Goo Gone Passion Project - Do You Have What It Takes?

Goo Gone - Love the Grilling Version of Goo Gone

If you follow Barbecue Master or my Facebook page, then you may recall that I was part of the Goo Gone Passion Project. Now, you have a shot at being part of the Passion Project (really cool and fun - and details later).

Background on My Goo Gone Passion Experience

I think I was in the test group. I got an email asking if Goo Gone could send me something a little messed up. I'd just fix it up and blog about it.

Blogging is not my day job. I do that for fun. But, I try to work in people who take the time to send a personal email. In this case, I do know, use, and love the Goo Gone products. But, this is a grilling and barbecue blog. So, I said I'd help out IF it was barbecue related. I've not sold out, and I don't plan to. This blog is for the readers.

I was assured that the problem item would be in my passion area, so I said that I'd be OK with getting something of interest to my grilling and barbecue readers. I thought I'd be getting a sticky grill grate or pot - something like that. No problem. I like to help out when someone has a good product. I'm thinking a little something in a mailing bag. I often do small batch rubs or sauces just because I like to try new things and share.

Imagine my shock when a Weber Smokey Mountain Bullet (22.5 inch - the big one) was delivered to my back porch. I thought it must be a neighbor's order. But, no, my name was on there. The Goo Gone folks had smoked on the unit (sausages I think), and after I cleaned it up with Goo Gone, the premium Weber Bullet looked brand new - for real.

And, I can tell you that the smoker (our favorite now) gets a work out here. And, I can also say that Goo Gone Grill Spray really does make clean up so much easier.

So, What's Your Passion?

I wanted to update now, because Goo Gone is now taking entries for others who would like to work on a Passion Project. Maybe your passion is grilling, but you may be a weekend or holiday griller and have another passion. That's fine, because Goo Gone is not a barbecue project. It's about what you love and how Goo Gone might work for your area.

You can enter the Goo Gone Passion Project on Facebook. Again, it doesn't have to be grill or barbecue related, although I can tell you that you should try out the Goo Gone Grill Cleaner. It works great as I found out last year.

If you enter or if you are selected, let me know. I sure enjoyed being a part of the project and still can't believe they sent a smoker rather than a little grill tool or something. I also enjoyed reading the other Goo Gone Passion stories. They span all kinds of interest areas.

Goo Gone Grill Cleaner Review - #GooGonePassionProject - Cleaning My New Weber Bullet

Goo Gone Grill Cleaner

Today I'm testing out Goo Gone Barbecue Grill Cleaner as part of the #GooGonePassionProject. You are probably wondering what I mean by the Goo Gone Passion Project.

This story dates back to early July when Amber emailed. She said Goo Gone had noticed my blog and my passion for grilling. "During the next few weeks, we’d like to send you a very cool, valuable item that we think you will really get excited about. The catch is that it will come with a little imperfection that will only take a few minutes to fix," she said in her email.

To be honest, I've seen emails like this, and the exciting "thing" has turned out to be an email photo. Photos are fine, but I can't really tell readers much about something I have not seen or used. That's what makes my blog special. I try things out at home with my family, and I share the best data that I can.

I do like to help readers, so if my schedule is not too packed, I'll try out most anything, unless I'm sure I won't like it. No fig barbecue sauce. I'm sorry. I just really hate figs. So, I don't think it's fair to test something when I know it's going to make me gaggy.

In the Goo Gone case, I just asked if this "something to fix" was related to barbecue. I don't want to spam my blog with random posts that don't add value for readers. Amber replied and said that the fixer upper would be in my content area. OK. I'll see what comes and if I can fix it. Am I not the most helpful blogger you read? I sure hope so (-:

Actually, I forgot about this email, since it had been a few weeks.

Then, the FedEx man pulls in right as I'm about to get in the shower. I think the FedEx man does this on purpose. I peek out the window with only my eyes showing and see that he puts a huge box right behind my Jeep. It's almost time to go to work, and I'm blocked in. So, I shower quickly and go to examine the big box.

Wow! There's a Weber Smokey Mountain 22.5 inch behind my Jeep. I didn't order a smoker. Has this dropped from heaven? No. I did see the FedEx man, but I am rather confused as I drag the smoker box in the garage.

I also have a small package compliments of the FedEx man, so I take that inside and quickly open it before I have to head off for work. The mystery is solved. Goo Gone explains that the smoker is part of the #GooGonePassionProject.

The Barbecue Master with Goo Gone and the Weber Bullet Smoker

Now, it's the weekend, so one of my guys puts the used Weber Smokey Mountain Bullet back together, since it's disassembled to fit back in the box.

I get the Goo Gone out and get ready to test out this new grill cleaner. The Weber smoker is great (of course - I have the small one), but my real task is to find out if Goo Gone actually works.

Dirty Weber Smokey Mountain - #GooGonePassionProject

First, let me say that Goo Gone did, indeed, send me a dirty smoker. That kind of cracks me up, since I've never had a company intentionally send something dirty. But, that's the whole point of the Goo Gone Passion Project - to see if the grill cleaner works. I could certainly come up with some dirty grills to test out. SHHHH. We won't tell my Mom that. She does not believe in dirt or spider webs or dust balls.

I can attest that the overall smoker was not totally cruded up, but the lid and grates clearly needed some elbow grease.

Down and Dirty - Quick and Easy with Goo Gone

The directions from Goo Gone Grill Cleaner say to spray on the product and wait for one to two minutes. Gotta love easy and quick. But . . . will this stuff work?

Putting Goo Gone to the Test

I squirt the Weber Bullet lid with the Goo Gone with visions of smoking something tomorrow and hoping that the grease does come off without a whole lot of work.

Time to See What Goo Gone Brings to the Table (or BBQ smoker)

I begin wiping as instructed, and the grease splatters wipe off easily. Goo Gone sent the cloth for cleaning as well, and I, being the frugal type, kind of cringe about using a brand spanking new dish type cloth on a greasy grill. But, I decide to follow all the directions. The Goo Gone towel is a regular towel though, so you don't need anything special to use the product.

Let's Get a Close Up of that Goo Gone in Action

Here you can see that I'm wiping the Weber Bullet. I'm using almost no pressure. I'm not sure you can see that, but I'm vibing my hand not being put to any real test here.

Mom Would Approve of This Clean Barbecue Smoker

Here you can see that my smoker from Goo Gone looks brand new. I could put it on the store floor, and I'm sure no one would guess that it had been used for a test smoke before the cleaning.

Yes. I Can See Myself in the Smoker (and you can too in this photo).

In case you aren't sure by the full shot or are blinded by the fact that I wear pink shorts with red shoes (not to confuse a barbecue blog with a fashion blog), here is the close up of the Weber lid. If you can see any grease, then I will get my reading glasses and go back out and check again.

That's my #GooGonePassionProject report.

I do thank Goo Gone for the Weber Bullet and for the Flip video cam and maybe I can get over my shy and do some video too soon. I splatted a turkey ball right in the middle of the last video attempt - not to mention some very random and spazzy out takes that I edited out.

As always, I tell it like it is (or how I see it anyway). Goo Gone Grill Cleaner took care of the grease on the WSM smoker with almost no effort on my part. I'll be trying it out on some of my other dirty grills and reporting back, but I'm going to go thumbs up. Goo Gone worked just as promised on the test drive, and I have looked high and low for grill cleaners. My "go to" prior has been Dawn dish washing liquid (great stuff - suggested by my plumber), but that's more work than this spray which did cut through and clean up the grease.

You can read more about the Goo Gone Passion Project and check out the other stories on the Goo Gone Facebook page.