Aug 272013
Char-Broil 36,000 BTU 3-Burner Gas Grill, 522 Square Inch with Side Burner
- 36K BTU Main burner + 12K BTU side burner
- 380 Square Inch cooking area + 170 secondary = 522 total
- Durable porcelain steel lid and firebox
- Metal Shelves
- Fast & EZ Assembly
- 380 square inch primary cooking area; 174 square inch raised secondary area (574 square inch total)
- Also includes 12,000 BTU side burner for warming buns or cooking sauces
- Compact grill with three independent burners and 36,000 BTUs of heat
- Porcelain-coated wire cooking grates, durable porcelain steel lid and firebox
- Powered by liquid propane
Grill flavorful food for a large group with this grill that features 3 burners that deliver 36,000 BTU’s of heat and has 545 square inch of total cooking surface. The 12,000 BTU side burner provides extra work space and 6inch wheels allow easy movement. Other features include porcelain-coated steel lid and firebox, piezo push button ignition and built-in temperature gauge. Includes side burner (view larger). The affordable Char-Broil 3-Burner Gas Grill (model 463722312) offers 545 square i
List Price: $ 229.00
Price: $ 110.00
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Impressive Grill, Weak Foundation, Arrived Damaged,
Pros:
- Thermometer
- Three independent burners
- Tool Storage
- Easy propane tank attachment
- Price
- Excellent customer service
Cons:
- Structurally deficient, see photo
- Cosmetic damage
- Defective Ignitor, not true see edit *
I started looking for a new gas grill late summer 2011. I had problems with ground squirrels getting into my grill and tools. All I could find at various big boxes were monster contraptions costing many 100′s of $$$. So when the 463722311, catchy model name, showed up on one of the bargain sites for $94 shipped, I jumped on it.
THE GRILL:
Fundamentally this is a very solid gas grill with flaws in design of the support frame and numerous quality issues getting a perfect product to the customer. The basic gas grill was preassembled and it slid into the frame you assembled from the many parts using a well-illustrated manual. Both the top and bottom of the firebox were heavy gauge steel shells. The burners, tent flame shields, upper wire shelf and grill racks are then inserted inside the shells, all exhibiting a been there – done that before professionalism. All the steel pieces were coated in porcelain, easy to clean and durable. I’ve yet to fully master all the subtleties of grilling on the 463722311, but I’m convinced that with the thermometer and 3-burners it won’t take me long.
* Since I started using the 463722311 2-months ago I’ve grilled steaks, chicken, brats and burgers at least twice each and the combination of the three independent burners and the thermometer allows repeatable control. Some things just need fast grilling whereas other need baking. I always grill in the center with a single grate, this allows me to move the grilled item over the flame tent, away from direct flame. I then adjust the outer burners for the interior temperature. Easier to do than explain.
STRUCTURE:
The frame that supports the firebox lacked basic structural elements to prevent parallelogram collapse on the right side. A simple triangular brace is all that would be required. Instead, Char-Broil wasted three pieces of wire to exclude a propane tank from being placed under the firebox. Any of those three wires could have braced the frame from collapse. I added a steel strap, crude but functional, see photo.
DAMAGE:
The grill had numerous dents, dings and bends in many of the thin gauge steel parts. The worst dent was in the upper firebox shell. It had a large dent from the inside out. It’s as if someone took a ball peen hammer with full force struck the shell. The dent fractured the porcelain coating inside and out. In addition, the control panel was heavily scuffed in the right corner leaving a thumb size area with the paint removed. Everything was well packaged in cardboard and/or Styrofoam. The outer carton had almost no damage when it arrived. None of the packaging material showed any damage. All this leads me to believe that the damage occurred prior to shipment and were packaged that way by Char-Broil.
IGNITOR:
The piezo crystal push button ignitor didn’t work. I saw one blue spark in one hundred attempts. I used the interactive PDF ignition questionnaire and ended up at the 800 number. I called customer service and except for the accessory up selling the process was smooth and painless. New ignitor should arrive in a week. Installing it into the tight space above the gas manifold will be non-trivial.
* After receiving the replacement ignitor which also didn’t work, I figured out the problem. I assumed that the ignitor had two parallel circuits for the side and main burners . . . wrong. The two electrodes are in series. By not installing the side burner, I defeated the ignitor function, I should have grounded the side burner wire to the frame.
MORE:
While the 463722311 has no designed in tool storage, I had no need for a side burner, so I converted that compartment into tool storage, see photo. I purchased a 1/8″ pipe plug to block the gas port for the side burner. The propane tank has a hook and v-notch attachment over the axle, quick and simple.
I deducted 2 stars for the defective ignitor, weak structure and all the damage. The 463722311 could have easily earned 5 stars except for those problems. My spell checker likes igniter, but Char-Broil spells it ignitor in their manual?
*Edit 2-15-12 I bumped my rating one star.
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|Just what we wanted!,
The only issue we have had so far with the grill is that it came in damaged. We didn’t realize the full extent of the damage until it was already completely assembled. The parts were bent but we bent them back with pliers but the big issue was that the igniter button had to be put back together and that part of the grill is bent in so hopefully it will still work. Otherwise it is an awesome looking grill! I will put up an update if the grill will not ignite due to the shipping damage.
Update!
The grill works like a dream despite the cosmetic issues. This is a great grill for the price! It works very well and lives up to my high standards after owning a Weber grill!
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|Simply fantastic,
I shopped around for quite a while for my grill. The problem I had were all the negative reviews. It did not seem to matter which grill I looked at, I would find some horrific tale of woe. I finally gave up and told my wife and daughter to surprise me. This was the choice and I have used it almost every day for a week straight. It is a terrific grill. It cleans up easy and I have never had food come off so evenly cooked. I am not a technical guy. I’m a writer. I don’t know specs or anything else. What I do know is that it works great, looks nice and, and is plenty sturdy for big racks of ribs and such.
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