trying to decide between the q120 and q320


 

Brady Smith

New member
I have done a TON of research on reviews written and youtube etc for a week now.

i am skipping the q220 just because its obvious there have been the same problems with it. heating up time too long, cant get hot enough to sear a steak properly, low btu per square inch, regulator problems etc. i just dont want it.

i cook for 4 at most, so the 120 seems perfect for me. but, including adapter hose and stand the price difference for the 320 is only perhaps $150 more tops.

the problem is if i cook for 4 at most, i feel id be wasting too much propane using the 320 heating that big grill volume up to temp, just to cook for 2 or 4 people. so in the end it might just be too costly compared to the 120 regarding fuel. but at the same time, the 120 gets too hot and i love roasting/grilling vegetables so theyd probably get burnt, thats the only con to the 120 i can think of. maybe i can wrap in foil and vegs wont get burnt?

that being said, i am leaning towards the 120 but would love the 320 because it offers more for the money and is more versatile. i just dont like that i would probably burn too much fuel on the 320 if im cooking for 2 to 4 people.
 
I bought my q220 off eBay a few years back for $200ish new.

This past spring, I found a q300 on CL for $40.00 and bought it.

I had the problems you described regarding temp with the q220, so I sold it for $150.00 on CL after landing the q300.

If you can swing a used q300 off CL in good condition at a fair price, I would go that route over the q120 if you aren't interested in the portable feature of the q120.

I don't know what the traffic on CL is like in your area, but if you are patient and have the time, you could probably have both a q120 and a q300/q320 for less than the price of a new q320.

Since getting the q300, I purchased a starter set of Grill Grates and imported the Weber European q300 rotisserie attachment and really like both. Due to a windstorm that blew over my grill, I had to buy another top lid for $70.00, but that is the way thing go sometimes.

Derrick
 
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I have done a TON of research on reviews written and youtube etc for a week now.

i am skipping the q220 just because its obvious there have been the same problems with it. heating up time too long, cant get hot enough to sear a steak properly, low btu per square inch, regulator problems etc. i just dont want it.

i cook for 4 at most, so the 120 seems perfect for me. but, including adapter hose and stand the price difference for the 320 is only perhaps $150 more tops.

the problem is if i cook for 4 at most, i feel id be wasting too much propane using the 320 heating that big grill volume up to temp, just to cook for 2 or 4 people. so in the end it might just be too costly compared to the 120 regarding fuel. but at the same time, the 120 gets too hot and i love roasting/grilling vegetables so theyd probably get burnt, thats the only con to the 120 i can think of. maybe i can wrap in foil and vegs wont get burnt?

that being said, i am leaning towards the 120 but would love the 320 because it offers more for the money and is more versatile. i just dont like that i would probably burn too much fuel on the 320 if im cooking for 2 to 4 people.

Not sure about all the griping on the 200/220. I just sold my 200 to my neighbor and it always got more than hot enough to sear anything on it in just minutes. My current red head Q220 gets to 550 on the thermo using either small bottle or big 20lb bottle inside of 10 minutes or so. No trouble searing anything I can put on it. The 220 I got for oldest daughter gets just as hot. So either the people doing the *****in are having operator error or perhaps a possible bad regulator. I don't know about the 300 series. It is quite a lot larger and has 2 burners and a little more btu but never have used one. In any case all the 200 series grills in my family (my sister and BIL have one also) work like champs and get more than hot enough to burn the hair off your arms if you get too close. I would not have ANY fear of buying one
 
Go the Q320. Why you ask??? Well, if by any chance you have more than 4 people once in a while, you will love the ability of the Q320 to handle all of them. Most of the time, I cook for just my wife and myself, but if kids and grand kids show up, then I am ready. I probably use 2 tanks of propane per year and I use it a lot in the summer, and sometimes the rest of the year, depending on our weather. The 320 isn't portable like the 120, but with a little effort, you can disconnect it from the stand and set it up on a table. I have cooked steaks, roasts, fish, chicken and vegetables with the 320, and depending how you set it up, you can make it work almost like an oven. I expect you to get the 320 and after a few cooks, email me thanks for the recommendation!!!
 
I have the 320 and it's definitely a great grill. It's a great smaller alternative to the larger Spirits and Genesis models, if you have a smaller family, or small area. I have a Genesis and got the 320 for backup for larger parties, and for camping/tailgating. I will say that for travel, the 320 is a bit of a handful. Stock, the grill is perminently mounted to the stand, and the stand does not fold, so it's a bit of a PITA to transport. I swapped the 4 mounting screws in the legs with thumb screws so that the grill can be removed from the stand quickly and easily. This way, I can lay the stand on it's back, and the grill sits upright in the cargo area of my truck. I can also use the grill without the stand, if there's a picnic table or something at the destination, so this helps a great deal in making the larger 3XX more portable.
 
i understand all your points and i would LOVE to get the 320 but cooking for 2 people most of the time, it just seems like a lot of waste of propane. if i use it every day for two people, i wonder how many times ill have to refill the tank in a year. i dont know maybe i wont spend as much money as i think i will on fuel.

i dont care about portability, but the 120 just seems perfect for 2.

the 320 for instance, if i wanted to just sear a couple of steaks or do some carne asada and some vegetables. that means id have to warm the whole grill up for 10 to 15 minutes. just seems like a lot of waste. i dont really care about wasting the propane as much as wasting money.
 
to put it decent language, the q220 can get hot enough and can burn up anything with the best of them. those "stories" come up and usually the issues
relate to something else. my q220 always impresses me. its just the right size far as i'm concerned. so to dismiss the q220 cuz of "stories" is to short change yerself.
 
im gonna go ahead and keep reading. i have to make my mind up this weekend and buy it.

why cant i find weber q demo videos on youtube? most seem to be dutch or german. i see some australian ones but they review the 100s 200s and 300s, not the (1 or 3)20s im interested in
 
My Q220 gets to 500* in about 15 minutes. I had a bit of trouble when I started using the 20 lb tanks, but since I learned the special start up procedure, it hasn't been a problem. The Q220 will get plenty hot. Ignore the rumors.

Bill
 
i picked up the 120. done some hot dogs, corn, zuchini, wrapped whole onions, tomatos and chiles for salsa. i find it does not get too hot if i set it to the lowest, unlike what ive read so far that you cant get it lower than 425.

i am loving this thing so far. its so easy, no more charcoal for me
 
im finding it doesnt exactly heat even everywhere, theres a cooler spot on the upper right hand corner. although at this moment the grill is not exactly sitting even until i get a cart. its sitting on a chair that angles down from front to back. thats probably why.

can i use a regular metal spatula for this kind of grate? im not sure how delicate these cast iron grates are.
 
ok cool.

i just ran it full blast and it took like 25 minutes to reach 585 degrees and it is stuck there but moving up very very slowly from here. i hope thats normal.

also, when im done cooking is it fine to just turn the 20 lbs tank off first, then wait a few seconds so the residual gas in the hose burns off. then after that finally turn the grill itself off? just wondering how folks go about this.
 
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It is always best to turn the burner off first than the tank valve. Than turn the tank on followed by the burner for restart. Otherwise you tend to trip the OPV device (which is why the idiotic rumors start about the Q220) IMO. Frankly I never turn the supply off on any of my grills NG or propane. First I only have high quality grills (1 old Ducane real USA made, and Webers), so I trust the valves. And frankly when I turn my stove off, my water heater, what have you I don't rush outside and turn the gas supply off so I see no reason to bother on the grills
 
thanks for the tips. ive used it half a dozen times already and im sold. im thinking i should have gone for the 320 for a few more bucks especially since you get much more for your money. also since you 320 folks say its fine for 2 or so people and doesnt waste much fuel.

any sales out there for the 320? coupon codes? i plan to return this one to lowes but only if i dont have to spend $380 for the 320. i know i can get it for less.
 
ill check for sales and ill keep checking craigs list.

this grate is hard to clean so far. i just saw a tip to turn it upside down and turn the burners on for a while. making it easier to clean. im trying that now.
 
Brady, there are some great deals today for Q200/220 grills today on Los Angeles Craigslist. They've been posted to the sales forum here. $30 for a Q200 with stand can't be beat.

Bill
 

 

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