Charcoal grills are literally a godsend for any BBQ enthusiasts. Nothing beats the smell of grilled food on a charcoal grill. Its presence is enough to celebrate summer with friends and family.
A rusty grill is a normal phenomenon caused by exposure to harsh weather and constant use. With some simple steps, you can make it clean and new again.
How to refurbish a charcoal grill? We’ve got your back! Here’s how to get it right with Sunset Bar and Grill.
Can You Paint A Charcoal Grill?
You can repaint your grill if the surface looks worn
Before diving into the refurbishing process, you need to determine if your grill can be repainted.
Stainless steel and some enamel-coated grills usually don’t need repainting. You can repaint black grills, but it needs a thorough cleaning before starting.
In general, you can paint a charcoal grill. If your smoker’s previous paint has chipped off or been too old, giving it a new coat will freshen and recover its appearance.
One thing to note is that you should paint on the outside only. The interior surface is exposed directly to the food, so any paint would be harmful.
How To Refurbish A Charcoal Grill?
To help refresh your charcoal smoker, we’ll guide you to go through the five following steps:
- Cleaning
- Repainting
- Reinstalling parts
- Seasoning the inside
- Preheating before using
Clean The Grill
As mentioned, cleaning is an initial must-take step. If your grill has appeared ashy due to the oxidation, you need to scrub it very thoroughly. Here’s how to clean the grill:
- Remove parts of the smoker
Detaching any removable part, like cooking grates or grease catchers, makes the clean-up easier.
You should soak them in warm, soapy water for 30 minutes to eliminate residue food debris and grease. Then, you scrub off stubborn smudges.
- Rub off the ash
Removing the internal accessories gives a better scoop to find the ash inside the grill. You’d better remove the big chunks first, then get rid of the small ones. It’s important to do this step rigorously because the ash contributes greatly to your grill’s rust.
- Scrape off the charred flakes inside and outside
The next step is to use a plastic knife to scrape all burned and blackened areas inside the grill. While scrubbing off as much rust as possible, you must not use chemicals or toxic cleaners. Because any residue toxins might lead to food poisoning when exposed to grilling food.
After cleaning the interior, you let the grill stand open and dry and remove the exterior’s rust. This rust is the toughest guy, sticking firmly to the surface.
If the problem is not severe, you may use a brush or sandpaper to scrape off the rust. For headstrong particles, you can use an angle grinder and a ceramic removal disc.
Give It A New Coat
Coating your smoker using high-heat paint is a critical step
Repainting your smoker means you’re giving it a new appearance. So it’s the key part of this refurbishing project. You can consider our guidelines to make it fault-free.
- Prepare a sprayer of high-temperature BBQ paint because the grill is always exposed to scorching temperatures.
- Start painting. Stay aware: You must not paint on the interior to deter food poisoning issues.
- Once you’re done with painting, fire up your smoker to a high temperature so that the paint dries quickly and the cooking afterward is more favorable.
We advise you to keep the habit of repainting your grill regularly. This way, you can promote its rust resistance.
Reinstall Hardware and Accessories
While your charcoal grill is busy drying, you just take the time to replace the overly rusty parts with new ones and reinstall all the hardware and accessories.
When the components are completely dry, it’s time to put them back on the grill.
You can also install some hardware for added convenience. For instance, a thermometer or some adjustable TV trays are not a bad idea. The aim is to increase the grilling space.
Similar to your kitchen, the larger the cooking surface, the more comfortable.
We bolt the TV trays on the grill to create side tables. You can place the raw meat and the newly grilled food on each table so that they won’t come into contact.
Season The Inside
Cleaning and painting are not the end of refurbishing.
Next, you have to oil the interior to help seal the scrubbed surface and refresh your grill’s appeal. What you need to do is cover the inside and its internal parts with a layer of cooking oil, making sure every inner surface is coated.
Heat It Before Using
Preheating the grill helps get rid of the remaining grease
We’ve come to the final step of renewing your charcoal smoker. Preheating helps to cure the paint and make it suitable and safe for cooking.
First, you bond the oil to the interior surface. Then, you heat the grill up to an extreme temperature to burn any remaining grease, rust, ash, or debris. About 10 minutes later, let it cool down before grilling anything.
Once your grill gets cool, you can smoke your favorite dishes and have fun!
Why Is It Necessary To Refurbish Your Charcoal Grill?
When you purchase a charcoal grill, cleaning, coating, and fitting new accessories into it are a crucial part. If you don’t want to do any clean-up, it’s better not to buy one.
The lack of care and regular retreatment may affect the sufficiency and functionality of your grill and put you at many risks.
The first disadvantage to mention is that your food will have an unpleasant taste.
If your grill is not clean, you’re grilling the delicious meat with leftover food stuck on the grates. A combination of fresh food and spoilt food delivers a very weird taste.
Over the long-term use without refurbishment, your grill is a favorable place for molds to live.
Leaving the grill getting old and dilapidated means you’re growing molds and fungus.
The molds prefer dark places with wetness and grease. A rusty and stinky grill is among those.
Should you not get rid of these molds and take care of your charcoal smoker properly, you’re facing a high risk of food poisoning and digestive disorders.
Knowing of this fact, who would dare to cook food on an ‘oily’ smoker?
More importantly, an overly rusty charcoal grill might result in fire hazards and other severe accidents.
In fact, excessive grease and fatty oils are the major cause of fire flare-ups, which can lead to dangerous burns. You really need to spend time getting rid of the oil, deterring them from building up.
Bottom Line
Refurbishing a grill does not end at cleaning and repainting. It is about inspecting your grill. By refreshing your charcoal grill regularly, you can both enjoy your salivating dishes to the fullest and protect yourself and family from serious dangers.
How to refurbish a charcoal grill? We hope our guide is helpful for you. With some easy steps, you can recover your rusty grill and conjure up a lovely outdoor kitchen.
It’s time to master grilling over charcoal!
Thank you for reading.
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