I bought grillgrates about a year ago. I keep running into getting massive build up in gunk in the valleys. I have to clean them every 3 to 4 cooks. I am not using sauces or anything just the normal. IE Burgers, steaks, chicken, pork chops, and etc. Am I doing something wrong? I scrap and wipe down tops after without pulling them out and hitting them with water. I must be missing something. Any help would be great.
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Do you use that fork-like valley scraper that came with your Grill Grates, Macktechie ? Run that down the channels after each cook and you should be golden.
Grill Grates now recommends that you don't do a high heat burnoff with their product.
I'm on my second set of Grill Grates. I'm treating these more gently than I did the first (watching the high temp more closely). One of the problems I had with my first set, according to the Grill Grate owner, Michael Dellaporta, was that they were too clean.
I purchased them in Nov 2014 and they worked great until 2016 when I noticed white powder deposits forming on them in between cooks. I always cleaned them with 10 min high heat after the cook then scraped the valleys with the fork tool and scrubbed with wadded aluminum foil.
The powder deposits were initially only on the Grill Grates, nowhere else in the gasser. No matter what I tried, I couldn't get rid of them. They'd wipe right off with a damp cloth, but would be back in a matter of days.
By Jan 2019 after battling for years, I gave up and got a new set. By that time, the white powder was occasionally forming on the gasser's grates as well, and on the flavorizer bars. That didn't happen as long as I removed the Grill Grates from the gasser between cooks.
So I had 2 happy years with my GGs and 2 years of trying to work out the problem and its cause. The white powder problem didn't hamper my use of the GGs, I'd just wipe them down before each cook. It only became a pain when the white stuff began to spread to the gasser itself. That's when I replaced them.
Interestingly enough, my two GrillGrate Griddles have never had the problem, and they get heated up to sear temps all the time. But I store them in the house.
Michael Dellaporta, a representative for Grill Grates worked with me through the two years I had the white powder issues. He postulated that it was aluminum oxide causing the problem. He thought my grates were too clean and possibly not seasoned well. He also thought they may have become damaged from all my attempts at cleaning to eradicate the white powder problem. He gave me a discount on my new set.
So now I'm not doing the high heat burnoffs to clean. I'm trying not to heat them higher than 500-600° during the cleaning process.
KathrynLast edited by fzxdoc; June 28, 2019, 08:51 AM. Reason: Corrected to show that Michael Dellaporta is a GrillGrate employee not the owner.-
JimLinebarger My SS gasser grates did not get the white spots until 18 months after noting the first white spots on my GGs. (I continued to use the GGs during that time.) Then they spread to select parts of the grill. That's when I gave in, cleaned the grill, and ordered new GGs. At first Michael Dellaporta said it was salt residue from marinades, but that didn't wash, pun intended.
KathrynLast edited by fzxdoc; June 28, 2019, 08:52 AM. -
Does sound like aluminum oxide. When I had my beach house the salt air would accelerate the chemical reaction, stuff was everywhere there was aluminum. Had a cheap cast aluminum gasser that literally turned to dust. I think his salt theory has some merit, probably accelerated by high heat. -
Well, I seldom if ever use marinades, Troutman , and the discrete white powder dots would appear on the outermost sections of the GGs which were seldom used. I want to believe that it's Al2O3, since that's non toxic but why would it occur on the surfaces of my gasser's burners, flavorizer bars, and SS grates?
Add to the fact that I had used the gasser for 5 years before getting the Grill Grates and never had the problem.
It's still a mystery, but I think it's linked somehow to damaged GGs.
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I'm not exactly sure how hot I run mine. I just know they supposedly run about 200* hotter than standard grates. So I usually don't turn any of the knobs more than 3/4 on my Genesis. One of the corners on one of my panels actually curled downward. I think that happened when I did a burn off.
I use a plastic putty knife to scrap the valleys where the panels join after the grill has cooled down of course. The brush they sell works good for the solid valleys.Comment
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I use The Ringer to clean mine. It cleans the grate tops off spotlessly and does a fair job in the valleys. Works great on regular grates as well, and you can use it on cast iron.
fzxdoc I thought that was a spatula! That's what I use it as. I thought they sold a brush for cleaning.Comment
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They sold a brush for cleaning, and I bought it. Didn't even last a year. Then I went to another brush style they're selling (with bristles woven in) but it doesn't do a very good job. So I use that forky thing. I never use it for a spatula.
A real spatula works better, for me anyway.
K.Last edited by fzxdoc; June 24, 2019, 01:56 PM.
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I scrape them into the trash using tin foil.Comment
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Hugh Yeah, foil for the valleys. I'll hit the rails with a wire brush then wearing gloves to keep my hands clean I'll take each segment, and over the trash, use a wadded up piece of foil that conforms to the shape of the valley to push and scrape the crud into the trash. Occasionally I'll also take the GrillGrates into the kitchen to wash in the big sink and I'll use the scrubber side of a sponge to really scrub the valleys. But that's only occasionally. -
Hugh fo the seasoning bit whether its GrillGrates, grill grates, cast iron, stainless steel pans, or whatever, after cleaning I dry them, apply high heat oil, and get them hot. Then I wipe off any excess once it's cool. I feel that this gives me a fairly non-stick and well-protected cooking surface.
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I use the "grate tool" spatula that comes with each set of Grillgrates to shovel debris from the valley when getting ready for my next cook, or after a cook. Last year I got one of their "grate valley" brushes I think it is called, and use that on occasion too. It straddles the rail, and lets you scrub down in each valley, then use the forked spatula to shovel stuff out. I just toss it out into the grass next to my patio, and rain or the dogs take care of it.
Once a month or so, during the summer anyway, I'll remove the grates and hose them off as well, to get any lose debris, while giving them a good scraping with a scraper on the rails, and in the edges where the panels lock together.
So far, in 2 to 3 years, on 3 grills, I've got 3 sets of Grillgrates that are working well, and are well seasoned.Comment
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Troutman has weekend grate cleaning sessions. I line them all up after several cooks, get out my pressure washer, spray them down with Simple Green cleaner and pressure wash the crap out of them. Grates, grill grates, brushes, occasionally the dog, whatever needs cleaning. What comes off comes off, the rest oh well. On the expanded metal when dry I hit them with cooking spray to stop the rust. Works for me.Comment
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fzxdoc Kathryn, does this look like the start of the white powder problem? Saw this on my <6 month old set in the new Genesis 4 burner today when I opened it up. Last week I scrubbed the grates down with soap, wire brush and hose...
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That's exactly it, jfmorris. Send the photos to Michael Dellaporte at Grill Grates. Has the white stuff spread to your grill's inner surface?
My white spots started here and there across a few of the grates but eventually was on all of them. Never were they as bad as your photos, though.
The white stuff comes off with washing and sometimes it would be a few weeks to a month before I'd see them again.
KathrynLast edited by fzxdoc; June 26, 2019, 05:32 AM. -
fzxdoc Kathryn I think the problem looks worse than it really is, due to glare and lighting, but looking at your photos below, I for sure have the same issue. These Grillgrates were purchased in January - I am guessing that high heat has caused the issue? I'm going to go open up the old 2 burner Genesis that has been idle since January, and see what its set looks like...
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The white spots ‘spreading’ to the gasser could very well be the material spreading when you were scrubbing it with an aluminum wad. Some material comes off and moves to other parts of the grill. I’ve seen it (and used it) with tin (the pure metal), it is common to use tin oxide mixed with water as a mild abrasive when polishing a certain type of rock known as diabase (I used to make a little jewelry with a mix of silver and diabase).Comment
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I got rid of my grill grates because they were such a pain to clean. I cook on my grills 4-5 times a week. Black gunk would build up, bake on, and be impossible to get off unless I soaked them in Simple Green overnight then scrubbed them the next day. Way to much work for me. I tried the wooden fork cleaner and the special scrapers.
Good heavy stainless grates work best for me. Heat them up then a quick brush and a little oil and they are ready to be used.
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jfmorris , here's what my white spots problem looked like:
As I mentioned, the white spots would come off with a damp paper towel. But they would never burn off by heating the gasser like (I'm assuming) mold would.
I replaced this set of GGs with a set that fits the grill's grate opening, so my SS grates are in storage.
KathrynLast edited by fzxdoc; June 26, 2019, 05:40 AM.Comment
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Kathryn that is very similar to what I am seeing. Discouraging it is on a set that I bought on 1/23/19. I just uncovered my older Genesis 2 burner. that I've not looked at in 6 months, and its 2 year old set of Grillgrates has not a spot of white on them, and its had 6 months of retirement to grow stuff.
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For cleaning my grill grates, or the grates on my BGE and PBC, I use the Deppon stainless steel scraper. It has multiple grooves to handle just about any type of grates. Easy to clean the scraper after usage with just soap and water.
Here is the amazon link for it:
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fzxdoc Kathryn the crazy thing is, this set I have had since January has *ONLY* been cleaned using tools purchased or provided by Grillgrate.com - their "grate tool" forked spatula for shoveling stuff out of the valley before/after a cook, their "grate valley" brush, and their "Grillgrate detailing tool and scraper". And some dish soap and hose water.
I am speculating that the new 4 burner Genesis II has gotten the grates much hotter at some point than I've ever gotten the set on the 2 burner Genesis or the full set on my Performer 22" kettle, and that high heat has caused an issue with the anodized coating.
Sadly their warranty is only 90 days, looking at their website.Last edited by jfmorris; June 26, 2019, 07:59 AM.Comment
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jfmorris , all is not lost. Contact the Grill Grates folks and see what can be done. Michael Dellaporte was very responsive and concerned.
For a long while I thought it might be mold, growing in possibly pitted surfaces of the GGs, except for the fact that it does not behave like mold, from what I've read. It doesn't burn off for one. I've never had mold in any of my grills or smokers, so I don't know for sure. It doesn't look like any photos of mold on BBQ grills or smokers that I searched for on the internet.
However, the fact that it transfers to the gasser's components makes the case for mold, or for, as Henrik suggests, airborne transfer of aluminum oxide. But I had the same white spots in my gasser long after I removed the GGs. True, it was over the winter when the gasser was not used as much.
Since I could never resolve the question of Al2O3 or mold, I replaced the gasser's grates with new GGs, and the flavorizer bars. I'm careful not to let the GGs get too hot. Fingers crossed. The minute I get white spots on this set of grates, though, then I'll be at the end of my patience.
I love GGs because I hate flareups as I cook. That's why I'm giving them a second chance.
KathrynLast edited by fzxdoc; June 26, 2019, 09:52 AM.Comment
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jfmorris , I use my Grill Grate Griddles for searing. Easier to clean, and so far have not pitted even though I consistently take them to 700° temps. Now that I'm mollycoddling my new Grill Grates, I won't be taking them up that high any more. I'll slap on my SS grates and have at it.
Let us know what you find out from the GG folks.
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Anodize is a non conductive coating and the Aluminium is conductive. One way to check if the coating has failed and the aluminium is oxidizing is to use a simple household voltage tester. Set the tester to Ohms and touch both of the probes in areas with the white spots, if the meter shows continuity the coating is gone.It could be caused from high heat above what the coating can take,or it was not etched properly prior to coating and that caused an adhesion problem and early failure.Last edited by Powersmoke_80; June 27, 2019, 01:45 PM.
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