Tools of the Trade: Char-Broil Brush Hawg family review

Lets face it, cleaning your grill can be a real pain in the ass. Not everyone remembers to clean it after use, mainly because whatever you just spent your precious time cooking (not to mention staring at and smelling) is headed for a one-way trip on the Stomachtown Express within minutes of coming off the flames.

Grill brushes are the usual weapon of choice in this endless war of a clean cooking surface, but they aren't exactly high tech device. Most are good for a few weeks of use but then become so worn down or caked with food bits, sauce sludge and carbon that their usefulness becomes limited. Some of the even lesser quality ones fall apart during use. I know I've owned dozens over my lifetime, and some were only good for a few uses before being fired out the door for a new model.

I've had the same brush for three seasons now, and it’s endured some seriously heavy use. Tossing those crappy brushes when you get a new one is a thing of the past with this monster.

The Char-Broil Brush Hawg has been out for a few years now, and although it is priced slightly higher than some of its competitors offerings, this is money well spent for a multitude of reasons.

• The handle is noticeably longer and bigger around than most. Listen, I like not having to pluck the hair on my hands as much as the next guy, but the smell of it burning off can be kind of distracting when you're trying to cook. Savages can turn the heat down on their propane grills to clean them, but charcoal users are stuck once the coals get hot. Save the flesh on your hands for food-rescuing maneuvers that will impress your friends and get yourself one of these brushes instead. At 19” of overall length, you can clean even some of the largest grill surfaces without harming your delicate skin. The added diameter is good for people with larger paws as well, and you can even two-hand it if you need some serious force.

• The hook on the end is better than an eyelet. Not only can you hang it from just about anything (most notably the metal behind the handle on a Weber kettle grill), you can use it to lift up the grates to add more coals when you misplace your gloves again. You can even use it to scrape the grate underside if you have blackened stalactites from previous delicious adventures hanging down. Most grill brushes are useless when it comes to this--you can scrape the top all you want or even try to catch them on a diagonal, but they are never going to come off without a fight.

• Two scraping blades on the front are better than one. Anyone who has used a brush in the past without a scraper knows that the wire brush sometimes won't get all the crap off the grate. You can nosedive while brushing to scrape those problem areas, or invert the brush for some serious downward pressure on the ones that you should have cleaned off weeks ago.

• Replaceable heads mean the cleaning fun never has to end. No more throwing brushes in the trash, there is enough stuff clogging up the landfills--not to mention the money you could be saving to spend on your next BBQ. It should also be mentioned that the bristles are a hell of a lot more durable and denser than almost any brush I've ever used. The first head lasted well over a year, and the bristles wore down more than they bent. More on this later.

• The entire unit is dishwasher safe. I don't own one, but I'm betting some of our readers do. Nice to know if it ever comes up.
  

When you finally wear through the first set of wire bristles (it won't happen quickly unless you're doing something really wrong) you have quite a few options.

1. The O.G. Stainless bristles- a pack of two stainless steel heads of the same quality as the one that came with the brush. MSRP on Char-Broil's site is listed as $8.99, but our friends at Lowes think just under 4 bones is a fair price.

2. Scouring Pads- really good for cleaning your grill before cooking something that likes to stick to the grates, like fish. Don't be a fool and use it on a hot grill, you won't be pleased with the results. This comes in a pack from Char-Broil direct with one stainless brush (MSRP $5.99), but Lowes bounces back with the nice price at $3.97.

3. Wire mesh heads- available as a replacement but I've never seen these in the store, so I don't know what they're for. I could make something up but I might be wrong. I contacted Char-Broil about it and will post an update here when they hit us back. The MSRP is $4.99, but no local retailers I've seen have them.

Now, a few notes on buying one of these bad boys, as I'm sure you've been swayed by its overwhelming merits. Home Depot sold them as recently as a few weeks ago, but no longer lists them online. I'm not going to the store to check for you, so use a phone or go yourself. At the time this review is going live, Lowes has dropped their online price to $8.97, which makes it even more of a worthwhile investment. Other retailers include Amazon and K-mart. Somewhere near you probably has one on the shelf, get out there and look.

Still not convinced? Char-Broil wasn't done there, they wanted to make sure even people with larger grills felt the love. The new Mega Brush Hawg uses the same replaceable heads as the original but uses them two at a time. It would also be ideal to hit your roommate on the head with when they use your grill and forget to clean it. Lowes sells this for just under a ten-spot, I'm sure the three of you out there with Weber Ranch Kettles will appreciate the time you'll save. For only a couple bucks more it might be the right way to go.

Because good things come in small packages (and sometimes that extra elbow grease is necessary) they also make a Hedge Hawg, the handle-free midget Brush Hawg cousin. The soft ergonomic grip keeps your hands from getting tired during those long scrubbing sessions in the spring, and is a hell of a lot better for cleaning the gunk on some parts of the inside of the grill than something with a long handle. The whole thing fits right in your palm, and was designed to be used on a cold grill. As you might be able to guess, it also uses the same brush and scrubbing heads as the rest of the Hawg line. Char-Broil must really love us to treat us this well.

Although Char-Broil states on their site (as well as product packaging) that these products are “safe for all grate types”, many grill manufacturers will tell you not to use anything made of stainless steel on a porcelain cooking grate. Its your grill, do what you want...but don't say I didn't warn ya.

Now get off the internet and go outside and cook something!