Gas Grills - need help deciding!

[audreyh1]

Last night I cooked chicken thighs, and just ran it on low the whole time. About 13 minutes per side, and Gertrude

told us when they were ready. They were perfect.

Oh, I won't grill without my remote temperature sensors! No way! Not when culinary perfection can be achieved with just a little high-tech assistance!

LOL!

Audrey

 

[DeborahB]

Hmm. All entertaining and enlightening! We saw a grill for $300 at Costco yesterday with cast iron (not porcelain-covered) grates and I can't remember what else. It looks pretty good and solid and Costco is great on quality and returns. I'm thinking about getting this one.

We were in a big hurry so I didn't look thoroughly. I don't think it had a side burner but is definitely larger than what I have (which I want). It was some brand I hadn't heard of - Tuscany, I think?

We don't have an outdoor kitchen and we spent a lot fixing up the indoor kitchen in the past few years. So... maybe this. Better $300 than $700 in this case. Any thoughts?

I do culinary perfection by the old-fashoned poke it and see if it's done method

 

[FinanceDude]

Webers will last the longest by far. I anted up and got a Weber E320 at Lowes a few months back. This replaced an old Weber Genesis that was 15 years old. The neighbor's kid refurbished it and he uses it all the time..........they last forever.......

Sometimes saving a few bucks makes you kick yourself later..........

 

[jayc]

I can offer assistance with what to NOT buy. We bought the $139 (gas) metal kettle with lots of plastic everywhere else. It had flat face that ran from top to bottom. We kept it on the back porch. Metal at the top with lots of plastic made it top heavy and a slight wind blew it over after 3 weeks. Broke the handle for the lid and most of the plastic knobs off.

 

[Moemg]

A lot of people swear by Weber's but I wonder if they would hold up on my deck ? I live on the Bay so the salt corrodes everything .

 

[ikonomore]

A lot of people swear by Weber's but I wonder if they would hold up on my deck ? I live on the Bay so the salt corrodes everything .

We rent a place on Cape Cod every summer and they have an older weber stored outside not 50 feet from the ocean and it seems fine also.

 

[DeborahB]

We rent a place on Cape Cod every summer and they have an older weber stored outside not 50 feet from the ocean and it seems fine also.

The Weber charcoal kettles were impervious to harm. However, they are not expensive or complex compared to gas grills. I gave away my 18" Weber kettle after several years of using gas. I like the speed and lack of fuss, with the gas grill.

I just read a bad review of the Costco grill brand (Tuscany) that I mentioned earlier... have to sort this one out. My S.O. thinks because my first cheap gas grill lasted 10 years (with one burner replacement) that a new cheap gas grill will do the same. I'm not so sure...

 

[Gumby]

We currently have an ancient (>15 year old) Weber gas grill, dual burner (front and back), but no side burner. I have replaced the flavorizer bars but not the porcelain coated grill bars (which are admittedly in rough shape). When it finally bites the dust, I want one of these

R.H. Peterson

We have never had the side burner and I don't think I would ever use one. I can also do without the rotisserie attachment. The complete stainless steel construction appeals to me, since the grill will sit less than 150 feet from the ocean.

 

[KB]

I bought a BBQ with a side burner so I would have something to cook with if the power went out for any length of time. I've never used it.

 

[Janet H]

We got a Minden grill a few years ago and find the side burner useful for boiling big pots of stuff - keeps the house cool. Lobsters, pickles, anything in a giant pot gets cooked outside. You can customise the grill to have the features you want e.g. side burner, cutting board, etc and they come in a variety of colors. So far, it's aging gracefully. You can find deals on amazon - but here's the corp website Minden Grill :: BBQ Grills

 

[thefed]

I got a $300 fiesta 3 burner +side burner for $130 on sale 5 winters ago. A few of the plastic pieces on the front broke rather quickly, but the overall workings of the grill are great. We did break a handle once....but that was human error!

If i ever get another grill, it will be natural gas. Should take me less than an hour to run the 25 feet of gas line needed to power a Nat Gas grill.

 

[Pete]

+1 on using charcoal instead. The Weber is bombproof. I have the performer.

Weber Grills and Accessories

It easily starts the coals with propane.
Has plenty of room under the cover.
Has a nice work area.
A couple of baskets of coals burns for hours allowing me to cook and smoke big items like turkeys and hams for next to nothing.
No burners to rust.
Easy cleaning. Has a catch for ash deposits which I dump into the garden.
No fires to burn the meat, unless you want it.
The final product just tastes better.

 

[FinanceDude]

I got a $300 fiesta 3 burner +side burner for $130 on sale 5 winters ago. A few of the plastic pieces on the front broke rather quickly, but the overall workings of the grill are great. We did break a handle once....but that was human error!

If i ever get another grill, it will be natural gas. Should take me less than an hour to run the 25 feet of gas line needed to power a Nat Gas grill.

If you used a propane tank it wouldn't matter how far you were from the gas line........

 

[DeborahB]

We currently have an ancient (>15 year old) Weber gas grill, dual burner (front and back), but no side burner. I have replaced the flavorizer bars but not the porcelain coated grill bars (which are admittedly in rough shape). When it finally bites the dust, I want one of these

R.H. Peterson

We have never had the side burner and I don't think I would ever use one. I can also do without the rotisserie attachment. The complete stainless steel construction appeals to me, since the grill will sit less than 150 feet from the ocean.

Yeah - and I want the house and outdoor kitchen to put it in too!

 

[DeborahB]

Yeah - and I want the house and outdoor kitchen to put it in too!

The first time I opened the link it went to a built-in outdoor kitchen - the second time to a normal grill - duh. I'm thinking you mean the normal grill. Looks expensive but wonderful.

 

[thefed]

If you used a propane tank it wouldn't matter how far you were from the gas line........

but it would matter when i'm half way through grilling and i run out of fuel.......


I should have also noted that we do not EVER use that side burner...seems like a waste to us....nor do we use 3 burners at once except to expedite warm-up times

 

[DeborahB]

but it would matter when i'm half way through grilling and i run out of fuel.......


I should have also noted that we do not EVER use that side burner...seems like a waste to us....nor do we use 3 burners at once except to expedite warm-up times

I have run out of propane more than once.... and thought of installing a gas line out to the patio. Good idea!

 

[REWahoo]

I have run out of propane more than once.... and thought of installing a gas line out to the patio. Good idea!

We had a natural gas grill many years ago when we lived in Kansas - worked great. We're not in Kansas any more, so now we have propane.

Most propane grills can be converted to natural gas by changing out the orifice. Depending on how difficult it is to access the orifice in your particular grill, this can be very easy or a real PITA. (Natural gas is under much lower pressure so the orifice needs to be larger to have an adequate supply to the burners.)

 

[IndependentlyPoor]

Many years ago we bought a very expensive Dukane. It didn't work very well, but made up for it by rusting out its burners quickly. We replaced it with a plain old Weber, at less than half the price, and loved it.

 

[DeborahB]

Many years ago we bought a very expensive Dukane. It didn't work very well, but made up for it by rusting out its burners quickly. We replaced it with a plain old Weber, at less than half the price, and loved it.

Could you please define "plain old Weber"? What model... Plus is the Spirit series not worth the money?

I'm seeing a consensus here that Weber is the best (with a few notable others). I also see a serious argument in my future if I want to buy a $700 grill.

 

[ziggy29]

but it would matter when i'm half way through grilling and i run out of fuel.......

I always keep a full spare tank in the garage for such emergencies. If I lived out in the boonies I'd probably get a large tank and have it periodically refilled.

 

[IndependentlyPoor]

Could you please define "plain old Weber"? What model... Plus is the Spirit series not worth the money?

I'm seeing a consensus here that Weber is the best (with a few notable others). I also see a serious argument in my future if I want to buy a $700 grill.

Sorry. Don't remember the model, and it went out with the downsizing. I'm sure the models have changed anyway.

It wasn't anywhere near $700!

 

[jdmorton]

I Was in the Same Boat Earlier This Year

Thinker25, I was in the market for a replacement gas grill earlier this year as well. Like you, I was having a hard time figuring out which grill to get and what features I thought were worthwhile. Right before I purchased mine – a Weber Q 320 – I found a BBQ forum appropriately titled www.bbqsource-forums.com. In the first General Discussion section, someone developed a ‘sticky’ post titled “Read This If Looking New Grill”. Here’s a link to that post http://www.bbqsource-forums.com/invboard/index.php?showtopic=6815.

In a nutshell, this guy makes the point that about 2 years ago, due to the high cost of quality metals (especially stainless steel), you can probably now distinguish the quality and longevity of most grills (not all, of course) by determining if they are manufactured prior to 2008 and those manufactured from 2008 on. He also makes some interesting comparisons of price points for grills – even paying the $700 you mention might not get you a grill that lasts as long as you think it might.

By the way, another part of the bbqsource-forums that was helpful to me are the two forums on grills made in the US and those made elsewhere in the world , both of these are right below the General Discussion forum. There are some interesting posts on a number of well-known grill manufacturers by people actually who own them.

 

[Westernskies]

Unless you are married to the idea of cooking with dead dinosaurs, I would highly recommend a Traeger Pellet Grill/Smoker.

 

[BigMoneyJim]

I bought my brother-in-law a grill as a [-]bribe[/-] housewarming gift a month or two ago. From the online reviews it appears that everything except a Weber will rust away in a year or two.

The Home Depot gas Weber grills have a different set of grates than is available elsewhere. It's a very nice triangular coated iron grating, much better than the stamped coated steel on the Spirits elsewhere. I started staking out Home Depot's for a sale on the Spirit 210 (no side burner) and found one for well under $300, but I think it was a pricing mistake. It only has two burners, and there seems to be a big gap between them, but it seems to cook just fine, makes lovely grill marks, and the reviews report even temperature across the grilling area.

If I move into a house one of my first buys will be a Weber Spirit 210.

There are Spirits with three burners and Spirits with side burners, but I didn't consider them.