Oh No! Melted Plastic onto WSCGC Grate. Advice Appreciated.

[fzxdoc]

Well, I almost got through all of May without making a Big Dumb Move of one kind or another. But yesterday was BDM day for me.

I melted plastic onto Mr. Fancypants' 24 inch grate. I was in my final step of grate cleanup and put it, as I always do, on my Summit gasser to heat up and ash off any residual bits. Part of the grate sticks out the front of the gasser, but I close the lid anyway, rotating the grate after 10-15 minutes or so to get the whole grate heated.

At the last step of this process, one of those stupid Weber handle lights (which have never really worked), touched the grate, unbeknownst to me. I saw it when I went to move the cooled grate back to the WSCGC, aka Mr. Fancypants.

Ugh!

A B&W photo shows the damage most clearly:



I broke a scraper trying to get the cooled plastic off.

Now I'd like to know the easiest way of getting the plastic off without dripping any of it (using heat or a solvent) onto something else of value.

I wonder if a hair dryer or my BBQ Dragon fan would get it hot enough??? I'm hesitant to put it back on the Summit gasser and gently heat it back up, with a cookie sheet underneath to catch any drips only because I may not be able to control the heat as precisely as I'd like. But I may have to go that route.

Any ideas?

Kathryn

[barelfly]

Know anyone with a torch? You could put the grate in a vice outside and just hit it with the heat of a torch off and on?

[fzxdoc]

I have an itty bitty butane cooking torch. That might work.

K.

[Steve R.]

Torch was my first thought. I'd go with that for sure. Maybe try to chisel off as much as possible first?

[Mosca]

I’ve done this. Scrape/cut as much of it off as you can when it’s cold; it might even come off completely clean. Then heat it up somewhat and wipe the melted part off using insulated gloves and a towel. It should want to come off.

[HawkerXP]

You are spoiling Mr. Fancypants. That grate is way too clean.

Grab with pilers and see if it'll pop off. No? Try it again with some heat.

[Jim White]

If heat doesn't work, I'd try some dry ice and (wearing gloves, of course) touch it to the grate while pulling on the plastic with some pliers. With the metal contracting quickly, the plastic might let go.

[texastweeter]

That was my thought.

[jfmorris]

I'm with HawkerXP - that grate is entirely too clean, haha! I need you to come clean my Performer and kamado grates, minus the melted plastic appliqué.

I'm gonna bet you can get it off with your little cooking torch. A heat gun might also do it, but a hair dryer won't be hot enough.

[Mosca]

But cut off most of it first!

[Oak Smoke]

I would grab it with a pair of pliers and lift. I don’t believe the plastic will weld itself to stainless. It should break off with some torque applied. Heat would be my last resort. I would think it could just make it worse. Plastic and stainless expand and contract at different rates. An overnight stay in the freezer might help it pop loose. If all else fails invest in a Dremel tool. It will cut, sand, grind, and drill away all of that. Once you own a Dremel you will wonder how you lived without one.

[texastweeter]

It's like the first time you use a hydraulic log splitter.

[yakima]

The plastic is on top, so turn grate over. Support grate on couple of 2x4s. Big punch between the wires, hammer. Use a metal file, heat, or Dremel to clean up any residue. Or...

Buy new grate.

[yakima]

If no punch, use one of your stiletto heels.

[fzxdoc]

Now that I can do. My friends tell me that I can aerate golf greens for a living in my heels.

K.

[MBMorgan]

Personally, before resorting to other (potentially more destructive) methods, I'd try freezing (using dry ice) then quickly, while very cold, inverting the grate so that you can use something like a hardwood dowel like a punch to drive the plastic off. If that doesn't work to completely remove the mess, then you may need to resort to more drastic methods, some of which might scratch the grate.
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FWIW, I'd be VERY careful about using solvents like acetone or MEK. Depending on the type of plastic, they might just make an even bigger mess by simply thinning the plastic and spreading it around. That said, at least you've got the melted light to test how the plastic on your grate would react to a specific solvent.
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If you decide to try heat, you might want to remove as much plastic as possible using a mechanical method, then thoroughly carbonize what's left with a propane torch (you know you need one like this for searing anyway ) ... after which you could try oven cleaner to remove the burnt-on residue.

There's also dry ice blasting. I wouldn't be surprised if you were able to find a shop in your area that could do it for you ... and it's much less likely to cause grate damage than sand.

Good luck ... and like yakima pointed out, there's always the new-grate-purchase option).

[Panhead John]

Start a charcoal fire in your chimney. When it’s hot, place the melted plastic part over the fire. It melted on there, it will melt off. EZ PZ

[Sid P]

Good idea!

[texastweeter]

Damn, you got smart!

[Panhead John]

texastweeter I knew that someday my degree in chemical engineering would come in handy…..🙄

[hoovarmin]

I'm just so thankful that I'm not the only one who does stuff like this.

[fzxdoc]

I feel so much better, being in good company like yours and Mosca's.

K.

[Mosca]

Oh, I decided that it would be perfect to use a couple plastic grocery bags as insulation for the deflector plate of my BGE. THAT was not savable.

[hoovarmin]

Mosca I think you were on to something there. I might try that tonight. I think it will work this time.

[fzxdoc]

Well, I followed @Mosca's recommendation and got a small relatively dull chisel and hammer out and popped off most of the plastic, about 90% of it. Of course it had to happen exactly where the hinge is for the hinged grate, so that hinge is all gunked up in some pretty inaccessible areas.

I have to admit that my first inclination was to throw money at it and get a new grate as MBMorgan and yakima suggested; to that end I contacted Weber's AI assistant last night and of course the grate is not sold online. They're going to have a real human contact me via email about a new grate.

In the meanwhile, I have to think about how to get the residual plastic off: the the worst parts on the inside of the hinge loops, and the thinner adhesions on the grate which are stuck, stuck, stuck. I have a Dremel with an assortment of bits for it; I may go that route, although the toasting that part of the grate over a chimney of coals like Panhead John suggested is sounding good too. Then I could do marshmallows.

Are Dremel bits (sanding, wirebrush, etc.) going to damage the stainless steel, do you all think?

Kathryn

[jfmorris]

The Dremel may rough up the surface, but that grate is solid stainless - not plated - so it's the same stainless through and through. Should be fine. I also think flame could burn the plastic away, but that's just a thought, nothing I've tested.

[Mosca]

Just heat it up and wipe the plastic away. It might take several passes. Fold up a piece of cardboard into a V to get into the crevasses. When it’s down to almost nothing, burn the last little bits off, and wipe off what residue is left.

[glitchy]

Depending on if you ever take out the center, SnS grills sells a 24” easyspin now.

[jfmorris]

At least you didn't melt something expensive or useful like I did when I set a hot 22" cooking grate down on top of my Thermoworks Smoke!

[fzxdoc]

Yikes!

[fzxdoc]

Here's what it looks like now, as I ponder Dremel vs. itty bitty butane torch vs. charcoal chimney roast. Will a dry ice application help at this point, Jim White ?





Thanks in advance,
K.

[Steve R.]

Yeah, I'd just burn that at this point. Chimney, torch, whatever will get really hot.

[Oak Smoke]

If you decide to burn it off please don’t breathe any of the fumes. Burning plastic can be very toxic.

[yakima]

It looks like the rod ends are fused to the outer ring. Can they be pried off, placing lever/big screwdriver to the right of grate handle?

PJ's chimney idea has merit. I have melted aluminum, 1221 degrees F, in a BGE.

[mrteddyprincess]

This sounds just like something that one guy who lives in my neighborhood would do...

I think you're one hot heat source to being plastic free!

B

[fzxdoc]

Sounds like a plan, mrteddyprincess.

K.

[Mosca]

That’s what all those masks are for!

[Donw]

After hearing from you about your neighbor before I see he now works on the Boeing Starliner project. That rocket launch has been scrubbed more times than any of my pots and pans, and I’m a clean freak.🫣