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Cleaning Your BBQ Grill: What Do You Need?

The best step-by-step guide and tips and tricks for cleaning your summer BBQ ovens

Mark Hoffman

Managing Editor At Ovenreview.co.uk

July 15th, 2022

4 Minute Read

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Cleaning your BBQ can be a grueling task after a hot summers day, family event or party. However for the longevity of your BBQ oven, and for the taste of food, it is important to regularly clean your BBQ and other equipment you may have used.

For many of us, cleaning the BBQ may be standard work, but if you’re not familiar this simple guide will show you the best ways to clean your oven.

How do I clean my BBQ oven?

Your BBQ oven is most likely a key piece of your garden. Whether it was a DIY project from bricks and mortar, or a stand alone gas powered oven. After daily, weekly and monthly use your BBQ oven may contain dirt, grease and other unhealthy bacteria which should not be in your foods.

So the question comes, how do I clean my BBQ grill oven right? Firstly you will need a strong soap or grease/oil breaker, a wet cloth, and a metal brush (to remove any sticky grease) and a grease bucket (grease should not be poured down your drain) Disinfection spray also won’t hurt anyone.

Unlike pizza ovens your standard BBQ is most likely a gas powered unit. Stones are however easier to clean because unlike metal.

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What is the best BBQ oven?

BBQ grill ovens come in many different shapes, sizes and costs. If you want a small grill which lays on the floor, take to the park, and use in a small garden, then here is one we found on Amazon.co.uk. The small grill which can be fueled with coal or wood will only set you back £16.99. The small size means it’s very portable and the positive rating on Amazon is a no brainer!

For those who take grilling more seriously but don’t want to spend the £400 for a gas burner. Then look no further than the CosmoGrill Outdoor XL. This simple 1m x 1m grill will set you back just £169.99. The CosmoGrill XL Charcoal Barbecue is the perfect outdoor companion for those intimate long weekends or family summer parties. Featuring a generously sized grilling area, there’s plenty of space to have over 10 burger patties and 10 sausages cooking at any time, as well as grilling or smoking whole baby chickens, wings, and much more. The temperature gauges also allow for meat to be cooked to your liking. There is no wonder why this grill is so popular, with 1.6k positive reviews on Amazon, it’s certainly one to check over. Make sure to check out other great models by Cosmo.

For others, with larger budgets we have to recommend the flagship model by CosmoGrill. The CosmoGrill Outside Gas BBQ 6+2 Platinum Stainless Steel Gas Grill BBQ carries quite the heavy price tag. The complete stainless steal BBQ is around 51kg and can house 1 large gas bottle. The connections and grills are all standard and included in the package. “The 6+2 is fully constructed out of stainless steel for the best in longevity and performance” says CosmoGrill. Cosmo also claims “With a grilling space of huge proportions, there is enough to cater up to 20 people”. Enough for large family gatherings and parties.

How to clean my gas BBQ Oven?

Credit: Unsplash @unknown

A gas BBQ grill is typically the hardest type to clean, you must start by dismantaling the top grills and gas bottle before starting to clean. Make sure you use a strong anti-grease soap like HG Oven clean. With over 11k positive reviews on Amazon this was by far the best cleaner we tested.

What tools do I need to clean my outdoor BBQ oven?

Simple tools can be used to clean an outdoor BBQ oven, these tools will be fine:

Strong soap/Anti grease – here is one we found on Amazon.co.uk
Metal brush – here is one we found on Amazon.co.uk
Cloth or wet sponge – here is one we found on Amazon.co.uk
Grease Bucket – here is one we found on Amazon.co.uk
(Not needed) High powered jet washer – here is one we found on Amazon.co.uk
(Stainless steal grill to keep shine) Shine soap – here is one we found on Amazon.co.uk

Make sure to read the packaging of the products before attempting the clean, Ovenreview.co.uk is not responsible for any damages

Our 5 step cleaning guide for cleaning your grill BBQ

Step 1

Wait for the BBQ to get cold

You should wait until your BBQ is cooled down before starting the cleaning.
You should wait at least 1 to 2 hours before cleaning the grill itself and the other parts of the BBQ oven.
After use you should disconnect the gas bottle

Step 2

Clear out & disconnect the gas

If you are using a coal/wood burning BBQ grill, start by emptying all the contents and safely dispose of the coal or wood. Once the wood is out start to take off the grills.
Gas bottles should be disconnected from the BBQ, after doing so, start to dismantle the top grills and set them aside.

Step 3

Jet wash and scrape the grills

Jet wash (optional) the grills after placing them on the floor, make sure to spray the grease remover first and leave it to sit for at least 10 minutes.
If you do not have a jet wash then do not worry, leave the grease remover on the grills for at least 10 minutes then wash off the remainder of the grease.
If the grease does not come off easily, use the metal brushing kit to get rid of the extra sticky grease and other dirt.

Step 4

Last scrape out

After scraping off the last parts from the grill, make sure to scrape out and de-grease the inside of the oven too.
The metal brush and small amounts of anti-grease can be used too.

Step 5

To finish

To finish cleaning make sure all parts are clean and put them back together.
If you have a chrome (stainless steal oven) then make sure to give it a last scub-down with some stainless steal cleaner/polish to make sure that the shine stays for longer.
It may be a good idea to burn away the smell of polish and cleaner next time before putting food onto the grill oven.

What should I know about before getting a BBQ?

There is a few things you should take note of before investing into a BBQ grill cooker the most important: Gas, has become extremely expensive due to the war raging through Ukraine. Size, some ovens can be extremely heavy and take up a lot of room in your garden. Cleaning, It is good practice to clean your BBQ often to get the most life time out of it. Price, some ovens can be very expensive, it depends on what you want to use your oven for.

Other things to know about before getting a grill, typically gas grills are much more expensive than non-gas grills, they are bigger, worse for the environment and often a messier clean up.

How often should a BBQ grill oven be cleaned?

BBQ grill ovens should be cleaned at least once after use to hold the longevity of your BBQ. Sometimes the oven may not be so dirty and will just need a scrub, but other times an intense clean with a power washer and anti-grease cant go a miss!

What now?

Now you know how to properly clean your BBQ oven, a task that can be done in 10 minutes , make sure to check out other reviews, guides and comparisons on Ovenreview.co.uk. We also recommend reading other articles in our BBQ oven section.

Mark Hoffman

Managing Editor At Ovenreview.co.uk

Mark Hoffman has worked as a freelancer and writer for several years. Reviewing ovens, washing machines and any other household items he can get his hands on. When he’s not sitting in-front of a computer he enjoys cycling, climbing and volunteering at charitable health organisations.