The outdoor grill is a proud western tradition that has been a cornerstone of parties, family gatherings, and casual dinners in Toronto and beyond for more than 60 years. Outdoor BBQs have enjoyed immense popularity as quick and easy ways to prepare delicious food over the years, and that popularity has inspired many variations of the original design. Proper BBQ cleaning, BBQ repair, and BBQ part maintenance are key to keeping that smoky goodness from fading.
What Are the Main BBQ parts?
If working properly, BBQs can be easily used to produce a delicious array of steaming food. However, the inner workings of gas BBQs are quite complex. Several main components of a gas BBQ include:
- Propane Tank – OK, this isn’t technically part of the grill, but it is where the magic starts when you are cooking with a BBQ.
- Regulator Valve – This valve is located behind the tube that connects the propane tank to the grill itself. It prevents the flow from the propane tank from becoming dangerous, maxing out the temperatures the grill can reach at 300F.
- Grill Hose – A hose that carries the propane from the regulator valve up to the main body of the grill.
- Manifold – The manifold is composed of several diverging pipes that receive the flow of propane from the grill hose and split it up into several flows – one for each of the burner tubes.
- Ignition – Using piezoelectricity, the ignition sends a spark to the propane streaming through the manifold to turn the streams that go into the burner tubes into flame.
- Burner Tubes – Long, thin tubes punctuated by small holes that run under the grill’s cooking surface.
- Grill – The surface where the actual cooking takes place. It is usually made of thinly spaced black bars that allow food to rest on them but also allow the heat emitting from the burner tubes to have its full effect on the food.
Of course, this is only a partial listing of BBQ parts; describing every part in detail could fill an entire book. If these parts get old without undergoing the proper BBQ maintenance, however, they can easily go bad. This may mean that your BBQ isn’t able to produce enough heat or it may not light altogether, ruining your backyard hangout or other social event that could benefit from some good ol’ fashioned BBQ food.