Disaster averted and egg on my face


 
A few years back one of the nuts holding the lid holder on my Performer fell down into cold ashes in the bowl.
I used a magnet to look for it, found it and several small bristle pieces, never used a wire brush after that.
Now I use those SS scrubby pads with a holder, and when the grate is cold I have a brush with red stiff plastic bristles.
 
Reading all this, I guess I should abandon using my brush even occasionally. The only challenge for me, as I noted, is on cast iron. The metal coil brush is getting easier for me to use effectively. I only question whether it, too, could leave metal pieces. Any thoughts on that?
 
Wow. First off, I'm glad to hear nobody got hurt Larry.

Secondly, this make me extra happy that I have the RC grates and the stainless scraping style cleaning tool.

I've been using the stainless scraper for several months now, and have cleaned out the grill since getting it too, but it would be interesting to hear back from those who use brushes if you could magnet test the bottoms of your grills and see what comes out.

Just makes me wonder if the bristles flake off all the time, but usually fall to the bottom.

Slainte! Literally!
 
Jon Tofte said:
Any thoughts on that?
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You're smarter than me but in my feeble mind it would seem only that a coil could experience a break in its winding and not actually lose a wire. I have a coil but have yet to use it effectively, probably because I prefer not using water as prescribed in its directions.

More oft than not, I use the Char-Broil cool clean brush after having abandoned wire bristles.
 
Jon Tofte said:
Reading all this, I guess I should abandon using my brush even occasionally. The only challenge for me, as I noted, is on cast iron. The metal coil brush is getting easier for me to use effectively. I only question whether it, too, could leave metal pieces. Any thoughts on that?
Click to expand...

Yeah the chargon won't work very well on cast iron. Just the wrong shape. Have you considered this tool for your cast iron grates? It's supposed to work well on coated cast iron grates. I met the owner at the "shrimp fest" in Alabama several years ago. Really nice guy who is very proud of his invention. I bought one from him. I do like it. The chargon just fits my SS grates better . I've never tested it on cast grates. If you would like to try it let me know and I can send it to you.

https://www.grillgadget.com/main/how-it-works
 
Greg M said:
Yeah the chargon won't work very well on cast iron. Just the wrong shape. Have you considered this tool for your cast iron grates? It's supposed to work well on coated cast iron grates. I met the owner at the "shrimp fest" in Alabama several years ago. Really nice guy who is very proud of his invention. I bought one from him. I do like it. The chargon just fits my SS grates better . I've never tested it on cast grates. If you would like to try it let me know and I can send it to you.

https://www.grillgadget.com/main/how-it-works
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Greg,

Thanks for the link. That version 2 looks pretty interesting. I think I may seen this once before, but not the No. 2 type. If you do have a chance to try it out on cast iron, I would be interested in hearing your opinion.

I like that is a real USA product. I wish the Chargon was, too, but even so the Chargon seems well made and really does work "grate"! I think the wood ones would do fine on stainless rods, too, but to me they really excel on GrillGrates. I use it faithfully on those and am very happy with how it has etched to the perfect shape. Maybe I wasn't patient enough, but it didn't seem to adapt to my cast iron nearly as well.
 
My Q1000 grates come in two pieces, and they are small enough to soak in a sink of hot soapy water. I always let the grates cool off, of course, before soaking them, but after they soak for a while, I scrub them with a stainless steel scouring pad on both sides before drying them.

I then place them back on the Q and turn on the heat, briefly, to make sure they are dry. I can still feel an oily residue on the grates for what it's worth, and the grill is never stored outside. Reckon I need to oil them anyway?


As for the WSMs, I soak all cooking grates in hot water, and I scrub them with the same type scouring pad too. The porcelain Genesis grates get the same procedure.

The kettle grate is a different story. Since it is a hard slick shiny surface, I use .99 cent metal brush to clean it after bring the grill up to temp, but I have gotten into the habit of giving it a final wipe with an oily paper towel before adding meat. My main concerned is the welded areas that could trap bits of bristle in the old greasy / carbon residue, so, every so often, I will soak this grate, too, in hot water, and scrub it with the same type stainless steel scouring pad that I use on the grates mentioned above.

With that said, I think I need to shop for a better brush.
 
Jon Tofte said:
Greg,

Thanks for the link. That version 2 looks pretty interesting. I think I may seen this once before, but not the No. 2 type. If you do have a chance to try it out on cast iron, I would be interested in hearing your opinion.

I like that is a real USA product. I wish the Chargon was, too, but even so the Chargon seems well made and really does work "grate"! I think the wood ones would do fine on stainless rods, too, but to me they really excel on GrillGrates. I use it faithfully on those and am very happy with how it has etched to the perfect shape. Maybe I wasn't patient enough, but it didn't seem to adapt to my cast iron nearly as well.
Click to expand...

Unfortunately I don't have a grill with cast grates to be able to test it. But when I bought it the owner demonstrated it on coated cast iron grates. Looked like it worked well. The owner claimed it won't hurt the coating on the grates because the cleaning head is brass.

Yeah I wanted to like the grill gadget better because it is American made and the owner is a heck of a nice guy. But the chargon just works better on round grates. And also has the advantage of being able to clean the underside of the grates pretty well without flipping them. Something the other tool can't do. Or any brush for that matter.
 
BFletcher said:
Of curiosity, are you using one of these as your high-end brush? I did not realize Libman catered to this market:

https://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B017GSYWP2/tvwb-20

https://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00KYSNZS2/tvwb-20
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I buy the second one you show at Menard's a local home center. Sadly I was not using it this time it was some el cheapo I bought. Of all people I should have known better!

Lynn Dollar said:
Actually, the one in the pic is a Weber. I bought two of them about 4 years ago, I think , maybe $6 to $8. And I think they're every bit worth the money and I would buy again.

I got the Kona to try it for myself. I'll report back , what I think of it.
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I am referring to the Weber product. The main shaft is wire so you cannot put enough pressure on it to actually get the grates cleaned. That's my gripe with it and ones like it. I also have found the bristles DO break off them very easily. I discovered that long ago when all I had was a Weber Kettle.
 
Greg M said:
I'm sincerely glad you weren't injured Larry. I'm in healthcare so I've seen first hand the damage those bristles can do if ingested.

I don't even think about using a brush anymore since buying a chargon a couple of years ago.
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I don't think the issue was using a brush. It was using a junk brush and not following my course of due diligence afterward. Honestly I still believe a quality brush followed up with a wipe down is still the only really effective way to clean the grates. I have tried the wooden scrapers, the CharGon and many more and find them either ineffective or so laborious to use they make me nuts.
So I'll continue to use a brush and wipe down but no more crappy brushes EVER and they will get replaced often as well
 
Bob Correll said:
never used a wire brush after that.
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I'm in your camp. To say a "quality" wire brush followed by a wipe fully mitigates any risk is not convincing to me. I'm not going to be diplomatic about this given what I discovered in my grill box a couple years ago. And a lifetime warranty is no guarantee against bristle loss.
 
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The chargon gets my grates just as clean as I ever got them with a brush. And has the huge added benefit of not ever wearing out.
 
BFletcher said:
I'm in your camp. To say a "quality" wire brush followed by a wipe fully mitigates any risk is insanity to me. I'm not going to be diplomatic about this given what I discovered in my grill box a couple years ago. And a lifetime warranty is no guarantee against bristle loss.
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Yeah it's just not a risk I'm willing to take either. Not when there are other good options.
 
Sometimes I wonder if a pressurized steam washer would be the best choice on some grill grates. An expensive option though.
 
Bruce said:
Larry, if you buy a short handle Weber brush, you can put some weight into it. But, you will need an oven glove if you are working over hot grates.

https://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B009IH0BYQ/tvwb-20
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I bought the short handle and have not had to use a glove. I really like that three sided brush. Though I need a smaller brush head for cleaning the inside of my WSM's and Kettle, other than the grates, something that fits the contour better.

I only use it on my Kettle and my Spirit 3 gasser, I'm like Rusty, I soak and clean the WSM grates in a big tub. And then they go in the dishwasher.

The grate on my Old Country Brazos stick burner, that is expanded metal, gets cleaned with aluminum foil. I can also take it out and use a pressure washer on it, when it gets too gunky.
 
Greg M said:
The chargon gets my grates just as clean as I ever got them with a brush. And has the huge added benefit of not ever wearing out.
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Greg,

I totally agree with that. I am thinking seriously of getting that other tool you posted with the cast iron version head. If that works half way decently, then I will kiss my last wire brushes good bye. Possible exception to scrape burners in between more major overhauls.
 
Jon Tofte said:
Greg,

I totally agree with that. I am thinking seriously of getting that other tool you posted with the cast iron version head. If that works half way decently, then I will kiss my last wire brushes good bye. Possible exception to scrape burners in between more major overhauls.
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Yeah I do keep a wire brush to use on the burners and also to brush off the flavorizors when I do a deep cleaning. But it NEVER touches my grates. I think that's safe. I can't imagine a bristle ever making its way up to the grates (and the cooking food) from those 2 areas. And using the brush for only that infrequent chore it (the brush) will last a long time.

I would be interested to hear how the grill gadget works on your CI grates.
 
I've honestly never found bristles when cleaning out my grills but again I rarely use the cheap inexpensive brushes. I typically buy either the Weber Wooden handle one or Libman. This was an oddity due to my most likely needing a brush sometime and not having time to run to the store(s) that carry the high end brushes. Also again I think the other issue here is the bad finish on CI grates and the especially poor shape my Q grates are in.
Not sure why anyone would think following with a cloth that is either wet or oiled would not pick up any possible stray bristle either. As for some of the other tools mentioned I have tried them all and again I will repeat have found them either too time consuming to use or totally ineffective. Even a foil ball has more issues as flakes of aluminum will adhere to the grates and until you bite down on a piece (even a tiny little flake) of foil between 2 amalgam (silver) fillings you haven't lived :D Your mouth becomes a high voltage battery and it's well let's just say "adventurous". I have been grilling for close to 45 years and this is the first time this is the only mishap I have ever had. Yes it was an eye opener, yes I will make some minor changes to my habits as noted but no I am not going on some drastic change or crusade. I don't see a need. Just high quality cleaning instruments, followed by a thorough wipe down. I will also pay more attention when using cast iron grates as they seem to be the biggest culprit.
Bottom line I have always followed sound practices I just got lazy one time and paid for it............................almost.
 
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