BBQ value
 

I'm in the market for a basic propane bbq.

I cook most outdoor things on my Traeger pellet grill but there are lots of times when I get home late or whatever and want to just quickly cook a burger without having to wait for the slow warm up time of the Traeger.

There is very obviously a huge price variations in bbq's. The last one I had I bought at Costco in Red Deer nearly 20 years ago but the burners are burnt out of it and it's really not worth fixing.

My question is, what value do these more expensive bbqs bring? Is a $2,000 bbq really 10 times better than a $200 bbq or is this the law of diminishing returns?

Open to conversation on the subject.

Thanks

One thing the more expensive BBQ typically bring is a larger surface area and a high BTU over that larger area.

I'd like to get a smaller BBQ to replace the one I have. Yes, I won't be able to cook 20 burgers on it at a time, but the once or twice a year I cook 20 burgers is well out weighed by the time I'm only cooking four.

Number one think I look at when buying a BBQ is :
How far away is the grill from the flame shields

I bought a Costco BBQ and they were very close .
Those shields are just like a frying pan that hold the dripping and causes flare ups.. So when they are close to the grill your food gets the flame.

The better BBQ are a good 6 -8 inches away .

Crappy tire elite

500 on sale last week for 400

Replaced the one we had same model

good enough it works

turn burners on high u til hit then turn down to cook don’t need anything over 75000 btu

not really fancy but bought a new propane 20 lb bottle and my old cover works

Priceless as they say I am happy

Same here. I only use it once in a while. It's not worth it to use it for one burger or two. I have a small portable one that I use it. It heats up faster and uses less propane. I bought an adaptor so that I can use it with the larger tank.

Got a big one with all the bells and whistles at the lake, where we can have as many as 20 people out there. But for the wife and I in the city we just have a little Broil Mate. Got it from Home Depot 8 years ago. Room for 4 hamburgers or 2 steaks. It gets used lots as keeps oven heat outa the kitchen. Needs to be replaced this year it’s burned out. There $140 now. We will get same one. Only complaint is when it gets colder in late fall it doesn’t have enough BTUs to cook well. Throws the timing out when cooking to get perfect steaks. Still can be done just have to keep watch more so as to not over cook.

Costco had Napoleon or Weber camping models 2 years ago (and probably last year and this year) Smaller, came with a build in dolly/cart stand. Awesome for camping but also works real well as just a stand alone BBQ.

If smaller but good is what you are after get a Weber Q.
mine is +20yrs old and only had to change out the regulator once.
WDF

Depending upon where you live there are often a number of higher end bbqs cheap on FB marketplace or Kijiji.

People move, pass away, downsize, buy a brand new one.

Napoleon and Weber are the mainstays of higher end.

The reason between a cheap bbq and an expensive one is the ability to hold heat for more even cooking.
Open the lid of a Weber and then open the lid of a stainless steel crappy tire one. You’ll feel the heft to the Weber.
On the Weber, you can keep the flames low and the heat will cook the food. On the Canadian tire one, you have to cook it with pretty much the flames.

I agree, i had a crappy tire one and then just upgraded to a Napoleon and i cant believe the difference. i actually need to turn burners down or off to keep the heat down.

Don't get me wrong Weber is decent but they purposely put the hinge far back as possible so the lid is heavy to lift.

I bought a Napoleon 18 years ago, still using it. Haven’t done anything to it other the clean it out every 3 months or so. I go thru 2ea propane tanks each year.

I have the WeberQ 3200 its about 8 years old and I now use it mostly for quick cooking like burgers, I also have a WeberQ 1000 which is in my camper.

cant go wrong with any of those.

If I were in the market I'd definitely be going this route. It blows me away how often people will sell Weber's for under $400.

I bought my Weber S330 like 14 or so years ago for a grand. So far no indication I'll need to replace or even repair it any time soon. My father buys cheap BBQs, I think he's on #3 so far since I bought mine.

Picked up a Nexgen stainless steel countertop BBQ from costco for 150.00. Bought a new one as the one we have is 11 years old and we bought it for 100.00 and all we've done is clean it. It started to act up last fall, so we bought a new one. We used the last one all summer long at the RV Park.

BW

Already hot before lighting a burner lol

For me it comes down to use and how often I cook. The 2000 vs the 200..... yes the expensive one is better but is it 10 times better?
Is this not true of many things?
I cook outside 100 days a year between camping, the barbecue at home, and the traeger smoker.
My current grill is a Napoleon prestige ( made in Canada) and it was expensive but I, as noted ,cook a lot in all weather and it is worth it for me. No cold spots. hits 500 on 2 burners alone when I am not filling the grill. My last Vermont Castings ( Canada made back then) gave me almost 20 years and this one should as well.
The kijji advice is good as well.

Definitely true of many things, a $500 Savage Axis kills deer just as dead as a $5,000 custom rife.

I'm confusing myself by looking at all the BBQ models.

One thing I have noticed, Rona and Home Depot will atleast assemble BBQ's that are $300+ which is a nice convenience, I really hate assembling consumer products. haha

I've also noticed that a lot of the "name brand" grills seem to be fewer BTU's than their cheaper competitors. I wonder if this is just rating them more realistically or what?

I saw a "Char-Broil" grill on sale for a good price at Rona yesterday, I might consider it.

i went from a vermont castings to a napoleon portable camping BBQ when the VC expired. I cook for 4, the only think i cannot do is beer can chicken or a whole turkey for the most part

In addition to keeping heat, the biggest thing I like about the more expensive grills is look at how the thing is put together. In better BBQ's the heat dispenser thingy's sit in grooves molded into the bottom of the grill. Same as the stainless steel grills themselves.

In cheaper bbq's they spot weld flimsy tin metal to hold those things up and they disintegrate fairly quickly.

It's just me, but even if I didn't use it often, I'd buy a better bbq and know it will last, plus if the thing is made cheaply, it will just plain bug me. Sounds arrogant, but I don't mean it that way.

I think it’s worth it to buy a good one. Napoleon has a long term warranty if needed, which likely it isn’t and the bbq should last 15-20yr. Gets up to 700 degrees no problem. I’m like you, have a pellet grill and bbq. Love the quick ease of the Napoleon throughout the year when I want something cooked quick.

I have a Broil King Baron 5 burner bbq and it's great. It has a good warranty. And it was around half the price of a $2000 or so bbq.



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Nvm I just checked it's a Broil King Regal and it was over $2000.

But it's still a good bbq!

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I went through 3-4 Chinese BBQ's before I bought a Broil king Baron 4 burner 15 years ago, even heat with no hot spots makes a huge difference for cooking all the parts are still available. I found spending more upfront for quality is a better investment in the long term.

I bbq around 200 days every year , and my Napoleon has stood up well over the last 8-9 years. When it needs replacing, I will likely buy another Napoleon.

Agree with what others have said. I like my pellet grill, but it's a commitment to cook anything on it. It takes forever to heat up and the electronic control box on my Traeger has a mind of its own sometimes.

I bought a Napoleon last weekend from Costco. Cheaper than Canadian Tire and it came with the full rotisserie setup and a cover. Unfortunately, it's a propane model and Napoleon customer service says it cannot be converted to natural gas. :mad0100:

I could probably just return it to Costco. But if anyone around Grande Prairie wants a good deal on a fully assembled Napoleon LEX series propane grill used once, shoot me a PM.

I had BBQ like that bought a LP hose had a gasfitter buddy drill out the orfice to proper size, the gas is regulated at the meter.

Yeah I've thought about contacting a gasfitter. I don't think it's rocker science. But I don't want to blow up my backyard either. lol.

I went through this 9yrs ago. Just the sweetie and me. Cook on it all the time year round. Replaced the wheels, top grill heating rack thingy and the heat deflecter. Yes, it burns lots off propane in the colder temps and doesn't get as hot but, I doubt we have more than $400. into over the years.
Broil King from HomeDepot.