Is It Ever Okay To Clean Your Grill While It's Still Hot?

Cleaning your grill after each use is an essential grilling tip that can make your life a lot easier towards the end of barbecue season. Not cleaning it can lead to rapid deterioration of an often expensive item, and leaving your grill dirty can also ruin your steak and affect the way your food tastes over time, so it's important to keep up with routine maintenance. It's not as big of a pain as it may seem, though: For flat-top, charcoal, and gas grills, you can even clean your grill while it's still warm. In fact, this is the best time to do so as the heat naturally loosens debris and grease.

For a flat-top grill, scrape its warm surface to remove any leftover food, letting it fall into the grease trough. Wipe any remaining grease with a wet rag, but be sure to hold it with tongs to avoid getting burned. Once the grill is cool, you can season it by spreading a seasoning oil over the surface and then reheating it until it begins smoking. This will allow the oil to set and leave you with a shiny, non-stick surface. 

Charcoal and gas grills can also be cleaned while still warm. Leave your gas grill on for a few minutes after grilling to loosen any remaining food. Then, turn it off and begin scraping the grates with a grill brush while it's still warm to remove food particles. When it's cooled down, use a spray bottle to spray an even coating of vegetable oil over the grates. Turn the grill back on to cook the oil onto the grates for about 30 minutes, and be prepared for even better tasting burgers next year.

As the summer winds down and barbecue season comes to an end, many people choose to put their grills into storage to avoid damage caused by the cold weather. The right way to store your grill for the winter starts with ensuring that it's been properly deep-cleaned first. If you've kept up with routine maintenance of your grill, you should have no problems with this; in fact, your deep cleaning will likely be pretty quick and easy. However, the only grill that can be deep-cleaned while still warm is the flat-top grill. Deep cleaning a gas or charcoal grill must be done cold.

To deep clean a flat-top grill before storing it away, turn it on and allow it to reach 300 degrees Fahrenheit. Once it has, turn it off and scrape the surface just like you would with an everyday cleaning. Follow the same wet rag method to remove any leftover grease; you could even pour some warm water overtop if there's anything that won't budge. After it's cooled down, sprinkle a layer of baking soda on the surface. Then, add some hot soapy water, allowing a paste to form. Scrub the paste over the surface with a sponge to help remove any remaining debris or grease. Rinse off the paste with some water, and then let the surface completely dry before adding oil to season it one last time before storing it away for the winter.