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How to Clean and Maintain a Grill

Grill elements can get damaged over time. Replacing certain parts and giving the grill a good cleaning will prepare it for the season to come.

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80 Grit sandpaper BucketPaint scraper Sponge

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How to Clean and Maintain a Grill

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" Time and weather can damage the elements of your outdoor grill. Here's how to give your grill a real cleaning. First, make sure that the propane tank is turned off. Remove the old cooking grills. Gas grills either have flavor bars or lava rocks to evenly disperse the heat. This grill has flavor bars, which is starting to rust through. In either case, replacements are easily available. Using a shop vacuum, vacuum out the debris that's collected on the bottom of the grills. With the paint scraper, scrape off the big donned gunk and vacuum it away. Until the sides and the bottom are clean. You can also use steel wool and soap and warm water, depending on how much effort you wanna put in to it. Next, we'll clean the burners with the brass wire brush. Brass wire brushes have the added advantage of not leaving bits of steel behind, which can rust. Using the brass wire brush, scrub the area over the holes on the burners, scraping away the rust and scale until the holes are clear and clean. Scrub all the burner holes, side, back and front. With the burner holes brushed clean, removed the grease catch pan and dispose of any remaining debris. The catch pan should be scrubbed with hot, soapy water until the pan is clean and grease-free. Over time, these aluminum catch pans can oxidize. You can buy disposable aluminum inserts to give the catch pan a clean fresh look and to make it easier to keep the catch pan clean in the future. If you have had trouble lighting your grill or the grill has a small flame even when the tank is full, believe it or not, spiders can be the problem. In some parts of the country, spiders build nest in the narrow part of the burner feed tube. Manufacturers have installed spider stopper guards to keep the spiders from entering the air intakes, but despite their efforts, the spider seemed to get in anyway. You can clean out any spider blockages with the special bristle brush made specifically for this purpose. Simply slide the brush into the opening of the air mixture vent on the burner feed tube. Work the brush back and forth, cleaning out any spider web that maybe inside the burner. They'll be 1 burner inlet for each valve. Do the same for each burner inlet. Using an old toothbrush, clean the holes of the spider stopper guard carefully. And then snap the spider stopper guard in place. With the grill cleaned, it's time to reassemble. Place the new flavorizer bars into the slots in the cooking box. If your grill uses lava rock, follow the instructions that came with your grill to put the lava rock in place. Install the new cooking grill. Turn on the gas supply and press the igniter, add a steak and you're ready for another season of barbecuing."

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