How Often Should You Be Cleaning Your Grill Grates?

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When grilling season arrives, the last thing you want is leftover stuck-on debris on the grill grates getting in the way of (or worse, ending up on) your seared marinated meats, fish, and veggies. Grill surfaces come in contact with a lot of foods, sauces, and splatters. This can mean burnt-on residue and associated bitter tastes that can transfer to your food, as well as leftover particles that can damage the grill if not cleaned regularly and properly. So, to keep your grill in tip-top shape, you should clean the grates every time you use them. 

For best results, give grill grates a thorough scrape with a wire brush or pumice stone after each grilling session when the grates are still warm. To help loosen and clean residue, you can use a bottled grill cleaner or natural grate-cleaning remedies like lemons. Pro-tip: You can also clean grill grates with onions or a specialized brush that, when dipped in water, generates steam to help release debris, like the Mr. Bar-B-Que.

Once residue is scraped off, rub the grates with a light coating of oil to prevent surface damage and rusting. Some seasoned grillers choose to scrape down their grates before each use, while others clean the grates after. Either way, as a general rule of thumb, clean the grates every time you use the grill. Then, you'll only need to do an intensive clean, with soap and water, every few months. 

The exact cleaning method you choose will depend on the type of grill you have, the material of your grill grates, and how often you grill. For example, gas and charcoal grill grates both benefit from regularly scraping off burnt grilling debris. However, gas grills are said to be easier to clean since they accumulate less residue from the ash of the coals. 

Still, you want to prevent any grease and debris buildup that could impact your grill's performance, safety, and longevity. If you will be cleaning grill grates with a scraper brush quite often, it's also best to watch out for harsh materials or cleaning chemicals that may damage or ruin the surface coating of the grates. Go for a grill brick, pumice stone, or nylon grill brush for softer scraping to preserve the coating on metal or ceramic-coated grates, too.

Overall, though, if you clean your grill grates after every use and employ good maintenance habits like using a grill cover during the winter, your deep cleans will be all the easier — in other words, less stubborn grease and particles. Deep cleanings typically require soaking cool grates in soapy water or scrubbing with soap and water or grill cleaner before drying them, plus thoroughly cleaning the grill interior (including seemingly hidden parts of your grill, like heat plates and burner tubes), grease and ash receptacles, and the outside surface.