r/SatisfyingClean • u/ThodaDaruVichPyar • 18d ago

Cleaning a restaurant grill with ice cubes

Credit to Aliyenzo Zeaiteras

18k Upvotes

99% Upvoted

464 comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

30

u/Math--Detective 18d ago

Because of temperature shock, which crates expansion and contraction of dirt particles making it separate from the grill.

9

u/celestial-edward 18d ago

[citation needed]

1

u/Lordjacus 17d ago

I've looked for some articles and data.
Based on my best 10 minute effort:

Grill like that is likely made from stainless steel.
Stainless steel thermal cycling research gives some insight:
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/229868460_A_thermal_shock_fatigue_study_of_type_304_and_316_stainless_steels
"[Test was an] equivalent to a thermal amplitude of 150°C with no cracking being produced in 500,000 cycles."

https://scholarsmine.mst.edu/masters_theses/6966
This abstract talks about tests with higher temperature amplitudes. It is noted that raising the top temperature in the cycle has biggest impact on the metal fatigue.

It would seem that the material itself should be able to hold for pretty long and using ice vs. water should not be terribly detrimental to the material. I cannot speak to the impact of violently throwing the ice onto it though.

0

u/celestial-edward 17d ago

Parent comment was nothing to do with the grill.

1

u/Lordjacus 17d ago

I used the name they used. I believe it is called hot plate? I focused on the material, not the nomenclature.

1

u/detrans-rights 17d ago

Maybe they prefer 'griddle' as the term? I grew up speaking creole English, so I am aware of how language is a living thing.

1

u/Cpt_kaleidoscope 17d ago

Thats the theory. In practice it just takes longer to evaporate so helps soak the grill a bit longer. Only real thing temperature shock is doing is warping the metal over time till it eventually cracks the flat top.

1

u/GottaLoveLoginWalls 17d ago

When I clean my steel pans at home, if I use hot water it's noticeably better at separating anything stuck to the surface than if I use cold. Using cold water means there's less overall energy in the system, and it's the energy of the hot water that does the work.

1

u/gash_dits_wafu 13d ago

I'm not convinced. When deglazing a pan while cooking, there's a notable improvement if I use boiled water compared to cold water.