How to get rid of an old grill in Kansas City

The average gas grill rusts out in five to ten Kansas City winters, and then it sits on the patio for two more because nobody's sure what to do with it. Here's the secret: the grill itself is the easy part — it's a rolling cart of scrap metal. The propane tank bolted to it is the entire complication, because every disposal route below will refuse the tank on sight.

Rule one: the tank comes off first, always

Scrap yards won't take a grill with the tank attached — even an "empty" tank holds residual gas, which makes it a fire hazard in a shredder. City bulky pickup is the same: fuel tanks are explicitly on KCMO's do-not-accept list. And we can't legally haul one in a truckload either. So unscrew the tank before you do anything else. The good news is that the tank is the one part with a genuinely free, easy route — the Blue Rhino exchange-cage trick — and our propane tank disposal guide walks through it.

Still lights? Give it away before you scrap it

A grill that still runs is worth more to a neighbor than to a scrap yard, and it moves fast. Post it free on your local Buy Nothing group or Marketplace with a photo of it lit, be straight about the rust, and say whether the tank is included — most people asking about a free grill are hoping it is. Grills that light but need a burner or grate are still worth listing; parts are cheap and somebody out there enjoys that project. Give it a week before you write it off as metal.

Scrap the body: free, maybe a few dollars

With the tank off, the rest of the grill is steel, stainless, and cast aluminum — all of it scrappable. Langley Recycling and Advantage Metals Recycling both take household metal drop-offs in Kansas City, MO, no appointment needed. Dump the ash and lava rocks first, and if you want the slightly better payout, separate the stainless grates and any brass fittings from the plain steel — mixed loads get priced at the lowest metal in the pile. Expect a few dollars, not a payday; the win is free disposal.

The curb scrapper route

A grill at the curb with a "FREE SCRAP" sign disappears fast in most KC neighborhoods — metal scrappers cruise for exactly this. Take the tank off even for this route (it doesn't scrap, so it may get left in your yard), empty the ash, and check your city's rules on how long items can sit out.

City bulky pickup: body yes, tank never

A tankless grill body goes out with Kansas City, MO's bulky-item pickup under the standard rules — schedule through 311 or the online scheduler, curb by 7 a.m., and our bulky-item pickup guide covers the limits. Just don't leave the tank on: crews are told not to touch fuel tanks, and the usual result is the whole grill left at the curb with a sticker. Suburbs run similar programs through their contracted haulers.

Charcoal grills: the easy case

No tank, no problem. Make absolutely sure the ash is cold and bag it into the regular trash, and the body is plain steel — any route above works, from the scrap yard to bulky pickup to the curb sign.

Where we fit

We haul grills across the KC metro from $100 — patio, deck, or the spot in the side yard where it's been sinking into the ground since 2019. Same rule as everyone else, though: the propane tank has to be off, and it can't ride in the load — that's a legal hard line, not a preference. Take it to an exchange cage, and text us a photo of the rest.