Do you have an outdoor wash station???

[DogFaced PonySoldier]

I am at the point where when I build my 'dream home', it is going to have an outdoor kitchen with a commercial wash station. Seriously - superheated water with a large scale dishwasher like I used to use at the steakhouses I worked at, and a large spray down area with the ability to spray all this s*** off with high pressure and not get disgusting nor gunk up my yard.

Or so I tell myself.


God, the gunk and cleanup is a PITA.



What do you guys with large offsets and such do? Do you take your offset to a car wash and wash it out? Do they frown upon that? Maybe a semi truck wash station?

[rickgregory]

Wash out an offset??? Isn't that a felony?

[DogFaced PonySoldier]

The grates on this one I borrowed are grody. I wiped them down as best I could but... damn. You guys don't clean those out?

[rickgregory]

Oh, the grates. I mean, you can clean those, I suppose. If you want to lose the flavor I thought you were talking the inside of the smoker.

[Oak Smoke]

I had a friend who loaned his bid offset to a church group. They returned it all steamed out and super clean. His only comment was it would take him a year to get it seasoned again.

[WillTravelForFood]

big picture? that sounds very nice of them, having to re-season aside.

[Oak Smoke]

DogFaced PonySoldier He claimed he could taste a difference between a brisket that had been cooked in it when it was black and grungy inside as opposed to when it was clean. He much preferred the taste of the former. I have to admit I burn my kamados out twice a year. They can get pretty “seasoned” in between burnouts. I brush the grates after they are hot on each cook and yes they are black and very non-stick. They are certainly sterile by the time I put food on them

[Oak Smoke]

WillTravelForFood Yes it was very nice of them. They are a great bunch of young men. Cleaning one of those takes some work.

[TripleB]

I have a large sink in the garage that I use for washing/cleaning my equipment. What I need is a beer tap. But that could get dangerous quickly.

[jfmorris]

I roll my offset to the edge of the concrete and drop the end with the grease drain into the grass, so it slopes that way, and hose it out into the grass. Usually I put foil down in the bottom and poke a hole in the foil so that grease drains into a galvanized bucket, and I can just pull the foil up. But when there is stuff not on the foil, or it's after just been a while, the hose is the answer, for me anyway.

If its not warm weather, I'll then drop a couple chimneys of lit charcoal in the fire box to dry the offset back out, before covering it again. That said, my cover got old and fell apart, and the offset is living uncovered right now...

I wouldn't mind an outdoor sink and prep area, but don't see needing a dishwasher. Too much of the stuff I use around the grills is big pans that don't really fit a dishwasher well - Drip ' N Griddle, half sheet pans, wooden cutting boards, etc. And if we are eating outside, we usually serve with disposable plates. The regular plates can go back the house to run through the dishwasher in the kitchen.

[DogFaced PonySoldier]

I'm talking a large commercial dishwasher. I can't describe it, but I've seen 'em in restaurants and churches. You slide a rack into it, pull the metal box down, it splashes around for 3 minutes, then you slide the rack out the far side and slide a new rack in. It's a nice process, and it fits half sheet pans, etc.

[jfmorris]

DogFaced PonySoldier here you go!

https://www.webstaurantstore.com/64711/pot-pan-washers.html

None really look like what you are talking about. My only forays into commercial and church kitchens the dishwasher was my two hands in a big commercial sink, with drying on a built in area to the side of the sink. Sometimes we had one sink for washing, another for rinsing, and a third for sanitizing with a bleach solution, before setting it to air dry.

[Alan Brice]

I ran one at Frisch’s Big Boy,45 years ago.
Big sprayer to get the big stuff before you inserted the tray of things to be washed.

[MBMorgan]

Pressure washer for the big jobs; steam cleaner for the small ones. Easy.

[DogFaced PonySoldier]

I just don't have anywhere to drain that stuff. The few times I've tried spraying the gunk or scraping it into the grass - I end up with dead grass.

[CandySueQ]

I use a hot water car wash. The owner knows! I wash the bay down when I'm done too. I have an outdoor sink with small hot water heater attached. I am going to set it up this spring for cleanup.

[DogFaced PonySoldier]

I would think a car wash makes the most sense for this 250-gallon offset. I just don't want them P.O.'d at me for running grease and gunk down their drains. I'm not sure if it's an issue or not.

[jfmorris]

DogFaced PonySoldier here is one that I bet is in your outdoor kitchen budget!

https://www.webstaurantstore.com/champion-pp-12-pass-through-pot-and-pan-washer-208v-3-phase/253PP12PTC.html

[hoovarmin]

12 months and you're free and clear!

[Purc]

Great news!........FREE shipping.

[DogFaced PonySoldier]

Looks like a plan!

[hoovarmin]

I know exactly what you are talking about. Every restaurant I ever worked in had one. Not sure how large you are planning for your outdoor kitchen to be, or if it will be under roof, but a washer like that would take up a ton of space where you could have cookers. It would also require you to tie into sewer. Mo money.

[58limited]

Here is the version I grew up using in various fast food joints. Vintage Hobart, slide the dishes in one side and out the other when done.

[Alan Brice]

Yep das hit!

[DogFaced PonySoldier]

That is EXACTLY what I used to use and EXACTLY what I would like to see. I think I could come up with an 'occasional-use' solution that wasn't $30-80k, but hey - with the outdoor kitchen I'm planning once I hit this $1,2B lotto win, it ain't no thang.

[Michael_in_TX]

Okay, that was really cool!

[58limited]

DogFaced PonySoldier

https://www.ebay.com/itm/304606554317?chn=ps&_trkparms=ispr%3D1&amdata=enc%3A1_iOvIUMCTDyxV36-SvM4KQ51&norover=1&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-213727-13078-0&mkcid=2&itemid=304606554317&targetid=4580702891777579&device=c&mktype=&googleloc=&poi=&campaignid=418640321&mkgroupid=1233652283797640&rlsatarget=pla-4580702891777579&abcId=9300602&merchantid=51291&msclkid=5f96d3a174cd1b10e09cb0c0c5f0ab10

[DogFaced PonySoldier]

Believe or not, I actually have a line on one... it is in a church kitchen in a building donated to the city. I don't know how I could manage to convince the city to sell it to me, but as it is highly unlikely for the future to EVER be used in a large capacity again, I can't imagine why they would want to keep it??

Or, hit the auctions when restaurants close their doors and scoop one up at the expense of some poor soul's misfortune.

[58limited]

I'm actually interested in one myself, an older one like the ones I posted. They are built like tanks and can still be serviced plus they are way cheaper than newer ones.

[MBMorgan]

"hit the auctions when restaurants close their doors and scoop one up at the expense of some poor soul's misfortune"

Really?

[DogFaced PonySoldier]

Well, at a restaurant auction when one closes someone is going to get it. Should I refrain from purchasing because someone's business is closing?

[Richard Chrz]

Ours

[Alan Brice]

Ice maker? Far right? Really nice. I am working on mine. Got cpl grand of granite for $75.

[Richard Chrz]

Yes, ice maker on top of a mini freezer. Then a large side by side refrig with stainless prep top on left.

[jfmorris]

DogFaced PonySoldier before you buy one of these, make sure you can power it. All of the modern ones appear to use 208V 3 phase power. Not sure about the vintage Hobart. You can't get 3 phase power at a residence in the US to my knowledge. We had 480V 3 phase power, and a step down transformer for 208V 3 phase power in one building at my last employer, and it was only there because the building used to be an auto body shop. It worked out for me as I was designing equipment that needed to run 3 phase, and I had the electricians run it to my lab.

3 phase power is likely used by these so they can rapidly heat the water to 180F for that final rinse cycle, as well as to power the motors and pumps.

[DogFaced PonySoldier]

Yeah I saw that 3-phase requirement. I wasn't aware you couldn't get it in a residence - but I know you can in a barn/shop, lots of places around here have it - in fact, it is a YUGE selling point for people looking to put in weed farms, or so I'm told. Maybe you can't get NEW 3-phase power? I dunno. Anyways... it definitely is something to think about. The main point is, I want/need a big, clear, wide open wash station with PLENTY of hot water. If I need a dedicated tank or heater - so be it.

[jfmorris]

DogFaced PonySoldier the fact is, 3 phase power is not run into most residential neighborhoods in the US, at all. It may be at the main road, but often, the 3 phase power stops at the nearest substation to where you live, and they feed single phase power to the surrounding neighborhoods. It's really only common in commercial and industrial areas. Maybe in a rural setting you can get a 3 phase transformer dropped from the main power lines, since those tend to be on highways where power runs.

[jfmorris]

The big cities likely run 3 phase power everywhere, as they will need it for the HVAC systems and for more efficient power distribution in the large buildings. But the typical suburban neighborhood it won't even be an option.