4 Tips To Keep Your Propane Burner Squeaky Clean

A propane burner is undoubtedly the star of your kitchen. From those sizzling BBQs to crisp sautéed veggies, propane burners are the ideal partner for all your backyard party treats. But having a propane burner is not enough, you have to make sure to clean it at timely intervals. A long night of cooking leaves your burners splattered with oil splashes and grease and they can get clogged if not cleaned on time. Dirty burners create an unhealthy cooking environment and also leads to slow cooking. The bottomline is, you must be careful to maintain a strict clean-up routine for your propane burner. Just make sure to disconnect the burner from its source- the gas tank, before you start the clean-up. An well written guide on buying propane burners can be found here on hod9

The post below offers a brief on cleaning your propane burner.

When to clean?

Well, generally, your propane burner would need a thorough cleaning once in every month. But, that depends on how often and what you cook on your propane stove. Having said that, if you use your propane stove frequently, you should give it a deep cleaning every week. Besides, you would need to do a clean-up immediately if your backyard party last night had left the stove with fat layer of oil spills and grease. 

Don’t worry, cleaning a propane burner is fairly easy and the cleaning ingredients are readily available.

Check the flame

There is a pronounced indicator of immediate clean-up of your propane burner. You have to keep check on the flame. If your propane burner is healthy, the flame would appear blue and steady. But, if you find the flame to be yellow or irregular, chances are high that the burner/s is/are clogged and your propane stove needs a thorough cleaning as soon as possible. 

 

Cleaning burner caps and heads

Things you will need:

• Water (in 2 parts)
• Vinegar
• Baking soda
• Scrub brush/toothbrush
• Spray bottle

The cleaning process

Step 1

Don’t start cleaning if the burner is hot. In that case, you have to wait for some time till it cools off. Then, take out the burner caps and heads.

Step 2

First, make a mix of vinegar and water in 1:1 ratio. Pour it into your spray bottle.

Step 3

Spray the blend on burner caps and heads. Make sure to coat the parts well as otherwise you won’t get the desired spotless cleaning effect.

Step 4

Let the whole thing rest for a while, say 15 to 20 minutes.

Step 5

Now, make the baking soda paste. Mix water with baking soda to churn out a smooth fine paste.

Step 6

Next, you will apply the paste on burner caps and heads in a fine layer. Let it sit for half an hour.

Step 7

Now, it’s time for scrubbing. So take your scrub brush or toothbrush and start to scrub out the dirt and grease caking the burners. One thing- make sure your scrub brush and toothbrush is clean and dirt-free before you use it for scrubbing.

Step 8

After you have scrubbed out all the grease and dirt, you will rinse the burner caps and heads. Rinse them thoroughly with clean water. After you have rinsed them, you have to let the dry. Once they have dried, put them back in place in your propane burner.

Cleaning burner grates

Things you will need:

• Shallow pan
• Pot holder
• Water (in 2 parts)
• Vinegar
• Baking soda
• Scrub brush/toothbrush

The cleaning process

Step 1

As mentioned previously, you can only start cleaning if the burner has cooled down. Once it has cooled down, it’s time to take out the parts to be cleaned. So, remove the grates from the burner. Use pot holder if some of the parts seem to be warm.

Step 2

Get the shallow pan and fill it up with water-vinegar mix in 1:1 ratio.

Step 3

Now, you will place the burner grates onto the pan. Make sure the grates are fully covered in the vinegar-water mix. 

Step 4

Let the grates sit there for minimum 30 minutes.

Step 5

Take out the soaked grates. Rinse them thoroughly.

Step 6

Make a paste of baking soda and water. Layer it on grates and let the whole thing sit for 30 minutes.

Step 7

Now, use your toothbrush to scrub off the layer.

Step 8

Finally, rinse the grates thoroughly and put them back on the propane stove after drying.