Hey I’m Randy with BBQGuys.
Today we’re going to cover the main things you’ll want to keep in mind when shopping
for the best gas grill for you.
Odds are, you’re going to have this grill for a really long time, so it's important
to give these things some thought.
Let's get to it!
One of the first things to consider is what grill size will fit your cooking needs the
best.
Take a moment to think about what you like to cook most & how many people you normally
cook for.
The larger your grill is, the easier knocking out batches of food for a party will be, giving
you more time to relax.
In addition to being able to fit more food, larger grills also mean more cooking versatility.
Wide grills provide more temperature zone cooking options.
Most meals require cooking different items at various temperatures, so it is nice to
have a grill with enough space to accommodate everything.
For example, cooking zones that vary in temperature allow you to sear a steak over direct heat
on one side of the grill, while cooking veggies at a lower heat on the other.
More burners equal more control of your cooking environment, which is always great to have.
Over the years, we’ve found the most popular grill size customers go with is somewhere
around 32 inch mark.
This size provides enough space for versatility & looks sharp above the width of most access
doors if you choose to build in.
When it comes to cooking style, some grills have dedicated infrared searing areas.
This means you should think about how many conventional burners you want to have in addition
to your searing zone.
If smoking on a gas grill is important to you, it will be important to have enough room
to cook with indirect heat as well.
Some gas grills even have dedicated low btu smoking burners, giving you the perfect amount
of heat to smoulder wood chips in the smoker box.
It’s important to look for a gas grill with durable cooking grids.
Quality grills will use stainless steel as the material..
Even if a grill lists “stainless” as the material, it’s still important to examine
the thickness of the grids as well.
This is an area of the grill that receives a lot of wear, so the thicker the grids, the
longer they will last.
Another advantage of thick grids will be better heat retention, when it comes to getting a
good sear & bold grill marks.
In addition, some grids are built with tighter spacing than others.
This is a great feature to keep in mind - the more surface contact to your food - the more
caramelization.
Tight grid spacing will also prevent smaller food items from falling between the grids
and onto the burners.
Next up, consider the construction of the gas grill’s flame tamers.
Sometimes these are called flavorizing plates or bars.
This is the component of the gas grill that sits between the burner & cooking surface
of a gas grill.
They help protect the burner from direct drippings of grease & debris.
Flame tamers typically use an angled design, allowing grease to run off into the belly
of the grill without pooling & catching fire - therefore “taming” the flame.
Flame tamers provide a surface for drippings to vaporize off of, so the more coverage you
have with a particular flame tamer design, the more smokey flavor you will generally
get from your gas grill.
More flame tamer coverage also means more heat gets diffused as it rises from the burner
toward the cooking surface.
Grills with full coverage flame tamers will generally provide a more evenly heated cooking
surface.
When it comes to material - the best flame tamers are either constructed out of heavy
gauge stainless steel or quality ceramic pieces.
This area of the grill also receives a lot of wear, so it’s important to make a selection
that resists corrosion.
When looking at gas grills, burner construction and design is crucial to examine, because
this is the heart of your grill.
This is also the most common part that people find themselves replacing.
It’s an area where it’s important to keep in mind that all “stainless steel construction”
is not created equal.
Burners can vary immensely in thickness of construction.
A great example of this would be comparing a tube style burner made out of thin stainless
steel vs. a thick cast stainless steel burner.
When it comes to gas grill burners, the heavier the construction & the more durable the material,
the happier you will be with it’s lasting performance for many years to come.
As far as high temperature range, a lot of people use the BTU rating to get an idea of
how hot their grill will get.
Keep in mind, high BTU ratings don’t always mean a hotter, or better grill.
Look at the entire grill design, because things like well insulated hoods, and thick construction
can utilize the same amount of BTUS better than some higher BTU grills with a less efficient
design.
In addition to conventional burners, many premium grills offer configurations with one
or more infrared searing burners.
This burner type is what most steakhouses use because of its quick preheat time & high,
direct heat capability.
This burner style is a great option if you want the highest heat range possible.
When comparing gas grills, also take a look at if the grill you are considering has a
rear infrared burner.
This gives you the option to cook rotisserie style in your backyard.
This feature is very popular for people who entertain often, because it looks awesome
while your food cooks on the grill, and the constant turning of the rotiss makes for a
stress free cook.
High-quality grills have fully welded, highly polished seams, and double lined commercial
grade 304 stainless hoods.
Double lined hoods not only provide more insulation for trapping heat inside your grill, they
also prevent the heat of the grill from yellowing the exterior of the lid, keeping it looking
its best.
An added feature many people enjoy having on their gas grill is integrated lighting.
Some grills come with interior lights, which makes it a whole lot easier to see what you
are grilling at night.
A lot of grills even have control panel accent lights, helping illuminate the control knobs
of the grill for nighttime use.
An important option that’s sometimes overlooked is whether or not the fuel type of your gas
grill can be converted down the road.
Maybe your current outdoor space is best suited for a freestanding propane gas grill right
now, but you want to leave your options open for running natural gas & building-in your
grill eventually.
Make sure the grill you select either ships with a conversion kit, or has a fuel type
conversion kit available for purchase later.
If you’re looking at freestanding gas grills, check to see if the grill can be removed from
the cart, should you want to build it in to an island configuration later.
When comparing gas grills, always make sure to glance at the warranty it comes with.
This will keep you from having to spend money on parts that shouldn't have broken in the
first place.
Look for brands with a burner warranty around 10 years or more, and brands with lifetime
warranties- some even cover the labor for replacement.
We've made comparing warranties from the top brands easy for you with our Gas Grill Warranty
Comparison Chart.
When shopping gas grills, look for ones with a solid plan for backup ignition, should your
primary ignition method fail.
Look for Flash tube backup ignition, this makes it easy to ignite your burners with
a lighter from the cooking grid surface.
It’s always important to glance at the compatible accessories that are offered along with a
gas grill.
Some gas grill brands offer griddles, smoker boxes, pizza stones, and even charcoal fuel
baskets designed to fit your grill perfectly.
We're here to help you through the entire process of shopping for a gas grill, and we
know you may not have a lot of time to compare every gas grill and learn all of their features.
To make things easier, we've taken the time to test and review our most popular gas grills.
You can check them out on our Gas Grill Reviews page.