Grill Cleaning Service

[Little Bear]

Last week I noticed a classified ad on this website for Total Grill Cleaning Service. I’ve used a similar service in Florida with great results, so I decided to give them a try. I filled out their form, and had a response back with 24 hours.

https://www.winnipesaukee.com/forums...do=ad&id=11214

Two gentlemen arrived promptly at 4:00pm yesterday with their small service trailer in tow. I have a 13 year old Vermont Castings Grill that gets a tremendous amount of use, and really needed a good cleaning. In about 2 hours they said they were finished and to come take a look at the grill. I was absolutely floored when I saw the results...the grill honestly looked brand new, like the day it was delivered.

They also pointed out some potential issues with a couple of the burners being rusty, and said I might get 1-2 more years out of it. This bummed me out because I really love this grill and hate to have to replace it. About 2 hours later, I got a text from the gentleman with a link where I could purchase replacement burners. He said if I bought them, they would come back and install the new burners for me (and I fully expect to pay for this).

These gentlemen were professional, courteous and clean. In this day and age of lousy service and no return calls, it was a fantastic experience all around. I highly recommend Total Grill Cleaning if your grill needs a buff & puff. They also informed me that the younger gentleman (Brady) has started an island service company, which I will also use when needed. He also has a classified ad here:

https://www.winnipesaukee.com/forums...do=ad&id=11136

[Hillcountry]

That is a dirty job! I was eyeballing mine the other day and it has some “build-up” in the bottom as I use mine year round as well.
What do they charge for a grill cleaning, if I may ask? Mine is a medium level Weber 3 burner.

[Hillcountry]

I just submitted a request for a free estimate! Thanks for the heads up!

[Little Bear]

Originally Posted by Hillcountry

That is a dirty job! I was eyeballing mine the other day and it has some “build-up” in the bottom as I use mine year round as well.
What do they charge for a grill cleaning, if I may ask? Mine is a medium level Weber 3 burner.

Mine is a 5 burner, and they charged $350.00 (and it was worth every penny). Here's a picture of the finished product.

[Hillcountry]

Looks great, but for $350 I will suffer the cleaning job myself! I do have a pressure washer and tarps!
Let’s see what they come back with for my little 3 burner...

[WeLoveTheLake]

I get a cheap 4 burner grill from Market Basket for $ 150 every year.
We do use it year around as well.

I have a brand new grill every other year.

[thinkxingu]

$350 to clean a grill? I assume it came with a couple hundred dollar bills?!

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[Little Bear]

Originally Posted by thinkxingu

$350 to clean a grill? I assume it came with a couple hundred dollar bills?!

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1) The grill cost me $2300.00 13 years ago. Replacement cost today (if they still made them) would probably be 50% more, so averaging the $350 over 13 years, it cost me about $26.00 / year to keep it like new.

2) My time is valuable. Many other thing I’d rather be doing than deep cleaning a grill.

3) They had special equipment and methods, which I don’t have. It probably would have taken me 3x as long, with less than perfect results.

4) I’m not cheap. I buy top quality products, and like to keep them looking and performing like new. I’m willing to pay for top quality services like this grill cleaning.

Yes, I could buy a cheap Chinese-made grill at a grocery store every year, but that’s not the way I do things. Others may do things differently. But I guarantee you I can cook a steak on this grill that’s just as good as any steak you can get at the finest steak houses. Not so with a cheap Chinese grill.

[Biggd]

I bought a really expensive grill many years ago. It lasted about 10 years. Ever since then I've bought cheap grills. They don't last as long but after 10 years and 3 grills I've saved money and have a new grill every 3 years. If you wait until the end of the summer to buy you can get a decent grill cheap because stores don't want them taking up space all winter.

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[Hillcountry]

Originally Posted by thinkxingu

$350 to clean a grill? I assume it came with a couple hundred dollar bills?!

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They have some $$ invested in a specialized grill cleaning trailer with quite a bit of stainless steel on it. If I was to pay someone to clean my grill (however they do it) I would probably not pay over $100 and that would be painful enough.
I can have it apart and cleaned to my specs in a couple hours...soak the parts in a vinegar water solution then blast with my pressure washer. Good for a another couple years!
Their estimate for my 3 burner came in at $235 by the way.
I wished them good luck with their business and told them that their price was too steep for me.

[Biggd]

It's kind of like picking up dog poop. They are doing a dirty job that some people just don't want to do.🤣

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[jbolty]

Originally Posted by Hillcountry

They have some $$ invested in a specialized grill cleaning trailer with quite a bit of stainless steel on it. If I was to pay someone to clean my grill (however they do it) I would probably not pay over $100 and that would be painful enough.
I can have it apart and cleaned to my specs in a couple hours...soak the parts in a vinegar water solution then blast with my pressure washer. Good for a another couple years!
Their estimate for my 3 burner came in at $235 by the way.
I wished them good luck with their business and told them that their price was too steep for me.

the amount they are charging is probably fair based on the time invested, 2 guys with travel at min $20/hr they are probably at $100 or more just to break even. seems like a better model would be to clean at their place and offer pickup and drop off as an option.

I just cleaned my grill last weekend, prob took and hour to take it apart, blast and put back together. plus a half hour in between waiting for the oven cleaner spray to do its thing

[Hillcountry]

Originally Posted by Little Bear

1) The grill cost me $2300.00 13 years ago. Replacement cost today (if they still made them) would probably be 50% more, so averaging the $350 over 13 years, it cost me about $26.00 / year to keep it like new.

2) My time is valuable. Many other thing I’d rather be doing than deep cleaning a grill.

3) They had special equipment and methods, which I don’t have. It probably would have taken me 3x as long, with less than perfect results.

4) I’m not cheap. I buy top quality products, and like to keep them looking and performing like new. I’m willing to pay for top quality services like this grill cleaning.



Yes, I could buy a cheap Chinese-made grill at a grocery store every year, but that’s not the way I do things. Others may do things differently. But I guarantee you I can cook a steak on this grill that’s just as good as any steak you can get at the finest steak houses. Not so with a cheap Chinese grill.

Nice grill!

[Poor Richard]

But once, cry once.

Can't blame OP one bit for keeping a nice grill in nice condition.

I'm on my 2nd grill in this lifetime because I take similar steps to take care of it.....and I can say with certainty the cleaning is not fun.

[thinkxingu]

Originally Posted by Poor Richard

But once, cry once.

Can't blame OP one bit for keeping a nice grill in nice condition.

I'm on my 2nd grill in this lifetime because I take similar steps to take care of it.....and I can say with certainty the cleaning is not fun.

Naw, I get it—I'm just reminded a lot here about how different my financial circumstances and outlook are and have changed.

At one point in my life—in the late 90's, when I was a home theatre designer—I'd have done the same. But when I left to teach, I sold my Rolex, Audi, and home theatre for my house down payment (!). When kids came along, well...

In either case, thanks for sharing OP—I really didn't know there were grill cleaners out there!

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[8gv]

On wonder how much they want to clean my little 14" Weber Smokey Joe portable charcoal grill...

[Hillcountry]

Originally Posted by 8gv

On wonder how much they want to clean my little 14" Weber Smokey Joe portable charcoal grill...

Get a free estimate from their website...unless you’re kidding...again.

[SAB1]

Originally Posted by Biggd

I bought a really expensive grill many years ago. It lasted about 10 years. Ever since then I've bought cheap grills. They don't last as long but after 10 years and 3 grills I've saved money and have a new grill every 3 years. If you wait until the end of the summer to buy you can get a decent grill cheap because stores don't want them taking up space all winter.

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Total agreement. Grills they make these days suck compared to what was made 10-15 years ago. Clean mine frequently. Your doing it right.:

[Biggd]

Originally Posted by SAB1

Total agreement. Grills they make these days suck compared to what was made 10-15 years ago. Clean mine frequently. Your doing it right.:

Everything they make today is crap but they don't want things to last. They want you to keep buying new appliances every 5 years. Even a lot of the expensive stuff is crap compared to what it use to be.

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[Biggd]

It's all a marketing scam. They sell you granite counter tops that last forever even though kitchens go out of style ever 5 to 10 years. Now they sell you a quartz counter top because it will last longer than forever.🤣

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[codeman671]

They quoted me $285 for my 4 burner Weber Summit. I may take them up on it. It’s pretty nasty!

[VitaBene]

Originally Posted by Little Bear

1) The grill cost me $2300.00 13 years ago. Replacement cost today (if they still made them) would probably be 50% more, so averaging the $350 over 13 years, it cost me about $26.00 / year to keep it like new.

2) My time is valuable. Many other thing I’d rather be doing than deep cleaning a grill.

3) They had special equipment and methods, which I don’t have. It probably would have taken me 3x as long, with less than perfect results.

4) I’m not cheap. I buy top quality products, and like to keep them looking and performing like new. I’m willing to pay for top quality services like this grill cleaning.

Yes, I could buy a cheap Chinese-made grill at a grocery store every year, but that’s not the way I do things. Others may do things differently. But I guarantee you I can cook a steak on this grill that’s just as good as any steak you can get at the finest steak houses. Not so with a cheap Chinese grill.

You did a calculation- time vs $ and time won- looks great and its a great grill!

[summah1]

I don't spend much time on this site, but saw the grill cleaning ad last week.

We had our large Weber grill cleaned today and are very happy. Two young men came and worked hard for over 2 hours. They left the grill and area really spotless. My family leans towards purchasing quality products, such as our Weber grill. We also like to support local NH businesses. In this case, we would rather have our grill cleaned instead of paying a Home Depot/Lowes $250 every 3 years.

I do hope they are successful.

[FlyingScot]

After a couple of disappointments with cheaper grills, I switched to Weber Summits (from a local hardware store, not the cut rate big-box facsimiles). Mine are just a notch down from Little Bear's beauty. They last almost forever, help is just a phone call away, spare parts are sent free due to awesome guarantees, and the whole time you're using a much higher quality product getting a much better result.

[SAMIAM]

I have a Brinkman gas grill/smoker.I converted it to lava rock because I like the effect that it has on any food that is cooked.The grill is probably 20 years old and I just install new burners every 3 or 4 years.It works great.
I never clean it because I like my grills "seasoned" but I do burn it off at the end of the summer.

[rick35]

We’ve had a weber grill for the past 10-12 years and it’s been great. The grill’s structure is still in excellent condition and the usual parts that wear out are easy to find and to replace. Last year I replaced the burner and flavorizers and this year was the igniter. Cleaning it is pretty easy by just sucking up the flakes with a shop vac. Unless I had a Cadillac grill like the Vermont I would never pay to have it cleaned professionally. It’s just too easy. But I fix everything else around the house and camp too. It’s not that I’m cheap but I like doing that kind of stuff.

[Winilyme]

Wondering if folks keep their grills covered when not in use. My last three grills have been Weber and my main beef with them has been that water gets in the lower housing and the flooring starts rusting. I’ve always kept my grill covered with the made-to-fit Weber covers. But someone suggested that by covering it, I may be keeping moisture in - leading to the rusting.

[Hillcountry]

Originally Posted by Winilyme

Wondering if folks keep their grills covered when not in use. My last three grills have been Weber and my main beef with them has been that water gets in the lower housing and the flooring starts rusting. I’ve always kept my grill covered with the made-to-fit Weber covers. But someone suggested that by covering it, I may be keeping moisture in - leading to the rusting.

Mine has a $70+ Weber cover since new (about 7 years now) and there isn’t a speck of rust anywhere...my grill sits in the sun 365 days a year with the cover.
I gets the usual crap inside from use but no rust on the floor or any part of the exterior.

[thinkxingu]

Originally Posted by Hillcountry

Mine has a $70+ Weber cover since new (about 7 years now) and there isn’t a speck of rust anywhere...my grill sits in the sun 365 days a year with the cover.
I gets the usual crap inside from use but no rust on the floor or any part of the exterior.

Ditto. My camp Weber is at least fifteen years old with a Weber cover, and it's dandy.

My home Weber is one I bought for my parents back in 2000. They only used it a dozen times or so and it was covered, outside, the rest of the time. When Dad passed in February, my siblings wanted me to have it. I was blown away when we pulled the cover off—which had shrunk and needed to be cut—and it was pristine.

Unless finances dictate otherwise, I'll forever buy nice Webers.

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[FlyingScot]

Same experience as Hill and Think. Are you sure your grill is dry when you put the cover on? One other issue that I alluded to before--the big boxes--Home Depot and Lowes--get different Weber grills than the local hardware stores sucg as Bradley's and Aubuchon. The local guys are more expensive, but it is a better product. I do not know if that extends to rust, just a guess. Most importantly--if you ever have any problem with a Weber, call their 800 number 365 days. They are amazing, maybe the best customer/warranty service in any business.

[tis]

Originally Posted by Winilyme

Wondering if folks keep their grills covered when not in use. My last three grills have been Weber and my main beef with them has been that water gets in the lower housing and the flooring starts rusting. I’ve always kept my grill covered with the made-to-fit Weber covers. But someone suggested that by covering it, I may be keeping moisture in - leading to the rusting.

We have one right now that is rusting. We did not cover it and were thinking we should have. Our grill came from Ace.

[Winilyme]

All good feedback - thank you. Still, my experience will remain somewhat of a mystery and I’ll stick with the grill covers for now. I may also call Weber for their suggestions as recommended above.

[SAB1]

The old Weber’s dating back 15 years were great. The newer ones are not near the quality and are over priced. At camp I’m still running the one I bought in 2002 but I take great care of it and it used all year long. Have two other, one at home in Mass and my son has one both about 6 -8 years now and less than impressed. They function similarly to the Charbroil Home Depot grills you get for for $150 .

[FlyingScot]

Originally Posted by SAB1

The old Weber’s dating back 15 years were great. The newer ones are not near the quality and are over priced. At camp I’m still running the one I bought in 2002 but I take great care of it and it used all year long. Have two other, one at home in Mass and my son has one both about 6 -8 years now and less than impressed. They function similarly to the Charbroil Home Depot grills you get for for $150 .

You probably have a big box version. My Weber Summit from Bradley's in Wolfeboro is 5 years old and like new--it's more solid than most kitchen ranges