MES 40 with stainless steel body - Is it hard to keep exterior clean and shiny?

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hkeiner

Meat Mopper
Original poster
Hi,

I like the look of the MES 40 with the stainless steel body over the MES 40 with the black body. Of course, most new and shiny things look good. Before I buy an all stainless steel MES, I thought I would ask how hard it is to keep the stainless steel body looking good (say with moderate use such as 2-3 times a month). I am thinking that if it is really hard to keep the SS body looking good (it doesn't have to look brand new, just good), then perhaps a black body would be a better choice since black may not show smoke stains and heat discoloration as much.

Any of you guys with an MES with SS body have any regrets for choosing it (over a MES with black body) due to dificulty in keeping it looking good. I am not considering the differences in price, if any, just the ease of keeping it looking good. I want to keep my wife happy and she does not want a dirty ugly smelly smoker (her words) sitting on the deck even if it has a cover on it most of the time.
 
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so far mine has been real easy to keep clean, exterior wise, i just use warm water to rinse it off and dry off with a towel, i use vinagar on the window, thats been the only thing that has worked for me on that
 
Only had to wipe mine off one time so far---like Redneck69 did.

As for the glass, I clean it every time before I use it. I just open the door all the way, so it doesn't go inside the smoker, and spray the glass with a little Windex. Then buff it with a couple paper towels. I might have to do this a couple times, if there is a good amount of smokey stuff on it. This takes anywhere from 1 minute to 3 minutes.

The only place they really get dirty is on the inside, and they are ALL stainless inside.

Bear
 
I have used mine 3 times already and cleaned it last night with a scrub and clean product. I heard of someone using a razor blade to scrape it clean and may try it next. The outside is still nice and bright.
 
I have used mine 3 times already and cleaned it last night with a scrub and clean product. I heard of someone using a razor blade to scrape it clean and may try it next. The outside is still nice and bright.
Yup, I think if you let it go a couple times, you probably need a razor blade.

I haven't had to yet, but I'm sure I will sometime.

Bear
 
For the window you may want to look into the stuff they use on Pellet stove glass windows. Come of it is caustic so rinse afterward. Other stuff is more like a cream polish. Either way, you do not want it in your food, but they do a great job on windows with a week of burnt stuff on them.
 
Just be carefull when cleaning the glass on the inside. The metal around the window is sharp! I cut my fingers a couple times cleaning it. I'm sure wearing a thick pair of gloves would prevent that.
 
I did end up buying the MES 40 with all stainless steel body with window and found that cleaning the window was easy by warming up the smoker a bit and then using a single sided razor blade to scrape off the smokey/oily build up off the inside glass. I don't bother cleaning the inside light as I don't find the light necessary during the daytime and I can use an external light to see inside the smoker during the night. I found the the MES 40 to be a great electric smoker and I am very glad that I decided to spend the little bit extra money to get one with all stainless steel body and window.
 
 IMHO. The best way to clean the window is with rubbing alcohol. Just soak a couple of paper towels in rubbing alcohol & wipe the buildup right off. Then a dry towel to shine it up.
 
 IMHO. The best way to clean the window is with rubbing alcohol. Just soak a couple of paper towels in rubbing alcohol & wipe the buildup right off. Then a dry towel to shine it up.
I gotta get some rubbing alcohol, and try that. The last time I cleaned mine, it was much heavier than usual, and I had to work too hard with the Windex!

Thanks Al,

Bear
 
I just keep a thing of Clorox disinfecting kitchen wet wipes near the smoker to clean the glass....do it while the unit is still warm and the stuff comes right off with 1 or 2 of the wipes.  also works great for cleaning the door gaskets.
 
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