Customer Reviews

Ducane 30731101 Affinity 3100 3-Burner Propane Gas Grill

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I shopped for a Webber for several weeks and determined that the Ducane had more features and higher quality than Webbers costing $100 more. I considered some HomeDepot brand grills, but the numerous recalls steered me away from their charm glow series. Upon close inspection they have really low quality construction. This grill actually has a large grilling surface. Cooking for my family I only use half of it. It has stainless steel grates which are really nice and easy to keep clean. 3-burners add almost infinite adjustability. I typically turn on the middle and one side burner for most cooking. I am impressed with the quality of construction and finishes. It's easy to cook on. It's almost hard to burn food! Large side trays are nice but they get HOT.

I was looking for a grill to replace my aging grill from Home Depot. After checking the Consumer Reports web site and reviews on Amazon for several other grills, I settled on the Affinity 3100.

I did not need a fancy or large grill, nor did I need an external burner (see other Ducane versions if you need these features). The 3100 hit my sweet spot. It is well worth the investment.

I ordered the grill from Amazon and it was delivered in 5 days. As boxed, it is HEAVY, but the delivery person used his dolly to roll it through my house to my backyard deck ... nice.

Set up took longer than expected (several hours), but I am very careful to get everything just right. Instructions were adequate to assemble it. The only disappointing point came when I realized that the grill does NOT have a rear panel to completely enclose the lower portion of the grill. This is important for me since squirrels have attacked and damaged my last grill twice by gnawing on the gas hose and wooden side tables. I was able to compenstae with a aluminum pannel from Home Depot. [Disclamer: Ducane may have left the rear panel out to provide adequate venting/cooling for the propane tank ... accordingly, when I grill I open the front door to ensure the lower compartment does not overheat.]

The first time I used the grill, I noticed that the side tables captured the heat from the grill and became very warm ... to the point that you could not place your hand on the tables for very long. Accordingly, I would NOT recommend placing anything that might melt (e.g., plastic) on the side tables.

Bottom line: This is the BEST grill that I have ever owned!!! I am very pleased with the controls, construction, cooking design and grilling results. I solidly recommend any of the Ducane grills. I also recommend you purchase the Ducane covers, to properly protect your new grill from the weather.

I was completely satisfied with the quality of this grill. Every detail of the grill made of high quality steel and all of the parts work as expected. The design was well thought out for ease of cleaning and I especially love the rounded steel grates. I am able to clean them between uses until they shine without the drudge of removing them to get to the underside drips. I bought this grill with the cover. The cover is made of thick vynL, heavy enough to stay on during rough wind storm and the cloth backing resists tearing.

I would definately purchase another Duncan griil in the future.

I started my BBQing career with an original red-top Weber of 25+ years of age. Got tired of waiting for the coals to warm up and acquired a hand-me-down nasty Sunbeam. Under the diffuser the burner rusted out completely and the last straw was flames shooting by the buttons. Went to the store convinced I needed a Weber Spirit E210. I looked at it first. What the !@#$@#!%$$^? The grate is made of enameled steel? You call that a grill? I could not stomach the $700 price-tag a "completely" stainless-steel unit would command. Weber or otherwise. A couple of Ducane's were near by. I used one before (in a time-share home), and fell in love with the sturdy no-nonsense design. To top it off, the store gave me $40 trade on the sad Sunbeam. Yes, it took 2 hours to put together (properly). Yes, it is stupid to assemble it on your deck (no spare nuts/bolts). Quality is not perfect, but for the moneys, this grill is a steal.

Now that I am using the grill, I am very happy with the product. Burgers, ribs, chicken, marinated veggies, and london broil have all cooked to perfection. It is easy to use and easy to clean. The free shipping was not a great bargain. It took forever to arrive. The grill arrived with a crack in the lid which Ducane/Weber quickly replaced. Assembly was easy. Watch out for the side tables - they can get a little warm.

After comparison shopping the big box stores, Amazon and several local hardware stores, I found the Ducane Affinity to be the best grill for the price. I found Weber grills to be overpriced for inferior materials. Lower priced grills tend to be flimsy and small. The Ducane grill provided the a large grilling surface, stainless steel grates, three burners for indirect heat grilling, the most sturdy and highest quality materials. Why spend more for lesser grills? Highly recommended.

We were in dire need of a barbeque, as the bottom of our old one had rusted out completely. It was delivered ahead of schedule and it took me about 45 minutes to put it together - the directions were very good.

It gets hot very fast. I just cooked 8 frozen 1/4 pound hamburgers this afternoon in about 20 minutes on medium heat. I also bought the heavy duty cover from Amazon to ensure we have this one for a long time.

This is a great little bbq. I'm a first time user and find it performs flawlessly. Assembly was easy and it looks great on my patio.

Our 10 year old Great Outdoors gas grill finally bit the dust. The outside of the grill was perfect but the bronze burner and bricket grate gave it up. Decided not to spend $150 on parts so instead spent a couple of weeks researching grills under $500. Came to the conclusion that Weber was the only choice in that price range, and came close to the Weber Q320 or the E310. The Weber E 310 with cast iron grates was just under $500 at Home Depot while the E310 had cheapo stamped steel grates at Lowe's for almost the same price. Then while I was checking at a local full service Weber dealer called Home Place, he mentioned the Ducane Affinity 3100 for $299. Same 3- 10yr 304 stainless burners, but this grill also had heavy stainless cooking grates. But they had sold out of the grills except for the fully assembled floor model. What? You mean I don't have to pay you $50 to assemble it? Sold! Got it home, plugged in the propane and fired it up...got it up to 550 degrees then shut it down. Fired it up that night, pre-heated to 600 degrees (less than 10 min. )and cooked 3 big sirloins and 4 smaller pork tenderloins. The 550+ degrees did a perfect job searing the steaks but I did get a minor flare-up. After learning the settings, cut off the end burner and turned the other 2 on low and still maintained 350 degrees...perfect for finishing. The steaks were juicy and tasted perfect and as good as charcoal...and the pork tenderloins were still juicy( pork tenderloins are challenging for me to get right on a grill). I did notice some small minor areas on the very ends of the grill that were't quite as hot as the middle. Also the new stainless grates did stick to the meat a little (even after oiling)during cooking but they were easy to clean afterwards. The cabinet and doors seem flimsy but I knew I was getting cheap China stuff there. Got a relative bargain on a waterproof cloth grill cover at Lowe's for $23 which beats the Weber or Ducane vinyl covers for $45. All in all, after using this grill for a couple of times , am very impressed with it. If this grill lasts 10 yrs , I'll be happy...we'll see.

I did have a limited budget (< $400) to begin with, thus I scouted around my local stores like Wal-Mart, Target, HDepot and Sears. Having seen many of the grills, I knew I wanted #1: A quality grill, #2:'small' size grill (just to feed a family of 3), #3: Fit my budget for price to quality ratio. I narrowed down to 2 grills the Weber E310 or the Ducane 3100. I saw the Weber E310 in HDepot and it was quite lacking in features in comparison with the Ducane. After comparing the features and reviews of the Ducane I decided to give it try. It was one of those items I kept waiting for the delivery and tracking my package closely. When the shipper arranged to deliver it, I was fortunately home. The dropped a big box at my entrance and wanted me to sign for delivery. thus I inspected the box for signs of damages and signed. After pushing it through my front door I realized it was the wrong item! they delivered a big Jointer (JET 708457K JJ-6CSX Jointer). I darted out the door and ran after the truck. The delivery guys opened the back of their truck and I saw a big box with Ducane on it. Phew! The delivery guys were nonchalant over the whole mixed. Must be the `Free shipping' mentality. I knew it would be a mess if I wasn't personally around to check it. Other than the bad delivery experience everything else is perfect. Anyway, I was just glad the box arrived intact and all the parts were there. My only gripe about the grill is it gets really hot at the oval holes on the burner shields, thus meats directly on top of those holes get burnt quite easily. I baked a pizza using the grill and I didn't have to heat up my hose while the AC was on. Happy-happy! Joy-Joy! Remember to wait till you get free shipping with this grill... it comes on once in a while, so check regularly. :)