For some of us, nothing beats a nice summer day, fresh air, and a BBQ. However, cleaning a BBQ can prove to be difficult. Not only that, it’s not the most entertaining job either. But cleaning is important to make sure your ingredients are safe to eat and taste great.    In order to get your BBQ properly clean, make sure you use the right tools and take your time. Although it might be tempting to rush through the job, don’t give in. Maintaining your BBQ will help expand its lifespan. If your grill is not cleaned regularly there is a high possibility of a fire starting while you’re cooking.    Keep children away from the BBQ while you’re cleaning and cooking. With high temperatures, fire and gas, it is a real hazard for everybody.   The maintenance and cleaning of your BBQ will help you prolong the BBQ’s lifespan.   

How to Clean a Gas BBQ

Before you start the cleaning process, make sure that you turn off and disconnect the gas. Take out each part that you can remove and clean individually. Wash the body of the barbecue with a damp cloth and dry it after with a clean cloth.    Here is a step by step guide of how to clean your BBQ properly:  

1. Disconnect the propane tank: This is the most important thing when cleaning your BBQ
2. Get a bucket with warm, soapy water: You can use dish soap from the kitchen. Some people use cleaning products that contain dangerous chemicals but there is no need.
3. Get rid of any excess fat: Use warm water to scrub the excess fat. Some people only scrub one side of the grill, but both sides are constantly exposed to fat so make sure you take it off and scrub both sides thoroughly.
4. Scrub every part of the grill: Warmer racks, hot plates and other parts of the grill can also be cleaned with warm soapy water and a sponge. In most BBQs, you can remove these parts which makes it easy to clean. 
5. Wash the entire body of the BBQ. 
6. Take your time while the parts are drying out. Don’t rush drying out each part of the BBQ, just leave them out in the sun until they are ready.
7. Always spray your grill with oil: To avoid rusting, spray both sides of the grill with oil. 
8. Reassemble the BBQ: Put the grill, hot plates, etc. back into the BBQ when everything is dry.
9. Reconnect the gas

  Once your BBQ is cleaned and reassembled, turn it on for around ten minutes without adding any food to burn off anything else you might not have cleaned.   

Tips for Cleaning a Gas BBQ

If your BBQ has a stainless-steel food warmer, put it in a bucket with warm water and laundry powder. Let the food-warmer soak for around 60 minutes.   Purchasing BBQ wipes can help you easily clean your BBQ.   To make it easier to clean the drip tray, line it with aluminum foil before cooking. Puncture a hole in the foil so the fat drips down. Without doing this, cleaning the drip tray is a very difficult task. Fat is tough to remove, so covering it with foil helps you avoid having to spend a long time trying to clean it. Once there is a lot of fat on the foil, just throw it away and replace it. You still expect some fat to have gotten into the surface of the drip tray which might need cleaning.   Each time you use the BBQ, it might prove beneficial to disconnect the gas and examine the hose. These hoses tend to crack or get worn out easily, so you will be forced to replace them. If there is a problem with the gas seal or gas bottle hose, it could cause leakages and might catch fire while you are cooking.   

How do I clean a Charcoal Barbecue? 

Every charcoal BBQ needs to be deep cleaned. Most people do this once a year, however, if you use it more frequently you might need to do it more often. Expect both ash and carbon to build up which can cause serious health problems. To avoid these issues, follow this step by step guide to make sure your charcoal BBQ is clean and safe to use:  

1. Choose where you want the cleaning process to take place: Remember that this tends to be a messy job, so cleaning outdoors is strongly advised.
2. Take out the grill grate: Not all grill grates are removable, however, if you can take off yours do so, as it makes cleaning a lot easier.
3. Use a stiff wire brush: These brushes are a great way to clean the grill grate. 
4. Vegetable oil:  To help protect the grill gates, pour vegetable oil on a kitchen towel and wipe it on the grill. This helps prevent rusting and food sticking to the grill.
5. Remove ash from the bottom section of the grill: This leftover ash can get in the way of the vents at the base of the grill. If this happens it is very difficult to control the temperature while you’re cooking. 
6. To clean the lid, using soapy water and a sponge. Use a dry rag after to clean up any remaining water.

  Remember that after each time you use the BBQ, you should clean the grates while they are warm. It’s much easier to clean while it is warm, as excess food and grease will still be soft. The harder the food gets, the harder it will be to remove.   

What should you do Before you Start Cooking with a Brand New BBQ?

It’s very exciting getting a new BBQ. So, before you start putting burgers and juicy steaks on your new toy, there are a few things you should consider:  

• Don’t forget to remove the protective coating: When you purchase a new BBQ most parts will be wrapped in a protective coating. Remove all wrapping to avoid problems.
• Rinse the grill and hotplates: Although it is a brand new BBQ, giving the equipment a quick rinse and leaving them to dry is important.
• Spray the cooking surface with BBQ spray.
• Turn it on for about an hour: Turning on the heat for around 60 minutes will be a good test to see if everything is working okay. Also, if you start cooking straight away your meal might taste odd. 

  Sometimes BBQs need to be assembled, so they come with lots of nuts and bolts. Try not to lose any of these because you might not have any spares. When assembling your BBQ outdoors, having a glass for the nuts and bolts will prove beneficial.   

Summary

Maintaining a clean BBQ has lots of benefits. It helps reduce the likelihood of someone suffering from food poisoning, it reduces the chances of the BBQ starting a fire, and it tends to taste better.    If your BBQ is maintained properly, it should last for many years, even if you use it regularly. The most common reason why people’s BBQs die is because they have not been cleaned properly.    Dirty grills and trash tends to attract unwanted and harmful bugs. On a hot day, your BBQ could be ruined by some of these annoying insects. Maintaining a clean grill helps keep away bugs and rodents.