Scrub Daddy is a social media sensation

Here’s the part nobody mentions

Scrub Daddy is a social media sensation

Here’s the part nobody mentions

By now you’ve probably seen Scrub Daddy.

 

It’s one of the new generation of grill cleaners that use steam rather than potentially dangerous metal bristles to clean your grill. And while it’s probably the most hyped steam brush out there, it has serious design flaws that paid social medial influencers conveniently omit!

 

So let’s break this down honestly and show you the tool that beats Scrub Daddy on every point except Tiktok fame. Here are the 6 key points you need to know before you part with your hard-earned cash

1. Does it actually work?

Scrub Daddy

Steam sponge works awesome — it melts grease fast and lifts grime better than a bristle brush ever could. But the sponge is floppy, the oversized curved handle makes it hard to maneuver in tight spots, and the tool is so large that it hits the warming rack on the back of many grills.  The overall handle design is so awkward that corners, back areas, and anything under the warming rack are pretty much out of bounds.

Grill Stripper

Steam sponge works just as well here, but the tool is far more compact, though just as long as Scrub Daddy. The sponge is narrower and longer, so it actually fits into tight spots, back corners, and around hardware without the awkward gymnastics required by Scrub Daddy’s large arched handle which is more reminiscent of a weed wacker!

2. How easy is it?

Scrub Daddy

Piece of cake.  Traditional bristle brushes clean with muscle, which means effort.  But with a quality steam brush such as Scrub Daddy, the steam does the work.  Literally a fraction of the effort required with a bristle brush!  But again, the sponge is loose which causes it to stutter or flop over when scrubbing baked on crud which is frustrating.  Also the high-arched handle makes it impossible to use two hands without smashing your knuckles against the warming rack if your grill has one.  And it’s a lot harder to scrub with just a single hand!

Grill Stripper

Scraping is 10x easier than Scrub Daddy (see point #5) otherwise steam scrubbing is a bit easier than Scrub Daddy because the sponge is longer and it doesn’t flop over which makes scrubbing really smooth.  Plus it’s arch-free handle allows you to use both hands for better leverage on barbecues with a warming rack.

3. How fast is it?

Scrub Daddy

Much faster than a traditional bristle brush. Steam just melts grease — period.  Literally cleans your grill in less than a minute!

Grill Stripper

Less than a minute — just as fast as Scrub Daddy. In fact, because it gets the grill noticeably cleaner, the grill doesn’t accumulate as much gunk between cookups, which makes each future cleaning even faster and easier.

4. Is the sponge really fireproof?

Scrub Daddy

Not fireproof, but fire-resistant. If you scrub with a dry sponge, it will burn.  Another trick to long sponge life is to dry it out after cleaning, though it’s a bit difficult because the sponge is hard so you can’t wring it out.

Grill Stripper

Uses a different aramid-fiber material, but the same rule applies: it won’t burn as long as you keep it wet.  Sponge is soft so you can easily wring it out after cleaning.

5. Yes but can it scrape?

Scrub Daddy

This is where Scrub Daddy falls flat on its face. Seriously, I don’t think they tested this feature before going to production. The notched scraper looks clever, but the notches rarely line up with real grill bars.

And because of the steep angle of the handle, the backwards-facing flat scraper can’t actually make contact with the grate, so you end up scraping air instead of carbon! It’s embarrassingly bad at scraping, so much so that you should keep a dedicated scraper handy if you insist on cleaning with the Daddy!

Grill Stripper

This is Grill Stripper’s hat trick. 3 distinct scrapers, each one hitting the grate squarely for maximum carbon-busting leverage. One-of-a-kind V-scraper blasts off years of carbon buildup from the SIDES of your grill bars in just one or two easy strokes. An invaluable feature, especially if you cook with sauces that build up on the sides of grill bars. Plus with the sponge removed Grill Stripper becomes a low-profile precision scraping tool, perfect for getting into tight spots that others can’t.

6. It’s kind of… huge

Scrub Daddy

Storing this grizzly beast is not ideal. The integrated hook looks helpful but doesn’t actually fit most grill tool bars. The whole tool is bulky, oversized, won’t fit in a low-height kitchen drawer, and takes up a lot of space if you put it in a cupboard.  Probably best to store it with your yard tools or golf clubs!

Grill Stripper

Slim, clean, and fitted with a paracord loop that hangs from any grill. And if you love it too much to leave it outside, thanks to its arch-free handle it stores easily in a low-height kitchen drawer next to your spatulas and tongs.

So What’s The Verdict?

We can’t deny it, Scrub Daddy takes the win for social media hype.  And it really does get the job done, so if you get one you’ll become a steam-clean convert guaranteed.  We just wish it didn’t have so many design flaws!  Awkward handle that requires one-handed operation, floppy sponge, borderline useless scraper - come on guys!

 

That said, there is a perfect alternative.  Grill Stripper was designed to address all of the problems with existing steam brushes such as Scrub Daddy.  A sponge that doesn’t flip-flop, a low-profile design that slides beneath warming racks & stores in a kitchen drawer, three separate scrapers, one of which removes gunk from the sides of your grill bars… it’s barbecue cleaning perfection!
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