Have you ever felt embarrassed when seeing all your neighbors fire up their grills for a barbecue—embarrassed because your grill is sitting uncovered, unused, and in unbelievably bad condition?  That’s exactly what happened to New York Times columnist Bob Tedeschi.

Tedeschi finally decided that enough was enough, so he called in a panel of experts, including grill master Steve Raichlen, to help him “breathe life into [his] old gas grill, outfit a new charcoal grill and perhaps earn [his] barbecue bona fides.”  If you have a gas grill in desperate need of a tune-up, or need help outfitting yourself with some new tools, check out Tedeschi’s story.

photo by Robert S Donovan

The Daytona 500 has run, full teams have reported to Spring Training, and Phil Mickelson has already won his first golf tournament of the year.  Put those things together, and grilling season has just about arrived.

Before putting your grill through another year of hard use and abuse, make sure to give it a good cleaning.  Cleaning it thoroughly before every outdoor cooking season will help prolong the life of your grill and improve its performance. Here is a step-by-step guide of how to get the job done.

1. Before even touching your grill, go to a home supply store like Home Depot and buy some simple tools: a new grill brush if needed, sponges, green scouring pads, microfiber cloths, window cleaner, and stainless steel cleaner. (Note: I have a Weber Genesis gas grill.  Some steps may not apply to your grill, but the concepts should remain the same).
2. Take apart the main parts of the grill by removing the grates and flavorizer bars. Leave the bottom tray that sits down below the cook box in place for now.
3. With a putty knife or the metal edge attached to your grill brush, reach down through the burners and scrape all the loose debris into the catch tray.  Also, using a grill brush and/or scouring pad, clear all loose debris from the inside of the cook box sending it down into the tray.
4. Using a damp sponge with warm water, begin scrubbing the grease from the inside of the cook box.  For the tougher spots, use the scouring pad with some grease of your own—that is, of the elbow variety.  Make sure not to allow water to get inside the burners.
5. Once all the debris is cleared and the grease has been scrubbed, remove the bottom tray and dump all of its contents.  Use your putty knife again to vigorously scrape off as much of the burnt-on grill debris as you can. Then, using a stainless steel cleaner, give the tray a good cleansing before returning it to the grill.
6. Now return to your grates and flavorizer bars.  Using a grill brush, scrape off all the charred left-overs.  If your grates are stainless steel, a stainless steel brush will work just fine.  If your grates are porcelain enameled cast-iron, make certain to use a brass brush or else you will chip off the outer coating.  It’s always a good idea to replace your grates every several years, so you may want to consider that as well.
7. Return the grates and flavorizer bars to the grill and close the lid.
8. Now it’s time to clean the outside of the grill.  Wipe the outside of the grill lid with a paper towel and cleaner (glass cleaner for porcelain-coated lids and stainless steel cleaner for stainless steel lids). For the side tables, use a stainless steel cleaner with a microfiber towel and buff with the grain.  If your side tables are plastic, use a mild dish detergent.

Your grill should now be ready for a year of burgers, steaks, chicken and anything else you throw at it.  The process may be time-consuming, but you’ll feel great when it’s done, and your food will taste even better.