How hot do your knobs get?


 
Ralph

Ralph

TVWBB Super Fan
While I've been grilling on my 2003 Silver C that I picked up several weeks ago. I've noticed that the knobs seem to get really hot. Granted I'm in full sun, but burn your fingers hot.
I pulled out the IR thermometer and gave them a few shots. For a control, the temperature of knobs on a grill (that was off) right next to the Silver C registered about 135-150F.
On the Silver C the main burner knob measured about 180, center and back knobs measured 210 -220. I also measured where the propane fittings connect to the manifold, and I'm seeing about 210. This was with the grill reading about 400 on the dial (and just about the same with the IR thermometer).
Is this normal?
Should I be concerned that something is getting way too hot?
Thanks for any advice.
 
I am thinking an increase of about 50 degrees on the knobs is not all that bad, but 200 plus does seem a bit high overall. Look under the control panel with the grill on for any flames exiting the cook box out of the burner holes or even holes in the cook box.
 
Just did a preheat and measured the knobs on my Genesis 1000, 145 degree's. The control panel was 175. Ambient was 89F
 
Do the test at night. I'm pretty sure the grill would not have passed safety certification if the knobs were any temperature over 140F.
 
Started the grill up this evening to figure out what is going on. I think I have figured out the problem, and it's a little embarrassing.
Before starting the grill, knobs and control panel measured 75. As the grill warmed up, the knobs and control panels also started to heat up, approaching 160 within five or ten minutes.
Confirmed that no flames were coming out of the cookbox.
As I looked things over, I could feel a steady wave of heat coming out from between the lid and cookbox, blowing right onto the control panel and knobs. The last few times I've used the grill (when I really started to notice the painfullly hot knobs) were to season grates from a few other grills picked up recently (stacked on top of each other). The grates interfered with the closing of the lid, allowing the heat to escape, heating things up.
The fact that the knobs can heat up to 135-150 just in direct sunlight made me sensitive to the temperatures while grilling over the past several weeks- the few uses while seasoning grates this weekend with actual temperature readings had me concerned.
Once things cool back down, I will move the grates around so the lid fully closes and repeat to confirm my suspicions.
 
I would not think the lid not closing all the way would do that. I have never had the knobs get much above ambient temps whether the lid was closed all the way or propped slightly
 
LMichaels said:
I would not think the lid not closing all the way would do that. I have never had the knobs get much above ambient temps whether the lid was closed all the way or propped slightly
Click to expand...
I agree, heat goes up. Is your grill in some kind of nook or closed-in area? I suspect wind might be blowing heat off the bottom part of the firebox toward the control panel. The knobs are at the "heat source" height if you think about it, so that would be like if you had one burner running on your stove, and it boiled water in a pot on the adjacent burner.

What kind of clearance do you have around the grill?
 
Rearranged the grates I was seasoning and re-did my test this AM with the lid fully closed, without any sun beating down. Ambient temp 75.
With the cooler ambient temp, I still noticed heat still coming off the sides of the cookbox.
After an hour on "low", the thermometer temp stablized at 400, knobs were reading about 140, but 160 on the side facing the cookbox.
Control panel was over 200 close to the cookbox. There is definitely a lot of heat coming off the cookbox.
The grill is located on a concrete pad next to my deck. There are feet of clearance on all sides. No wind or breeze to affect heat flow.
One more thing to think about is that i had three layers of cast iron grates on top of the stainless grates. I wonder if there was a lack of flow up through the grates causing some strange heating issue. I'm going to take all the (now seasoned) grates off tomorrow and see if that changes anything.
Thanks for the suggestions and comments.
 
Yah, just one set of grates will make a difference I am pretty sure of that. Keep us posted.
 
I'm interested too. Thanks for indulging the wind idea, I'm trying to think of something I wouldn't think of.
 
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