Over the past few years outdoor entertaining has become more appealing, especially with the growing popularity of outdoor kitchens and grill islands. And as more people take to their backyards, the need to find the best gas grills to fit their needs has also grown. Since most of these gas grills offer a wide range of grilling options, finding the best gas grill to fit your needs is a concern for many.
For many people, a charcoal grill is their first grill of choice. But because of the ease of use that a gas grill offers, combined with its many features and grilling options, more and more people are making the move towards a freestanding bbq gas grill or grill island as their first choice.
Some factors that may help you pick the best gas grill to fit your needs are:
- Ease of Use: For the majority of people, a gas grill is easier to control. They can start cooking within minutes of starting their grill and the end results are better.
- Grill Size and Your Ideal Cooking Surface: This is an important decision; you have two choices to make. The first one is the grill size and the cooking surface. Second is the amount of the grill’s cooking BTUs – too low and the longer your meal takes to cook. And this choice may depend on the size of the outdoor parties you throw.
- The Best Gas Grill Feature: This depends on your need and most grills today are typically packed with features. Many of the freestanding grills come with side burners, work tables and storage space. And when you make the move to an outdoor kitchen, the sky is the limit. With a grill island, you can add features like; storage drawers, sinks, refrigerators and more. And today there are even companies that can take your freestanding grill and integrate it into a grill island. (Note: This works best if your grill has wheels that rotate 360 degrees, but is doable with regular wheels. )
- Maintenance and up keep: Cleaning your outdoor grill may be the last thing on your mind, but thinking about it now may save you a lot of time in the future.
The next thing you may want to think about when picking the best gas grills, are what your requirements are.
- Are you planning on grilling occasionally for family and friends or do you plan on having large backyard BBQ parties?
- Does a $1000 4 burner grill with 600 square inches of cooking area fill your needs or do you need something a little bigger or a little smaller?
- What features will you need – sear burner, side burner or smoke trays?
- Where will your grill be placed? Do you have a large space or one that is more confined?
A few tips for picking the best gas grills:
- Pick a grill that is constructed using 304 or 430 Commercial Grade (16 gauge) stainless steel. The quality of material matters and the better the material that is used the longer the grill will last. Stainless steel doesn’t rust, it handles heat better and is resistant to oxidation caused by the high heat that today’s grills produce.
- Work out all your needs in advance; cooking area, BTUs, size of grill vs. area where grill will be placed etc.
- Start here by reading some of the grill descriptions, ratings and features. Take your time to do proper research, take notes on each brand and the models that they offer and features that may interest you. After all, you will end up using your bbq gas grill for the next few years. And you want to make sure that you get the best bang for your buck.
This may help you in your search for a new gas grill: