Prior to cleaning your grill, always allow the coals to die down to the point of touch before moving them to a safe, non-combustible container. Once the ashes are cold, they can be trashed or placed in the garden. It is important to remove old coals from your grill, because if allowed to remain in the grill, their corrosive nature will eat away at the metal and destroy it much earlier than otherwise.

To properly clean the grates (once the grill has cooled to the touch), you can either use a steel wire brush and vigorously brush/scrape all of the cooked on food from the surface of the grate and then use a paper towel to remove any remaining loose material. The other method is, prior to cooking the next time, heat your grill to high temperature to cook any previous food off, and then you can easily steel brush off any remaining food.

Thorough Cleaning of Grates - Occasionally, you may notice that the cooking grate is not getting cleaned, regardless of how much scrubbing, scraping and brushing is done. Then it is time to really get it clean by lighting a generous amount of charcoal and placing it all over the charcoal grate and even more so around the edges where any built-up grease may have accumulated. If the fire is hot enough (and it needs to be), the buildup of old cooking greases will catch fire and incinerate. Once the fire dies down, it will then be easy to brush down and thoroughly clean the grate.

Thorough Cleaning of Your Grill - Once or twice a year, you may want to give your barbecue or grill a thorough, top to bottom cleaning. You can do this by brushing on a paste of Tri-sodium Phosphate (washing soda). Note: this stuff is very corrosive, so be sure to wear gloves and eye protection. Spray your grill down with the hose and then paint on the Tri-sodium Phosphate; close the grill and keep it cool, allowing the compound time to dry. Then scrub it down and rinse it well with a mix of 1 tablespoon of white vinegar to a quart of water to neutralize the alkaline condition.

Preventing Rusted Out Grills - Remember the better care you take care of your equipment, the longer it will last. One of the best things you can do to keep your barbecue lasting longer is to always remove the ashes. When ashes get wet, they create a caustic base - "lye" - which has a strong ability to consume iron.

The best way to prevent this is to clean out all the ashes, hose it down real well and spray it with a mixture of 2-3 tablespoons of vinegar per gallon of water. Allow the grill to dry really well, then try to keep the moisture out as much as possible. If you use your barbecue several times 2-3 times a week, you shouldn’t have any problem with moisture build-up.