The UK has already had it’s first taste of Summer this month with temperatures reaching highs of up to 20 degrees, proving it’s never to early for BBQ season. Google searches for ‘How to clean a BBQ’ have increased by a whopping 80% in the past week alone, and this could be set to continue as April’s much anticipated heatwave is just around the corner…

As such, the team at Home Essentials reveal five top tips for how best to clean your BBQ, including using ketchup to remove build up of rust, and why you should replace good old fairy liquid with…beer.

Whilst your BBQ should be given a basic clean after each use, it turns out we should be performing a deep clean on our BBQ’s at least every three months. With this mind, these top tips might come in handy more often than you think.

1. Get steamy

A clever cleaning trick for your barbeque grill is to steam it using a sheet of slightly damp newspaper. Once the barbeque has cooled down slightly, spritz some water over a sheet of old newspaper and lay it on top. Put the lid of the barbeque on top and leave it for half an hour to work its magic. The heat from the barbeque and the water from the newspaper will produce a steam to get rid of any grime caked on the grill itself.

2. An onion, you say?

An unlikely cleaning saviour, an onion attached to a fork. Whilst there is still heat in the grill, attach half an onion to the end of a fork and use it to rub over the hot bars. The water in the onion steams away any stuck-on food and uses its natural antibacterial properties to remove impurities.

3. Is there anything coffee can’t do?

Believe it or not, you can use coffee as a cleaner. Try soaking your grill and utensils in coffee (boiling water and coffee grains) for those tough stains that won’t budge. The acid in coffee will loosen up any dirt.

4. No beer fear here!

In the unlikely event that you do have some left-over beers after your barbeque then pour half a bottle over the warm grill and scrub using a bristle brush or some old newspaper. Wire brushes have received some bad press lately over the wire bristles falling into the barbeque and ending up in your food so make sure you chose your cleaning tools carefully.

5. Ketchup!

Not only does ketchup spice up our barbeque burgers, it also is a great way to prevent rusting on your barbeque. This hack is ideal for barbeques left out in the garden exposed to the elements. All you do is apply a small amount of ketchup to any areas of rust and leave for a few minutes then wait to see your results!

https://www.homeessentials.co.uk/