Cleaning & Storing Your Fire Pit Grill and Hot Plates the Smart Way (Caravan & Camping Guide)

After a long day exploring beaches, tracks or trails, the last thing you want is a messy cleanup. Traditional fire pits leave you with greasy grill plates, dirty hot plates, and nowhere practical to store them — especially when travelling with a caravan, camper trailer or 4×4.

This guide shows the smartest way to clean and store your fire pit plates, the mistakes most travellers make, and how the Tyre Fire Portable BBQ Fire Pit completely eliminates the problems caused by traditional fire pit BBQs — including with a simple, highly effective cleaning routine using Bar Keepers Friend.

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1. Why Cleaning Matters More for Travellers Than Backyard Users

Backyard fire pits can be left dirty for days. Travellers can’t.

When you’re touring Australia, dirty grill plates create:

❌ Grease smells inside the caravan

❌ Oil contamination on bedding, clothes or food

❌ Attracting ants, flies, rodents and pests

❌ Messy tubs and bags that need constant scrubbing

❌ Rust and corrosion from improper storage

This is the #1 overlooked challenge with traditional camping fire pits.

Tyre Fire was engineered to eliminate every one of these issues — and with the right cleaning routine, maintain near-new performance trip after trip.

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2. How to Clean Your Stainless Steel Grill & Hot Plates Properly (with Bar Keepers Friend)

Tyre Fire uses food-grade stainless steel, which responds extremely well to correct cleaning — and one of the most reliable options is Bar Keepers Friend (BKF), widely available at retailers like Bunnings.

✔ Post-cook cleanup (light grease & food residue)

While plates are still warm but not hot, wipe off excess food and grease.

Wipe along the grain of the stainless steel using that cloth.

✔ Deep cleaning for stubborn stains or baked-on grease

Mix BKF powder with a little warm water to form a paste. 

Apply the paste gently with a soft cloth or non-scratch sponge, working in circular motions from centre outward.

Let the paste sit no more than 1 minute, then rinse thoroughly with clean water.

Dry completely before storing plates. Moisture left on stainless steel can lead to spotting or corrosion over time. 

✅ Important: Always clean and dry plates before storing them — especially if storing inside another compartment or transport bracket.

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3. The Problem With Storing Dirty Grill Plates Inside Your Caravan

This is where most fire pits fail.

Traditional folding or collapsible fire pits force users to store:

Grill plates

Hot plates

Windshields

BBQ racks

…in bags, tubs, drawers or front lockers. The result is:

❌ Grease smell build-up

❌ Oil soaking into fabric or canvas

❌ Potential rust or corrosion

For repeated trips and long-term use, this becomes a major hygiene and maintenance problem.

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4. Tyre Fire’s Patented Storage System + Regular Cleaning = Zero Mess, Zero Stress

This is what makes Tyre Fire stand out — especially when combined with correct cleaning:

👉 Tyre Fire stores your cleaned, dry grill and hot plates with the fire pit body itself.
👉 The fire pit mounts outside your caravan on the spare tyre — so no mess, no smell, no greasy bags or tubs inside.

Because you can clean plates quickly with Bar Keepers Friend and store them dry, you avoid all the common pitfalls of traditional fire pits. That means:

✔ No smells

✔ No grease contamination

✔ No rust or corrosion risk inside the van

✔ Plates remain ready-to-use

✔ Long-term durability for cookware and fire pit

No other portable fire pit in Australia offers this complete, ready-to-go cleaning + storage + travel system.

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5. Long-Term Stainless Steel Maintenance Tips (with BKF Best Practice)

To keep your Tyre Fire plates shiny and functional over years of camping:

✔ Rinse and wipe plates immediately after cooking while still warm

✔ Use BKF for occasional deep clean or stain removal (no harsher abrasives or chemicals)

✔ Always rinse thoroughly after BKF application — do not let cleanser sit longer than recommended. 

✔ Dry thoroughly before storage, especially before strapping it on the spare tyre.

✔ Store only once completely dry — this avoids oxidation spots or water stains

With this simple maintenance routine, the stainless steel surface stays protected and hygienic — even after frequent use.

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The Verdict: Tyre Fire + Bar Keepers Friend = Maintenance Made Easy — Unlike Traditional Fire Pits

Traditional fire pits leave you with greasy plates, dirty tubs, and constant cleaning hassle. But Tyre Fire, paired with a correct cleaning routine using Bar Keepers Friend, gives you:

🔥 Clean, safe cooking surfaces

🔥 Easy storage — outside the caravan

🔥 Zero mess, zero smell, zero contamination

🔥 Long-lasting stainless steel durability

🔥 Easy maintenance with common, low-cost cleaner

If you want the smartest, cleanest, most travel-ready fire pit in Australia — and don’t want to spend hours cleaning after every camping trip — choose Tyre Fire.