Well, as many of you know, I've got a 2 year old Genesis II 4 burner, but don't use it much since getting the flat top last year and the SNS Kamado this year. Last night I decided to use it out of sheer laziness, to reverse sear two NY strips and grill some pre-steamed artichokes. It's good for cooks like that for sure, and I run the steaks up on the warmer rack until they hit about 120F, then sear.
So, I went out, lit the burners on high after flipping two grillgrate panels to the flat side for use in searing steaks, then went inside to prep the artichokes and steak, which had been dry brining since lunch. I was inside for 10-15 minutes.
I went outside to black smoke billowing out of the grill, and opened the lid to find the grillgrates had flames along the front and back edges, and there was an apparent grease fire UNDER the grates. I killed all burners, shut the lid, and went inside, and ended up cooking on the stove top using a 2-burner griddle that has a grill side for the artichokes, and my Lodge 12" for the steaks, after slicing the steaks from 1.5" thick down to about 0.75" thick, to get them done in a skillet.
This morning I spent an hour or two messing with the Genesis II. It's a mess. The right side of the grill body warped from the heat of the grease fire, as did the two Grillgrate panels at that end. I used two pieces of a 2x4 and a couple of C clamps and drew some of the warpage out, so that it doesn't scrape when the lid closes. I've pulled everything but the burners out for cleanup. There is fire and smoke damage to the painted finish on the end and front of the grill dome.
I rarely cook on the grill, and try to keep it clean, scraping and brushing the grates after each cook. To be honest, the only greasy thing I've cooked since the last deep cleaning was one batch of kalbi, and that's about it. There really was little to clean out inside to be honest today. I guess it burned up. The Kalbi was grilled a couple of weeks back on the end where the grill body is now warped, so I imagine there was grease from the beef ribs down in the body.
I hate to say it, but I feel like the damage to the grill body is a lot worse due to the fact I was using the Grillgrates and not the stock cast iron grates. The heat trapped under the grillgrates led to the firebox getting a lot hotter than it might otherwise have done.
I need to see if the rotisserie will still work - I have some doubts about it mounting properly if it mounts on the right end of the grill, as there is a lot of outward bowing of that end of the body.
Frustrating. And I think I will start using the original Weber cast iron grates more often if and when I use this grill. I didn't do anything I don't normally do, as I normally preheat for 10-15 minutes on high, but let this be a cautionary tale to everyone running Grillgrates on a gas grill - to be watchful when preheating and maybe pull the panels off and clean out grease after something like kalbi or a big mess of chicken wings.
Right now the grill is torn apart in the yard, with rain coming down. I'll deal with it more another day.
So, I went out, lit the burners on high after flipping two grillgrate panels to the flat side for use in searing steaks, then went inside to prep the artichokes and steak, which had been dry brining since lunch. I was inside for 10-15 minutes.
I went outside to black smoke billowing out of the grill, and opened the lid to find the grillgrates had flames along the front and back edges, and there was an apparent grease fire UNDER the grates. I killed all burners, shut the lid, and went inside, and ended up cooking on the stove top using a 2-burner griddle that has a grill side for the artichokes, and my Lodge 12" for the steaks, after slicing the steaks from 1.5" thick down to about 0.75" thick, to get them done in a skillet.
This morning I spent an hour or two messing with the Genesis II. It's a mess. The right side of the grill body warped from the heat of the grease fire, as did the two Grillgrate panels at that end. I used two pieces of a 2x4 and a couple of C clamps and drew some of the warpage out, so that it doesn't scrape when the lid closes. I've pulled everything but the burners out for cleanup. There is fire and smoke damage to the painted finish on the end and front of the grill dome.
I rarely cook on the grill, and try to keep it clean, scraping and brushing the grates after each cook. To be honest, the only greasy thing I've cooked since the last deep cleaning was one batch of kalbi, and that's about it. There really was little to clean out inside to be honest today. I guess it burned up. The Kalbi was grilled a couple of weeks back on the end where the grill body is now warped, so I imagine there was grease from the beef ribs down in the body.
I hate to say it, but I feel like the damage to the grill body is a lot worse due to the fact I was using the Grillgrates and not the stock cast iron grates. The heat trapped under the grillgrates led to the firebox getting a lot hotter than it might otherwise have done.
I need to see if the rotisserie will still work - I have some doubts about it mounting properly if it mounts on the right end of the grill, as there is a lot of outward bowing of that end of the body.
Frustrating. And I think I will start using the original Weber cast iron grates more often if and when I use this grill. I didn't do anything I don't normally do, as I normally preheat for 10-15 minutes on high, but let this be a cautionary tale to everyone running Grillgrates on a gas grill - to be watchful when preheating and maybe pull the panels off and clean out grease after something like kalbi or a big mess of chicken wings.
Right now the grill is torn apart in the yard, with rain coming down. I'll deal with it more another day.
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