Newbie question - Gas BBQ location

[Greem]

Hello fellow BBQ lovers,

Yesterday I bought my first BBQ ever in Oz - a Weber Q2000 together with portable cart. I am fairly excited about the purchase, but as soon as I have brought my new purchase home together with a fresh gas bottle, I started thinking about fire safety measures. I am 100% green about these things, so I would like to request opinion of more experienced people, if I have a correct idea here.

So, basically I want to keep and use my new gas BBQ on my sheltered balcony, that you can see on the picture below. The idea is to always use it next to the railing, to allow as much fresh air as possible and make sure unburnt gas (if that even happens) is dispersed outside, rather than to accumulate on the balcony. Is my idea correct? Moreover, is it safe to use a gas barbie on a sheltered balcony like that? It is not shown on the image, but it's got ceiling covering it up until the the railing's line; I am planning on keeping the balcony door closed while BBQ'ing, since I don`t want to trigger the smoke detector placed just on the other side of the door.



Another question is a more trivial one - together with my Q2000 and a portable cart, I also got a Weber cover for this model to ensure I am protecting it from rusting early. Is it safe to keep the BBQ and cart covered (when applied, the cover hangs ~1-2cm above ground), while gas bottle rests on the lower section the the cart (basically, under the barbie)? Should I follow any common sense usage rules after that, and e.g. allow some time after uncovering it before I try and start the BBQ, to allow any gas which might have been trapped under the cover to disperse? I welcome any opinion I might get on this one.

Thanks in advance guys.

Cheers,
Matt

[Smokey]

Anywhere alone those walls are fine, You don't have to stick it right at the balustrade.

The second question; You are thinking too much.
Always turn the gas off at the bottle when not at use and always open the lid before turning on the flames.
The cover wont cause any problem as you will smell any unlikely gas build up.
Taking it off and opening the lid will negate that.
A cover wont totally prevent rust on a weber q as there is not much to rust. Best to look after the grill grate with proper care.

[Angryman65]

LPG is heavier than air so it will pool down around the gap at the bottom of the balustrade and there is likely to be enough air movement there to dispurse it if you did have a leak.

LPG is actually odourless when first produced and has a product called mercaptan added so we know if it's leaking. Gave a mate of mine a busy night years ago when the Mercaptan conatiner was leaking at Port Botany, spent the whole night chasing gas leaks that weren't happening.

Check which way the dominant breeze blows and stick the BBq soewhere where the wind won't affect the burners.