What is Causing My SearMagic Grids to Warp?
There are several benefits to owning a grill with the SearMagic Cooking Grids
Our SearMagic Grids are made of Anodized Aluminum. Anodized materials have an extremely long life span and do not chip or peel. This material has been used to protect satellites from the harsh environment of space, to harden automotive racing parts against friction and heat, as well as for display cases, coolers, and products used in the food industry—such as our SearMagic grids.
Additional grilling benefits include:
- Increase Searing Capabilities
- Reduce Flare-ups
- Constructed of Rust-Free Anodized Aluminum
- Heats Up Faster
- Grills Food at a Uniform Temperature
- Reversible Design Allows You to Grill Delicate Foods on the Flat Side
There are some maintenance steps that need to be performed to keep your grids in tip-top shape and minimize the risk of warping. Below are several reasons that could cause warping of a SearMagic grid when the proper maintenance is not performed routinely on the grill. Warping of SearMagic grids can be easily remedied and is typically not covered under the warranty.
POSSIBLE CAUSES OF WARPING
Not thoroughly cleaning the grids between uses
Grids that have food & grease build-up over a long period of time will not allow the heat to escape efficiently through the slits in the grid. This creates an excessive build-up of heat causing the grid to warp. Allowing grease to build-up can also lead to damaging grease fires.
By not maintaining and cleaning your SearMagic grids you can greatly increase the chance of a grease fire which can severly elevate grill temperatures and cause grid warpage.
The use of aluminum foil to cover the entire grid for the purpose of cleaning.
Some may suggest to cover or wrap your grid with aluminum foil in order to concentrate the heat to char the build-up on your grids in an effort to make it easier to clean. While this process may work successfully on stainless grids this process should not be used for our anodized aluminum cooking grids. This process concentrates the heat directly on the grids and could cause warping.
A bad burner that needs replacing can cause excessive hot spots.
A burner that needs to be replaced creates intense heat in areas that have rusted through. Burners should be inspected regularly to make sure there are no areas of rust through. The practice of inspecting and cleaning your burner annually will also keep grills heating uniformly.
How to Straighten Warped Grids
If your grids have a slight bow in them you can straighten by simply placing your grid on a hard, flat surface with the bowed side up. Push down or stand on the center of the bow until straightened.
If you are are unable to straighten your grids using the above steps, or you have a severe bow, try the following steps.
Please use caution and wear protective gear for your hands when performing these steps.
- Heat your grids in your grill on high for approximately 10 – 15 minutes
It may be easiest to heat the grids one at a time allowing enough room in our grill for the steps that follow - Once your grids are hot remove one grid at a time, while wearing a pair of oven mitts, and wrap in an old bathroom towel
Wrapping the grids in a towel helps to protect them (and you) while performing the following step - Place your hot wrapped grid on a hard flat surface like a concrete driveway or sidewalk with the bowed side up
It’s very important to make sure your that your grids are still hot for the next step to prevent cracking them - You can either push down or stand on the center of the bow in your grid to gently manipulate it flat
◦ Follow the above steps for each of your warped grids.
◦ If your grids have a severe warp, you may need to repeat the steps again.
