How to remove rust from this outdoor barbecue?

[Thierry]

 

Hi

I got this free char-Griller Deluxe Charcoal BBQ together with its firebox.

There are rust inside and outside of the grill

Would like to know:

1. If its safe to use it as it is

2. Can I leave the interior rust of the grill and how to remove it?

3. How to remove the rust on the grates?

Appreciate any suggestions

Thanks

Thierry

 

   

[MitchellMc]

Good score, @Thierry!

Using the grill is safe, but you'll end up with some fairly rusty steaks. At least you'll know that your iron intake is sorted. You can either try to clean the grills up or replace them. You'd likely be able to Special Order them, or we might have a replacement in stock. It would be best to take one of the grills with you to your local store to see if a helpful team member can match it up for you. It could quite possibly be this Char-Griller BBQ Spare Part Cast Iron Grill. For that price, I'd just be replacing them. Alternatively, run a wire brush over them until the rust is removed and re-season them with oil. To re-season, you need to get the grills scorching hot, brush on some oil, and let them cool. After doing this three times, they'll be seasoned. This layer prevents your food from sticking. Always coat your grill with oil in between uses, otherwise it will rust again.

Please let me know if you have further questions.

Mitchell

[Thierry]

Hi @MitchellMc 

Thanks for the advice.

How about the internal and external rust, excluding the grates?

Do i need to do anything with them?

Thanks

Thierry

[Walter]

hey @Thierry 

I'm a barbecue fanatic,  my 6 monthly clean up consists of:

• run all of the grills to get the temperature up, let it burn up, even if you get flames.
• turn off the gas grill burners
• scrape with a good wire brush and grill cleaner ( you can get them at Bunnings)
• load up with fat absorber on the drip tray
• run the burners again
• oven cleaner (something like Selleys BBQ cleaner

get ready to barbecue!

@MitchellMc  is right, the rust (Iron intake) is  taken care of with a wire brush, and  a hit of oil.

My preferred way is to do the things above, and then the first  BBQ I do requires a good oil based marinade.

I'm a bit different, as barely a week goes by without me doing a BBQ, even in winter, and summer is 6 days a week on average of BBQ (sometimes I wonder why we have a stove at all)

BTW there is a really funny "Married with Children" episode, probably my favourite episode, where Al Bundy explains his BBQ technique, which is to leave the ashes from the previous years BBQs to add to the flavour - I wouldn't go that far.

`enjoy the upcoming season.

[MitchellMc]

You don't need to do anything with the rust on the other surfaces @Thierry, as most of it is just aesthetical. You'll find the paint has most likely burnt off on those inside locations due to high heat. You could certainly spruce up the outside of the unit with Dulux 300g Duramax High Heat Black Enamel Spray Paint. Before spraying, give the outside a good scrub down with warm soapy water and a heavy-duty Scotch-Brite pad. The scouring pad will remove any powdery paint and prepare the surface.

You could paint the inside of the panels, but personally, I wouldn't. You risk it burning off and ruining a good bbq. The underside of the lid could be done if you like.

Mitchell

[Remarka6le]

Hey @Thierry , 

Bit of a newer solution, but we got our BBQ rust removed via high powerd laser (This is the video that got me searching for a company). You can get low powered versions for light use, but the industrial ones that destroy rust are super expensive, so it's better done through to-your-home-companies right now, all major states have them. We used a service to get the thing looking brand new and now we implement a cleaning system similar to what @Walter described to maintain it. 

[Thierry]

Hi @MitchellMc 

To get rid of the rust on the grills, can i just use pieces gum tree (have heaps) and burn them inside the barbie?

Should i close the barbie to make it super hot til the grills get burn, and then scratch the rust. Then i brush the grills with some used cooking vegetable oil ? Thanks

[EricL]

Hi @Thierry

It's not necessary to heat up the grill of the barbeque. I suggest using cooking oil and scrubbing the surface with a Sabco Professional Pot And Pan Scourer. I don't recommend using any harsh chemicals as this will contaminate the surface of your grill. Once the rust has been scrubbed off, I suggest rinsing it with hot water. Dry the surface with a paper towel and apply a coat of vegetable cooking oil on the surface to protect it from rusting. For very stubborn rust you can use sandpaper to remove deep-seated rust. 

To protect your freshly renovated barbeque, I suggest using a barbeque cover to protect it from the elements. 

If you need further assistance, please let us know.

Eric