Your Pit Boss pellet grill has indeed remained a true cooking companion in your backyard.
But now, you can hardly notice the elegance of your grill since it looks all messy inside and outside after several cooks.
The Pit Boss pellet grill, just like any other cooking tool, requires cleaning. Regular cleaning of your grill assures you of clean meals and a better life for your pellet smoker.
Table of Contents
Cleaning Tools
It will be good to know the tools you will need to give your Pit Boss grill a thorough cleaning. This way, you won't go into the house now and then to collect a cleaning tool.
Here are the cleaning tools you will need:
Disposable gloves
Cleaning a dirty grill can be messy on your hands. So, if you would love to keep your hands clean during the entire cleaning process, it would be great if you put some disposable gloves on.
Grill degreaser solution
With every cooking session, there will always be grease buildup in the internal and exterior cooking surfaces. Therefore, you will need a non-toxic solution that is tough on grease.
Shop vacuum
A shop vac will suck all the ash and charred debris from your Pit Boss grill. Also, this cleaner removes all pellet dust particles from the hopper.
Kitchen scraper and brush
You will use a sturdy wooden scraper to scrape off food residue or grease deposits sticking on both the interior and exterior of the grill.
Also, you will need to have a non-metallic brush that will be gentle on the enameled surfaces of your grill. Remember to add smaller brushes to clean hard-to-access places and grease chute.
Paper towels or auto mechanic shop towels
A dry paper towel can clean the grease bucket and grease drip tray, while a soft towel can clean the exterior of your BBQ grill.
Cleaning Pit Boss Pellet Grill
Now that you have identified and picked the tools you will need for deep cleaning your vertical smoker or barrel grill, and the cleaning phase can now kick off!
One more thing, remember to unplug the power cord before starting to clean your charcoal grill.
Here are the simple steps you can follow to rescue your grill from all that mess weighing it down:
Empty your Pit Boss grill
This is the first step in cleaning a grill. So, remove the heat shield, broiler plate & grill grates.
Clean the lid
Since the lid covers your food, it traps oils and smoke from every cooking session. Hence, you can use a putty knife to remove the unwanted buildup on your grill lid.
Clean the grates
Use a non-abrasive sponge to scrub the dirty grill grates. Then, you can soak the grates for a few hours in soapy water for easier cleaning.
After soaking the grill grates, use a non-abrasive sponge again to wipe them down.
Also, you can use a degreaser for spotlessly clean grates.
Remember not to use a dish or power washer on your grates since they will be harsh on the grate coating, thus inviting rust.
Clean the flame broiler and heat shield
The best way to clean the pellet grill flame broiler and heat deflector is by using soapy water to remove grime and grease. Also, you can use a putty knife for those lumpy buildups.
After cleaning the flame broiler and deflector with dish soap and water, you can put them outside under the sun to dry thoroughly before putting them back into the grill.
Clean the ashes
Grab the shop vac we had earlier spoken about and vacuum all the ash from the barrel and firebox.
Clean the grease chute
Since this is a small section, you can use a toothbrush to clean it. But don't grab that used toothbrush in the bathroom; a new one will do. Also, you can use a plastic or wooden scraper to remove buildups.
Clean the barrel
After vacuuming all the ash from the barrel, you can use the putty knife to scrape off food particles or tough stains. Then you can use a non-metal brush to brush down the debris.
Next, take your shop vac and vacuum all the dirt you loosened in the barrel.
Remember not to use a grill cleaning spray in the barrel since it can tamper with the electronic parts. Instead, you can use a damp cloth to apply the cleaning solution to the barrel surfaces.
Clean the hopper
Empty the hopper into a basin. Then use the shop vac to vacuum the debris and sawdust from the hopper.
Remember to remove debris from the air intake located at the bottom of the hopper; this is important since the vent supplies oxygen to your fuel.
Clean the exterior
Cleaning the exterior of your pit boss navigator 1150 or other pit boss grill models is pretty simple. Also, there is usually not much dirt on the surface, thanks to the grill cover.
So, grab a soft cloth and your liquid dish soap and wipe down your grill. You can then rinse it with clean, warm water.
Remember not to spray the grill exterior with a liquid solution since it can get into the barrel and call forth trouble.
FAQs
1. Why is my Pit Boss auger not turning?
If your pit boss auger is stuck, you will need to remove some smoker parts like the motor, hopper access panel, and control board. Also, you will unscrew the auger collar and pull the auger rod to unclog the auger.
2. How often should you clean a pit boss grill?
You can clean the barrel after every 5-8 grilling sessions, firebox after every 3-4 grilling sessions, grates in the grill after every use, and flame broiler after 4-6 grilling sessions.
Other parts of the grill, like the grease bucket and front shelf, can be cleaned after every use.
3. Do you have to clean a pit boss grill?
Yes, this is highly important. For example, too much ash in your grill can clog the air intake, making it challenging to implement pit boss smoke-in app instructions.
4. Can you leave wood pellets in the hopper?
Final Word
Why wait too long to clean your grill? A dirty grill is not appealing, not to mention its food.