Weber Summit 470 disappointments

[Duffy Floyd]

Moving to SC from PA in April 2011 I was forced by "The Boss" to leave my Ducane 2002 purchased in 1988 behind giving it to a friend of "The Boss". Over the years the grill served me VERY well and though many parts were replaced over the years it still looked great and performed consistently. I did my research and decided on a Summit 470 Black model with smoker box.

I have been VERY disappointed with this grill. The smoker box is useless given the design of the lid with the gaps along each side allows smoke to escape and adds little to the flavor of the "smoked" items. I have quit using that feature and bought a 22.5" WSM for smoking. I even sent emails to Weber and got no solution to the problem. I "assumed" (and you know what that means) given this grill had been on the market a few years the design would have been proven.

The finish on many chromed parts have failed including the Weber Emblem, ferrules for the handles, door handles, etc. even though the grill is always covered and not exposed to the winter temps of the "Frozen North".

The paint is failing on the grill box side panels. It is a grey color and I have been unable to find high Temp Paint to match. I guess a complete repaint will be required. Any suggestions on what to use and how to prep the metal given the smoke and grease residue now on these panels?

It is a PITA to clean which has to be done multiple times a year to prevent flare-ups.

Now with that said there are features of the grill I like. The burners running fore and aft as opposed to left to right enables indirect cooking to be performed easily. The Sear Burner works well. The space of the grill (even with the loss of the Smoker Box Area is adequate for any required smoking.

Could others share their experiences with this model and any solutions they have found for these issues?

 

[R Cain]

I don't have the 470, I have a S670. That being said I have had no issues at all with mine and it is awesome.

Cleaning is a regular part of maintenance regardless of grill make, model or design. Between my 22.5 and my Summit I grill at least 300 days per year. I normally clean my summit twice a year and it's happy. The 22.5 get cleaned more often (ashes).

The smoker box feature is nice and takes a little practice to use and get results. Make no mistake it will not be a WSM or Kettle, however I have had good luck with the smoker feature with the rotisserie for chickens and with a basket on the rotisserie for other items. Meat on the grill won't get much smoke, because its on the same level as the smoke. If you can try placing items on the warming rack to get some smoke flavor, then move them to the grill to cook. I have also places items directly on the top of the smoker box for few minutes, then moved them to main grill to cook.

As far as your finish issues, Weber has a great warranty and I would call them and see what they can do. I find Weber is very helpful and responsive on the phone. Emails not so much.

-rog

 

[Duffy Floyd]

Rog,

Thank you for your response. My issue with the design concerning cleaning revolves around the sloped panels below the burners. I assume the design feature purpose is to allow dripping grease to run towards the grease catcher. However what I have found is the outer edges of the sloped panels are too close to the burners and the grease tends to bake onto the panels as opposed to running down them til it builds up and causes flareups. To REALLY do a thorough job cleaning those panels is a PITA given you have to partially disassemble the grill to remove the burner tubes and get them out of the way. On my Ducane it was easy peezzey to remove the burners tubes and the grease that did fall into the bottom of the grill chamber carbonized and could be vacuumed out of the grill . On the Summit I just get a mass of grease until I start getting flame-ups.

How do you get the chips to last but a few minutes? I have soaked them and use the smoker burner on the lowest setting and still the smoke I get last far less then 30 minutes before the chips catch fire and burn up. It is always white smoke and I get no smoulder really. I have even tried to use a chip pouch in AL foil setting on the flavorizer bars to get smoke below the level of the meat with no success given it all leaks out the sides. On my Ducane the top was like a clamshell and I got great results (though still not like a WSM I admit). Smoke still escaped but it went out the rear vent not out the sides of the top.

I'll give them a call...thanks for the suggestion.

 

[R Cain]

Duffy,

Try doing a high heat burn-off once in a while. Peg out the temp for 30 minutes or so to carbonize that residue on those panels. Also when I clean mine I have an old flexible putty knife that I use to scrape those panels and it gets up under those burner tubes just fine. By the time I'm done scraping I can actually see a little shine in there. Flexible is the key, you can bend and scrape under the burner where it is close to the panel. Then all the residue is easy to vac or wash off the grill. I normally wash with Awesome from the dollar store, it's a great degreaser to follow up the scraping with.

As far as the smoke. Try buying chunks instead of the chips. I split them into smaller pieces with a hatchet. Get them about 1/2 inch square and they will last a lot longer. I have had a load last almost an hour. It still won't give you a pink smoke ring or mahogany color but you can get that hint of smoke flavor. Practice will make perfect as they say. Or in the real world the more you use it and try, the better you will get. There are some big vent areas in the summit series, the whole top of the lid is vented from left to right. It s what it is and experimenting to find the best results may be required.

There are some real guru's on this forum an hopefully some of them come on and contribute as well.

The 470 is great grill, but like any grill it will be different than a ducane, char broil or anything else. Learn what it needs to be good, expecting it to cook and clean like another probably isn't gonna happen.

-rog

 

[Duffy Floyd]

Rog,

I also use a flexible putty knife to clean those sloping panels. GMTA I guess. I do high temp burnoffs too! I'll try splitting down some chunks....have plenty from the WSM for sure.

I have seen on other sites that some use another flavorizer bar with no holes in the smoker box to block some of the air flow and provide a tad more heat block from the burner. Haven't tried that yet but may.

 

[Don Fry]

Sorry to hear you are disappointed in the Summit you have. I really like the way mine performs and have prepared a bunch of great meals with it. Because I am fortunate enough to have a number of other grills to choose from, I only use it for things it does well. For that reason, I don't cook a lot of things on it that drip a much grease because I tend to do those using charcoal. Like you, I have never been impressed with the Summit, or any other gas grill for that matter, for providing smoke flavor to food compared to the flavor I can impart using a charcoal grill with wood added. As far as clean up goes, I would like to say I do a deep cleaning once a year, but in reality it is less frequent. I do scrape done the inside residue using a plastic putty knife every couple of months, normally in conjunction with swapping out the catch tray. The one thing I do that really helps is that I am pretty good at always doing a high heat cleaning at the completion of cooking for at least five minutes. I have gotten in the habit of cleaning the grates when I take the last of the food off, cranking up the temp to max, and then setting a timer for five minutes to remind me to come shut it down. I find that it works out perfectly in conjunction with letting items rest prior to slicing. Good luck with your Summit and I hope that you grow to love it as much as your previous grill.