camping barbeques

[Frogslegs]

As you are not allowed gas barbeques in France we considered taking an electric one with us. As OH is not here to answer.....would a 2000 watts be o.k. as I do not know how to convert amps to watts? Like the previous camping query I do not want to 'blow all the fuses'![Www]

[powerdesal]

So the barbecue gas point fitted to a caravan is useless in France, I never knew that, - oops.

[Boiling a frog]

I have been a caravaner in France for years and this is a new one on me.

Some sites do not allow BBQ's and some only in communale BBQ areas . It is a fire prevention measure.

[Danny]

Saw plenty of gas bbqs on sale in the bricos yesterday.

Danny

[Pierre ZFP]

I won't be buying shares in Campingaz then.

What makes you think you can't take/use a gas BBQ in France?  I must have seen thousands of the things in use, very good they are too.

Amps = watts/volts

so

2000/230 = 8.7 amps

[Frogslegs]

Many thanks for the replies. Last year....all 5 different camp sites said no gas barbeques and in the latest ACSI camping book it says so! Another reason why often they supply a communal barbeque.

[Frogslegs]

oops!....just reread the article and it says..."open barbeques are illegal, only gas barbeques are allowed" Oh bugg*** I have just sold the gas one at a garage sale![:$]

[Chancer]

About 8 years ago I heard the bang and saw the devastation after a gas one had exploded on a French camp site, luckily no-one was injured.

I think it was one of those griddle affairs that sit directly on the cylinder, despite my adventurous nature they have alwys scared me.

I have a trolley type gas one with lava rocks and really cant get on with it, a friend has an upmarket French one with hotplate and a sort of perforated griddle which cooks things much better than mine.

[Callie]

[quote user="Frogslegs"]oops!....just reread the article and it says..."open barbeques are illegal, only gas barbeques are allowed" Oh bugg*** I have just sold the gas one at a garage sale![:$][/quote]

Time you went back to your pond, Frogslegs ! [8-)]

We have always understood that all barbecues were not allowed on campsites - it's a case of reading the regs for each campsite, I suppose.

[trees 2]

[quote user="Frogslegs"]oops!....just reread the article and it says..."open barbeques are illegal, only gas barbeques are allowed" Oh bugg*** I have just sold the gas one at a garage sale![:$][/quote]

Too late, I was going to say that the above is MY understanding.........

[Jill<br><br>Jill (99)]

I've never come across a campsite that said no gas barbecues, but quite a lot, especially in Provence, that said no barbecues, but we found out that gas would have been OK.  One summer, we ended up doing all our cooking on a single low camping gaz stove, because it was too hot to use the proper cooker in our trailer tent.  As a result of that, I bought a Cadac.  It's a bit bulky, admitedly, but we do have a trailer tent so can find room for it on there.  We bought all the attachments and although we do use the barbecue part for merguez, we now use the griddle or ribbed grill for steaks, fish etc.  One campsite this summer was several miles from the boulangerie and the bread van wasn't due until 9 and was usually late, so we actually made pancakes on the griddle for breakfast.  It has a paella pan too - although we haven't made paella or risotto - only a fried rice dish, which stuck.  The gas bottle stands on the ground and the barbecue/grill section is high off the ground connected by a tube.  They are expensive, but they are a lot cleaner than a charcoal barbecue and very versatile too, if you want to cook outside but don't want to barbecue all the time.

On a campsite in the Dordogne last month, one family had a wood fire in a sort of metal thing holding it off the ground.  I think for the benefit of future campers, they will be saying NO to fires in the future.  Apparently the people didn't ask, just assumed and once it was done, the site owner dare not say - especially as her English wasn't up to it and they were English.  I wish I'd mentioned it to her earlier, I'd have happily told them on her behalf.  They were straight opposite us and it smelt foul.  I had to go and sit at the back of the tent and we had to keep all the doors shut to stop the smell getting in - luckily our tent is not fabric, but PVC impregnated plastic so the smell doesn't get through.

Whilst I know most like to barbecue while camping, I'd like to recommend a Remoska if you have electrics.  I use mine to roast 6 or 8 quails with garlic, or a jointed rabbit, potatoes, tartiflette (if the weather is a bit cool), stuffed peppers, paupiettes, roasts.  It's 240v and sits in our awning on the table.  It is like a large cake tin on a chrome stand with a lid which has a heating element.  It came in really useful the year we couldn't barbecue!  In any case, it does enable us to have more variety on our 3 weeks camping trips.