Changed my mind about $30 grill brushes after one bad experience

I used to swear by cheap wire grill brushes, the $5 ones from the hardware store. Then I found a wire bristle stuck in a burger I was eating last week, scared me pretty bad. Ended up dropping $30 on a bristle-free nylon brush set from a BBQ supply shop near Austin. It doesn't get quite as deep on the grates, but I feel way safer eating off it now. Has anyone else switched to those scraper blocks or the brushless roll cleaners? Just curious if I'm missing something better.

2 comments

2 Comments

ross.river4d ago

Heard a story from my buddy Carl last week that made me double down on the nylon brushes. He was using one of those coiled wire brushes, the kind that look like a twisted spring, and a piece broke off while he was scrubbing. Didn't think much of it until he bit into a hot dog at his own cookout and felt something sharp scrape his gum. Ended up at urgent care getting it pulled out (which cost him way more than a $30 brush). He switched to those scraper blocks after that, said it's a pain to scrub harder but better than the alternative. I don't bother with a paper towel test myself, I just give the grates a good scrape with a metal putty knife after the nylon brush - gets the deep stuff without the bristle worry.

the_claire4d ago

Those nylon brushes definitely feel safer, but I have to ask - are you actually getting your grates clean enough to not have leftover gunk? I switched to a scraper block a few months ago and noticed I had to scrub way harder to get the same result as a wire brush. The safety trade off makes sense, but I wonder if people are sacrificing proper cleaning just to avoid bristles. Do you ever go over your grates with a paper towel after to check for residue?