Why Does My Infrared Grill Smoke So Much [5 Easy Solutions]

To most infrared grill users, there is a common query “why does my infrared frill smoke so much?”

The problem is typically caused by building up debris on the grill. Also, for setting the temperature too high, it starts using excessive fuel in less time and emits smoke.

Troubleshooting your infrared grill smoking too much issue won’t be so hard for you as long as you have a quite effective guide. So, follow the below guide.

Why Does My Infrared Grill Smoke So Much? [5 Easy Solutions]

Here, we have discussed all the major reasons that are highly responsible for this excessive smoke. Also, we have included all the possible corrective steps to fix your grill smoking too much issue. So, don’t skip a single step below.

Note: Read to know in detail about Traeger’s smoke setting.

1. Brand New Infrared Grill

If your infrared grill is brand new and has recently been bought, it is quite normal creating excessive smoke from the grill. There use a huge amount of residue while manufacturing an infrared grill.

So, when you turn on your grill, it becomes heated up. Then, it starts burning with the manufacturing remnants and emits smoke. 

Don’t worry. The residue is non-toxic and safe, and you can continue using the appliance.

But here, you will need to apply the “Burn-in” process when you buy a new infrared grill. If you are wondering about how to apply these, follow our below instructions:

Solution:

• To remove the coating of factory debris from the grill, throw some oil over it.
• Turn on your grill and let it burn at a higher temperature.
• When the oil completely burns out, it stops smoking.
• Now, you can use your grill for cooking. 

2. Setting Heat Too High

While using the infrared grill, you set the temperature unacceptably high to cook faster many times. It is another root cause if your grill is smoking too much. Because setting the temperature incorrectly causes releasing excessive smoke. 

High heat is never recommended when you are cooking food on the grill. It may burn your dish and will never produce the exact taste that you desire.

Solution:

• Set the temperature always medium to low and cook the food slowly.
• After turning the heat down, check if the smoke is still releasing or not. If not, there may have another reason. Scroll down.

3. Dirty Grill

This seems to be the major cause behind this grill issue. Most of the cases, smoke starts emitting from the grill because of improper maintenance of the appliances. If you leave the grill unclean after barbecuing, it will stuck food residue on the grill plates. 

Next time, when you go to use the appliance, it creates smoke for those residues. Anyway, it has been quite a long since to clean your grill, go for cleaning right now.

Cleaning the grill is not hard, as long as you will take caution when cleaning. Follow our below suggestion to get a better idea:

How To Clean Infrared Grills

• Start by cleaning glass panels using a soft damp cleaning cloth. Avoid harsh cleaning tools and solutions for this.
• Now move to the stainless steel hood and panels and start cleaning it. Use any ammonia-based glass cleaner for it.
• It may seem hard to remove the residue from the stainless steel surface. In this case, it will be better to use a metal polish to eliminate this.
• Then, separate the grilling grates and remove the debris from them using a grate rake and grill brush.
• Don’t miss the drip tray, and clean it regularly.
• But the method can be applied on a regular base. In this case, you need to go through with the burn-off method to clean the infrared grill after each use.
• For this, turn in the control knob and set the temperature high.
• Now, close the lid and leave the burner on for a while. It will burn all the food debris and turn them into ashes.
• At last, turn off the burners and clean the grill in a regular method. But before, make sure the grill has been completely cool. 

4. Burning Excessive Fuel

Burning a large amount of fuel is another root cause for occurring such a smoking problem on your grill appliance.

When the control knob is turned up too high for an extended period, it takes so less time to burn the fuel of the propane tank to reach that higher heat. For this, the smoke may be emitting from the grill.

Solution:

• Turn down the control to set the heat to medium to low.
• By this, you can easily maintain the temperature of the grill. Also, it will reduce to the release of excess smoke if it is caused by burning excessive amounts of fuel.

5. Defective Infrared Grill

If all the above-suggested steps fail to prove well, be sure that there may have severe damage to the entire grill component.

This may happen if you’re operating the grill for a long year. In some cases, for roughly using the grill, the essential inside part may get defective or broken. 

Anyway, if the problem is caused by the part’s damage, it is not safe to use the grill anymore. It is time to contact manufacturers and replace the broken parts.

Or, it will be better to buy a brand new grill instead of wasting money on repairing again and again.

How Do I Stop My Infrared Grill From Smoking Too Much?

When your infrared grill starts smoking in an excessive amount, it is annoying to continue cooking food in this situation.

Here, you need to figure out the responsive factor for causing the problem first. Follow our above-assigned major reasons. Now, reduce smoke coming from your Infrared grill by following the below steps:

• First of all, if your appliance is brand new and produces so much smoke, don’t take it as a problem. Just spread out some oil on your grill and set the temperature higher. It will burn the residue on it. 
• Clean up your infrared grill, and it’s all major components properly. If the problem persists from a dirty grill, the smoke will go away easily.
• Secondly, look through the control knob of the grill. If the knob is turned up so high, be sure the problem occurs from a higher temperature. Set the temperature to the maximum level.
• Still, if you are troubled with such smoking coming from your grill, it is time to replace your outdated grill and buy a new one. As because, there may cause major damage inside the grill and will not fix by any means. 

FAQ:

Do infrared grills flare up?

An infrared grill needn’t rely on convection currents and hot air to heat the food. It has less prone to flare-ups. When the drippings from the food hit the glass, it instantly vaporized and returns with flavor-enhancing smoke. 

Do infrared grills smoke more?

It is normal to have smoke on the infrared grill if the appliance is brand new. While heating the grill, it starts to burn the manufacturing residue on it and release smoke.

How long does it take for an infrared grill to heat up?

An infrared grill heats the food directly instead of burning the air first like a traditional one. Thus, it saves a lot of cooking time and takes up to 5-6 minutes to start producing heat. 

Can you slow cook on an infrared grill?

There have versatile functions on infrared grills, and undoubtedly, you can slow cook on your infrared grill. Moreover, it is quite needed to slow-roasted to divine food’s flavor all the way through. 

Is it normal for a gas grill to smoke?

Yes, it is normal to emit smoke from the gas grill. The process may often happen while smoking your food on your gas grill. It’s part of the cooking process. But, too much smoke is unacceptable. Check if there has built-up grease on your grill.  

Do infrared grills take longer to cook?

No, an infrared grill is much quicker in cooking than a regular grill. Basically, the grill heats the food directly instead of heating the air for a prolonged time. Thus, you can cook food more quickly in it. 

Does a smokeless grill work?

Yes, a smokeless grill works if you prefer your food with limited smoke. Mainly, a smokeless grill cooks food by heating the grill tray with infrared heat. Also, most smokeless grills use infrared technology instead of fuel. 

Is it worth buying an infrared grill?

Buying an infrared grill is worth it as it is enough energy efficient. Operating and infrared cooking is safer and faster. Most importantly, it produces even heat using less fuel as well.

What is the difference between infrared and regular grills?

The main difference is in the burning procedure. An infrared grill burners cook food directly. On the contrary, a regular grill burns the air first, and then it cooks the food.

Wrapping It Up:

Throughout our discussion, we have put together all the factors for which your infrared grill smoking excessively. Also, we have given you all the simple solutions behind each trouble point.  

Hopefully, now you can easily troubleshoot your grill’s smoking too much issue by following our comprehensive guide. Still, if you have any questions and need to ask us, don’t be late to leave a comment. We will be glad to help you.

Note: You can also read how to fix Louisiana grill temperature problems.