How to Clean Your Gas Grill Burner

how to clean gas grill burner

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If you’re trying to pull off a well-executed barbeque or a cookout, then keeping your grill burners and other grilling parts clean and in working order is an absolute must. Besides accurately measuring your food’s temperature with handy tools like the ThermoPro Food Thermometer, keeping a clean grill is another important to provide high-quality heat to your grilled foods. Cleaning gas grill burners at regular intervals ensures that they will last much longer and continue to provide even and consistent heat to your food for years to come. This article will guide you on how to clean your gas grill burner. As periodic maintenance of grill parts is also important for extending the life of your grill, this article will also explain how to replace your grill burners and how to remove Weber grill burner tubes.

5 Easy Steps for Cleaning Your Gas Grill Burner

Below are 5 steps for cleaning grill burners in preparation for your next barbecue or cookout.

  • Step 1. Before you start any cleaning, you must disconnect and shut off any sources of gas. This means closing all tank valves and disconnecting the gas tank that’s normally flowing gas to the grill. Cleaning with open gases potentially present will pose a very hazardous situation that is completely preventable.
  • Step 2. You’ll need to remove the gas grill burners from your grill in order to properly clean them. Consult the grill’s manual for the gas grill burner removal instructions, as different types of grills have different procedures for these parts. Once the burners are removed, you can start the cleaning process.
  • Step 3. You will want to clear out any debris caught inside the gas grill burner tubes. Debris-clogged tube ports will prevent gas from flowing efficiently to thoroughly heat up and cook your food. Char-Broil recommends using a bottle brush (small diameter) or a cleaning rod for grill burners to extract the debris within the burner tubes.
  • Step 4. Use a stainless scrub or a nylon brush to scrub around the burners’ outsides to clear any accumulated dirt or food debris. TheBBQDepot warns grill operators that water should never be used to clean the gas grill burners.
  • Step 5. Now that the burners are cleaned inside and out, it is time to reattach the burners to the grill assembly. Consult your grill’s manual once again to properly connect everything, and ensure that the gas tank is reconnected so that the grill can be used for the next barbeque without any interruptions.

Replacing Your Grill Burners in 5 Steps

replace gas grill burner

Over time, gas grill burners corrode or can otherwise become much less effective at producing flames. When this happens, it will be time to replace them. Be sure to follow these 5 steps to replace the burners without difficulty.

  • Step 1. Search local stores or online for replacement grill burners. The goal is to locate and record the grill’s model number. You can also check the grill manufacturer’s website for this information. Burners tend to priced at $10 or more and are sold in sets; buying sets can be convenient when more than one burner needs to be replaced.
  • Step 2. With the new gas grill burner in hand, you can start the removal process for the old burner. Make sure to disconnect your grill from the gas line and place all grill control knobs to their “OFF” positions. Lift up and remove both the grill cooking grates and the heat plates.
  • Step 3. After the removal of the cooking grates and heat plates, you should be able to clearly see and reach the old burners. Consumer Reports notes that most gas grill burners are connected to the grill’s electrode, the grill’s back and front with hardware assemblies such as clamps and fasteners such as screws, cotter pins, nuts and washers. Carefully remove these fasteners and clamps with screwdrivers, wrenches, pliers and other tools to detach the burner(s) from the grill assembly.
  • Step 4. Installing your new gas grill burner will be just as easy as doing what you just did but in reverse order. Generally, this will mean fastening the new burner to the grill using the fasteners and clamps you removed off of the old burner, being especially careful with the electrode that produces the spark necessary for lighting the gas grill.
  • Step 5. Now that the new burner is installed, the burner should be checked to make sure that it operates as it’s supposed to. To test out the burner, reconnect the gas grill to the gas line and light the burner with the corresponding control knob. There’s no issue with the gas grill burner’s light if it lights on demand can modulate from higher to lower flames as its control knob is adjusted accordingly. This means that the burner is ready for grilling in your next barbecue.

However, if you smell gas or if the flames are having odd fluctuations with your control knob adjustments, then you should shut off the grill and consult the grill manually. You will want to analyze the troubleshooting section of the manual, as there may be an issue with the connection between the burner and the gas valve or the valve regulator. There’s also the option of contacting the grill manufacturer by phone and getting in touch with their customer support section.


Removing Weber Grill Burner Tubes

Whether you need to clean or to replace Weber gas grill burner tubes, are the steps for removing them.

  • Step 1. The vaporizer/flavorizer bars and the cooking grates will need to be removed from the gas grill. The flavorizer bars provide even distribution of heat and protect the burners with lengthy warranty periods.
  • Step 2. On the Pre-2002 Genesis Weber grill, a bolt will hold the burner in place relative to an aluminum firebox. This bolt needs to be removed to detach the burner from the gas grill. Difficult to remove bolts may require degreaser or stronger materials and/or tools to get the bolts loosened enough to remove the burners from them. If degreasing, lubricating and unscrewing the bolt does not work, then the last resort may be using the bolt cutters to cut the bolt off. Grill Repair remarks that cutting the bolt(s) definitely makes the burner removal process much easier but will complicate the installation of the new burners in the future.
  • Step 3. After loosening the burners, the control panel will need to be removed. Some Genesis models have side burner ranges on the right side, next to the control panel. The knobs and the igniter button have to be removed. Afterward, the side burner can be loosened by removing its front and back bolts. The control panel can then be lifted and move out of the way. Keep in mind though that the side burner’s gas line is still connected at this point.
  • Step 4. On the Genesis model, the burners are on top of the valve orifice, connected to a gas line which is an air hose fitting. It’s optional to remove the gas line connection here, as the side burner can be left hanging off of the grill with its connection intact. The grate and some other objects that are usually connected to the range top will need to be removed, however.
  • Step 5. The manifold is the pipe part that sends gas to the grill’s control valves. Loosening that requires loosening thumb-screws. After adjusting the manifold appropriately, the burners can be slid out and can be freed from the area around the valve orifice.
  • Step 6. The burner’s right side is the venturi, with the spider screen and the air shutter on top of it. Once the burner’s right has been positioned so that it’s unobstructed by the control values, you can lower the burner’s right side to fully clear the manifold. On the Genesis model, the fire box’s holes aren’t wide enough to permit the air shutter to clear it, so the burner will need to be slid to the right. Afterward, the burner can be removed from the grill.

Conclusion

This article went over some easy steps to clean your gas grill burners, to replace them and to remove Weber burner tubes when they need to thoroughly cleaned or replaced outright. Before performing any cleaning or maintenance, step back and ensure that all sources of gas have been cut off and disconnected from the grill.

Keeping gas from flowing to parts that you are working on is the a must for safe grill upkeep. Remember to clean out your grill following each use of it. You should perform extensive and in-depth cleanings once or twice a year, if not more often. Periodic inspection and maintenance of the gas grill will keep it operating well for a very long time. Most importantly, these cleanings and regular maintenance will produce consistent heat and well-grilled foods at your barbeque parties and family cookouts.

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