How (and what) do you clean up?

Pipin' Pig

Pipin' Pig

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As I was cleaning up yesterday from our laborday bbq I was wondering what everyone does when cleaning up their pits?

Me I remove all the grates and the water pan and wash them off, scrape out the sludge that is in the bottom of the smoaking chamber and sweep out the fire box of ashes, spray it down with veg oil and I am done.

I will normally take a whisk broom to the inside walls of the smoking chamber as I prep for the next cook to remove any soot, etc. but other than that, I don't do anything else.
 
when cleaning grates make sure to reseason them with cooking oil to keep them slick.
If you ever get to the point of cleaning it at a car wash definatly reseason everything you pressure washed.
 
I've already taken the stainless finish off my WSM grates.

To avoid rust, I heat them up with the turkey fryer burner to clean them with a grate brush, then spray on veg oil.

Bandera grates get hand washed after each use (same as the water pans in both)
 
I've been lining both my firebox and smoke chamber with heavy duty foil. It certainly makes things easier. I still get a some gook at the bottom of the chamber... probably from the spraying with apple juice that runs down the sides I guess... but is sure beats the mess it would be. I've also been placing a throw away aluminum pan under the my pork butts and chuckies. That also goes a long way to keeping things clean. When I'm done, I spray it down with some non-toxic cleaner like the one from Simple Green and just wipe everything down. The grates I usually clean with a brillo pad. The firbox get brushed out once I pull out the foil which usually accounts for 90% of the firebox cleaning.

Once it's all said and done... the whole thing gets a good coating of PAM, a light wipe down, and covered up until next time.
 
After 3 or 4 cooks I pull the gator completely apart I brush out the inside from the top down, scrape out the grease and debre in the belly, Scrub the grates with hot soapy water, scrap the tuning plates, and reassemble. No water on the inside. Cook to cook I wire brush the cooking grates and remove ash asap to help prevent interior rust.
 
for the grates, i fire up the big 48inch gasser, put all the grates from al lthe pits on there, cover them with a foil tent and close the lid for about 30 minutes. open up and everythingis covered with white ash.. Hit them real quick with a brush, spray them with pam and they are ready to go.

chambers will get steam cleaned when they get real nasty.. build a big fire, get the chambers over 400 and then spray with a presure nozzle from the garden hose. Spray with pam and let the fires die out.
 
BBQchef33 said:
for the grates, i fire up the big 48inch gasser, put all the grates from al lthe pits on there, cover them with a foil tent and close the lid for about 30 minutes. open up and everythingis covered with white ash.. Hit them real quick with a brush, spray them with pam and they are ready to go.

chambers will get steam cleaned when they get real nasty.. build a big fire, get the chambers over 400 and then spray with a presure nozzle from the garden hose. Spray with pam and let the fires die out.
Click to expand...

Err...Umm...Umm.....Errr :icon_shy :mrgreen: :wink:
 
Usually after I pull the meat off the smoker and let it rest, I'll go ahead and clean up the smoke chamber side while it's hot. I hose down the grates and water pan and with it being hot the crud generally comes off pretty easy and then whatever fire is left dries it all out. I'll also spray it down with the cheapie "Pam spray" that you get from the dollar store to make it look all nice and purty.

The next day, I dump the ashes, wash out the firebox side and spray the inside with lemon juice to neutralize the corrosive action of the wood ash (or so they say). I also spray the outside of the firebox with the spray stuff too. I gave up on trying to paint it years ago.
 
BTW - What is a "NB Bandera Mod E"? I guess it is the "Mod E" part I am inerested in.
 
I put the WSM grates and waterpan in a trash bag - spray'em down with water and degreaser - let it sit all day in the sun - then take them out and wash it all off with the water hose. Best part - No scrubbing required.
 
On Selma - I just take it strait to the nearest car wash, and spray the heck out of it. I do not like using the chemical cleaners unless I can make sure that I rinse it out properly. I always season it after a cleaning.
 
BBQchef33 said:
for the grates, i fire up the big 48inch gasser, put all the grates from al lthe pits on there, cover them with a foil tent and close the lid for about 30 minutes. open up and everythingis covered with white ash.. Hit them real quick with a brush, spray them with pam and they are ready to go.

chambers will get steam cleaned when they get real nasty.. build a big fire, get the chambers over 400 and then spray with a presure nozzle from the garden hose. Spray with pam and let the fires die out.
Click to expand...

Copy cat!!!! Naw, I actually learned this technique from Poobah.
 
Cleaning? You are supposed to clean these things? Spray Pam on the outside when the pit is still warm. Sweep out the firebox the next day. When it gets grimey (about every 4th cook or so), I scrape things out (sooty and greasy parts) before starting a cook. I use the weed burner to warm things up and burn some stuff off.

I leave the grates till the next cook also, hit them with the weed burner after I start the coals and brush the crud off. No rust on the inside ever, and very little on the firebox. No one has died yet from my cooking
 
I figured I wait for a grease fire to burn all the gunk that's built up on the inside. Other than that, I dump the water pan a day or two after the cook, when I remember to, and will hose off the grates every 5 or 6 cooks. Got to keep that flavor layer.
 
I make sure my clean grates get a healthy coating of Pam for Grilling®, it makes it so much easier to get the funk off.
 
meanmna said:
BTW - What is a "NB Bandera Mod E"? I guess it is the "Mod E" part I am inerested in.
Click to expand...

It's just something I put on there as a joke. Way back when, we used to do all these mods to our banderas. These are in no real order, just the order I did them.

Heat Shield "A"
Raised Coal Grate "B"
Drain Valve "C"
Door Seal "D"
Door Shelf "E"
 
I clan off any excess solids from my grates with a wire brush. Then I hose mine down inside and out with hot water from the garden hose with a spray nozzle on the end (I have hot and cold water plumbed to my patio).
Then allow to air dry and spray with peanut oil and PAM.

Every now and then when its real yucky, I use my power washer and blast it out.
 
rbinms33 said:
It's just something I put on there as a joke. Way back when, we used to do all these mods to our banderas. These are in no real order, just the order I did them.

Heat Shield "A"
Raised Coal Grate "B"
Drain Valve "C"
Door Seal "D"
Door Shelf "E"
Click to expand...

You did all that and no baffle?
 
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