Five Tips For Buying a Quality Barbecue Grill

Does it seem like you have to buy a new grill every season? If you are like most people you might find yourself taking a trip every spring to the discount store to buy another grill. The same barbecue grill that you bought last spring, after a few uses, the legs got wobbly and the grate rusted through. Even a little rust can be bad because it gets on the food and that's never a good thing for many reasons.

They are a few differences that separate quality grills from those one-season wonders. A good quality grill, with proper care, will provide many years of use. Outlined below are five features you should always look for when considering the purchase of a grill that will last you many years.

16 gauge Stainless Steel Grill
The quality of the materials that are used make the biggest difference. Any grill worth its weight will be made of 16 gauge stainless steel. Stainless steel doesn't rust and it's resistant to oxidation caused by heat. Oxidation caused from heat is the leading reason grills rust through quickly. Most discount grill manufacturers will not use low-grade stainless steel as to keep production costs down.

Cast iron grill grates
Cast iron grates will last the lifetime of the grill if proper care is taken. Cast iron grates must be seasoned, just like your grandmother's old cast iron frying pan. Well seasoned iron grates are non-stick and will actually improve with age adding flavor to your food when it cooks. Cheap grill grates are made of steel that is hybrid epoxy polyester powder coating manufacturers with a chrome surface to prevent the steel from rusting. This works well until the first time you use the grill. The reason for this is because the heat degrades the chrome plating causing it to crack. Then the heat rusts the steel underneath causing it to rust from the inside out.