For all those folks getting ready to fire up the grill for the holiday weekend, there’s one thing you might do before you break out the hamburgers, hot dogs, and donuts — clean your grill. But before you set to scrubbing, consider this: an estimated 1,700 Americans went to an emergency room between 2002 and 2014 after having ingested wire bristles hidden in grilled food. [More]
grills
Hamilton Beach Grill Assembles Quickly, But Not In 10 Minutes
By 5.2.16
When a product advertises that you can assemble it in 10 minutes, should you take their word for it? Our wrench-wielding colleagues down the hall at Consumer Reports decided to test Hamilton Beach’s claim that a customer could assemble one of their gas grills in 10 minutes, equipped with only a screwdriver, but with the help of a friend. Their verdict? The grill doesn’t take as long to assemble as similar products, but it takes more than 10 minutes. [More]
The Backyard Barbecue Isn’t As Popular As It Used To Be
By 9.4.15
Though visions of hamburgers and hotdogs may be dancing through your head as we approach the Labor Day holiday weekend, the heyday of the backyard barbecue has come and gone, some say, partly because of the high price of beef. [More]
Consumer Reports Rates Brinkmann Patio Grill ‘Don’t Buy’ For Now
By 4.22.15
Here in the Northeast, there are now mere weeks until grilling season begins. Safety is very important when you’re lighting an actual fire a short distance from your house, and our fire-roasted colleagues down the hall at Consumer Reports test the gas grills that they review for their cooking power and their safety. One grill this season failed one of the safety tests, and for now they’ve given the Brinkmann Patio 810-6230-S a “Don’t Buy” rating. [More]
Going Beyond The Tongs: The Ham Dogger, Pizza Oven Box And Other Grilling Gadgets
By 7.3.14 — Updated: 6.30.17
You’ve got your apron, your tongs and your basic tools to turn, poke and otherwise keep your meats, veggies and other grilling ingredients happy while you cook up a summer feast. But you’re not limited by the usual fare of basic hamburgers, kebabs and hot dogs. Not with things like a pizza oven box and a plethora of other unnecessary but nonetheless existing gadgets. [More]
Give Your Gas Grill A Checkup Before Summer Begins
By 5.6.14 — Updated: 5.2.17
Around my suburban neighborhood, the smell of grilled meat is beginning to waft from backyards. Here in the Northeast, we pack our grills away for the off-season. Now that it’s May, we’re fairly certain that it’s not going to snow anymore, so most people are bringing their grills out of hibernation. How can you make sure that yours is in safe working condition for meat season? [More]
Lowe’s Assumes Everyone Owns Pickup Trucks, Still Pre-Assembling Most Grills
By 4.15.13 — Updated: 9.18.14
Daryl left his grill behind the last time he moved, which was very sad. Now he’s a homeowner and wanted a new one as the grilling season kicks off in the Northeast, where he lives. Still in the box. To assemble himself. If you’re a longtime Consumerist reader, you see where this is going. [More]
Sears Offers Great Gas Grill Price Match That Goes Up In Flames After Pickup
By 10.18.12 — Updated: 9.18.14
It’s fall, which means that it’s time for apple cider donuts, driving around to peep at leaves, and summer merchandise on clearance. Paul’s dad caught a really great deal on gas grills, and bought one for him and one for himself. We wouldn’t expect this to be successful, but he managed to get Sears to price-match the sale price then at Kmart.com. Victory! But Sears being Sears, the promised refund disappeared, and Sears magically forgot that their employee had ever promised the price-match. [More]
Sears Helpfully Pre-Assembles Your Grill So It Won’t Fit In Your Car
By 4.20.11 — Updated: 5.2.16
The bad news: Sears has started channeling the Geek Squad, pre-optimizing all merchandise in stock before customers have a choice in the matter. The worse news: they’re failing at it terribly. Ron tried to purchase a gas grill on sale at Sears. He placed his order online for instore pickup, only to discover that all of the grills in stock were already assembled. Fine, except an already-assembled grill won’t fit in his car. The only bright spot for consumers: unlike Geek Squad, Sears doesn’t even have the foresight to charge for the optimization service. [More]
Best Recession Bargains From Consumer Reports
By 5.28.09
We know, we know: everyone’s poor. But just in case you want to offer your favorite retailer a little economic stimulus, Consumer Reports has rounded up a lot of discounts and deals on luxury purchases like cruises and basic things like, uh, a house. Our favorite tips, inside.
Grocery Shrink Ray Extends To Propane Refills
By 5.25.09
When the cost of propane shot up to $1.70 or more per gallon last year, propane dealers quietly cut the amount they were putting into refilled tanks without telling customers. Now the cost of propane is under a dollar per gallon, but retailers aren’t increasing the amount back to previous levels.
