I have picked up probably 300 Webers over the last 8 years. Most were free and in rough shape.
I noticed that a cover doesn’t extend the life of the grill. They rust and rot cover or no cover.
It looks like keeping clean, letting them dry and keeping them away from concrete and pools helps extend the life. Keeping junk out cabinet helps.
The black lids can fade but it’s not clear if that’s from sunlight or defects in the porcelain enamel finish.
That said, if you are only going to use your grill a few times a year a cover or shed storage probably makes sense provided you keep it reasonably clean and let it dry
If you are using the grill 4 times a week or so you may still want to cover it during pollen season and snow season.
Heavy vinyl covers can freeze in the winter and be hard to deal with.
Light covers need a good “belt” system to cinch around the lower grill to keep from flying away.
I like half covers that just cover the lid and control panel. Easy on and off and lets the cabinet breathe. I’m not sure if they are available for Webers though.
