Safe Grill Brush

June 21, 2019 7:47 AM

Please recommend what you are using as your safe grill brush to clean your grill grates when you are barbecuing.
posted by Tziv to Home & Garden (19 answers total)

Not sure what you mean by "safe," but I use a brush similar to this one. It has a scraper and stainless steel bristles. Works well and the heads can be replaced.
posted by XtineHutch at 7:59 AM on June 21, 2019

Wirecutter recommends the Best BBQ Grill Brush.
posted by General Malaise at 8:11 AM on June 21, 2019

Response by poster: By safe I mean this: "The coarse wire bristles from your grill brush can break off and get into the food you're grilling. If you then swallow one, it can puncture parts of the digestive system like the esophagus, intestines, stomach, or liver." It has been known to happen.
posted by Tziv at 8:22 AM on June 21, 2019

I use a chunk of old hardwood fence paling whose end has had grooves burnt into it by my grate, much in the manner of the $35 wooden paddle cleaner recommended by The Wirecutter.
posted by flabdablet at 8:29 AM on June 21, 2019 [6 favorites]

A wadded-up piece of aluminum foil works well too. Wait until the grill cools off and hit it with that. You'll be all set for next time.
posted by jquinby at 8:32 AM on June 21, 2019 [6 favorites]

I use a brush similar to the one recommended in the wirecutter article. However, I like to have a scraper. I ended up buying this one. It comes with replacement heads, so it ends up costing about the same.
posted by kookywon at 8:50 AM on June 21, 2019

I've been thinking about getting a grill brick like this one. It's made of pumice so I'm not worried about ingesting it if I were to do so by accident. It would take some finessing I guess for a bbq grill, haven't figured that out yet.
posted by Rufous-headed Towhee heehee at 9:06 AM on June 21, 2019 [1 favorite]

I use a wire brush that has a handle that fills with water. Turn a little knob and I can brush the grates and steam clean them at the same time. I will never go back to the old way.
posted by archimago at 9:08 AM on June 21, 2019

+1 to pumice block
posted by aramaic at 9:10 AM on June 21, 2019

I ordered this and this off of amazon.

The first is a wire-loop brush. It's definitely NOT as effective as the regular wire brushes. Prepare to work harder and longer.

The second is a wooden scraper. It's actually pretty effective, especially at getting the first 90% of gunk off.
posted by Phredward at 9:16 AM on June 21, 2019

Stainless wire brushes, similar to these.

Last way longer than other brushes.
posted by Max Power at 9:35 AM on June 21, 2019

I use those green Scotch Brite scrubbing/scouring pads. I cut a small piece and use it till it gets too dirty. It's safe on the coating of my grill grate which has a non-stick coating of sorts, and seems to get everything off without too much hassle. I bought a grill brush at the supermarket and it sucks
posted by christiehawk at 10:43 AM on June 21, 2019

I often use half an onion to clean the grill (once it is hot). Found a video demonstrating it here.
posted by Gomez_in_the_South at 11:06 AM on June 21, 2019

I ended up switching from a wire brush to a solid piece of wood that kind of looks like a canoe paddle. It doesn't do as good a job of cleaning as the wire brush did but I have no nagging worry that one of the wires will break off into my food and do harm.
posted by any portmanteau in a storm at 2:03 PM on June 21, 2019

It has been known to happen.

You are probably referencing a study that estimates it happened about 100 times per year between 2002 and 2014. Actual recorded and confirmed cases during that time is 43.

Obviously zero is smaller than minuscule, but I'm guessing you aren't giving up pizza, which sent 500+ more people to the ER in 2017 alone than the bristles did in during that 14 year span.
posted by sideshow at 2:42 PM on June 21, 2019 [2 favorites]

I just use a wire brush and brush the hell out of it. I brush it hot when I'm finished grilling, then again the next time I heat the grill. Then I take a many-times-folded paper towel secured with long tongs and drip cooking oil (sunflower or safflower, not olive) on the towel. I then run the oily towel up an down the grill rods, which both removes any potential wire bristles and greases the grill just before I place my food on it. An amazing amount of soot comes off on the pad, too.
posted by citygirl at 2:44 PM on June 21, 2019

Canadian Tire has started carrying Palmyra Bristle bbq brushes - they're great. I throw them out at the end of the season (and have backups).

IMO, they work even better than the stainless/ brass bristled brushes on my old Weber Q220.
posted by porpoise at 2:57 PM on June 21, 2019

I don’t think you are wrong to be wary of wire brushes. Our dear friend’s son had to be airlifted from a desert camping trip to a hospital, then a children’s hospital for this exact thing. Wire brush bristle stuck to grill then stuck to hot dog then punctured his esophagus. It was very serious and very scary! I’ve used the aluminum foil trick since then.
posted by Rapunzel1111 at 7:50 PM on June 21, 2019

I use the wire brush and then follow it up with a damp towel to pick up any bits left behind.
posted by notyou at 7:12 AM on June 22, 2019