Does kettle color matter?

[jfmorris]

I am with everyone else and will tell you to NOT paint the inside. Even high temp paint is not meant to be directly exposed to flames. Outgassing and bubbling of paint and all sorts of other stuff will happen.

I will also come down on the side of NOT painting the outside of a Weber kettle unless it is just scratched and chipped to heck. Weber kettles are NOT painted. They have a porcelain finish inside and out:

Handcrafted Porcelain Enamel on Lids and Bowls – Weber Grills

No spray paint from a can is going to approach the quality of that kilned porcelain finish Weber applied at the factory. You can restore the porcelain to almost new if you follow the Kettle restoration guides over at the Weber Kettle Club website. I've seen amazing results following their guidance on both the inside and outside of old kettles.

Weber Grill Restoration: Interior and Exterior Kettle Cleaning - Weber Kettle Club

I did that to the inside and the outside of the lid on my 2007 Performer a few years back, and it was like a new grill inside and out. Since that was in 2017, I'm probably going to do it again soon, scraping it down inside and out, as part of my grill spring cleaning. I've got a little discoloration on my Genesis II lid as well, and think I can get rid of it with the same methods.

EDIT: I followed the restoration techniques on a old beat up 1997 kettle that was dull and crappy looking, and it looked practically brand new. I then gifted it to a coworker who was going through a tough spot and needed a grill. Wish I had taken before and after photos on that one, but it was very similar to the improvement on the red kettle at the link above.

[Grillin Dad]

Does the razor blade bend to the curvature of the kettle? I'd like to do this to my kettle interior, and I've seen other people post this method, but I have always wondered how this works

[Panhead John]

For general cleaning on the inside, I use a 2” scraper. Scraping from top to bottom works great for removing that built up gunk.

[jfmorris]

Grillin Dad I just used a cheap little razor blade scraper, and the blade does bend somewhat, and it is small enough of an area of the kettle the curve doesn't matter a ton. Just don't go edge on and put scratches - keep the blade almost flat to the kettle wall and it will be fine.

Here is a Youtube video with a guy using this technique, starting about the 5:30 point in the video:

https://youtu.be/LopXjWpsk7o

As you see, you use the razor blade on both inside AND outside.

[Bad Hat BBQ]

Vote for no paint on the inside.

[Bbqmikeg]

Stealing the scars from a veteran is what painting a kettle does! Preserve its character and look for something else to make pretty. Touching up the exposed steel is understandable.