Sort of dumb question about propane

[joewill85]

So I've always been a grill enthusiast, but everywhere I've lived I've been able to have my birds away from the patio. I use a propane grill, and currently my GCC is about 3 feet from the patio door. Will I be able to grill with the sliding glass door closed except for the few times I open it to go in and out? I don't plan on grilling in the winter because I don't want her getting sick from the cold air, but I'm specifically wondering if propane is poisonous to her. Thanks in advance.

 

[DebsFlock]

If your grill is burning cleanly, and the valves and piping don't leak, this should not be a problem at all. Being outside, any smoke and such from the cooking should dissipate fairly quickly anyway. An actual propane leak wouldn't be optimal, but it would be much more of a concern inside the house. Although I probably wouldn't do it, I suspect it would be safe to have your bird out on the patio with the grill going. The propane itself IS poisonous, to you, too, but the exposure should be negligible if you have a well maintained grill.

Cooking with propane should be no more risky than cooking with natural gas or using a natural gas heating system. You want the system operating properly and burning cleanly with no leaks, but it's otherwise not a major issue. The cooking smoke is potentially more of one if you get a lot of flareups! But being outdoors buys you a whole lot of ventilation. If that weren't the case you'd have to worry about what everyone in the neighborhood was doing... and they probably all have teflon pans and self-cleaning ovens... ventilation is everything! I think sometimes we don't think enough about that aspect.

FWIW, I use an oxygen-propane torch inside the house for silversmithing. The birds aren't in the same room, but I've never had any concerns with that or my butane culinary torch operating in the house with the birds in residence a room or a few rooms away. I'm just careful to close the valves when I'm done!

 

[joewill85]

If your grill is burning cleanly, and the valves and piping don't leak, this should not be a problem at all. Being outside, any smoke and such from the cooking should dissipate fairly quickly anyway. An actual propane leak wouldn't be optimal, but it would be much more of a concern inside the house. Although I probably wouldn't do it, I suspect it would be safe to have your bird out on the patio with the grill going. The propane itself IS poisonous, to you, too, but the exposure should be negligible if you have a well maintained grill.

Cooking with propane should be no more risky than cooking with natural gas or using a natural gas heating system. You want the system operating properly and burning cleanly with no leaks, but it's otherwise not a major issue. The cooking smoke is potentially more of one if you get a lot of flareups! But being outdoors buys you a whole lot of ventilation. If that weren't the case you'd have to worry about what everyone in the neighborhood was doing... and they probably all have teflon pans and self-cleaning ovens... ventilation is everything! I think sometimes we don't think enough about that aspect.

FWIW, I use an oxygen-propane torch inside the house for silversmithing. The birds aren't in the same room, but I've never had any concerns with that or my butane culinary torch operating in the house with the birds in residence a room or a few rooms away. I'm just careful to close the valves when I'm done!

Thanks for the reply. The grill does burn cleanly. I've never had an issue with any leakage (the propane lasts the same amount of time every time). My main concern was whether the chemical they put in it to make it smell (so you can smell a leak) would be harmful, and whether or not propane itself was as deadly as PTFE if some of it were inhaled. The grill does occasionally flare up, but I take great pride in my grilling and try my hardest not to let that happen. I'm not sure if I want to do this or not. I love grilling but with this new place I'm not sure if I'm comfortable risking it.

 

[DebsFlock]

The chemical that makes it smell is less harmful than the gas itself. If it's outside and you aren't smelling a lot of gas, exposure in the house would be minimal to negligible.

Only you can make that call. Can you push the grill to the far edge of the patio and/or relocate birdie while you are cooking the first few times?

I can tell you we have a grill on our patio and our bird room's window opens onto the patio. We have used the grill several times with no issue. But I'd never want to encourage someone to do something they don't feel comfortable with. I just think sometimes people give up an awful lot for their birds without any real evidence that it is truly necessary.

I do think that the risk from a propane grill is exactly comparable to a natural gas cooktop, assming both are properly used and maintained. I've had gas ranges and cooktops as long as I've had birds.

 

[BreannPearlLang]

I'm not an expert but I work around propane and today I filled out paperwork about propane, gasoline, etc..
Propane(LPG) and gasoline both contain benzene which can cause nausea, gastrointestinal diseases, kidney, liver, lung failure, and causes leukemia, skin diseases, and many other problems in small quantities of inhalation, contact to the skin, etc..
rotten onions are added for smell as a detection method, they used to use sulphur.
i greatly doubt the presence of propane, as it would cause an explosion when you ignite your grill..
but you should still be on the safe side of things, keep doors closed when you un-attach your propane canister from your grill and when you attach it, as small amounts of propane can escape.
make sure your propane canister has an OPD. overfill protection device. if your open/close valve is similar to a triangle, rather than gear shaped with several corners then you have an OPD.
also, make sure that the bleeder valve is closed to prevent leakage by turning it towards you when the hook up attachment is facing you. be aware that if you turn it the wrong way it will spit a little propane or vapor at you.
propane, gasoline, etc are all highly toxic in small doses, always wash hands, and protect your bird from contact.
also be aware that you can see propane in cold weather, but its less visible when its hot outside.
if you can smell it, its present. also, the more you are around it, the less you can smell it. exposure to propane will cause loss of smell.
also, look into HD5 propane at thrifty propane. most propane is considered slop garbage propane. you can buy propane that is cleaner and burns longer.