Ashton BBQ and Grill Pros

Seasoned Sizzle: Tips for Perfect Grill Marks

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grilling-steak

Summer is here, and it’s time to dust off your grill and start cooking up some delicious meals. Grilling steak and other BBQ fare is a popular summer activity that many Torontonians look forward to every year. If you’re a homeowner in Toronto and you’re ready to grill this summer, here are some expert tips to help you master the art of creating flawless grill marks every time.

Preheat Your Grill Properly

The first step to achieving perfect grill marks is to make sure your grill is properly preheated. Preheating your grill allows the grates to get hot enough to sear the food and create those coveted marks. If you’re using a gas grill, turn it on to high and let it preheat for at least 10-15 minutes. If you’re using a charcoal grill, let the coals burn until they’re covered in white ash before grilling steak.

Oil the Grates

To prevent your food from sticking to the grill and to promote even cooking, it’s essential to oil the grates before you start cooking. Use a paper towel dipped in vegetable oil and a pair of tongs to coat the grates thoroughly. This will help create those defined grill marks and make cleanup easier afterward.

Use High Heat

For the best grill marks, you need high heat. Make sure to cook your food over direct heat, whether you’re using a gas or charcoal grill. This intense heat is what creates those caramelized grill marks on the surface of your food, adding flavor and visual appeal. If you’re using a gas grill, turn the heat up to high. If you’re using a charcoal grill, make sure the coals are spread evenly and close to the grates.

Don’t Move the Food Too Soon

Once you place your food on the grill, resist the temptation to move it around too much. Let it sit undisturbed for a few minutes to allow the grill marks to form. Moving the food too soon can disrupt the searing process and prevent those perfect lines from developing.

Use the Right Tools

Invest in a good pair of tongs or a spatula specifically designed for grilling. These tools will allow you to flip your food with precision and control, helping you maintain those beautiful grill marks intact. A good set of tools will also help you stay safe while grilling by keeping your hands away from the hot grates.

Grilling is an art that takes practice to master, but with these tips, you’ll be on your way to creating perfect grill marks every time. So fire up your grill, gather your friends and family, and enjoy some delicious meals this summer! Contact us today!

How to Deep Clean a Grill or BBQ

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How to Deep Clean a Grill or BBQ

Preparing for summer fun? Then you might be breaking out the grill again! With the weather warming up, grilling season is approaching fast and, boy, are we ready! If your grill has been in storage all winter, you may be pulling it out to find it’s a bit dirty. You’re not the only one who sometimes puts the grill away with a bit of a mess left on it. Even after a good scrub with a wire grill brush, the grill will still look a bit grimy without a deep clean. So, how would you go about doing a deep clean for a grill?

How to Deep Clean a Grill

There are a lot of steps to deep cleaning a grill, so we’ll simplify.

Cleaning the Grates

The first step to deep clean a grill is cleaning the grates. There’s a fun hack you can use, as recommended by Family Handyman, using coffee! Simply pour a couple pots of coffee into a shallow basin and let your grates soak in it for an hour. The acidity in the coffee breaks down all of the buildup on your grates easily. Then, you just need to rinse and scrub them with some soap and water in the sink. The scrubbing is much easier after the acidity has weakened and loosened the cooked-on gunk.

If you don’t keep coffee on hand, you can also clean and degrease the grates by scrubbing them with a solution made of 4 parts water, 1 part dish soap. However, without that presoak, it will take a bit more elbow grease.

Cleaning the Exterior

The exterior is much easier to clean than the grates… usually. It’s easy to miss the grime on your grill’s exterior when putting it away for the winter. After all, you’ve grown used to looking at it. However, when you pull your grill out for the spring, you might be surprised to find it’s not as shiny and clean as you remember.

Washing the exterior of your grill should generally be done with soap and water, especially if it’s painted. Just remember, don’t use anything abrasive on your grill’s painted exterior. Use a soft sponge without any netting or scrubbing surface on it. Otherwise, you can easily scratch or chip your paint and lead to rusting.

Cleaning the guts

The interior components of a gas grill can be very complicated to clean without damaging them. Certain parts aren’t too pleased with liquid getting in or on them. Plus, there’s the matter of safety and knowing which cleaners are okay to use. If you must clean it yourself, be sure to disconnect the gas first and wear gloves. Then, find a suitable cleaning solution for use with the components more directly associated with gas and fire.

Professional Grill Cleaning Services

Don’t want to deep clean your grill all by yourself? Most people don’t. It’s hard, dirty work, and it doesn’t smell very nice either. Get some assistance from Ashton BBQ Pros and you’ll have a clean grill in no time. Call us if you have questions about our services or scheduling.

Protect Your Grill with a Proper Grill Care Routine

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Protect Your Grill with a Proper Grill Care Routine

Do you love a good barbecue? Is grilling one of your favorite ways to enjoy a hot meal? If so, you want to keep your grill in good shape. Nothing is worse than preparing an entire meal for the grill only to find your grill won’t start. Fortunately, it’s easy to prevent a dinner disaster by maintaining a proper grill care routine. What exactly is a grill care routine? Let’s see what’s involved.

Clean After Cooking

The #1 thing you should do to protect your grill is to clean it after cooking on it. So many people leave their grill dirty after using it, it’s shocking. However, leaving your grill dirty is the first step in a cycle of neglect. If you want to keep a proper grill care routine and keep your grill in good shape, show it some love by cleaning it.

Cleaning your grill is easy once you get used to it. Simply buy a metal brush, let any food on the rack cook off, then get to scrubbing at it. After removing the charred food from the rack, empty all of the ashes and burnt droppings from the base. Cleaning your grill keeps small critters from trying to get inside to get to the foods they smell. Plus, it keeps your food tasting great because each meal is cooked on fresh bars.

Oil Your Rack

Speaking of fresh bars, when you’re done cleaning your grill rack, you need to oil it. Simply get out a brush like you would use to paint on some barbecue sauce, and brush on some cooking oil. This oil keeps the pours in the rack metal moistened and sealed. This prevents rust and also ensures food cooked on your grill doesn’t taste like metal.

Cover Your Grill

Next up, protecting your grill from the elements. If you don’t have a grill cover, or something that can work as one, you should buy one. Covering your grill keeps out moisture, preventing rust. It keeps out wind, preventing erosion. Furthermore, it discourages bugs and small animals from getting inside your grill to hide.

While storing your grill in your garage or shed may do a fair job at protecting it from weather and animals, a cover still helps. If you’re keeping your grill on a deck or patio, a cover is 100% necessary. Otherwise, your grill will break down much faster than you want it to. It’s a very expensive kind of neglect.

Always Store Properly in Winter

Likewise, when winter comes, you should always move your grill inside somewhere and disconnect any gas. The cold weather of winter is really bad for the more technical components of the grill. Leaving your grill outside years after year can have it wearing down way faster than it should. Instead, store your grill in your garage or shed. Better yet, bring it inside and put it in the basement if possible. The more temperate the conditions, the better for it. Additionally, you should always disconnect any gas from your grill when storing it, for safety.

Professional Grill Repair

If your grill is looking a bit worse for wear, professional grill cleaning or repair may be the answer. Fixing the wear and tear yourself may be an undesirable pain. However, having someone else get the job done can give you a fresh start, allowing you to begin a grill care routine to prevent future damage. Give us a call at Ashton BBQ Pros if you have any questions about our services.

How to Make Grilling a Romantic Valentine’s Experience

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If you’re looking to celebrate your Valentine’s Day in a way that’s intimate and personal, skip the date night out and stay in. Many people believe they need to go out to a fancy restaurant for Valentine’s Day. Others think they need to spend hundreds on a fancy hotel room. However, nothing beats putting in the effort to make home a special venue. Cleaning up around the house, decorating appropriately, and cooking something homemade really can’t be beat. In fact, grilling can even be romantic. Want to know how to make grilling a romantic Valentine’s Day experience? BBQ Pros have you covered.

Cook Something Light

One of the reasons barbecuing doesn’t sound very romantic is that most barbecued foods are pretty heavy. They’re messy, greasy, and don’t exactly make us feel our best. However, cooking on a grill and even using barbecue sauce aren’t inherently at fault here.

If you want to make grilling romantic for Valentine’s Day, you can absolutely do so without ruining the mood. Simply cook something light and easy to eat. White meat chicken is a great way to keep the meal easier on the stomach. Therefore, it’s less likely to create any unsavory interruptions during any… later activities.

Avoid Messy Foods

If getting your hands sticky and covered in barbecue sauce isn’t your idea of romance, avoid messy foods. Ensure whatever you cook can be eaten with utensils. A good ol’ steak is one way to go. Or, if you want to do something a bit more original, try grilling some chicken and veggie skewers. Then, when they’re cooked, remove everything from the skewer and put it neatly onto a plate. From there, it can be eaten with a fork and you can avoid a messy face.

If you’re looking for some great sides to go with something grilled, a steak is paired nicely will grilled corn, which can also be sliced off the cob and eaten with a spoon. If you’ve already got veggies covered via skewers or something similar, making a pot of rice is an easy addition. Make a bed of rice on each plate to pile the grilled goods onto.

Don’t Break a Sweat (Unless You’re into That)

If you and your partner find romance in cleaning up and looking your best, avoid overworking while grilling. Getting sweaty over a dirty grill isn’t a black-tie move. There are two ways to avoid dirtying up while cooking:

  1. Ensure everything is pre-prepped. Trim and dice chicken ahead of time. Cut veggies ahead of time. Even put them all on the skewers ahead of time. In the time after you’ve showered and dressed for your night in, all you should have left is pulling something out of the fridge, putting it on the grill, and sitting down to wait for it.
  2. Alternatively, cook everything ahead of time and put it somewhere to keep it warm while you clean up for dinner. This works well for many dishes, just make sure not to plate it all and set it out to get cold. Keep the plates in a warm oven, cover them with plate covers, or refrain from plating until you’re ready to eat. Just don’t leave meat on a hot grill or it will dry out and overcook, even if you’ve turned it off. That extra cool down time is enough to overcook everything.

Don’t Forget Dessert

Lastly, don’t forget a romantic dessert for your Valentine’s date. Even if you aren’t a dessert chef, you can still buy something quality to surprise your partner with. Some of the best romantic desserts we can recommend:

  • Chocolate mousse
  • A warm, chocolate brownie with a scoop of vanilla ice cream
  • Apple pie or crumble with vanilla ice cream
  • Chocolate fondue or dipped strawberries (or other kinds of fruit)
  • Homemade chocolate chip cookies, still warm from the oven

Why Is My Grill Peeling Inside?

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Why Is My Grill Peeling Inside?

Owning a grill means a lot of happy evenings gathered with friends and family. However, upkeeping a grill can come with some real head-scratchers. For example, you might find the inside of your grill is peeling. What does it mean? Is your grill getting damaged? Let’s find out why your grill is peeling inside and how to fix it.

Is a Grill Peeling Inside Cause for Concern?

If you see the inside of your grill peeling, you might be quite alarmed! Is your grill sustaining damage from the heat of the flames? Is this a vital lamination peeling off? Worry not. The peeling isn’t from the grill; it’s from the food! That is, your grill doesn’t have any paint or lamination on the inside. The stuff you see peeling – that looks remarkably similar to paint or sealant – is actually carbonized grease. It’s pretty harmless.

What Causes a Grill Peeling Inside?

So, carbonized grease: what causes it? Well, while you’re grilling, a lot of smoke and fumes collect in the lid of your grill. In the smoke from your cooking food, there’s aerosolized grease and carbon. Over time – and many great cookouts – your grill forms a layer of this grease and carbon, and the two harden together. As they harden and repeatedly cook, the grease carbonizes. The layer can begin to bubble or peel.

While this layer of bubbling, peeling, carbonized grease may look and feel like flaking paint, it’s not nearly as dangerous. It’s actually completely harmless, even if it gets in your food. Though, your food may not taste as nice with charred grease flakes added to it for seasoning!

Removing Carbonized Grease

If you’re not a fan of that crispy, flaky layer on your grill lid, you’re in luck. Carbonized grease can be removed fairly easily with a little elbow grease.

  1. Using a steel-bristled brush, scrub any loose bits of carbonized grease from the inside of your grill lid. You should be able to remove most of it with this brush alone.
  2. If the brush isn’t cutting it, get yourself a scraping tool and get a bit more aggressive. There may be some particularly tricky spots that you have to fight 1-on-1.
  3. Finally, to finish the task, use some grill grate cleaning fluid and give your grill lid a final scrub. This will loosen any remainders and collect any of the carbon dust left on the lid.

Full Service Grill Maintenance

If you’re not finding that bubbly, flaky mess to be particularly appetizing, but don’t find the work to be either, get some assistance from the pros. Ashton BBQ Pros do full service grill maintenance and can come right to your home to get it done. Your grill will be in perfect working order – sans grease flakes – in no time. Just give us a call and we’ll work out a good time to pay you a visit.

Repair an Old Grill Instead of Replacing It

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Repair an Old Grill Instead of Replacing It

When a grill gets old, it can begin to rust, break down, and stop working. The instinctual response to this kind of deterioration might be to just buy a new grill. However, a grill is a simple piece of equipment. Most of it is just a big hunk of metal. Therefore, save yourself a lot of money and invest in repair. Here’s why you should repair an old grill instead of replacing it.

Grill Costs Are Inflated

One of the main reasons why it’s more economical to repair a grill than to replace it is that grill prices are much higher than the cost of the materials they’re made from. So, once you have one, you’ve already paid your dues getting the bones of your grill. It’s much cheaper to do maintenance on it by replacing broken parts and sprucing up the appearance than shelling out for an all new one.

Grills Are Simple to Repair

When it comes down to it, a grill is mostly the metal frame that holds a few key pieces of equipment. If your grill is looking worse for wear, 90% of changing that is giving the metal frame a tune-up. Removing rust, recoating the metal, and ensuring the parts housed in that metal body are still working properly.

Make Your Grill Beautiful Again

If your grill is looking pretty unsightly, it’s time to call Ashton BBQ Pros. We can do a complete refurbishment of your grill and bring it back to looking like new. Our full-service refurbishment cleaning means bringing your grill back to life entirely. We remove 85%-95% of dirt, grease, and carbon buildup from your grill. This is a large part of what hurts the appearance of an old grill. 

Additionally, we paint your grill. All of those parts of your grill’s exterior that used to be shiny and beautiful can look that way again. Chipping paint, grime, and rust can really ruin the grill exterior’s appearance. Giving it a new coating of paint can do a lot to revitalize it.

Furthermore, we polish your grill. Polishing your grill will bring out the shine in all of the metal parts, making it look like new again, even on the inside.

Repair an Old Grill in Toronto

While the appearance of a grill is an important part of feeling like it’s doing alright, the actual guts of the grill are even more important. Our full-service refurbishment includes an inspection. If there are parts that aren’t working properly, we’ll repair or replace them. Because servicing grills is our whole job here at Ashton BBQ Pros, we have parts for most major grill types and brands. Therefore, our repair services are quick and efficient.

Give us a call today if you have questions about our grill repair and cleaning services. We look forward to working with you and getting your grill back in shape.

Why You Should Clean Your Grill Before Storage

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Why You Should Clean Your Grill Before Storage

As summer comes to a close, so does grilling season. While some of us will grill into the fall, winter will eventually arrive and force us all to put our grill away for a while. However, some people aren’t in the habit of storing their grill, or cleaning it before doing so. BBQ Pros are here to offer you some unsolicited, but very valuable, advice. Here’s why you should clean your grill before storing it.

Prevent Bacteria Growth

The same way you wouldn’t eat meat that had been sitting out for months, you shouldn’t consume old grease or other remains from the meat you’ve cooked. The reason being, bacteria really love meat and all things pertaining to meat. If you grill up some burgers and leave your grill covered in hamburger fat, that fat will harbor tons of bacteria and allow it to thrive. Leaving it to grow and thrive for months while your grill is in storage is a no-go. Clean your grill so that it’s ready to use when you pull it out again.

Stop Grime From Hardening

While bacteria growth is unpleasant to think about, it’s not likely to kill you if you’re heating your grill to hundreds of degrees fahrenheit anyway. What you will die from is regret when you take your grill out months later and find the grime on it has hardened like cement. Good luck getting it off now!

If you want to prevent your grill from being permanently coated in charred-on food, get the remains of your grill session off before putting the grill away. This is true of every night you grill, even if you aren’t putting the grill away for the winter. Just like the food on your dinner dishes, it’s much easier to get off before it’s had time to set.

Prevent Rusting

The winter is a great time for your grill to rust. It’s left alone, everything is damp, and you’ve got your back turned for the holidays. If you don’t properly clean your grill, there’s even more opportunity for it to rust, as it’s not been properly prepared.

Before storing your grill each month, you should do a deep clean, then brush the metal grate with oil to protect it from the cold and moisture. This is good practice between uses as well, as it prevents rusting. Furthermore, it will keep the grate seasoned and keep food from sticking during use.

Keep From Attracting Pests

If you think bacteria enjoy bacon grease, you can imagine how bugs and mice feel about it! Always empty the contents of your drip tray before storing your grill. The charred remains on your grate along with the grease and bits of food in the drip tray are mighty alluring to a pest. Free food in winter? Yes, please! Prevent pests from getting into your grill by removing all food particles from it.

Professional Grill Cleaning Services

If you’re ready to hang up your apron as well as your grill brush, we can do the dirty job for you! BBQ Pros offers grill cleaning services to all of Toronto. Let us know when you’re ready to turn your grill in for the winter and we’ll get it ready to store. Just give us a call and we can discuss the details.

How to Prevent Dry Barbecue When Grilling

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How to Prevent Dry Barbecue When Grilling

Grilling is fun for the whole family, the whole friend group, and the whole party. No matter when you decide to break out the grill, everyone is bound to have a good time. At least, they will if the barbecue turns out delicious. If you have a tendency to dry out your barbecue when grilling, BBQ Pros are here to help! Here are the keys to prevent dry barbecue when grilling this summer. 

Don’t Grill Too Hot

The first thing to know to prevent dry barbecue is not to grill too hot. This may seem obvious but, if your grill is too hot, you’re more likely to dry out your barbecue while grilling. Granted, in this case, it’s the outside you’re likely to dry out, rather than the whole piece of meat. In other words, if your temp is too high, you’re going to burn your meat.

Turn that grill down, crack open a beer, and get comfortable. Grilling isn’t a race, it’s an art.

Close the Grill

If you learned how to grill by watching your dad cook burgers on an open grill, you’re going to have sorry results if you try the same technique with barbecue chicken. Because burger patties are typically pretty thin, they cook through pretty quickly. A whole chicken breast won’t cook as fast. Therefore, if you try cooking it with the grill open, the outside will cook much faster than the inside, giving you chicken thats both burnt and raw.

If you try to compensate for this by lowering the temperature significantly, you may be able to cook the chicken through, but the outer layers will end up dry and it’s still likely to burn. Instead, put the temperature on lower medium, close the grill, and let the inside fill up with heat. The consistent, surrounding heat will allow your barbecue chicken to cook through faster. Therefore, the outside won’t be overdone and the inside won’t be raw.

Run Some Tests

Doing all of this already and still ending up with dry barbecue? In that case, it all comes down to timing. Before you invite all your friends over, run some tests by cooking yourself some barbecue on an off-day.

  • Put a few pieces of barbecue chicken in the grill
  • Close the grill
  • Start a stopwatch (there’s one in a smartphone’s clock app)
  • Use your nose to guess when you think they’re getting done, then pause your timer, open the grill, and check their internal temp
  • If they’re not done, close the grill again and resume your stopwatch
  • Repeat this until they’re done
  • If you only had to resume their cooking a few times, knock a minute off the total cook-time since, each time you opened the grill, it had to fill with heat again
  • Start a second batch and test out your new presumed cook time

Improve Results

Got the hang of barbecuing juicy, tender meat now? Improve your results even further by having your grill professionally cleaned. BBQ Pros are here to help. We offer in-home service all over Toronto and we can stop by your place next. Give us a call and let us know what help you need and we can schedule a service time.

Repair Your BBQ Grill in Time for Summer Cookouts

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Repair Your BBQ Grill in Time for Summer Cookouts

Do you have a BBQ grill that’s been benched for the past few years because it broke and you haven’t remembered to get it repaired? This is your sign to get it repaired! COVID-19 has kept most of us from grilling with friends for the past few years, but this summer can be different. Here’s why you should repair your BBQ before summer.

Grilling with Friends Is Safe

Even if you still prefer to wear a mask, we’ve learned through trial and error that meeting with people outdoors is the safest way to socialize. So long as your gathering is small and you all stay outside, there’s virtually zero risk of spreading COVID-19. So, even the most COVID-conscious of your friends and family have little to worry about from sitting on your deck for a few hours and eating some burgers.

Having a Cookout Is a Great Pick-Me-Up

We’ve been battling COVID-19 and avoiding socializing for over 2 years now. The summer warmth making the outdoors a viable meeting place means we should take advantage of it while it’s here. Use the opportunity to socialize outdoors to lift your spirits and the spirits of those around you. You would be surprised how long a single cookout can sustain you when you’ve barely seen any of your friends in months.

Prevent Worse Damage

If your BBQ is broken or something is keeping it from working, leaving it unrepaired can lead to further damage. Using your grill fairly regularly allows you to regularly assess the state it’s in. If you keep the grill in a garage or shed and never look at it because it’s not currently usable, there’s a good chance you won’t notice if something else goes wrong.

To keep your grill from getting worse, repair your BBQ grill sooner rather than later. This can save you money in the long run when you don’t have to completely replace it.

Get Help from BBQ Pros

BBQ Pros are Toronto’s leading BBQ and grill experts. We can have your grill back in working order in no time. Plus, if it’s been a while since you last used it and you packed it up in a hurry when it broke, it might not have gotten cleaned properly. Our team at BBQ Pros can do a full clean of your BBQ while repairing it. If your BBQ has seen significantly better days, we can also do a full detail clean. This involves removing rust and painting over chipped parts of a glossy grill to restore it to like-new condition.

Give us a call if you want to repair your BBQ before summer arrives. We look forward to spreading some cheer in the form of a good old fashioned cookout.

Prevent Long-Term Damage When Using Your Grill

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Prevent Long-Term Damage When Using Your Grill

Maintaining a grill is something many people don’t realize they should be doing. However, it’s necessary to do maintenance on your grill to keep it in good shape. If you use a grill without upkeep for years, it will quickly fall into disrepair. Most people spend a pretty penny on buying their grill. Don’t waste your investment by letting your grill accrue damage from lack of upkeep. Here’s how you can prevent long-term damage when using your grill.

Clean Your Grill

First and foremost, you need to be cleaning your grill after every use. This is a vital part of keeping it in good shape. If you leave charred-on food and residue on your grate, it will become impossible to clean and may even damage the metal it’s made of. Likewise, after each use, be sure to empty your drip pan (the place where all of your oil and food drippings collect).

Cleaning your grill can involve a lot more than just cleaning up immediately after use. Plus, if you’ve been leaving it uncleaned for a while, trying to get it back to like-new condition is going to be rough. Rely on BBQ Pros to get it cleaned up for you in no time. Our professional grill cleaning services are for everyone – including you.

Oil Your Grate

One thing most people don’t realize they should be doing is oiling the grate of the grill. Before and after each use, coat your grate in vegetable oil. You can do this by pouring some vegetable oil on a paper towel and using tongs to apply it to the bars of the grate.

When applied before use, this oil minimizes food sticking, making it easier to clean later and requiring less force. Less force to clean means your grate lasts longer. When applied after use, this oil protects the metal of your grate from weathering and such. 

Protect Your Grill from the Weather

Speaking of weather, your grill isn’t made to withstand it. Grills may be made for use outdoors, but that doesn’t mean they’re good friends with the rain or wind. Metal and water aren’t exactly made for each other.

When you’re done using your grill, let it cool down and then put a waterproof cover over it. This will protect it from rusting as well as prevent outdoor debris from getting caught in it.

Store Your Grill Properly in Winter

What many people don’t know is that the grill can’t sit out all winter. This is a great way for the it to sustain damage. When the temperature drops toward freezing, remove the propane tank and store it somewhere at room temperature. Cover the end of the connecting hose with masking tape or something else easily removed. This will prevent bugs or small animals from trying to get into it.

When the propane has been disconnected, the grill should be moved somewhere more sheltered from the elements, like the garage or a shed.

4 Ways to Restore a Neglected Grill

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Has your grill been sitting outside for a few months? You ask yourself, “What can I grill tonight?” but end up spending hours scraping grime off the grill. How can you restore a neglected grill? Do you need to spend thousands on a new grill? No, with some care you can restore your old gas grill. We put together some professional tips to help you get back to grilling.

1. The Power of Cleaning

Whenever you grill, soot, grease, and ash accumulate. If you left your grill outside all summer, rust might cause deterioration. The ignitor, burners, and more might need refurbishing or replacement. Next time you ask “What can I grill tonight?” you will be ready to grill. Here are our top tips:

  • Store your grill in a waterproof place
  • Regularly clean and maintain
  • Use a shop vac to remove any particulates
  • Use a wire brush to scrape grime and gunk
  • Hire a professional cleaning for difficult cleaning jobs
  • Test for heat distribution problems
  • Inspect your burners and ignitor

2. Repairs

You don’t want to try grilling with a broken burner or igniter. Use your grill safely. You might need to hire a professional. Ashton BBQ Grill Pros offers quality inspections and in-depth cleaning and repair. Save thousands of dollars when you refurbish and clean your old grill. In general, remove and replace malfunctioning burners.

3. Painting the Grill

Easily re-paint your grill for a new look. You need special high temperature spray paint. Be sure that the paint is designated for grills. Don’t worry about painting the interior of the grill.

4. Upgrades

You might want to upgrade burners, cooking surface or add a drip guard. A new steel grate, especially stainless steel, will make grilling that much better. A drip guard prevents meat drippings from puddling on the grill’s lower rack. A drip guard reduces flaring. Another great upgrade? Add a rotisserie to your grill to improve your grilling experience. Your family will love the delicious taste of freshly grilled chicken.

When you need to restore your old grill, call the grilling professionals at Ashton BBQ Grill. We provide high quality grill repair and refurbishing. Need to clean your old grill? Call us for our ultimate cleaning. Contact us today.

Is it OK to leave a gas grill outside in winter?

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When you have finished grilling your last burger and fall ends, how should you store your gas grill? Should you repair the grill grates or winterize your grill? Check out our professional grill storage tips for the winter below.

How to Winterize Your Gas Grill

If you don’t pack your grill during the cold winters, you need to pack away your grill safely. Give your grill a cleaning, repair grill grates, and remove any grease. This helps maintain the safety and integrity of your grill. Contact a professional cleaner if needed. Ashton BBQ and Grill Pros offers high quality gas repair and cleaning for every budget.

Be sure to turn off the LP tank gas. Unfasten the grill’s burner. Slip the gas tubes off the gas lines according to the owner’s manual. After you have done this, be sure to take out the entire unit. To winterize your grill don’t forget to coat the burners and metal with cooking oil. This helps repel the inevitable moisture of winter. Prevent rust with these simple steps.

The Propane Tank

Finally wrap the burner in a plastic bag. You don’t want little critters, insects, and spiders to nest in the tubes. Believe it or not, this can be a very common issue that leads to dangerous flames. Keep the propane tank shut off outside. But a protective cover over your grill. Store the disconnected tank upright away from the children’s playground, furnace vents, and the dryer vent. Never store the propane tank inside. This can lead to gas build-up and a huge explosion.

Keep your gas grill safely stored this winter with these simple professional tips. If you need your grill repaired or cleaned professional, be sure to contact our talented team at Ashton BBQ and Grill Pros.

Contact Us Today

We offer a wide variety of grill services to help meet your needs:

  • Grill Cleaning
  • Grill Removal and Disposal
  • BBQ Assembly
  • BBQ Conversion
  • Inspection
  • Maintenance
  • In-Home Service
  • BBQ Parts
  • Ultimate Cleaning Options for Optimum Performance

Our friendly staff will be happy to help you. Call us today.

4 Best Grills to Buy in 2019

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The summer months mean it’s time to enjoy hours of sunshine and grilling with your family and friends. Pull out your grill from the garage and have it cleaned by the region’s best grill repair services. Maybe your grill has seen much better days? Might be time to look into the top grills for 2019.

Grill Comparison

We compared the top grills on the market today from top manufacturers like Weber, Coleman, Smoke Hollow, Char-Broil, and Dyna-Glo. Grills were compared on a variety of points like their quality, ability to clean, use, and results. Why is this important? Some grills have high durability and usability. Use professional grill repair services on a yearly basis to maintain their high quality.

Weber Spirit E310 Liquid Propane Grill

The reviews are out and this Weber grill wins hands down. Besides having a beautiful overall design, this grill has predictable and delicious results every time. This grill was designed with convenience in mind. Enjoy three large burners and simple button ignition. This grill will need serious cleaning as it is prone to rust.

Smoke Hollow Portable Stainless Steel Propane

This is the grill for the cook on the go. Although not as conveniently designed as the Weber grill, the Smoke Hollow fits nicely on table tops and is great for outdoor parties. This grill has a solid stainless steel housing. Pay close attention when grilling. The Smoke Hollow cooks hot. The starter is in an unusual location.

Char-Broil Performance TRU Infrared 500 3-Burner

This grill provides even cooking and reliability. There have been some complaints that newer models of the Char-Broil have a less durable construction. Yet, this is definitely a grill worth considering.

Call us today about our superior grill cleaning and repair services. We are happy to help you.

How Do You Clean a BBQ After Use?

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Summer grilling starts again. So you’re headed to the BBQ Grill sale or pulled out your grill from the garage. Maybe you’ve invited friends and family over for a feast and now face a very, very dirty grill. Or does your grill look irreparable after a winter of disuse? How do you clean your grill?

Regular Maintenance

Basic cleaning is minimal. If you just bought your new grill at a BBQ grill sale, then you can maintain the grill with a basic cleaning each time you cook. Do a major seasonal scrub-down with a stainless steel grill brush. Clean the grates and racks after every use. Brush of any residue then scrape the grates with a scraper tool.

After you have removed debris and dirt, wipe down the racks and grates with a damp rag. For cast iron, rub vegetable oil into the grate with a paper towel to prevent rust. Avoid heavy build-up of grease.

Charcoal grills need to be empried of ashes. Clean all the parts yearly. Use hot sopay water and a nylon brush. For tougher cleanings, use scrub pads and warm water.

Gas Grills

Clean your grates and racks each time. Clean the heat deflectors by removing them. Scrub them with a nylon brush and warm soapy water. Dry them before replacing them. Clean everything once a year.

Inspect Your Grill

When you do your annual major cleaning of your grill, look for broken parts. Replace anything that is broken. You can prevent damage by storing your grill indoors during the winter.

Cover Your grill

Prevent damage by covering your grill. This will limit the amount of dirt, cobwebs, insects, and dust that can affect your grill. A dry cover will prevent corrosion.

Time to Call the Pros

Does your grill look hopeless? You might need to call in a professional. We provide expert cleaning and repair for all types of grills. We will check for leaks and inspect your grill for damage. Save time and money. We will make your old grill look brand new. Call us today!

Get Your Grill Ready for Spring: 4 BBQ Pro Tips

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Believe it or not, spring and summer will eventually follow the cold snows of winter. The warm weather is a great time to prep a gas grill and get it ready for warmer weather. Prepare your grill for the spring with these professional grill tips. Get ready to grill for friends and family.

Time to Clean

You will need a pail of soap and warm water, paper towels, a sponge, and a scrub brush before starting. Before you prep a gas grill or a charcoal grill, you need to clean it. Wipe down the grill exterior, then start working on the inside of the grill. Remove any splatter and grime. Spray down a stainless steel grill with specialized cleaner for that extra shine.

Scrub the Grates

Cleaning the grates requires a wire bristled grill brush. Take the grate off and clean with soap and water. Add vinegar to make the job a little easier. Remove rust and cooked on food with a sponge after scrubbing. Be sure that your grates are clean before spring.  Coat them with vegetable oil. Check the vents for any additional debris.

Safety

Check your grill for safety. Make sure that vents are clear of any dirt or grime to prevent a fire hazard. Check the hoses for any cracks and leaks. Check all hoses and tubing. Replace any that are damaged. Check ignition parts for grease.

Owners Manual

Before you start to clean your grill and check it for safety. Review your owner’s manual. If you can’t find your owner’s manual, most grill manuals are available online from the manufacturer. Or you can contact them and request the manual.

Get your grill ready for the spring. Now that it is clean and ready to go, you can enjoy making new memories with your friends and family. Grill time!

How to Refurbish a Gas Grill Safely

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When the weather gets hot, hot, hot, it is time to enjoy grilling outside by the pool with family and friends. But maybe your grill needs a little bit of work before you can start cooking up burgers and ribs. And if you have a gas grill, you need to be careful. Do you know how to refurbish a gas grill? Here are a few simple safety steps.

Yearly Cleaning of Grill and Burners

Much of the grime and wear and tear of grills comes from burnt food, ash, grease, and soot that has been left to crust on too long. Repaint the exterior of your grill. Once a year you should don some rubber gloves, pull out your shop vac, and clean out the grill. Learning how to refurbish a gas grill is simple. Vacuum any loose grime and particles. Remove the burners and vacuum again. Then pick up a wire brush and carefully scrape the gunk.

Be sure to inspect the burners to see if they are still good. Light them carefully. Look for burners that light up quickly. They should burn evenly. If there are any issues, replace them. If they look okay, then scrape and clean them carefully before using again.

Cooking Safety

Always have a lower rack and upper rack to keep separated between the flames and your food. This helps distribute the heat more evenly. The lower rack can hold briquettes or lava rocks. You can clean briquettes easily by soaking it in vinegar. Scrub carefully with a wire brush. Remember to replace anything that cannot be cleaned, that includes the grate. Iron grates need to be re-oiled after each use. Stainless steel and porcelain coated steel bars are two other popular options. Replace the drip guard if necessary.

The Igniter

Even higher-end gas grills may have issues with their igniters. Replace used igniters. They generally have a short lifespan, meaning that you might need a box of matches nearby every time you grill. Be sure to replace the ignition system if it is not working properly.

No matter how old and grimy your gas grill looks, it is possible to refurbish it safely, quickly, and affordable. If you are not sure that you want to undertake cleaning the grill, then simply contact a professional. They can offer expert advice and service to help you start a summer of grilling fun!

4 Products You DON’T Want to Use When BBQ Cleaning

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BBQ cleaning in TorontoWinter is over, and as the weather starts to get better, it’s time to start thinking about BBQ cleaning in Toronto. When you’re doing it yourself, you could end up trying lots of different products before you find one that does the job. Along the way, there are certain cleaning products you should steer clear of. In this post, we’ll tell you what they are.

Products to Avoid When Cleaning Your BBQ

  • Pressure Cleaning Cans – Using pressure cleaners might seem like a good way of removing grease and grime for your BBQ. In reality, it’s a terrible one. This is because it can do more harm than good. Using pressurized air in this way doesn’t remove grease. Instead, it simply moves it around. This causes it to end up in hard to reach places. Later down the line, it could mean your BBQ needs professional maintenance.
  • Wire Brushes – Cleaning brushes with wire brushes should absolutely never be used to clean a grill. If you do, you could end up biting off more than you can chew. The wire bristles can break off and stick to the grill. From there, they can be easily transferred to food and be eaten by unsuspecting BBQ guests. This can cause choking, pain and severe discomfort. In cases when they can’t be removed, surgery may even be required.
  • Corrosive Cleaners – If left for too long without cleaning, BBQs accumulate a large build-up of stubborn grease that can be extremely difficult to remove. Fed up of scrubbing and scraping, some people turn to corrosive cleaning products. While these will certainly cut through the grease, they’re not suitable for BBQs. These products can cause burns if they come into contact with the skin or eyes. It goes without saying that they should never come into contact with food.
  • All-Purpose Cleaners – All-in-one cleaning products often contain substances which can be dangerous. This can include ammonia, carcinogenic nitrosamines and nonulphenol ethoxylates. In simple terms, they can be harmful to your health. They can irritate the skin, eyes and throat, cause migraines, and even have implications for reproductive health. It’s best to avoid all-purpose products and instead use something that’s specially-formulated for cleaning BBQs. That way, you don’t have to worry about potential health issues as a result.

Get the Best BBQ Cleaning in Toronto

If you’d rather save yourself the trouble of cleaning your BBQ yourself, you can hire professionals to do it for you. We offer a number of services for BBQ cleaning in Toronto. The first is a basic cleaning, to make sure all of the parts are free of dirt and fit for use. For those looking for a more thorough service, we also offer an ultimate cleaning. This involves removal of up to 95% of all dirt and grease, followed by a complete repaint and polish. After that, your BBQ will be sparkling. To book our specialist cleaning services, contact us today.

5 Undesirable Effects of Skipping BBQ Cleaning

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BBQ cleaning in Toronto One of the best features of summer is undoubtedly the BBQs. There aren’t many better feelings than cooking your own food al fresco surrounded by the ones your love, but it does come with one major downside – cleaning it. But BBQ cleaning in Toronto is incredibly important and something you won’t want to skip – here’s why.

BBQ Cleaning in Toronto – Why You Shouldn’t Skip It

  1. It Will Only Get Worse

We all know the feeling – you’ve probably eaten one hamburger too many, and right now all you want to do is lay down. Cleaning the grill can’t be further from the list of things you want to do. But, if you neglect it, it’ll only get worse.

There’s no denying that – whilst it may be a chore – cleaning one use’s worth of burnt-on food is much easier than leaving it for several uses before you attempt to clean it. Don’t get to the point where you have to buy a completely new grill rack – clean it after each use.

  1. Flavour Contamination!

If you’re sitting down to enjoy a hotdog cooked on the grill, then it should be a hotdog that you taste – not the remnants of last week’s cook out. Not only will it taste bad, if you’re catering for people that have specific dietary requirements then it could lead to several other problems down the line. Don’t eat last month’s food today – clean your BBQ!

  1. Shorter Lifespan of Your BBQ

BBQ cleaning in Toronto is not just done to help your food taste better – it will save you money too. If you’re not on top of your cleaning, then the rust, oils and food pieces that come with using your BBQ could see your grill breaking down and becoming unusable.

Cleaning your BBQ is definitely a cheaper option compared to buying a completely new one, so make sure you’re on top of it if you want it to last as long as possible.

  1. Potential Carcinogens

Grilling food on a BBQ comes with a certain carcinogenic risk. Whilst this is manageable through steps such as higher-quality meats, marinating it and grilling sensibly, a further great way to reduce the amount of carcinogens is to clean your grill.

Carcinogenic residue builds up on the grill over time, so by cleaning and scraping it off, you’re reducing the amount that may transfer over onto your food.

  1. Illness

You wouldn’t eat off a food-covered plate that’s been outside for weeks, so don’t do the same with your grill. BBQ cleaning in Toronto will remove harmful bacteria, helping you prevent anyone who eats from your grill from getting sick.

Worth the Effort

Nobody looks forward to cleaning a grill, but after reading about the consequences of not cleaning, we’re sure you agree it’s the lesser of two evils. To save money and keep those who eat from your grill in good health, make sure to clean your BBQ after each use.

Some Top BBQ Cleaning Tips from Our Experts in Toronto

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Cleanliness is key to keeping your BBQ, one of the centerpieces of your home, from falling into disrepair. Keeping your BBQ clean will extend its life and allow it to keep producing delicious food fun and easy. Cleaning a BBQ can be time consuming, laborious, and unpleasant, however, if it is not done correctly. Below you’ll find several essential tips of what and what not to do in order to keep your BBQ looking and running pristinely.

What NOT To Do

  • Don’t Overuse Cleaning Agents – Chemical sprays marketed as BBQ cleaning agents should be avoided. Besides spraying possibly harmful chemicals into the air when used, they can severely affect the taste and cleanliness of food cooked on the grill.
  • Don’t Use Pressure Cleaners – High pressure cleaning devices are small spray cans that spray highly pressurized jets of air and are said to help clean BBQs by spraying away grease. In actual fact, the air jets will simply push the grease further into the inner workings of the BBQ, gumming up the works.
  • Don’t Be Rough with Your Stainless Steel – Use of abrasive chemicals or rough scrubbers like steel wool during BBQ cleaning can permanently damage your BBQ’s premium stainless steel finish. Only using soap, warm water, and non-scratch scrubbers is advisable.
  • Don’t Remove the Burners – Although BBQ service experts can do this, it is not advisable for the layman cleaning their BBQ. The burners can be extremely complicated to reattach correctly, and failure to do so will cause safety hazards.

What To Do

  • Turn Off the Gas – Safety is the #1 concern when cleaning your grill, and leaving the gas running is a bad idea.
  • Clean the BBQ While It is Still Warm from Use – This allows you to clean off residue before it cools and hardens. After cooking, you can leave one of the burner tubes on and close the lid to keep everything from cooling if you want to come back a little later and do the cleaning.
  • Use Your Dishwasher – Get more use out of your dishwasher by letting it clean your dirty BBQ parts! All parts are dishwasher-safe, and dishwashers are guaranteed not to leave chemical cleaning residue. Be sure to spray parts with cooking oil and heat them after reinstalling them.

These are just a few of the many tips that one should be aware of when cleaning a grill. All in all, cleaning can be a huge chore, and hiring our BBQ cleaning experts, available throughout the Toronto area, may be easier and safer.

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