Surgeons urge people to throw out bristle BBQ brushes (2016) • Hacker News Board

Re: Surgeons urge people to throw out bristle BBQ brushes (2016)

#211

Post by koolba » Thu, Mar 29, 2018, 5:46 PM UTC

CodeWriter23 wrote: post #140

koolba wrote: post #68

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think you mixed up the order of step 2. The piece of fat should be at the end to lubricate the cooking service. Wetting it again after would be counter productive. Also I don’t recommend a regular sponge for the water cleansing step due to the materials involved not necessarily be heat safe. Soaked paper towels work great.

I would not use paper towels on the same basis you choose not to use a sponge.

It’s likely not ideal but I rather breathe and possibly consume trace amounts of burned paper than burned sponge.

EDIT: ... and immediately after writing this I googled “paper towel carcinogens” and ruined my day.

Re: Surgeons urge people to throw out bristle BBQ brushes (2016)

#212

Post by banned1 » Thu, Mar 29, 2018, 5:51 PM UTC

monkeynotes wrote: post #198

arrosenberg wrote: post #150

Earlier quoted context omitted.

None of the inconveniences you mentioned will end with you in a surgical OR having them removed from your digestive tract or worse (unless you are in the habit of swallowing toothpicks).

Don't feed the trolls :)

Sorry. Yeah, that was “trolly.” Will tone it down now. Apologies.

Re: Surgeons urge people to throw out bristle BBQ brushes (2016)

#213

Post by slantedview » Thu, Mar 29, 2018, 5:53 PM UTC

overcast wrote: post #143

I switched to using a wooden scraper a couple years ago, when I first read this report. Works great! https://www.amazon.com/Great-Scrape-Woody-Paddle-Natural/dp/...

Another alternative is a synthetic scrubber pad:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B018823HZG/

These have the added bonus of not scratching porcelain coated grills.

Re: Surgeons urge people to throw out bristle BBQ brushes (2016)

#214

Post by lr4444lr » Thu, Mar 29, 2018, 5:55 PM UTC

CodeWriter23 wrote: post #138

lr4444lr wrote: post #27

Steel wool is safer, no doubt, but this shouldn't really be anything more than a freak occurrence if you clean a grill properly. The wire brush is just the first step to remove the coarse stuff. Soap, water, and some kind of fine abrasive pad or scrubbing cleaner should remove these barbs. I guess at some restaurants, they're more concerned about speed and don't take the care...

Pretty sure steel wool will have the same issue as the steel brush.

Have you ever tried it? The forces you're applying are completely different. You're squeezing it against the wires of the grill, and it's all one connected piece of metal. If it does break, it will tear, not splinter. Plus, you want to wash off the crud you loosen anyway. Also, it's dirt cheap, You wouldn't keep an old one around for very long.

Re: Surgeons urge people to throw out bristle BBQ brushes (2016)

#215

Post by loeg » Thu, Mar 29, 2018, 5:56 PM UTC

Trav5 wrote: post #190

marklabedz wrote: post #176

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You can also get a 1x6 piece of oak (or other hardwood) from your favorite lumber yard or home improvement center. I grabbed an offcut of red oak for about $2 a year ago. Thirty seconds with a jigsaw to form a handle.

I was thinking about doing the same after I saw the parent. But just because you and I can does not mean everyone can.

Could also just slap some tape on unfinished wood and call it a handle.

Re: Surgeons urge people to throw out bristle BBQ brushes (2016)

#216

Post by alejohausner » Thu, Mar 29, 2018, 6:06 PM UTC

sizzle wrote: post #210

jcoffland wrote: post #189

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The best thing about these wooden scrapers is that they also make a great paddle to beat your unruly children with.

Or you could raise them without the threat of violence using positive reinforcement. I hope you aren't seriously beating kids....

Beating a child with a wooden scraper is more humane than using a wire bristle brush.

Re: Surgeons urge people to throw out bristle BBQ brushes (2016)

#217

Post by nvahalik » Thu, Mar 29, 2018, 6:07 PM UTC

korethr wrote: post #206

I am mildly surprised this is a problem. I've used a wire brush to clean the grill for as long as I've grilled and had no issues. But then, I've always combined using a wire brush with pre- and post-cooking heating the grill at full power to burn off accumulated stuff. The wire brush is far more effective at scrubbing things off when the crud is beginning to ash, as opposed to the partially-caramelized state it was i…

I couldn't find a wire brush when I bought my grill but was surprised to discover that the actual grill plates were "Porcelain-enameled cast-iron". I just dump them into the sink and let them soak every couple of weeks and they basically come out nearly spotless.

However, I don't normally clean them except for using a plastic brush when they are cold—mostly to get rid of the big pieces. I rather like the "seasoning" :)

Re: Surgeons urge people to throw out bristle BBQ brushes (2016)

#218

Post by robotrout » Thu, Mar 29, 2018, 6:12 PM UTC

conistonwater wrote: post #199

The caption to one of the photos is priceless: > Kevin Gallant, of Summerside, P.E.I., had part of his small intestine removed after he swallowed a bristle from a barbecue brush. He still uses a bristle brush, but inspects the barbecue thoroughly after using it. He still uses a bristle brush.

I have been paranoid about this for years, and I still use a bristle brush. But I was very selective when I went shopping for my new brush. It has very large bristles that are not likely to come off, and if they do, will be very obvious when eating or chewing. Brushes can be found with bristles of larger diameter wire gauges.

Re: Surgeons urge people to throw out bristle BBQ brushes (2016)

#219

Post by AStellersSeaCow » Thu, Mar 29, 2018, 6:16 PM UTC

When this news first came out, I tried practically all the alternatives. My personal experiences:

Wadded up aluminum foil: really does not work well. It gets loose grime off, but anything at all burnt on will take very vigorous scrubbing and possibly result in shredded foil everywhere. Also feels like a huge waste of foil.

Wooden scraper: works ok, since it's not flexible doesn't get between the slats well, need to put a lot of elbow grease in to get stuck-on stuff, and if you leave it outside in my high humidity region - even under a cover - it will get disgusting fast

Abrasive pads/steel wool - work surprisingly well, but need to be replaced constantly and it's fairly disgusting work (you will feel like you need a shower afterwards) because you are basically in the grill

Nylon brush - did literally nothing.

The solution I'm currently on is a wire brush that is continuous spirals of wire rather than bristles. Available from your preferred online merchant, etc. Does not work nearly as well as a traditional wire brush: have to use quite a bit more force, and very awkward to maneuver it between the slats. That said, it gets the job done very well and it's durable.

Re: Surgeons urge people to throw out bristle BBQ brushes (2016)

#220

Post by khedoros1 » Thu, Mar 29, 2018, 6:22 PM UTC

jcims wrote: post #115

cloverich wrote: post #92

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't think so. Its a common argument that generally available products should be safe by default, not safe because of training. The reply is a bit of a straw man, there's obviously nuances to that stance. In this case, expecting _everyone_ to know exactly how a wire brush is unsafe is not realistic. If there weren't alternatives, well, there wouldn't be much to do. But in this case, there's plenty of safe alternat…

What would such a ban look like? No wire brushes for BBQs? What about the wire brushes they have in the hardware aisle? Do they need to add 'not for BBQs' to the label? Seems like good fodder for tabloid evening news and then just let it be.

Most people are just going to go to the barbecue aisle and find the "safe" brushes. Someone really determined to buy a wire brush might find the rust-scrapers or something, but that's no different from paint thinner not being sold as a household cleaner.

It makes sense to me to make the safe option into the easiest, most obvious path to take. Stop labeling wire brushes as "barbecue brushes", and stop stocking them directly alongside the cooking tools. That's the form I imagine a ban would take.