ACTIVA Augsburg

A round grate on a stainless steel column

In its own shop, ACTIVA lists the Augsburg as “Säulengrill Augsburg” under the article number 11290NEU. On the title page of the instructions, the number appears without a suffix, 11290, and that is how it appears in the Amazon catalogue too. The fuel is charcoal and briquettes. Grilling is open, directly over the embers.

The product photo shows quite accurately what it looks like. At the bottom is a round base that rises conically towards the centre. On it sits a slim, shiny column with narrow slits and a small knob. At the top is a flat, round fire bowl with a wide rim, and on the bowl stands a vertical ring in which the grate hangs. The Amazon text speaks of a funnel grill. We see no funnel either in the photo or in the exploded diagram of the instructions; both show a flat bowl.

We file the Augsburg in the charcoal grills category, among the column grills. According to our price box it costs approx. €30 (Amazon page on 20.10.2026: €29.89), and in our comparison it gets 7.5 out of 10 points. Among the four grills in the table further down, it is the cheapest and at the same time the one with the lowest rating.

What is in the box and what it is made of

The parts list in the instructions is short: grill grate, side ring, fire bowl, front and rear wall of the column, an air vent slider with slider knob, the grill base, a second air vent slider for the base and a lever. Added to that are 25 screws M5 x 8 and 25 nuts M5. Wheels, shelf, warming rack and ash catcher are not on the list, and none of them can be seen in the photo either.

ACTIVA describes the grate as chrome-plated, with a diameter of 39 cm. For the rest of the grill, the running text in the shop speaks of a stainless steel construction that is supposed to be corrosion-resistant, and the Polish instructions call the appliance a stainless steel column grill right in the title. In the Amazon text, the manufacturer goes further and promises that the grill stays rust-free as a result.

The sources are still not entirely consistent, though. The info box on the same shop page writes of steel in general, and the material field below it is empty. And “stainless steel” is a collective term: austenitic grades such as 1.4301 generally cope better outdoors with rain and heat than ferritic ones such as 1.4016, which tend to develop surface rust under moisture. We therefore read the word rust-free as a marketing promise, not as an assurance for every kind of storage.

When it comes to dimensions and weight, information is thin. The shop info box gives 60 x 40 x 90 cm (width, depth, height) and 5.0 kg. The same 60 x 40 x 90 cm appears there word for word for the Bavaria, the Saalfeld and the Hebefix, that is, for grills with a completely different design, and the Augsburg shares the 5.0 kg with the Bavaria. That does not look like a measurement someone took on this grill. Amazon lists 0.39 inches edge length and 0.44 pounds, which converts to roughly 1 cm and 0.2 kg, which obviously cannot be right for a free-standing grill. We therefore refrain from giving footprint dimensions. If space is tight, it is best to measure the assembled grill yourself.

In detail: three grate heights and two air sliders

Over open charcoal, most of the heat reaches the food as radiation, and that decreases quickly with distance. A few centimetres therefore decide whether a bratwurst turns black on the outside before it is hot on the inside. That is physics and applies to every open charcoal grill.

The Augsburg has two adjustable variables. The first is the grate. According to the Amazon text, it sits in insertion holes and can be adjusted to three heights; according to the assembly instructions, you place it in the side ring at whichever point suits you. In the photo, you can see the vertical slits for this in the ring. On the Augsburg, repositioning means: lift it out and hang it again. With the embers going, you have to grip a hot grate with gloves to do this, whereas on the ACTIVA Hebefix a lever takes care of it.

The second variable is air. Here the Augsburg has more parts than we would have expected at this price. One air vent slider sits in the column and has its own knob; a second lies under the base plate of the foot and is moved by a lever that is routed through an opening in the plate. That is what the assembly instructions say. For the control on the column, ACTIVA promises a shorter lighting time and constant embers. No source describes the path of the air to the charcoal; we read the design as meaning that it flows from below through the column into the bowl. More air makes charcoal burn brighter, less slows it down.

The Augsburg has no lid. Without a hood there is no closed cooking chamber in which a piece of meat slowly cooks through next to the embers. Sausages, belly slices, vegetables and thin steaks are right at home here, a whole pork neck is not. If the charcoal lights poorly despite open sliders, our guide charcoal will not light properly helps.

Is a 39 cm grate enough for your group?

For two to three people yes, for a garden party rather not. ACTIVA does not state a number of people; our assessment is based on the grate area and on the load limit from the instructions.

A round grate with a diameter of 39 cm has, by calculation, around 1,195 cm², calculated as a circle area without deducting the rim. For comparison from our catalogue: the Barbecook round column grill 96 cm has a grate with Ø 43 cm according to Barbecook, which by calculation is around 1,452 cm². For the ACTIVA Pisa, the 54 x 34 cm of its rectangular grate give 1,836 cm².

The second limit is weight. According to the instructions, the grate carries approx. 2.5 kg of food. Ten pork neck steaks of 250 g each would already be at the limit, and whether they fit next to each other on 1,195 cm² is another question. If you grill for six guests, you therefore put food on in rounds and let the first ones wait. For regular larger groups, that would be too little for us.

Assembly: around an hour, you bring the tools

ACTIVA estimates approx. 60 minutes for assembly. The instructions require you to have the tools ready to hand, and list a Phillips screwdriver and an adjustable spanner for this. As a work area, they plan for approx. 2 to 3 m² and advise working in pairs if necessary.

Before that, you unpack all the parts and check that they are complete. According to the instructions, the fixing material is mostly already screwed into the parts and has to be unscrewed before assembly. You are to handle the individual parts carefully to avoid injuries. The most important rule comes at the end: all screw connections are only tightened once the grill is fully assembled. The manufacturer reserves the right to make minor technical changes, above all to the fixing parts.

Lighting, cleaning, disposal: what the instructions prescribe

Only the Polish version of the instructions could be found online, published by ACTIVA Polska. What follows here is our translation, as close to the wording as possible. For lighting, it specifies five steps:

1. Stack the charcoal or briquettes in a pyramid in the charcoal bowl.
2. Moisten the pyramid lightly and evenly with charcoal lighter complying with DIN EN 1860-3 (a standard that applies in Germany and the EU).
3. Leave for about a minute, then light.
4. Only put food on once the fuel is covered with a layer of ash.
5. Insert the greased grate and start grilling.

The instructions repeat the fourth point elsewhere with three exclamation marks: never prepare food before the fuel is covered with a white layer of ash.

The safety notes of the instructions, in full:

• Do not use in enclosed or inhabited spaces, such as residential buildings, tents, caravans, motorhomes and boats. There is a risk of fatal carbon monoxide poisoning.
• The grill can get very hot and must not be moved or carried during use.
• Do not use indoors.
• No methylated spirits and no petrol for lighting or relighting, only lighters complying with EN 1860-3.
• Keep children and animals away from the grill.
• Wear grill gloves complying with DIN EN 407 or use suitable grill tongs.
• Use only charcoal or charcoal briquettes complying with DIN EN 1860-2.
• Let it cool down completely before cleaning, otherwise there is a risk of flash fires, uncontrollably high temperatures and burns.
• Before use, set it up on a stable, level surface.
• Never extinguish the grill with water.
• Do not use on covered areas or in enclosed spaces.
• Do not leave the hot grill unattended.
• Do not set it up near walkways or heavily frequented areas.
• Do not wear clothing with long sleeves while grilling.
• Do not let children play with the packaging film.
• Do not use solvents or thinners for cleaning.
• Burning charcoal produces carbon monoxide, which can lead to poisoning in enclosed spaces.
• Do not use in storms or heavy rain.

According to ACTIVA, the intended use is only grilling suitable foods, only for private use and only as described in the instructions. Any other use can cause damage to property or personal injury, and the manufacturer excludes liability for it.

After grilling, you let the charcoal burn out and the grill cool down completely. Cold ash is best removed regularly before each use, and you clean the grill while doing so. You work on the grill and grate with a suitable grill brush and then wash them thoroughly with warm water. The grate must not go in the dishwasher. How the ash gets out of the bowl is not described in the instructions; the Augsburg has no ash catcher, after all. Waste, that is, grill residue and ash, belongs only in containers made of metal or non-combustible material, and local regulations apply in addition. Ash that looks cold often still smoulders inside for a long time, so we would leave it overnight in a metal bucket. For stubborn residues on the chrome grate, there is our guide cleaning a burnt-on grate.

What ACTIVA leaves open

Not to be found in the shop, the instructions or the Amazon catalogue: a grilling area as a manufacturer’s figure, the number of people, reliable external dimensions and the working height of the grate, a reliable weight, the sheet thickness of column, base and fire bowl, the stainless steel grade, the spacing between the three grate heights, maximum temperature and heating-up time, minimum distances to buildings and combustible materials in centimetres, a statement on balconies, a windshield (the side ring serves as a grate holder), the warranty conditions in detail, spare parts prices, the country of origin, the market year, the matching cover size and a German instruction manual to download.

These three alternatives are worth a look

The prices come from our price boxes and change. The rating is our editorial assessment from the data comparison; we have not measured anything on any of the grills.

When the Augsburg, when another one

According to our price boxes, the Hebefix costs approx. €60 and the Augsburg approx. €30. In return, ACTIVA lets you adjust the grate height there with one movement via a lever, instead of you unhooking the grate. If you like to sear hard and then carry on cooking higher up, on the Hebefix you no longer have to touch the hot grate. If you set the height once and then leave it, you save the extra cost.

The Pisa is at the same price as the Hebefix. ACTIVA states a removable ash catcher and a warming rack for it, both of which the Augsburg lacks, and its grate is larger. However, no instructions for the Pisa could be found during research for its review, so safety and care requirements are less well documented there than for the Augsburg.

The Barbecook costs approx. €129, the Augsburg approx. €30. According to Barbecook, you light it without firelighters using the QuickStart system and extinguish the embers with the QuickStop water container in the base; it also comes with a windshield. On the Augsburg, water for extinguishing is expressly forbidden; there you wait until the charcoal burns out by itself. If you do not want to stay sitting next to a glowing grill in the evening, that is exactly what you pay for with the Barbecook.

For the balcony, what the instructions say about the place of use applies: not covered, not near walkways, on stable, level ground. A loggia or a balcony under an overhang above is therefore ruled out. An open balcony only comes into question if your tenancy agreement and house rules allow charcoal, and that is decided not by ACTIVA but by your landlord or the owners’ association. Our guide grilling on a balcony summarises what tenancy agreements and house rules may regulate.

Our assessment of the Augsburg itself: it suits you if you grill over open embers for two or three people in the garden or on an open terrace and would rather adjust the heat with sliders and grate height than spend money on mechanics. It is the wrong choice for anyone who wants to cook low and slow or smoke, because the hood is missing for that. If you are still unsure whether you want charcoal at all, the grill finder gives you a shortlist.