We get asked this question quite frequently, and we find this typically happens with propane barbecues, but we’ll discuss the issue with both propane and natural gas. The most common reason why a grill won’t get hot enough has a very simple fix that takes 15-20 minutes. This usually happens after a person has recently bought a new tank or just refilled or exchanged their old one. If you find your grill isn’t heating up, follow these steps: Shut off your grill and close your propane tank, then disconnect it. Wait 15/20 minutes, then connect your tank back on. Open your tank extremely slowly. This is the most important step! The reason why, is because in the new tanks there is a safety ball valve inside and if you open it too fast there’s a quick pressure release that will cause that ball to shoot up and choke off your gas. Turn on your burners and ignite the bbq. After following these steps wait about 10 minutes, see how your barbecue reacts and if it is able up to 500-600 degrees. Usually 90% of the time when we tell our customers this trick it solves the issue. If it does not for whatever reason, then the only other issue it would really be is a problem with your hose and regulator. Most hose and regulators last between 5-7 years, but of course there are occasions where they last much longer or can give out more quickly with no real explanation. Hopefully if it gives out faster than expected, it will be covered under warranty from your barbecue’s manufacturer. If not, a new hose and regulator are not too expensive ranging anywhere from $30-50, and are very easy to replace. You may ask why do these regulators not last? And what happens to them? Well over time there’s some wear and tear, it can gunk up inside, or water or moisture can get into them. That liquid can freeze and thaw over the winter, year after year, leading to them eventually not working. When it comes to a propane grill these are the two main issues that cause 99% of people to ask why their grill isn’t getting up to temp. Other simple solutions include; your tank not being filled, and there being a leak in your hose but hopefully you'd smell that very quickly and be able to replace it. Now let’s look at natural gas barbecues and why a heat issue might occur. First off in our experience this rarely happens with natural gas grills but when it does it’s because of one of two reasons: There is a leak in the hose and it needs to be replaced. This is usually caused by rodents chewing on the hose which is hard to prevent at times. The natural gas pressure on your house has dropped and you need to bring in a gas fitter to reset the pressure. We honestly don’t know why this happens or what you can do to prevent this, but we’ve found this to be the case and when we’ve suggested this solution it seems to have worked. Like we mentioned above though this is a very rare situation that generally does not happen with natural gas barbecues.

We get asked this question multiple times a day from March to August every year. So we decided to finally write a little piece about it, breaking down what needs to be done and how it's unfortunately not as easy as some people would hope. It is possible to convert a Weber BBQ from propane to natural gas or vice versa, but what needs to happen depends on the specific model and its compatibility with the other fuel type. Sometimes it's as easy as changing out the orifices and hose, but sometimes you'll have to change out the whole manifold (which is the piece connected to the knobs controlling the BBQ's temperatures). Weber tells us to tell our customers to reach out directly to them if a conversion is something they are considering because liability is a huge concern. If something were to go wrong and this was not done by a professional and licensed gas fitter it would void all warranties and could potentially be a situation that is not covered by your home insurance. Additionally, working with gas can be dangerous and requires specialized knowledge and tools. Long story short is that it's not as easy as we would like it to be, and from a cost stand point it can possibly end up being the price of a new BBQ. That's not something we love telling people but that is the reality of the situation, especially with the rising demand of gas fitters, prices have soared over the last few years.

1. Oil the Food Not the Grills A lot of times before people throw their food on the grill they’ll oil up the grill and then throw on the food. Please stop doing that! Oil your food not the grill. This will help reduce flare ups from oil running off your grills and down onto the heat plates and flavourizing bars, as well as reduce the amount of oil you go through. A couple other things since we are talking about oil; when searing your food avoid olive oil and try and use canola, mizzola, peanut, or grape seed oil. Canola oil once it exceeds 350 Degrees turns into a trans fat which is quite unhealthy to consume, whereas those other oils I mentioned have a much higher boiling point which is more suitable when it comes to searing your food. 2. Start Switching Off Your Middle Burner This is not a technique you need to use consistently but roughly around 60-70% of the time you should be switching off your middle burner. Let us give an example of what we mean so that you have some context behind this technique. Say you’re cooking some chicken or steak and you can see that it’s cooked on the outside and it has a nice sear on it but you can tell by the time that it hasn’t fully cooked through on the inside. What you do is once the meat has a nice sear, take it and move it more to the middle of the grill. Then turn off your middle burner while also turning your two outside burners to a low/medium heat. This will start the process of convection cooking or indirect cooking, and similarly to how an oven would cook your food the same happens on your grill. Turning off your middle burner and moving your food to the middle of the grill allows your food to cook at a lower temperature and retain its flavour as well as not drying it on because it’s no longer being cooked with direct heat but rather through convection. 3. Clean your BBQ!!! This may seem like a simple solution, but you would be surprised how many people don’t do it and how it can really affect your overall grilling experience. You don’t need to clean your BBQ every time you use it, but every 3 to 4 cookings take your flavorizing bars or heat plates out along with your drip tray and let them soak in hot water overnight. The next morning take a sponge or some paper towel and most of the grease build up should just wipe right off. The benefit of cleaning those flavorizing bars and heat plates is that it will reduce flare ups from occurring because there’s no grease build up which allows for a more even cook across your grill without hot spots. The biggest added benefit of cleaning those flavorizing bars and heat plates is that those bars and plates is where the flavour comes from. What I mean by that is when cooking, our marinades drop down onto the bars and plates, and vapourize back up into our meats and that just enhances the taste of everything we cook. You will truly realize the difference if you just take the time to do this every few cooks. 4. Trust Yourself! Trust yourself at times and keep your lid closed. As long as you’ve been cleaning your BBQ there should not be too many jumps in temperature when you cook. Keeping your lid closed allows for a more even cook across the board without significant drops in temperature every time you lift the lid to check your food. You’ll realize the more you grill the less you’ll be checking your food because you’ll start to understand the timing it takes to cook your food. If you can start that process sooner though you’ll start to see a more consistent cook throughout the grilling process. 5. Let Your Meat Rest It’s almost second nature to cut into your meat once you pull it off the grill; either because you can’t wait to dig in or because you aren’t too sure about the cook on the inside. I can’t really help with the first issue, but if the latter is your biggest issue I’d suggest investing in a meat thermometer because every time you cut into that meat regardless if it’s cooked perfectly or not, the juices that are in there all get released and pour out onto the plate. If you can use the meat thermometer to check your temperatures it will give you the ability to allow your meat to rest for 5-10 minutes while also allowing your food to stay juicy and moist.

I wish this was as simple as yes or no, but there are some specific factors that go into this answer. Getting deep sears on your food like you typically would on your traditional BBQ won’t be as easily accomplished on your Traeger grill. With some of your higher end Traeger’s like the Ironwood or Timberline models, it makes it a little easier to get those grill marks because these models have extra layers of insulation built into their bodies and lids. This added insulation allows these grills to not only get hotter and retain heat at a higher rate but they burn through less pellets as well, saving you money in fuel costs. Another contributing factor that not everyone thinks of are the weather conditions outside when you’re grilling on your Traeger. In the winter getting a Traeger up to searing temperatures will be significantly harder even with the help of an insulation blanket. On a warm summer’s day though it’s much easier to accomplish this task, but still be weary because this is not your type of grill that will reach 600+ degrees, it’s just not meant to do that. A method a lot of people use to offset the fact that their Traeger’s typically don’t get up to searing temperatures is a technique called reverse searing. Reverse searing is when you have your meat perfectly cooked the way you like it, and either you fire up a cast iron pan or your traditional gas grill to a high heat and sear your meat for roughly 30 seconds on each side or until desired. Even though Traeger’s typically don’t get up to those high heats like we mentioned before, their versatility to cook a variety of foods is phenomenal. If you want to check out a video to show you how versatile these grills are, watch the video below!

Dealing with cast iron grills can always be a challenge especially over in the west coast with how wet it is year round. Here are a few tips and tricks to make those grills last so you don't have to worry about the usual rusting, chipping, and flaking that usually occurs. First Time Use: Wash thoroughly with mild dishwashing liquid. Rinse with hot water and dry completely with a soft cloth or paper towel. NEVER ALLOW TO DRAIN DRY, OR WASH IN A DISHWASHER. You must season the grates before first use to prevent rust and keep foods from sticking. You must maintain the seasoning weekly. If you do not use the barbecue in the winter consider bringing the grills inside until you are ready to grill in the spring. It this is not possible, grease them heavily before covering the barbecue for the winter. Seasoning Cast Iron Grates: Grape seed oil is recommended for the initial seasoning.Spread a coating of grape seed oil over the entire surface of the cast iron grates with a paper towel. Be certain the entire surface including all comers, nooks and crannies have been coated thoroughly. (Do not use salted fat such as margarine or butter.) Preheat grate for 10 minutes. Turn burner to MEDIUM with lid closed. Allow grates to heat for 15 to 20 minutes. Turn burner to OFF. Leave the cooking grates in the barbecue until they are cool. Your cast iron grates are now ready to use. Maintenance: Clean the grates by turning on the barbecue to HIGH and clean debris off with a soft stainless- bristled brush. This should be done every time before you use the barbecue. Re-seasoning: After each use, the grates may be re-seasoned by coating with grape seed oil, closing the lid and leaving the cast iron grates in the barbecue until they are cool. You always want the grates to look greasy. When they do not, apply more of the grape seed oil. Tips: The cast iron grates will turn black with use. The pores of the iron will be sealed providing a durable coating that helps to prevent food from sticking. The grates will further season with use. Regular applications of grape seed oil will improve its resistance to rust. A metallic taste or discoloured foods are a sign of improper or inadequate seasoning or may result from cooking acidic foods. If this occurs, wash thoroughly and re-season. Since cast iron holds heat well, you will not have to use extremely high cooking temperatures. Best results are obtained with medium to medium-high heat. Do not overheat. As with all cast iron, the more use the easier the maintenance. Warning: Prior to storing, grease very lightly with grape seed oil. Then wipe dry with a paper towel. Store in a dry place

We get asked this question quite frequently at our store, so we decided to write a short piece giving our thoughts on the topic. Hopefully this gives you a little more insight to make an informed decision next time this situation arises. What we've found is that cast iron grills have great heat retention and distribution, which means they will get very hot and stay hot, which is great for searing meats and creating grill marks. Cast iron is also non-stick, which makes it easy to clean. However, cast iron can be prone to rusting, flaking and chipping if not seasoned constantly. We make sure to recommend seasoning cast iron grills with grape-seed or avocado oil while the grills are still warm after cooking. This way it allows the oil to seep in while the grills cool to create a protective layer, which ultimately will lead to greater longevity. The biggest problem we've found with cast iron grills is that people generally brush their grills too hard which take off the initial protective layer and that's what eventually leads to moisture seeping in and rusting to occur. Stainless steel grills are durable and resistant to rust and corrosion, which makes them low maintenance and long-lasting. They heat up quickly and evenly, and people sometimes think they won't be able to get deep sears into their meats, but that's not true. It really depends on the thickness of the stainless grills you get, and if they're pure stainless because sometimes grills will be stainless coated with a different metal underneath. Stainless steel grills are more expensive than cast iron but because of their longevity and low maintenance it's an investment most of our customers like to make. We offer a stainless steel upgrade on most of our BBQ grills because people generally don't want to deal with the hassle and upkeep of cast iron. Ultimately, the choice between cast iron and stainless steel for your BBQ grill comes down to personal preference and price point. Yes, it can sound like we're up-selling stainless steel grills but we truly believe they're the better way to go. Especially with how wet a climate we have it can be a nightmare maintaining those cast iron grills and protecting them from moisture exposure and eventual rusting.

When people are looking for a new BBQ they usually know what type of BBQ they want (propane, natural gas, charcoal, or wood pellet) but usually what differs is the brand. But what if you’re just starting out getting into the grilling scene and not sure about the difference between the variety of ways to grill. Well here’s a short breakdown of some of the benefits of each type of BBQ, to help make your decision a little easier when you go to purchase your first grill or are looking for a change from what you already have: Propane: The biggest upside of buying a propane BBQ is the portability factor, and if you end up moving down the road you can bring it along with you without worrying about buying a new BBQ. Propane along with Natural Gas is able to get hotter faster so people do like that aspect if they need to cook something up quickly without much preparation. The issue people find with propane BBQs is the price of refilling propane, especially if they BBQ frequently. Also potentially running out of propane in the middle of a grilling session because of not knowing how much propane is left in their tank can be frustrating. Natural Gas: If you have the luxury to choose between natural gas or propane we recommend going with the natural gas grill. Even though it doesn’t have the portability capacity propane grills do, natural gas has many other benefits. First natural gas is a much cleaner fuel source not to mention you never have to worry about running out because it’s pumped right into your house/condo. You never have to worry about propane tanks or the fact that your regulator on your BBQ needs to be replaced. It’s as simple as taking your hose and connecting it to your natural gas box and you should be ready to grill instantly. Charcoal: Most people are used to grilling with gas grills because of their overall convenience of being able to turn on and off their grills without much difficulty or mess. But if you decide one day to indulge in charcoal grilling you’ll come across a whole new grilling experience. Many BBQ diehards say charcoal grilling is the only way to BBQ and that’s because of the unique flavour smoky flavour charcoal is able to provide. Charcoal grilling can be difficult at times because it’s not as easy as turning a knob to regulate the heat of the grill and it’s something that can take time to get used to before getting the hang of it. Also they can be a hassle to clean but as a whole grilling experience it’s something that’s unique and unlike your normal bbq routine. Wood Pellet: Cooking on wood pellet grills has been the largest growing trend in the last several years. If you talk to anyone with a wood pellet grill they’ll tell you they love it and the taste of the food is unmatched but at the same time they’ll let you know that if you aren’t someone who likes to wait for their food then it’s probably not the grill for you. Since with wood pellet grills its strictly indirect heat the cooking process can take significantly longer depending on what you’re cooking. Once you get up to a certain temperature it will take you the same amount of time to cook a chicken breast on a wood pellet grill as your regular gas BBQ because the temperatures are the same; it will just take longer for that wood pellet grill to get up to that temperature your normal gas grill would get up to within minutes. With wood pellet grills people tend to smoke their meats on it and cook their foods at significantly lower temperatures than your typical gas grill. Because they cook at those low temperatures for hours on end, the juices of the meats they cook retain within the meat itself rather than dripping away to the bottom of the grill. This cooking process adds so much more flavour and just enhances and maximizes your overall grilling experience.