Mel B Posted June 3, 2010 Share Posted June 3, 2010 Okay - has anyone got one of these useless contraptions! I like a bit of toast in a morning but it looks like I ain't gonna get it. >:-( I tried the ruddy useless thing again today and it didn't worry the bread much at all. There is gas getting through and the burner has nice flames coming out of the jets all around but the mesh above the jets is only getting slightly red at the ends, nothing in the middle, on either side - I assume that in order to work the mesh should heat up and go bright red as this would then radiate the heat down to the bread? If not, then I haven't a clue how it's supposed to work! If anyone has one of these can they please inspect it and tell me if it glows all the way along ... This is the one we have: Smev grill Ta :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davenewellhome Posted June 3, 2010 Share Posted June 3, 2010 We have found this to be the case with most types of caravan/motorhome grill. More a device for making stale bread slowly than for making toast! We now have a stove top toaster that sits over one gas ring and its excellent (at least that's what the gaffer says. D. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
art338 Posted June 3, 2010 Share Posted June 3, 2010 MelB If you have an engineer in the family or next door ask him to have a look and possibly bend the offending metalwork so that the flames act upon it, failing that a larger piece of the same material may collect more of the flames. And where do you find the same material, not sure apart from a scrapped one or the manufacturer. Your description on how the metal heats to red is correct. art Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cronkle Posted June 3, 2010 Share Posted June 3, 2010 We have , today, discovered that the said grill is an excellent bin for the storage of two full sized loaves. We make toast on the hob using a Gelert contraption that cost about two pounds. Expensive storage, I know, but the best use I can find for the equipment in question. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Grumpy Posted June 4, 2010 Share Posted June 4, 2010 We too have one of these things. However we find that a bit of patience helps, but this is OK as Her indoors is usually still in bed! The first two pieces of bread have to be directly under the flame on the top most side of the wire rack. After about 5 minutes I swap them over so the out side edges of each slice are then adjacent. When done (the right shade of brown for you) turn them over. The second side takes about half the time of the first. From then on things get much quicker to such an extent it is actually possible to burn the toast. Yes I know this is difficult yo believe but it has been done! If the above does not work I'd say you either have a faulty unit or low gas pressure. Also make sure the small single jet on the end of the burner is alight, if not something is seriously wrong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Tracker Posted June 4, 2010 Share Posted June 4, 2010 I have found that standing the grill pan on one or two ceramic tiles sometimes raises the bread enough for it to feel the warmth enough to at least dry it out if not exactly burn it! Ceramic tiles are quite heat resistant too and it pays to sand off the backs of them and round off their corners so that they don't scratch any surfaces. That said we now use two of the mesh racks that sit on the top burners as they are quicker and easier to use and cost about a fiver each! Happy toasting! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy_C Posted June 4, 2010 Share Posted June 4, 2010 Ours is similar but is the combined oven/grill unit. You do need a bit of patience, our grill burner takes a while to heat up enough to do toast properly, it does glow red all the way along the diffuser after about 5 minutes. If yours never glows red all the way along the diffuser I would suggest that there's something wrong with it, or your gas pressure is too low. Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colin Posted June 4, 2010 Share Posted June 4, 2010 I've said this before. The only MH grill I've used that was any good was in NZ, the burner on this was a ceramic 'matrix' as used on gas fires like Supersur. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JudgeMental Posted June 4, 2010 Share Posted June 4, 2010 this is all yoiu need for very fast and good toast....the gerart 4 toaster rack is very poor in comparison. http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Folding-Camp-toaster-/310192044609?cmd=ViewItem&pt=UK_Campervan_Caravan_Accessories&hash=item4838e2fa41 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mel B Posted June 4, 2010 Author Share Posted June 4, 2010 Got one of those single slice fold down ones thanks judge, I agree the 4 slice ones are totally useless. Tried raising the bread as high as I could using a baking tray, no use, the bread throws crumbs at it to taunt it!!! (lol) Hubby has already suggested doing some 'adjustment' to the mesh but before he attacks it I wanted to make sure its not faulty, lookslike it's a waste of space, if I can get a suitable door I might bin the ruddy thing (ebay ?). Not a happy bunny... >:-( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Freewheeler Posted June 4, 2010 Share Posted June 4, 2010 We have never had any problems with making toast in all the years that we have been motorhoming. Our current van has a Smev oven/grill and it works perfectly, everytime. I'm sure that Mels grill must be faulty, and it just might be the gauze that isn't in the correct position. I can't believe that we have just been lucky, even any works vans fitted with grills , that I have used, have all been fine for making toast. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest pelmetman Posted June 4, 2010 Share Posted June 4, 2010 This is interesting, so progress in making toast has not improved for twenty years (lol) (lol) (lol) I suspect the makers are more interested in making old mechanics look shinney new and up to date rather than making it work (lol) (lol) (lol) (lol) We put a tin plate under our toast rack B-) Regards Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yrocker Posted June 4, 2010 Share Posted June 4, 2010 There is an apocryphal story that to write in zero gravity NASA spent a fortune on inventing a ball point pen with a pump system while the Russians used a pencil! Why not just get an electric toaster :-S Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mel B Posted June 4, 2010 Author Share Posted June 4, 2010 Nice idea but .... what prey tell would I plug it into when I'm not on hook up? :-S We rarely do sites or if we do prefer the ones without all the facilities (ie basic CLs). We'll just have to fight for the single hob top one! :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davenewellhome Posted June 4, 2010 Share Posted June 4, 2010 JudgeMental - 2010-06-04 12:11 PM this is all yoiu need for very fast and good toast....the gerart 4 toaster rack is very poor in comparison. http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Folding-Camp-toaster-/310192044609?cmd=ViewItem&pt=UK_Campervan_Caravan_Accessories&hash=item4838e2fa41 That's the one we (well she who cooks and will be obeyed (sometimes :D ) use and its fantastic so I'm told. When we converted our van we actually opted for a cooker with an oven and four burners but no grill simply because neither of us has ever found one that could do anything but accelerate the decomposition of bread. D. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silverback Posted June 6, 2010 Share Posted June 6, 2010 hi Mel, cant help you on the grill, but it does sound faulty, and i might be stating the obvious but its a new van so what have the people where you bought it from have to say? surely a warrenty issue? jonathan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jhorsf Posted June 6, 2010 Share Posted June 6, 2010 try corn flakes instead :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lennyhb Posted June 7, 2010 Share Posted June 7, 2010 Mel welcome to the world of modern Caravan/Motorhome grills. Our Dometic grill does not even have big enough flames to get more than 10% of the wire mesh red. We use the same bit of kit Judge uses for toast, makes lovely toast, toast like it used to when made with a toasting fork in front of the fire. Last night fired up the grill in anger, there we were parked up on the quayside of a nice little French fishing village not far from Calais, nice entrecôte steak in the frying pan, run out of room on the hob so thought I would grill some tomatoes. That was a stupid idea 15 min later all I had was luke warm tomatoes, good job I didn't put the steak on until the tomatoes had been under the grill for 13 mins. We have had caravans in the past where the grills although not wonderful they have been usable but that was in the days when you ran propane at 37mb & butane at 28mb. With both butane & propane now running at 30mb are the people who say their grill is OK using butane? Maybe I'll get an old German 50mb regulator & put it on the 2nd gas bottle & plumb just to the grill. >:-) >:-) >:-) >:-) >:-) >:-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mountain_Biker Posted June 9, 2010 Share Posted June 9, 2010 I have the same problem, but not a SMEV. It is down to gas pressure, they changed the regulators to a lower pressure and it affected the grills. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mel B Posted June 12, 2010 Author Share Posted June 12, 2010 Success!!!!!! Managed to get something resembling toast, total time about 10 minutes, this was after some 'adjustment' of the grill by my husband ... further work needed but at least we have toast and this is the evidence to prove it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ips Posted June 13, 2010 Share Posted June 13, 2010 Hi, what did hubby adjust ? Ours is same, well it works ok as long as its been on for about 10 mins kind of got used to it now but if theres a fix. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
art338 Posted June 13, 2010 Share Posted June 13, 2010 I do believe that's what I suggested, making sure what flames there were actually reacted ON the grill to make it RED. Any flame acting on fresh air does nowt. I doubt the gas tubing and orifices can be adjusted so the only answer is to bend the grill closer to the flame. How close it matters not as long as long as they heat to RED which is the activating ingredient to make your bread burn (toast). art Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
odinslad Posted June 21, 2010 Share Posted June 21, 2010 Have you tried one of these. Great for grilling meat/fish/kebabs etc but also for toasting bread. Uses gas canisters usually 4 for £5 or thereabouts. www.firebox.com/product/2119/Barbegrill Not sure how to put on picture of this item. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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