a temperature guage on the lid and 4 burners, which makes a HUGE difference - not cheap at $900 in a sale, but worth it. This also uses bottle gas - there is no way to get an even heat over a sustained period of time with charcoal.
The beach house BBQ is a more basic version - two burners, no temperature guage, but we provide a meat themometer, so it's still possible to use it for indirect cooking - not just burgers and hot dogs. It's more useful than the normal oven, because nobody wants to heat up the house in the height of summer.
The point of all of the above is to say that a traditional BBQ is not the same thing as a gas BBQ.
On the other point:
I knew somebody was going to suggest that! Unfortunately, the answer is no. They expect a gas BBQ - everyone has them here - this is America. We have a high end one for ourselves - one that is supposed to show how full the tank is - hahaha - not reliable. The only way to tell whether the tank is full or not is by weight. Even that is not reliable as we have found an empty one at full weight before now (filled with water to cheat you), so where you get them filled is also important.Susan wrote:[...]can't you give them a traditional BBQ instead, no gas required??Much easier.
By the way, on the subject of BBQ food, I only discovered fairly recently how wonderful it can be when the main oven in our own house broke and the part was on back order. There was snow on the ground at the time, but after a week or so I ran out of meals to cook on the hob, so out came the BBQ. By the time the oven part arrived, some 12 weeks later, I couldn't have cared less - I was sold on the BBQ forever once I had discovered indirect cooking.
Did you ever try roasting a joint of meat on one? You put the heat on the outside burners, but leave the centre burners off - put the meat in a foil tray in the middle and cover with foil. Forget the BBQ sauce, just season as you would for the oven and it produces far superior results - delicious, tender, tasty food - especially joints of lamb - whole chickens - whole fish - fish fillets - roasted vegetables - I wouldn't be without it now - it produces everything you can get in the italian deli at a fraction of the cost! Even baked potatoes taste better!
Ours is a Webber Gold Summit with a temperature guage on the lid and 4 burners, which makes a HUGE difference - not cheap at $900 in a sale, but worth it. This also uses bottle gas - there is no way to get an even heat over a sustained period of time with charcoal.
The beach house BBQ is a more basic version - two burners, no temperature guage, but we provide a meat themometer, so it's still possible to use it for indirect cooking - not just burgers and hot dogs. It's more useful than the normal oven, because nobody wants to heat up the house in the height of summer.
The point of all of the above is to say that a traditional BBQ is not the same thing as a gas BBQ.
Waves from America
Ah, the old gas vs. charcoal debate. This could get as long as the towel thread! 
I admit I'm a dedicated charcoal person, but my husband vehemently disagrees. On vacation I would probably like the convenience of a gas grill. And I admit that now that it's getting hot out, I don't like having to turn the oven on inside! Time for a lot of steaks, grilled chicken, etc...
If I were on vacation and ran out of propane, I would really appreciate a spare container, and would appreciate instructions even more.
I admit I'm a dedicated charcoal person, but my husband vehemently disagrees. On vacation I would probably like the convenience of a gas grill. And I admit that now that it's getting hot out, I don't like having to turn the oven on inside! Time for a lot of steaks, grilled chicken, etc...
If I were on vacation and ran out of propane, I would really appreciate a spare container, and would appreciate instructions even more.
Brooke
We don't have a gas BBQ (yet) but all our ovens and hobs run off propane bottles (no mains here).
We don't leave a spare bottle as I don't like the idea of guests changing it and doing it wrong, and most of our guests are not at all familiar with propane bottles. The majority are Londoners, never been camping or lived in a rural setting and therefore have never had to change one. I appreciate if you don't live nearby that this isn't practical.
We change the bottles every few weeks and use the half empty bottles for ourselves.
I am interested in the gas BBQ as our new property has a covered terrace for which a traditional BBQ wouldn't really work. We are hoping a gas one would do the trick. It's an open area at the back of what was the barn and has a high roof. Anyone got any experience of this?
Ju
We don't leave a spare bottle as I don't like the idea of guests changing it and doing it wrong, and most of our guests are not at all familiar with propane bottles. The majority are Londoners, never been camping or lived in a rural setting and therefore have never had to change one. I appreciate if you don't live nearby that this isn't practical.
We change the bottles every few weeks and use the half empty bottles for ourselves.
I am interested in the gas BBQ as our new property has a covered terrace for which a traditional BBQ wouldn't really work. We are hoping a gas one would do the trick. It's an open area at the back of what was the barn and has a high roof. Anyone got any experience of this?
Ju
We provide a gas barbecue. Charcoal grills are not permitted at our condo association. We do not provide a spare. We do provide written directions to the filling station for these tanks which is only a 4 minute drive from the condo. We also indicate to the guest that if they do fill it and leave the reciept we will re-imburse them. We visit in between every 3 bookings or so and we fill the tank befoer we leave.
No one has left a reciept and no one has mentioned they ran oput of gas.
John
No one has left a reciept and no one has mentioned they ran oput of gas.
John
John and Hyonmi Del Ferro
http://www.vacationrentalworkshop.com
http://www.vacationrentalworkshop.com
I never realised the difference between BBQs was so great between the US and Europe! We (and the guests) have stone charcoal grills, which takes ages to get hot, then when the food is cooked it all goes into a big aluminium 'fait tout' where it keeps warm until all the meat is cooked then we sit down and eat it with new potatoes and salad. Very simple - we don't have a thermometer for cooking the food, my other half just cooks it long and slow with a bottle of Kronenbourg to keep the flames down (and one for himself of course!).
We have some guests from the US coming this summer, it will be interesting to see what they say about the experience!!
We have some guests from the US coming this summer, it will be interesting to see what they say about the experience!!
Hi Ju,Ju wrote:I am interested in the gas BBQ as our new property has a covered terrace for which a traditional BBQ wouldn't really work. We are hoping a gas one would do the trick. It's an open area at the back of what was the barn and has a high roof. Anyone got any experience of this?
That sounds fine to me. Our gas BBQ at the beach house is positioned outside the kitchen under a deck which is about 10 ft above. At our own house, it lives outside during the summer, then moves into the garage in the winter. The garage is built into the house, next to the kitchen. During the "broken oven" scenario, when it was the only oven I had, I used it daily by opening the garage door and pulling it one inch over the boundary line, where it could rain/ snow on the BBQ, but not me!
The issue is about where the gas is going to go if there is a leak. These things are not built by NASA, so if someone shuts off the BBQ from the burner knob, but forgets to switch the valve fully off at the tank after use, there could be a slow leak, like a slow puncture on a tyre. You need to have the BBQ positioned so that any escaping gas will not build up in a confined space or go into the house. Provided your terrace is open on three sides, I don't think any of this would be a problem. Ask the store where you propose to buy it.
Hope this helps.
Waves from America