First grease fire for me

[ScooterMcQue]

Boy, I had something almost as bad a few thanksgivings ago with my S-670, with a full prime rib that I was just finishing searing. When I got that baby hot for searing, with almost the entire surface covered in grill grates, the entire firebox ignited. I saved the roast but the flames were so intense I could not get the grill grates off and closing the lid didn't kill enough oxygen. I feared a meltdown and turned to the fire extinguisher. What a mess. I am more careful to clean now.

[Bogy]

I got a set of the blemished Grillgrates. 3 panels, some little marks on the back or flat side of 1 or 2 of them, that don't affect the way they work, but I saved about 50%.

[jfmorris]

Surly Viking the full replacement set of Grillgrates was probably the best $100 I ever spent, and make my old Genesis like a new grill. They have factory sales about twice a year, and you can get blemished grates for about half price during those sales.

[Bogy]

You betcha dat vas a learning experience! Not easy to admit doin' such a dumb thing.

[Jim White]

I mostly don't go above 350, but have started to add the occasional sear. Never really high over a half hour.

[Surly Viking]

Thanks! I may look into grilgrates. I do like the convenience, and the wife found a lot of home improvement projects that destroyed the MCS budget for this season.

[JCGrill]

That sounds bad and also could have been even worse.

[Attjack]

Do you do high heat cooks or just low and slow?

[Attjack]

900 is hot and definitely seems a little risky.

[painter]

Sounds like a real Sven and Ole learning experience!

[Bogy]

You got off easy. I had a grease fire in my Genesis a few years ago that was hot enough that it burned the gas line under the drip pan in two, so I had not just a grease fire, but a hose blasting out a propane torch. It was hot enough that it melted part of the bottom of the aluminum body of the grill. I hadn't even gotten to the point of putting the meat on when the fire started. It was back before I got my first smoker, and had been using just the left burners, quite often just the left, not even the center burner, with the meat on the right side, with indirect heat. I had been doing that all winter, and it had occurred to me that the grease pan wasn't collecting much. Yeah, that's because it was all over on the right side of the drip pan, and in the cold weather, it had been accumulating there. It had warmed up, and I had cranked up all three burners to burn off the grease. Yeah, it burned off all right. Also burned part of the deck rail behind the grill, along with the parts of the grill I mentioned. I was able to replace parts, and juryrigged some aluminum sheeting to replace the aluminum that had melted away. I make sure to clean it more often now, although since I got my pellet burners I hardly use it anyway.

Not really hard to clean, but it is important to do it at least occasionally.

[Jim White]

My Kamado is about 16 years old. What is this cleaning of which you speak?


I brush my grills now and then and use disposable drip pans if cooking indirect.

[HouseHomey]

Nice work saving the burgers first. 👍

[texastweeter]

I clean all my Gasser the same. High heat lid shut all burners on after a cook. Once it stops smoking I kill the heat. Before the next cook, I scrub with cool grate technology grill brush while cold. Heat on and the a was of aluminum foil dipped in water held with tongs scrub them again once hot. I empty the grease pan when half full, and take a paint scraper to the bottom pan once in the winter while it is cold enough for fat to solidify. That's it.

[jfmorris]

I’ve got an 18 year old 2 burner Genesis, and a 1 year old 4 burner Genesis II. The best thing I ever did for them was to buy a full replacement set of Grillgrates. Much of the grease sizzles off in the valleys of the grate, and what does make it to the flavorizer bars and body of the grill seems to make it to the grease pan without causing a fire. I got them after a massive burger and brat grease fire a couple of July 4th’s ago. No fires or burned food since then. The inside of the grill stays much cleaner too.

I cooked 1 pound of bacon and 8 pounds of smash burgers yesterday, and did the same about 2 weeks earlier, with no clean up in between, and had no flare ups or fires. I usually break the grill down and clean it once or twice during the summer, and have no issues like I did when using the old Weber cast iron grates and cooking lots of fatty foods.

As far as cleanup of different grill types goes, it’s all trade offs. I have two Weber gas grills, a Weber charcoal grill, and an offset. All charcoal grills require clean out of ash in between cooks. Weber makes it easier than most, as you just work a handle back and forth a few times, then detach and empty a bucket. Any grease on the Weber kettle either burns up in the charcoal, or ends up in the ash bucket underneath. My gas grills require brushing and scraping the grate during the preheat before the next cook. The offset requires manually emptying ashes and hosing and scrubbing out grease. With all of them I use spray cleaner and paper towels to wipe down the outside before covering the grill.

If I had to pick the lowest maintenance, it is probably my Genesis, but only since I got the GrillGrate replacement sets.