AZ Barbeque.com
Smokers, Grills, Pitts & More => BDS & UDS Smokers => Topic started by: Skouson on August 01, 2010, 12:25:34 pm
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A cautionary tale:
I helped a young friend build a UDS yesterday, sent the drum and the kid home with detailed instructions on seasoning and cooking up some brats for dinner.
Fast forward to an hour ago:
Got a call from a very groggy young friend. He is in the emergency room, being treated for 1st and 2nd degree burns on arm, chest and neck, sans a significant amount of chest and head hair. He is wrapped up like the mummy, doped up on 3 injections of morphine.
Apparently, earlier this morning, he and a friend were preparing to smoke some ribs. He had 15 briquettes going in his chimney starter. He went inside to work on the ribs. His buddy, not knowing what the hell he was doing, poured some lighter fluid on the coals remaining in the basket from yesterday. Either residual heat, or incompletely extinguished coals helped vaporize the lighter fluid. 5 minutes later, my young friend, unaware of the addition of the fluid, poured the red glowing coals into the basket. The resulting flash back, vector directed by the height and diameter of the drum caused the forementioned injuries.
Oops!
Rule #1: Unless you are a team of highly trained professionals, only one person works the fire.
Rule #2: See rule #1.
Rule #3: Get rid of the lighter fluid.
Sterling
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Yikes!!!! Hope he is ok... Thanks for the heads up!
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AMEN! I m glad it wasn't worse... and I hope the other guy won't be quick to go for a repeat performance. lighter fluid is the devil....
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Rule#1 is the most important rule to BBQ by. That's why I'm the only one lighting my BBQ fires
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I'm always cognizant of flashback with my ceramic cookers. Since you can cut the airflow top & bottom to quell the fire, you also have an oxygen-starved bunch of red hot coals looking for a breath of fresh air. 8) That's why I open them up to and bottom before grabbing the handle in the middle and lifting. When it happens once, you'll never forget the lesson. I haven't! ???
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Ouch. Hope he recovers fast. Hard lesson to learn..
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I'm always cognizant of flashback with my ceramic cookers. Since you can cut the airflow top & bottom to quell the fire, you also have an oxygen-starved bunch of red hot coals looking for a breath of fresh air. 8) That's why I open them up to and bottom before grabbing the handle in the middle and lifting. When it happens once, you'll never forget the lesson. I haven't! ???
That is so true Mark. I sent a flame about 5 feet in the air with my #7 kamado. It cost me much of the hair on my arm, but that was it. It was at night so, the flame was impressive.
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The same thing can happen without lighter fluid - once upon a time a guy (i wont mention names here!) put half a dozen game hens on the grill that were marinated in italian dressing and closed the lid! 5 minutes later i ( oops i mean that other guy ;) open the lid and when the oxygen hit the fire it flashed over burning all hair on face and upper body off!! I wish i could blame it on beer but i was only on my 1st one of the day! Trained firefighter-yea right!! :laugh:
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Hey Mike, This might be a good topic to add to the forum on it's own for all of the new members just getting started in BBQ... I'm sure it would help some people avoid getting injured.
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Sounds like the living definition of "OH $HIT!" I'm sure the ambient temps had some influence, too. Good thing it wasn't yesterday or today!
I hope he gets some good pain pills out of this. Burns suck!
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I gotta ask what lighter fluid was even doing there? Poor devil, glad I don't have friends like he does.
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I have had it happen with my weber cooking wings before. Fire too hot shut everything down and then opened the lid. Nothing too big but it still scares the hell out of you. Remember it is not the wood that is making the flame. It is the gas caused by the heat that is actually making the fire. Someone can chime in if that is incorrect.
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STEVE, You re correct! The fire triangle is fuel-heat-oxygen. I saw a training video once at the PHX. fire academy where they put a 2x4 on one side of a steel plate and a torch on the other side. As the wood heats, it gives off gases and at the point of ignition temp. the wood caught fire even though direct flame was never near the wood! Have you ever noticed flame dancing above a log on fire?