Griddle Question


 
Mike-BBQ

Mike-BBQ

TVWBB Member
I have a Weber 435 gas and recently bought a griddle to use with it. I know the design of the grill is to remove the grate and place the griddle in the grill cradle, but is there anything wrong with just putting it on top of the grates and using it? It would seem the heat would almost be the same, it is stable (granted not as stable as the cradle), and would just be a little easier to use quickly.
 
I think you have already identified the only downside. Try it and see how it works for you. There are tons of things we all do that aren't exactly in accordance with the directions.
 
Not sure which griddle you got but I bought the Weber full size griddle for my SE-335. You just remove the grate and not the flavor bars. I really like and use it quite a lot. Stores away nicely in a carrying case when not in use.

That being said, there are ones on the market that just sit on the grill grates.
 
I bought the Weber Plancha Dessus which I believe is the one made for my 435. The flovorizer bars stay on 100% of the time, but the griddle is flat and solid, so any flavorizing would come around the solid surface. I use Grill Grates on top of my Weber grates ( I know some of you don't like them, but I think they are great), so I was just being lazy and quick, and wanting to just put the griddle on now!
 
Sorry for the confusion, but I still not totally sure what you got. This is what mine looks like installed.
1691786162949.jpeg

Ok, back to your question. Ihave never tried to just lay mine on the grates. I would however wonder how well it will heat. As you can see by the picture, there is a long slot along the back, cut outs in the front, and about 1/2 inch gap on the sides (helps a lot installing and removing the griddle). This is needed to prevent too much heat building up in the firebox. Lifting it up (on top of the grates) may allow too much air gap which could impact temperature across the griddle. Just a guess though. There must be a reason that Weber did not design it to lay on the grates.
 
Here is a picture that depicts what mine is supposed to be. I am going to take it out of the box tonight and try something simple. I probably will first try to just sit it on top on the grates (not put it in the cradle)41741b8634ef2ab741266bdb858016b5.jpg and do simple things like veggies, corn, and onions. Game plan is to grill a flank steak on the other side of the grill as well. I will try to remember to take some photos and maybe even take some temp readings with an infrared.
 
Here are some photos of my first Weber Griddle cook. I put the Griddle right on top of the Grill Grates (admit I am lazy and just wanted to use it without removing the grates and putting it in the cradle). The griddle is quite heavy, and did not move at all while using spatula on the grilled onions. I turned the heat on high to start, but realized it was way too much for the flank steak I was cooking on the grill side. Here are pictures of the temp from an infrared thermometer. As you can see, there was not any significant difference in temp from the Grill Grate side and the Griddle side. So it seems if I want to throw the griddle on last minute to use, not a big deal and works well. I may try it this weekend with smash burgers!
1-20230813_183014.jpg2-20230813_183049.jpg3-20230813_183058.jpg4-20230813_195851.jpg6-20230813_202417.jpg
 
Mark Foreman said:
Sorry for the confusion, but I still not totally sure what you got. This is what mine looks like installed.
View attachment 76816

Ok, back to your question. Ihave never tried to just lay mine on the grates. I would however wonder how well it will heat. As you can see by the picture, there is a long slot along the back, cut outs in the front, and about 1/2 inch gap on the sides (helps a lot installing and removing the griddle). This is needed to prevent too much heat building up in the firebox. Lifting it up (on top of the grates) may allow too much air gap which could impact temperature across the griddle. Just a guess though. There must be a reason that Weber did not design it to lay on the grates.
Click to expand...
Whats the part number on thr griddle?
 
My pleasure. I opted for the full plate as it’s easy to install, works really good. I can use it with the lid closed, and then can take it off so I can use the Genesis as a gas grill.
I had already trimmed the flock down to the E6 Kamado (WAY personal favorite) and the Genesis II 335 and I didn't want to add another grill after the down sizing.
 
I agree and like the idea of a full plate vs a side plate only. However I'm not opposed to building a dedicated one.
 
Last edited:
I believe the griddle I used was indeed made to fit perfectly into the cradle built in to the Weber 435. I was just a little lazy and put it directly on top of the grates. It worked fine for me. As you see, the temps were fine and not that much different from the grates itself.
 
Weber should have the summit griddle available in a few days but I will just go she's and get both and see which offers the best fit.
 
So I bought the 7599 half griddle not mentioned in this thread to test on the summit because I wanted to see how it would look and fit. It seems to fit just fine as shown in the pictures below. What we didn't like is the deep sides which make it feel tight. Personal lrefebxe I guess. I have the larger 6789 mentioned here on order locally and will see how that goes. Let's get on with the picture show.
 

Attachments

  • 20230830_183054.jpg
    20230830_183054.jpg
    128.1 KB · Views: 10
  • 20230830_183122.jpg
    20230830_183122.jpg
    127.7 KB · Views: 10
You must log in or register to reply here.

 

Back
Top