Gas grill recommendation please

[slugg77]

Hi all. My wife's church needed a grill, so I donated my 6 year old char broil. Now I need a replacement gas grill. I do have two charcoal grills, so please no responses of "get a charcoal". I am looking for four burners, I have never had a side burner so that could be a plus, and I would prefer something that will take a rotisserie attachment if I choose to try that.

Thanks for looking, I appreciate any feedback.

$400 to $500, is the budget. Sorry about that!

 

[73mountaineer]

What's your budget? Any particular reason that 4 burners is a necessity?

For my money, I don't think that there is a better gas grill than my Weber Genesis at any price point...except maybe another Weber.

Mine's 5 years old and still like new. I am replacing the "flavorizer bars" this season, but that's all she needs.

3-burner Genesis:
http://www.weber.com/explore/grills/genesis-series

4-burner Summit:
http://www.weber.com/explore/grills/summit-series/summit-e-420

 

[mdfuller]

Love my Weber Genesis!

 

[slugg77]

Well, I have had a four burner for a bit, I guess I am more comfortable adjusting temps and such. The Genesis seems to be a great choice. I am glad to get real world feedback.

There is a store nearby that is a dealer, I will have to mosey up and take a peak.

 

[Mick]

Another vote for the Weber Genesis. I like mine

 

[camjr]

A Weber Genesis may be a little above his stated price range of $400 - $500, but the Weber Spirit is in his range. I have one and really love the grill. I've tried cheaper CharBroils and similar in the past, but they don't come close to the Weber in terms of quality. If you have to choose between a $350 tricked out Char-Broil or something similar, spend the extra money and upgrade to Weber. You will not regret it.

Cheers!

 

[OtherMoe]

Yup! Weber Genesis. Had mine 5 years and works like new. Another thing about Weber is they have been around for a long time and likely will be, so replacement parts should be easy to come by. My BIL bought some fancy grill about 6 years ago paying much more than my Weber, last week when visiting he said he was looking for a new grill because something was broke on his, I said just by the replacement part, he said the company was out of business and the part was not available.

 

[slugg77]

Well, it seems like the Weber Genesis is a very good buy, so I am now working on finding the right one and putting the money together.

Thanks for the replies,

Slugg

 

[saf]

They are hard to find at times but look at the Ducane brand. They are owned by Weber and have the same service and warranty, but are less expensive. Weber bought them several years ago and the quality is on par. I bought my four burner model and it was 150 less than the equal Weber model. I bought mine at an Ace hardware.

 

[FonGu]

+1 on the Ducane. As stated, it is made by Weber, costs less, and when you call customer service you actually ring up the Weber people. I got mine at Lowes and paid $450. The Weber in the same size with the same features was $800.

 

[Mendel]

+1 on Weber Genesis. I have one too.

 

[Acmemfg]

Weber Genesis. Accept no substitute. Classic example of getting what you pay for. Plus, do get the side burner. You will be amazed how handy that is

 

[natchez]

I have an old 3-burner Weber Silver- 12 years now. The grates, flavoring bars, and burners have finally worn to the point they need replacement. The push start ignition is still working. I am going to rebuild it sometime this summer. Best gas grill I have ever owned.

It seems like the equivalent sized model is the Spirit w/o the side burner.

 

[luvmysuper]

Kenmore.

Yes, I know it's Sears.

But you'll get more bang for your buck with a Kenmore than you will with a top brand name Gas grill, and have the advantage of being able to physically look it over in a local store.

I, and several of my friends have Kenmore Gas Grills, and they perform perfectly, are ruggedly built, look great, and never disappoint.

That's my 2 cents anyway.

 

[camjr]

Weber Genesis. Accept no substitute. Classic example of getting what you pay for. Plus, do get the side burner. You will be amazed how handy that is

I've got a stainless Spirit with a side burner and porcelain coated cast iron grates. I believe it was a Home Depot specific model for around $425 or so.

 

[BobS]

Interesting thread. I thought that Ducane had gone out of business. I lived in Taiwan for 4 years and could not find a good quality grill over there, so I imported a Ducane from England (SWMBO still has not let me live that down). It was a good grill (all stainless), but back in 2000 they still used ceramic briquets instead of the flavor bars in the Webber. That made it have a tendency to flare up more than the Webber I owned previously.

From Taiwan, we moved to Mexico and I took the Ducane, but then I found my first Big Green Egg and I never had another fire in the Ducane, so I gave it away. Now I have a family of a Lg BGE, Sm BGE and an XL Primo.

All that aside, any time I get the question I have told people to look at Webbers. I will now tell them to look at Ducanes too.

 

[slugg77]

Man, this is getting harder and harder. I will be heading to Sears after work to check out the Kenmore and Weber models. Now I am looking for a Ducane dealer near me, too.

I love this forum, I get informed opinions about gas grills and tallow based shaving soap from this same people.

 

[camjr]

Interesting thread. I thought that Ducane had gone out of business. I lived in Taiwan for 4 years and could not find a good quality grill over there, so I imported a Ducane from England (SWMBO still has not let me live that down). It was a good grill (all stainless), but back in 2000 they still used ceramic briquets instead of the flavor bars in the Webber. That made it have a tendency to flare up more than the Webber I owned previously.

From Taiwan, we moved to Mexico and I took the Ducane, but then I found my first Big Green Egg and I never had another fire in the Ducane, so I gave it away. Now I have a family of a Lg BGE, Sm BGE and an XL Primo.

All that aside, any time I get the question I have told people to look at Webbers. I will now tell them to look at Ducanes too.

If I'm not mistaken, I believe Weber now owns Ducane. They've always been high quality.

As for Kenmore's, another poster said he's had good luck with them. I believe they're made by Char-Broil. As we say, YMMV, and my experience was certainly different. I've owned 4-5 of them, and I'll never own another Char-Broil product again. One thing that pushed me to purchase my last Char-Broil was the lifetime warranty on burners. When they failed, I tried to get new ones, but found they weren't covered against rust. What??? I was so upset at my last failing on me after only 5 years (and it was covered, cleaned, and cared for) that I took it out to a friend's private land and put abut 100 rounds of 7.62x39 from an AK through it. Spend the extra money on a Weber. Pay once, cry once. They're not that much more than a maxed-out Kenmore or Char-Broil, but the quality of the Weber top to bottom is far and away superior to the others.

 

[slugg77]

If I'm not mistaken, I believe Weber now owns Ducane. They've always been high quality.

As for Kenmore's, another poster said he's had good luck with them. I believe they're made by Char-Broil. As we say, YMMV, and my experience was certainly different. I've owned 4-5 of them, and I'll never own another Char-Broil product again. One thing that pushed me to purchase my last Char-Broil was the lifetime warranty on burners. When they failed, I tried to get new ones, but found they weren't covered against rust. What??? I was so upset at my last failing on me after only 5 years (and it was covered, cleaned, and cared for) that I took it out to a friend's private land and put abut 100 rounds of 7.62x39 from an AK through it. Spend the extra money on a Weber. Pay once, cry once. They're not that much more than a maxed-out Kenmore or Char-Broil, but the quality of the Weber top to bottom is far and away superior to the others.

Pics of the grill that was mistaken for an enemy machine gun nest ? I am heading to work now, will do some looking afterwards. Who am I kidding, I will be buying one on the way home. Surprise for the wife!

 

[camjr]

Who am I kidding, I will be buying one on the way home. Surprise for the wife!

That's doing it right! Better to ask for forgiveness later than permission beforehand!

No pics of the grill, but my blood pressure dropped dramatically after improving the air flow of that grill...