It’s Barbecue Time in Boise — Briquettes, Wood, or Propane?

Hulki Okan Tabak/unsplash

Although there is no bad time to barbecue in Boise (I even do it when it’s snowing or raining, thanks to a patio cover), most people think of summer when thought turn to having a barbecue. Of course, there is Memorial Day weekend, the Fourth of July, and maybe even Labor Day. But you really don’t have to have a special occasion to light up the grill and “throw some shrimp on the barbie,” as they might say in Australia. [Note: Australians say “prawns,” by the way, not “shrimp.”] Whether it’s shrimp, steaks, hamburgers, brats, wieners, corn, potatoes, sliced vegetables — it seems that everything tastes better when it’s cooked on the barbecue.

Smoker Grills Pin/pinterest

The image above shows six major types of grills although, most people refer to a type of grill as to the source of heat, as in the top four. Whether it’s ceramic grill or a portable grill, that doesn’t tell you the heat source and what type of fuel you need to have on hand.

My Dad always used charcoal, but we’re also going back almost 60 years (he’s been deceased since 1964). I started off using charcoal in a grill somewhat like that “Portable Grill” pictured above. I’ve since moved to a propane grill (referred to above as a “Gas Grill”), and I learned a hard lesson one Thanksgiving. I was cooking the turkey on the barbecue when the propane tank ran out of gas. I didn’t have another tank, so I had to move the cooking back inside where the kitchen was already busy and occupied. I now keep an extra tank around as my “just in case” spare supply.

boisedailyphoto.com

There is a propane supplier on Franklin Road between Benjamin and Maple Grove here in Boise called Suburban Propane. They sell as well as lease propane tanks, and they refill customers’ propane tanks. They’ve had a sign out front for decades — it is definitely fading — that says Tank Heaven for Little Grills. Some of the younger generation think, “Oh, that’s cute,” without realizing that the sign is a parody of the song sung by Maurice Chevalier in the movie “Gigi” in 1957: Thank Heaven for Little Girls.

I didn’t realize how many locations there were that sold or exchanged propane tanks until I decided to get another one.

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Many stores have lockers outside — NEVER take your tank inside — where you can either exchange your empty tank for a filled one, or you can purchase a filled one outright. Prices will vary depending on whether you go to Walmart, Walgreens, or Home Depot (those are just three of the outlets within one mile of my house), AND depending on the size of the tank.

Not all tanks are created equal.

Some tanks that you will get at these locations are 20 pound tanks, and some are 15 pound tanks. So while it might look as if you are getting a good deal because the price is cheaper, you might actually be paying more per gallon for the propane with the 15 pound tank.

On average, a gallon of propane gas weighs about 4.25 pounds. So a 20 pound tank would hold about 4.6 gallons of propane, while a 15 pound tank (and the tanks could be the same physical size; it’s actually just how much gas is inside) would only have about 3.4 gallons of gas.

Caveat Emptor.

So once again it comes down to “Buyer Beware.” You need to know how much gas you are getting when you purchase a “new” tank. Or you can buy an empty tank, and take it to a propane filling station where you are charged per gallon of gas.

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