Char Broil gas grills? Weber Genesis grills?

20 years ago

Does anybody have any experience with any of the inexpensive Char-broil gas grills. I have seen them at the store for under $150. I already have a half ton Texas smoker, and a small New Braunfels grill that I use wood to cook with. However, I miss the convenience of gas for grilling hamburgers, chicken, and steaks because I can start and finish the whole cook in 20 or 30 minutes. When I grill steaks on my wood grill it takes more than an hour just to start cooking. Is the Weber Silver Genesis grill worth paying double for if I grill on it 20 times a year?

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Comments (8)

wheely_boy
20 years ago
I have had two Charbroil grills and am currently using a Weber Silver B. I cannot tell how long the Weber will last, but I got about 6-7 years out of each Charbroil. If you look at just cost, it may make more sence to buy the cheaper grills, but I believe the difference really lies in the way you can cook on the Weber vs the Charbroils. The Charbroils were effective for cooking over "direct heat" which would cover foods that cook in 20 minutes or less. With the Weber, you can effectively cook items for hours without ruining them.
If you already have grills to cook meats slowly, then the Weber may be overkill. The Charbroil should do a good job on steaks, chicken breast and thin chops.
GrillMeister
20 years ago
I have had 2 Weber Genesis Grills since 1990, replacing the first one since I had it in Germany for 5 years and I left it with a friend.

I recently bought a $800 Virco at Costco and gave my recent 8 year Genesis to another friend.

I took back the Virco to Costco today and am now shopping for a new Weber Genesis. I'll most likely get a Genesis Gold C. You cannot go wrong with a Weber!
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We had a black Genesis for 11-12 years. The grates needed replacement maybe every 5-6 years -- and that was not using a cover or taking exceptional care of them in humid Gulf Coast weather. Not a big deal, and the box itself was solid as ever. They make a good grill. It is tempting when you see larger grills for half the price, but lift the lid and look at the build and weight -- you'll get less than half the life out of it. About a month ago, we discovered the burners were in need of replacement. We could have replaced them -- I am starting to think you can keep a Weber working for a lifetime if you are willing to replace parts occasionally. But we had already decided that it was time to get a new grill and would not do more repairs. We bought a new one - -in part to get a larger one now that the boys are teens and have teen boy friends (we need to cook more burgers than before ;-) ). Our new one cooks front to back, which is good for when we are only doing something smaller like burgers for the 4 of us, but we never had an issue with the side to side. Both can work well. Hope that helps.
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Thanks for the help, everyone-- the link to the bbq forum was especially useful: those folks take their grills seriously! I think I gained a couple pounds just reading about the food they make... I think that point that this is radiant, in the 500, possibly as hot as 700 degree range, as opposed to 1200 degree infra red is very valid. The Solaires look great, but so expensive: I'm building a new house, and the line of credit might allow me to sneak one of these in, but I'm reluctant-- maybe in a couple years, after the dust has settled. If I didn't have a pretty immeadiate need for a new grill, I'd probably wait a year and see what evolves. But I do need one, and the consensus seems to be that this machine does generate higher temps than a conventional open flame burner. So I may pay a visit to HD tomorrow, and succumb to temptation...
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I have the Weber Performer. It's an awesome grill. I used a Weber kettle for years with great success, but in a moment of weakness I retired it for a Weber Genesis gas grill. Gas grilling is convenient, but it's not the same. Last year I purchased the Weber Performer to get the convenience of gas starting, but the cooking flavor/performance of charcoal. First, the propane assist is just a charcoal starter. I stack the charcoal in a compact pile over the starter and ignite it. Of course the bottom vents are wide open and the lid is off at this point. After about 3 or 4 minutes, I can hear the charcoal snapping, popping, and smoking to indicate it's "lit." I turn off the propane and let the charcoal burn down until nearly all sides are covered with fine layer of ash. Then, I knock the pile down and spread it evenly across the bottom grate for cooking. Now, I put the top grate and the lid on and open the top vent wide open. I watch the temperature climb to >400 degrees, then open the lid and brush the top grate to clean it. Close the lid and use the upper and lower vents to control the airflow and thus the temperature. After some experience, I know just about how much to close them down to hit a temperature range I'm after. This assumes you're using good quality charcoal and not using too much of it. I prefer the hardwood "lump" charcoal. The old standard Kingston briquets don't seem as high quality as they once were. If, for instance, I'm cooking hamburgers, I'll have just enough charcoal to cover the bottom grate with the chunks spaced 1/2" to 1" apart. Hamburgers cook pretty quickly. Don't use the little half-round trays Weber includes to hold the charcoal for normal grilling. Those are for special circumstances when you want indirect heat. When I'm done cooking, I close all the upper and lower vent to extinguish the charcoal. I use the leftover charcoal from the previous grilling as the base of for the next cooking and add a little more from the bag to make the pile I want. If you aren't getting to the temperature you want, you may have crappy charcoal, inadequate airflow, or impatience.
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sscutchen
20 years ago
I agree with GrillMeister.

I bought my first Genesis 3000 when Weber first started making them in the 80s. I had a traditional Charbroil, and the aluminum castings corroded to where the whole thing turned white. Also, the "H" shaped pressed-steel burner corroded to where I had very little heat control. And the chrome wire grills lasted maybe a year.

The engineer in me really liked the Genesis design with the pipes for burners, the flavorizer bars and the porcelain coated parts. I did the math, and if the Genesis only lasted up to its warranty, it was cheaper to own the Genesis than to buy Charbroils like the one I had.

That Genesis lasted over 10 years. I'm now on my second Genesis; a 1000, which is about 8 years old or so. (I found I didn't use the external burner)

I've replaced the bars and grates with stainless parts. And this past weekend, I replaced the rails that the bottom tray slides on. Weber sent those to me at no charge.

If I were buying a new grill now, it would be a Silver C. I wouldn't spring for the Gold, cause the SS lid is not that big of a deal to me. I can replace the bars and grates in stainless if I need to down the line. I wouldn't spring for the Summit series, 'cause it's a lot more money for something that is not much more functional. It does look cool, though...

The Silver Weber is a great cooking machine.
Dawn_in_Va
19 years ago
sscutchen,

what is the cost for this Weber? Thanks Dawn
sscutchen
19 years ago
Amazon has the Silver B for $449 The C has the external berner for another $50

Here is a link that might be useful: Silver B at Amazon
cajun_cat
19 years ago
If you love to bar-b-que you need to check out this site.
I bought two of them for my charcoal/gas and my char-broil gas grill and now I don't have to worry about any stain on my deck which my husband just built.
The site is www.grilltrap.com

cajun cat
satibrka_aol_com
12 years ago
My gas grill turned over last night and when I push the ignition button flames come out the vents in front but the bars don't light at all. What's wrong with my grill? Please help
ybest56_yahoo_com
12 years ago
I totally agree with everyone on the Weber, I too ,have owned the weber genesis silver since 1990. It's still going strong even now 2011,lol....Looking at it today, i wonder if i could give it a face lift, changing some parts and such,but I can't seem to find out what model number it is.Anyone happens to have the same one like mine ? the side server and the handle are grey wooden slat instead of plastic.

Char Broil gas grills? Weber Genesis grills?

Comments (8)

wheely_boy

GrillMeister

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