How to Clean a Coyote Grill: Infinity Burners, Ceramic Briquettes & RapidSear Care

To clean a Coyote grill, run the Infinity burners on high for 15 minutes with the hood closed, let everything cool, then wash the laser-cut grates with warm soapy water and a soft brush. Never take a wire brush to Coyote 304 stainless or to the volcanic stone ceramic briquettes. Wipe every exterior panel with the grain, never across it.

Coyote built-ins show up in a lot of North Texas outdoor kitchens, especially in the newer builds around McKinney, Allen, Frisco, and Plano. They’re well-made grills. But most of the Coyote units our crew opens up have been cleaned like a big-box gas grill, and that’s how the briquette trays get chewed up and the stainless ends up covered in fine scratches that hold grease.

What makes a Coyote grill different from a standard gas grill?

Coyote uses interchangeable cast stainless burners and volcanic stone ceramic briquettes instead of stamped steel flame tamers, so the cleaning method that works on a Weber will damage a Coyote.

According to Coyote Outdoor Living, the SL-Series runs 20,000 BTU interchangeable Infinity Burners, a 15,000 BTU RapidSear infrared sear burner, and a 15,000 BTU rear rotisserie burner inside a 304 stainless steel firebox with a double-walled hood. That’s a lot of heat moving through parts that each want different treatment.

Three of those parts matter most when you clean:

• Volcanic stone ceramic briquettes. They sit in trays above the burners and soak up drippings. Ceramic is porous and brittle. Scrub it with steel and you break it down.
• Laser-cut stainless grates. Heavy, but the finish scratches. Scratches hold carbon and food sticks worse every cook after that.
• Infinity Burner ports. Cast stainless tubes with small drilled ports. Grease and spider webbing plug them, and you get one cold zone on an otherwise good grill.

Can you use a wire brush on a Coyote grill?

No. Coyote says so directly. According to Coyote Outdoor Living’s cleaning guide, “Do not use a wire brush on any stainless steel or ceramic surfaces.” That single rule covers the grates, the briquettes, the firebox walls, and the hood.

Here’s what to reach for instead, by surface:

Bleach and chlorine-based cleaners deserve a second mention. They pit 304 stainless. The rust-colored freckles homeowners find on a two-year-old Coyote hood usually trace back to a household cleaner, not to the grill failing. We cover the repair side of that in our guide to removing hard water spots from a stainless steel grill.

How do you deep clean a Coyote grill step by step?

A full Coyote deep clean is eight steps, and the order matters. Burn off first, disassemble second, and always finish with the firebox so debris from the parts above lands somewhere you’re going to clean anyway.

1. Burn off on high. All Infinity Burners on high, hood closed, 15 minutes. This carbonizes drippings on the briquettes so they flake instead of smear.
2. Shut off the gas and let it cool completely. Close the tank valve or the quick-disconnect at the island. Give it an hour. Do not rush this on a 100-degree Texas afternoon by hosing it down.
3. Pull the grates and warming rack. Wash in warm soapy water with a nylon brush. Dry fully. A wet stainless grate left in DFW humidity will spot.
4. Lift out the briquette trays. Flip the volcanic stone briquettes so the dirty side faces the flame next time. Tap loose ash off. Replace any that are cracked through or crumbling.
5. Clear the burner ports. Look down each Infinity Burner tube. Ports should be open and uniform. Work a stiff wire through any that are blocked. Check the venturi opening at the valve end for spider webbing, which is a real problem in North Texas and a common cause of a grill that won’t get hot on one side.
6. Leave the RapidSear alone, mostly. A light pass with the grain is all it needs. The infrared screen is the most damage-prone part in the grill.
7. Scrape the firebox and empty the grease tray. Plastic scraper, degreaser, then wipe dry. Grease that’s allowed to pool under the burners is the fire risk, not the grease on the grates.
8. Polish the exterior with the grain. Non-abrasive stainless cleaner on a microfiber towel. Follow the brushed lines on each panel. Cross-grain wiping is what leaves the swirl marks.

How often should a Coyote grill be cleaned in North Texas?

Grates and grease tray every few cooks, a full teardown twice a year, and one extra clean after spring pollen if your grill sits under trees.

The safety math is straightforward. According to the National Fire Protection Association, U.S. fire departments responded to an annual average of 12,141 home fires involving grills between 2020 and 2024, and 20 percent of grilling fires were caused by grills that had not been cleaned, the leading contributing factor to ignition. NFPA also reports July as the peak month for home grilling fires, followed by June, May, and August. Mid-August is not a slow month for this.

DFW adds its own load. Cedar and oak pollen coats a grill in spring. Hard water and sprinkler overspray leave mineral film on the hood. And a built-in Coyote sitting in an island bakes at ambient temperatures well over 100 degrees for weeks, which drives grease deeper into the pores of the stainless. We see the same pattern on service calls across McKinney, Allen, and Frisco.

What goes wrong when a Coyote doesn’t get cleaned?

The failures show up as performance problems long before they look like dirt. A Coyote that takes twenty minutes to reach searing temperature usually has plugged burner ports, not a bad burner. Uneven browning across the grate usually means saturated briquettes, not a warped grate. Flare-ups on lean chicken usually mean a loaded grease tray.

The expensive one is corrosion under grease. Old grease traps moisture against the firebox floor, and once 304 stainless starts pitting from the inside, no cleaning brings it back. That’s when a service call turns into a parts conversation. Our gas grill repair page covers what’s replaceable on a built-in and what isn’t, and our post on whether to repair or replace a built-in grill walks through the decision.

Should you clean a Coyote yourself or hire a pro?

Do the grates, briquette flip, and grease tray yourself. Bring in a pro for the annual teardown, because that’s the one where burner removal, port clearing, and firebox degreasing all have to happen without scratching anything.

Our professional grill cleaning service pulls the unit down to components, cleans each part with the right method for its material, and reassembles with a leak check. For units that have gone several seasons without attention, grill restoration and deep cleaning is the right starting point, and heavily oxidized panels may need stainless steel restoration.

Grill deep cleans start at $239. A built-in Coyote with a RapidSear burner, rotisserie, and briquette trays takes longer than a cart-style grill, so see our pricing page for current rates, or check the service areas we cover.

Frequently asked questions about cleaning a Coyote grill

Can you use a wire brush on Coyote grill grates?

No. Coyote’s own cleaning guide states that a wire brush should not be used on any stainless steel or ceramic surface. Wire bristles scratch the laser-cut stainless grates, and those scratches trap carbon so food sticks worse over time. Use a nylon or brass brush with warm soapy water, then dry the grates fully before storing them.

How often should a Coyote grill be cleaned in DFW?

Brush the grates after every cook and check the grease tray every three or four cooks. Do a full teardown twice a year, typically before grilling season and again in late fall. Add one extra cleaning after spring pollen season if the grill sits under oak or cedar, which is common across McKinney, Allen, and Plano backyards.

Do Coyote ceramic briquettes need to be replaced?

Not on a schedule. Volcanic stone briquettes are self-cleaning if you burn off on high and flip them so the soiled face points down toward the flame. Replace individual briquettes only when they crack through, crumble, or become so saturated with grease that a burn-off no longer clears them. Never soak them in water or degreaser.

Will professional cleaning void a Coyote warranty?

Cleaning a grill correctly does not void a Coyote warranty. What creates warranty trouble is damage from the wrong method, such as oven cleaner on stainless, chlorine cleaners that pit the finish, or a pressure washer forced into the burner assembly. We clean each component with the method the manufacturer specifies for that material.

Why is my Coyote RapidSear burner not glowing evenly?

Uneven glow on an infrared sear burner usually means grease has partly blocked the ceramic or metal screen, or the gas supply to that burner is restricted. Run a burn-off on high first and see if the pattern evens out. If one section stays dark after that, the burner needs to be pulled and inspected rather than scrubbed.

How much does a Coyote grill deep clean cost?

Grill deep cleans start at $239. A built-in Coyote generally prices above that starting point because the RapidSear burner, rotisserie assembly, briquette trays, and island surround all add labor compared with a freestanding cart grill. Estimates are free, so the accurate answer comes from telling us the model and how long it’s been since the last service.

Book a Coyote grill cleaning in DFW

If your Coyote is running cold on one side, throwing flare-ups, or just hasn’t been opened up in a couple of seasons, we’ll handle it. Book an appointment online or call (817) 791-4606. Free estimates, licensed and insured.

Texas Grill Clean is part of 1st Choice Residential, veteran-owned and serving Dallas–Fort Worth since 2009. 3302 Westgrove Drive, Arlington, TX 76001 · (817) 791-4606 · jeff@texasgrillclean.com