Choosing a gas grill, given the humidity/climate in this area (Christmas: rentals, buy)

[cindylou14]

Love my Char- broil its all stainless steel!! Have had it for over 12 yrs now and any parts needed they replaced for free. Lifetime warranty on the burners!

[HWTechGuy]

Originally Posted by TwinbrookNine

You have to consider how much of the deck you want a grill to take up. And, what if you want to store it somewhere when you leave (if you do in the summer)? I look for flip down sides. Very important! Way smaller footprint and easier to store. You can cook just about anything with the one they sell at Lowes - I think it was $189 now reduced. You don't need no side burner - waste of space. I never used mine on my old one - ever. On my new one, the sides flip down. Always keep the grill out of the rain with a cover, otherwise you are looking for a rusted piece of junk. Mine cooks as much stuff as I need to cook and the reviews by people that thought there was not enough space to cook far as I'm concerned, don't really know how to use one. You can get one at Lowes for under $200 that will cook as well as you need to (the brand name escapes me...just go on the site and look for the one with the flip down sides, no side burner, and ignore the reviews, they are untrue).

OH...PS there is one model on there that can accomodate a rotisserie. If to do it all over again, that's what I would buy. Rotisseries on a barbecue have been largely done away with but are very very useful - if you can find one.

My neighbors bought one of those stainless steel humongous things. Takes up half of their yard, just as dirty and greasy as anybody elses, cost a ton of money, and you can hardly navigate around the behomoth in their yard. Whatta waste of money. My barbecued stuff is so much better tasting, for one third the price.

Thanks for the reply. But, size and storage space is a total non-issue for me. As I mentioned in my initial post, the main covered part of my lanai is 12' x 44' so I am not concerned in the least about how much space the grill takes up. Even with two patio sets out there, I have plenty of room. My wife keeps saying it looks empty out there. Additionally, because my house is L-shaped, so is the covered portion of my lanai. There's another 12' x 30' covered area that runs down alongside the short end of the pool.

I'm not considering a side burner model because practically every review I've seen for grills that have one says that it never gets used.

Originally Posted by BBI

Depends on how you're looking to use it. Even the cheapest, flimsiest grill should last you a good 3 years as long as you keep it covered when you're not using it. If a little $70 gas grill is all you need to do what you want to do, buying a $700 Weber Genesis wouldn't pay off for 30 years.

From what's in your post, all you need is a grill with a lot of space above the cooking surface. Genesis seems like total overkill. You should be able to get it done for $150 or less, which means you could run through 5 of them -- 15 years of grilling -- before you'd spent $700 on hardware...

Good examples of how individualized this is. To maintain constant temps, I'm using the offset box, not gas, and I use my side burner. Also, I like the rotisserie idea, but that's not something I'd pay extra for since all you need are a couple of holes in your grill. (And thanks to twinbrook, I may need have just figured out what I'm doing this weekend...)

I just gave one example where the current portable grill falls short. At my old house, we grilled year-round, once a week at least, despite the Pennsylvania winters. In good weather, it was even more frequently. I certainly expect to do at least the same here once I get a decent grill. In addition to the usual burgers, hotdogs, steaks, chops, ribs, beercan chicken, and like I've also smoked/roasted turkeys, ham, etc. Of course we also do various veggies, etc.

I'd probably make use of a rotisserie, and would probably add one to the grill I do buy.

Originally Posted by cindylou14

Love my Char- broil its all stainless steel!! Have had it for over 12 yrs now and any parts needed they replaced for free. Lifetime warranty on the burners!

My old grill was a Charbroil and it did an the job. It wasn't the best at keeping an even temperature. But, I made it work. It just took a little more monitoring/tweaking during the cook.

[bavariantransplant]

Originally Posted by HWTechGuy

I'm not considering a side burner model because practically every review I've seen for grills that have one says that it never gets used.

We cook on our grille probably 4-5 nights a week. I have to pretty much agree with you. The only times I use the side grill is when I am sauteing mushrooms or onions & green pepers and this is usually when I have a lot of people over and everyone is eating outside and I make them so people can grab them as they wish for their hotdog or steak, etc.

Its nice to have but the inside kitchen can fill in easily for those times.

[fitce]

Weber Genesis here. We had to replace our off brand (can't remember then brand) grill in 2006 as it had started rusting out after a year. The Weber has been great, not a single problem. We moved in 2009 and the new place doesn't have a lanai it has a sun room instead. So the Weber has been outside ever since and still looks like the day we purchased it. Although I must say I'm intrigued by the Big Green Egg.

[BBI]

Originally Posted by HWTechGuy

I just gave one example where the current portable grill falls short. ... I've also smoked/roasted turkeys, ham, etc. ... My old grill was a Charbroil and it did an the job. It wasn't the best at keeping an even temperature. But, I made it work. It just took a little more monitoring/tweaking during the cook.

I'm sure you're experienced enough to already have a strong opinion on this, but if you're going to smoke, I'd strongly recommend something with an offset fire box.

Re temp regulation, cheap solution for a cheap (thin metal) grill is to line the bottom of the cooking chamber with sand. Huge difference.

[The Villages Guy]

Originally Posted by BBI

I'm sure you're experienced enough to already have a strong opinion on this, but if you're going to smoke, I'd strongly recommend something with an offset fire box.

Re temp regulation, cheap solution for a cheap (thin metal) grill is to line the bottom of the cooking chamber with sand. Huge difference.

For smoking we have a separate Weber Smokey Mountain Cooker, which is the best smoker I have ever used. Perfectly consistent temps. Weber is just the best of the best when it comes to BBQ and smoking, IMO and many others.

[BBI]

Originally Posted by PriusH8r

For smoking we have a separate Weber Smokey Mountain Cooker, which is the best smoker I have ever used. Perfectly consistent temps. Weber is just the best of the best when it comes to BBQ and smoking, IMO and many others.

Bullet models work. I do prefer offset, but I was really just thinking about one-machine solutions. Either can work, though. Heck, even gas can get the job done. I just wouldn't pick gas-only in my perfect world, if I were planning to smoke regularly. But Genesis/WSM is a nice setup. I don't think I'd spend a grand for it, but it's definitely nice. "Best of the best," I'm not so sure I'd pick Weber. Not when there are companies like Lang that make your smoker for you after you order it. But that's a different level of obsession...

[Nyce_1]

I was just in the same boat as you, 2 weeks ago. I did my research and took the advice of many strangers that bought cheap at first, then eventually got a weber. I picked up a Weber Genesis, copper and am LOVING it. Most people buy from home depot or lowes, but i went an unconventional route....used. I stalked craigslist for a few weeks (was not in a rush) and found a 1 year old Weber Genesis for half the price, in awesome condition. If you don't mind used, and know how to investigate before forking over the cash, take a look on craigslist.

Good luck.

[HWTechGuy]

Originally Posted by Nyce_1

I was just in the same boat as you, 2 weeks ago. I did my research and took the advice of many strangers that bought cheap at first, then eventually got a weber. I picked up a Weber Genesis, copper and am LOVING it. Most people buy from home depot or lowes, but i went an unconventional route....used. I stalked craigslist for a few weeks (was not in a rush) and found a 1 year old Weber Genesis for half the price, in awesome condition. If you don't mind used, and know how to investigate before forking over the cash, take a look on craigslist.

Good luck.

I have the Weber Genesis E-310 in Copper sitting in my cart on Lowes.com. I obtained a 10% coupon code. For now, it's going to sit there. I did see one on craigslist but it was sold, probably the one you got.

[The Villages Guy]

Originally Posted by HWTechGuy

I have the Weber Genesis E-310 in Copper sitting in my cart on Lowes.com. I obtained a 10% coupon code. For now, it's going to sit there. I did see one on craigslist but it was sold, probably the one you got.

Love the 10%. Add the real Weber cover to that as well.