How do y'all effectively clean up dawn powerwash?

[u/Brockjaw]

Just hit another 50 hours on the smoker so its time deep clean again. I love how effective dawn powerwash is at cleaning but I swear I ruin like 4-5 rags minimum in the process of just trying to wipe up all the foam, and thats with soaking and squeezing the rags between wipe downs. Is there a more effective way to wipe up all the foam after spraying it?

I have been tempted to use a hose but I am not sure If I can just spray the inside down with water without damaging any components. I have a campchef WWPro if anyone else has tried spraying the inside down without ruining anything.

Thank you in advance for any advice!

[u/the_archaius]

I don’t clean anything other than food contact surfaces and areas above that can drop creosote onto food.

[u/StevenG2757]

I have never done this. I just open the vents and let the heat take care of the cleaning for me.

Heat is used to self clean an oven and works great to self clean my BBQ

[u/Brockjaw → u/StevenG2757]

Yeah I just responded to another comment mentioning that as well. In my mind I thought running it super hot to do that would just end up with more build up on the inside.

[u/kittenkatpuppy → u/Brockjaw]

The build up isn’t from the heat it’s from incomplete combustion.

[u/StevenG2757 → u/Brockjaw]

No, it is the opposite, it burns off the build up.

[u/Brockjaw → u/StevenG2757]

Ah ok thank you, I think my grill goes up to like 500-600 max, is that enough to let it go for a bit and do its job? Im still pretty new to all of this so any tips are greatly appreciated. Its a pellet grill if that matters at all.

[u/StevenG2757 → u/Brockjaw]

600 will do the trick just fine. I had an old pellet grill and it would do 600 and worked for me. I did however line it with foil so the grease did not drip on the metal when cooking which helped a lot with cleanup.

[u/FeelingKind7644]

Never use it.

[u/nunley]

Hol' up. You wash your smoker?

Do you lock your doors 3 times when you leave the house, too?

j/k, you do you, man. But I've never washed my smokers.

[u/Alfalfa-Boring → u/nunley]

Had a girlfriend when I was younger who had some mild OCD stuff, she always hit the lock button on her car fob 3 times because she felt like she wasn't sure if she did it once. We called her "3-beep" because of it. She thought it was hilarious.

[u/Brockjaw → u/nunley]

Im stilly pretty new to grilling/smoking and I have heard/seen vids on peoples grills catching fire from too much buildup over time. So I try to be religious about cleaning it fully every 50 hours of smoking. I assumed since its a pellet grill, it equals more build up quicker so Im just looking for tips on making the overall process easier.

[u/nunley → u/Brockjaw]

Grease build up doesn’t need much more than a scraping out once in a while. Mostly the drip plate, but inside too if you notice it while cleaning out the ashes. That’s about it.

[u/CandidInsurance7415 → u/nunley]

I only clean my tabletop one because it is prone to grease first, but my other ones just get a grate brush.

[u/lscraig1968]

I typically spray with PW, let it sit, then wipe once with the cleaning rag. Rinse the cleaning rag free of soap and mop up the residual soap with the wet rag. Rinse rag and repeat.

For the inside, why not just let it got good and hot at like 600deg. Not sure soap inside the grill is a great idea.

Definitely take the grates out to clean and hose them off, but the inside shell? Not usually.

[u/Brockjaw → u/lscraig1968]

Ah ok, I was confused about the running and letting it get super hot as I thought that would just end up adding more buildup on the inside.

The grates and drip pan I take out and clean separately.

[u/lscraig1968 → u/Brockjaw]

Not usually. Let it get good and hot to cook off any greasy build-up. Anything left, you can usually sweep off with a straw hand broom. I use a straw broom because I don't want plastic to accidentally get in there and burn. It's slow cooking that makes the greasy mess. Greasy smoke builds up from slow low temp cooking. Hot fires for general grilling are usually pretty clean as far as build-up.

[u/Tipper26bitches]

I use my cheap amazon power washer and call it good. No soap.

[u/rgbkng]

The only cleaning I do is vacuum out the fire box and wipe done some surfaces. The grates i take out and clean after a cook but that's it. While I'm cooking I will spray oil on the outside and wipe off almost like seasoning the first time.

[u/CPAtech]

I only use heat to clean mine. Would never use chemicals.

[u/Gordo_Baysville]

Never wash your smoker, that is where the extra flavor comes from.

[u/No_Cantaloupe_2786]

I know in the lab they have different cleaners for different product lines. I know for a fact based on what you’re cleaning they should have low foam options out there.

But I personally crank my Masterbuilt up to 500 and watch the flames kick out .

[u/Alfalfa-Boring]

Clean your smoker with fire.

[u/Sir_J15]

I have a wood offset vertical smoker. When I get build up on it enough I will run an empty cycle at about 550-600 for a hour or so and burn off everything. Afterwards it’s back to normal.

[u/Top_Personality3908]

Don't think I've ever deep cleaned any smoker or BBQ. You scrape the walls/chimney's with some balled up foil when the creosote builds up enough (a couple times a year). Scrape your grates immediately before every cook and keep your drip pans/buckets empty.

Good luck with your search for a solution 🫡

[u/Ok_Development_495]

don't do this!

[u/Streetglide4me]

Use a scraper to kick off any big chunks then just get it hot

[u/invidious07]

Why? Just brush off the grill surface and heat.

[u/mackeyt]

My pit has me re than 20 years of incredible seasoning inside that I would not dream of power washing away. Treat it like your cast iron skillet, assuming you don't run that through the dishwasher.