Ducane Gas Grill question


 
C

C. Moore

TVWBB Member
I have cooked with charcoal, exlusively, for twelve years. The quickness and convenience of a gas grill has become appealing, though, with the addition of kids and me working later hours. I have a friend who is about to give me a Ducane gas grill that is about ten years old. It appears to be in great shape, but it is sort of old school inasmuch as it uses lava rocks spread out on a "sear grid". Most new grills have gotten away from this set-up, but I was wondering if any of you have seen any sort of update or upgrade that can be done to this old-style grill to make it perform in line with the way the new ones work. Any input will be appreciated.

PS: I posted this in the "Barbecuing" section because I believe most of you have a better appreciation for tinkering and really being detail oriented in how you approach this sort of thing.

Thanks.

Charlie
 
It may depend on how old the Dukane is:

If the "sear grate" does not look like a conventional grate:
-Double or triple-layers
-No clear straight-thru path (Staggered slats)
Then it may have been designed to use this grate in the same manner as "flavorizer bars" within Weber gassers. Hot drippings hit the hot Stainless and evaporate in the form of steam, smoke, and other aromatics.

If you have one of these, just "ditch" the Lava Rock (unless the grate is rotted-out).
(My Dad has one of these.)

If it is a single-layer grate, that was designed for Lava Rock - then I would look into getting the ceramic briquettes to replace the Lava Rock. I did this on my old Sterling gasser ("premium" ones from Char-broil - picked 'em up cheap at H. Depot). They worked great until the grill finally rotted-out after about 12 years of use.

The Ceramic Briqs are better, IMHO - because:
-They do not "trap" as much grease and crud
-You can fit them together in a single layer
-They seem to do a decent job of contolling flare-ups

If you DO keep the Lava Rock - be sure to roll it over about twice per season (depending on how often you use the grill) in order to burn-off the majority of the caked-on crud.
 
Thanks to you both. This is the kind of information I was seeking. I wonder if anyone has ever done a conversion so that the old grill uses flavorizer (sp?) bars like in most new grills.

Again, I am a charcoal guy through and through, and have even gotten into some whole hog competitions, but on weeknights the gas grill is just a tad more convenient.

Thanks, again.
 
I agree with ya', Charlie -

I do the same:
-Got my WSM for weekends when I have time
-Got my Weber Gasser for quick weekday cooks

(Still looking at a 26-incher Kettle for the happy go-between to "expand my repertoire"...)
 
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