# Cleaning MES 40



## spursfan (Jun 29, 2016)

Ok I am new to electric smokin. My question is how well and what do you clean on the MES 40. I know the obvious water pan and drip pan but what about the walls and racks. There is alot of goodness on the racks..  Of course I want it to last a long while!


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## SmokinAl (Jun 29, 2016)

I would clean the racks & the water pan & grease pan, but I would not touch the good stuff on the sides & top.

Al


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## uncle eddie (Jun 29, 2016)

SmokinAl said:


> I would clean the racks & the water pan & grease pan, but I would not touch the good stuff on the sides & top.
> 
> Al


ditto above

Also - every single piece in my MES 40 fits in my dishwasher.


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## Bearcarver (Jun 30, 2016)

Like Al said,

Mrs Bear cleans my racks real good.

As for the rest, I clean my water pan, and then cover it with foil, so it doesn't need cleaning often. Same with the bottom drip pan.

Then I clean around the two little sensors on the back wall---One is the Temp sensor, the other is the overheat sensor.

The only thing I do with the inner walls & ceiling is if I notice any loose pieces that might fall onto my food, I take a rag & wipe it so they fall off while the smoker is empty, and not on my food.

Bear


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## sundown farms (Jun 30, 2016)

Had not thought about flakes falling from the top. Thanks for the tip.

The challenge is cleaning the glass. My goal is to keep the glass as clean as Bear's as can be seen in his Step-by-Steps. What I do is: spray with apple cider vinegar and let soak; scrap off with single edge razor; spray with more ACV; rub multiple times with fresh paper towels; spray lightly with windex and whip immediately (only way to really cut the remaining film); then lastly spray with ACV and whip off the windex. Is there an easier way?


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## Bearcarver (Jun 30, 2016)

Sundown Farms said:


> Had not thought about flakes falling from the top. Thanks for the tip.
> 
> The challenge is cleaning the glass. My goal is to keep the glass as clean as Bear's as can be seen in his Step-by-Steps. What I do is: spray with apple cider vinegar and let soak; scrap off with single edge razor; spray with more ACV; rub multiple times with fresh paper towels; spray lightly with windex and whip immediately (only way to really cut the remaining film); then lastly spray with ACV and whip off the windex. Is there an easier way?


Yeah---That black coating on the interior can dry out & flake off just like old paint, but you can wipe it down with a Dry Rag whenever it gets that way, and all the little flakes will break off & fall down.

I finally tried some Apple Cider Vinegar, and it just didn't work for me. I don't know why.

I sprayed some on & went in the house to get paper towels. When I came out it was bubbled up, and real tacky, like glue. I put more on---Same thing. Then I razored it, and sprayed some more on---Same thing. So I razored it again & cleaned it with Windex. Then I had it almost perfect, and I sprayed a little ACV, and it got bad again. Went back to Windex & it was soon Perfect.

Judging by what others have told me, there must be something wrong with my ACV, because it was a Royal PITA.

I'm going back to Windex.

Bear


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## sundown farms (Jun 30, 2016)

I do not want to misrepresent the effectiveness of the ACV--because it is not very effective. It only softens it and gets me to the point I only need to use the windex one time. I worry that the windex will leave a residue and taint the next smoke so use it to remove the heavy stuff. Maybe I am too worried about the windex if that is all you use..


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## Bearcarver (Jun 30, 2016)

Sundown Farms said:


> I do not want to misrepresent the effectiveness of the ACV--because it is not very effective. It only softens it and gets me to the point I only need to use the windex one time. I worry that the windex will leave a residue and taint the next smoke so use it to remove the heavy stuff. Maybe I am too worried about the windex if that is all you use..


There's a number of guys who swear by ACV. It just didn't work for me---Hmmmm, could it be old???

I don't worry about the Windex, because it gets buffed off until it's dry, and I never allow any overspray to blow inside.

I can understand the worry about it though----That's why I was hoping the ACV would work for me too.

Actually my favorite thing to use was Ashes from my Woodstove, but I don't have it any more.

Bear


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## big iron (Jul 3, 2016)

Sundown Farms said:


> Had not thought about flakes falling from the top. Thanks for the tip.
> 
> The challenge is cleaning the glass. My goal is to keep the glass as clean as Bear's as can be seen in his Step-by-Steps. What I do is: spray with apple cider vinegar and let soak; scrap off with single edge razor; spray with more ACV; rub multiple times with fresh paper towels; spray lightly with windex and whip immediately (only way to really cut the remaining film); then lastly spray with ACV and whip off the windex. Is there an easier way?


Best way to clean the window that I've found: Get a Magic Eraser and a bowl of warm water.  Put the Eraser in the water and don't wring it out.  Use the Eraser on the window and it comes right off!  No vinegar or anything required!!  It's a little messy, but cleans up pretty quick.  I leave the rest of the cabinet alone.  Window is always clear for the next smoke.

Brad


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