Why You Should Never Pour Water On A Hot Charcoal Grill
Ditch the propane and the natural gas. It's hot charcoal summer. Everyone and their dad can grill on a propane-fueled grill with their fancy knobs and temperature control, but charcoal grills take a true understanding of heat. And believe it or not, cooking isn't the only difficult thing to do on charcoal grills. Putting them out can be tricky too.
Once you've finished grilling and everyone at the picnic is full and happy, your first instinct might be to throw some water onto the coals. But this is not only ineffective; it's also quite dangerous, per The Grilling Dad. The hot steam and jumping hot water splashing up can cause serious burns and damage your grill as well. Water can cause cracks and eventually, gashing holes to form in the metal of your grill. The mixture of water and charcoal can also eventually turn into a sludge that is extremely difficult to remove.
Proper methods of putting out a charcoal grill
The best and safest way to finish up with your charcoal grill is to let it sit and burn itself out for about 48 hours, per Grill Baby Grill. The slow-burning is safe and does not require that you directly interact with the ripping heat. Of course, it is incredibly important to seclude the grill during this time and keep everyone — particularly children and pets — away from the grill. Once completely cooked, carefully remove the charcoal and the ash from the grill and get to cleaning.
If you really want to use water or you want your grill cooled down a tad faster, there are options available to you. Grill Baby Grill suggests you let the flames die down and the grill cool off a bit before arming yourself with the proper protective gear and a pair of long tongs. Grab coals one at a time with the tongs and drop them into a bucket of water to cool them off. You can even lay these coals out later to dry to reuse for your next barbeque.