Your Weber grill has been designed to provide years of fun and enjoyment for you and your family. With some simple care and cleaning, it will retain its beauty and utility.
Charcoal Grills
If you have a charcoal grill, the cooking grate should be cleaned right after you barbecue. It is best to clean the grate while it is still slightly warm, and a brass grill brush may be all that is necessary. If this is not enough, try soaking the grate in warm soapy water for 20 minutes. Then, you can use a steel wool pad to go over the grate lightly. Another alternative after soaking is to put the grate in the dishwasher. This will do no harm at all to a stainless steel or porcelain grate and usually cleans it well.
After each use of the grill, allow the ashes to cool completely and empty them from the grill. Ashes that are allowed to stay in the grill will draw water; the resulting solution is highly alkaline and will cause your grill to rust out very rapidly.
Other ways of preventing rust are moving the grill indoors when not in use, or using a grill cover. If this is not feasible, you can prevent rain water from collecting in the bowl of the grill by turning the grill upside down.
Other than this, the bowl of the grill will require occasional cleaning with hot, soapy water. Use a dish cloth, or a sponge with a plastic scrub. Avoid using steel wool or other strong abrasives because they can scratch the baked-on enamel surface of the grill.
Gas Grills
The cooking grate of a gas grill also requires regular cleaning. For porcelain-enamel cooking grates, this is best done immediately after you finish grilling. The easiest way is to turn the grill on high for 15 minutes with the lid closed and allow any residue to burn off. Afterwards, go over the cooking grate lightly with the stainless steel wire brush that Weber makes expressly for this purpose. A porcelain-enamel cooking grate can also be cleaned with soapy water or run through the dishwasher without the slightest damage.
The same method of first burning off residue and then cleaning with a brush will clean the flavorizer bars. Weber does not recommend running the flavorizer bars through the dishwasher, however, because they may release enough debris to clog the drain.
A cast iron cooking grate should not be cleaned right after grilling, because the greasy residue helps protect the grill from rusting. Instead, burn off the residue just before you grill the next time, and then brush off any ashes with the steel brush.
The catch pan liner will also need occasional changing. Replacement pans are available from any Weber grill dealer. The bottom tray will also need occasional scraping with a putty knife and washing with warm water and soap.
Be sure to clean up greasy spots on the exterior of the grill, the warming racks and control panel, and the cook box. Use a plastic sponge and warm soapy water. If you must, use very fine steel wool and very light pressure, to avoid scratching the grill. Use the same method to clean off smoke stains from the grill lid.
A gas grill should never be cleaned with oven cleaner, which will remove the paint. Also, don’t wax or paint the lid. The porcelain surface does not need paint or wax, and they only burn when the grill gets hot.
If the painted surfaces of the grill ever need touching up, there are special paints called “barbeque black” and “fireplace black” that will withstand high heat. Clean the surface to be repaired and rough it up slightly so the paint will adhere. Be very careful not to get paint on the porcelain surfaces of the grill.