How to Fix a Broken Handle on Your Electric Grill or Griddle (by Capitan Farloc)

Indice

You know that electric grill you use almost every day—the one with two hot plates that’s perfect for toasting bread, making sandwiches, or even cooking meat and fish? Well, I’ve got one of those, and one day it decided to take a dive—crack! The handle snapped right off.
Instead of binning the whole thing, I rolled up my sleeves and set out to fix it myself. In this article, I’ll walk you through exactly what I did—from removing the broken bits to the materials I used to rebuild it.
If you’ve run into the same issue, stick around. With just a bit of effort, a few tools every DIY enthusiast has lying around, and hardly any cost, you can breathe new life into your broken appliance too.

Introduction

Hello everyone,
The other day, we left our electric grill resting on top of the washing machine in the kitchen—and during the spin cycle, the washer decided it had enough and sent it crashing to the floor.
The result? As you can see in the photos, the two plastic supports that hold the top plate’s handle in place snapped clean off, making the grill pretty much unusable.

The grill fell on the floor and broke

the grill handle supports have cracked

Fixing the Broken Handle with an Aluminium Bracket

This grill might’ve been a bargain (I paid no more than 25 euros for it), but it’s practical, has a generous cooking surface, and most importantly—it’s practically brand new. I’ve used it maybe ten times tops. So of course, the DIY spirit kicked in and I started thinking about how to bring it back to life.

The first idea that came to mind was to use some aluminium angle brackets. I figured I could attach them to the two broken stubs of the handle supports using aluminium rivets. That way, the pieces would be held firmly together and the brackets would give extra strength to the cracked joint.

Repairing a broken handle with an aluminum reinforcement

Why That Solution Didn’t Work

Unfortunately, even though I added metal washers to stop the rivets from putting too much pressure on the holes in the plastic, the plastic itself just wasn’t up to the job. It cracked again—clearly not the toughest material—so I had to give up on trying to fix the original supports. In the end, they were beyond saving.

Why the solution didn't work

Rebuilding the Handle from Scratch

At this point, I decided to completely remake the two supports. I used a rectangular aluminium profile, 10x20 mm in size—something I already had lying around in my little workshop corner. But no worries if you don’t have one handy: you can easily find the same thing in any decent hardware store or DIY shop.

I took a 10x20 mm rectangular section aluminium profile

Cutting the Aluminium Brackets

So, I cut two pieces of aluminium to match the length of the original supports, then marked and drilled holes to line up with where the old plastic ones had been fixed.

Now, the original parts had an “S” shape, while my brackets are straight—but that’s not a big deal. It won’t affect how the grill works. The only visible difference is that the handle now sits a little higher than before.

Cutting of aluminum profiles

First Fitting Test

At this stage, I did a first test by attaching the new supports to the grill—and... it looks like it works! I reused the original screws, and the only tweak I had to make was adding a few washers where the aluminium was thinner than the old plastic supports.

add washers where the thickness of the aluminum was less than that of the plastic of the old support

Spacers and Adapters

I also had to add spacers to the central screws (1), which I made from a round aluminium rod. On the right-hand support, I riveted on a small aluminium plate (2), which acts as a stop against the movable limiter (3). This limiter can be lowered to allow the grill to open up fully, with both plates lying flat.

I also had to insert spacers on the central screws

Rebuilding the Handle in Wood

At this point, I grabbed an old wooden broom handle, sanded off the paint to get back to bare wood, and cut it to the right length. I pre-drilled holes for the screws and gave it a coat of wood stain I had left over from a previous project. Once mounted, it seemed to do the trick.

Reconstruction of the wooden handle

Testing It Out

I gave it a proper test run, and everything seems to be working just fine—the supports are solid and there’s no wobble, with a smooth, steady motion. I’d say (as long as I don’t drop it again!) this grill is ready to get back to work and keep going strong for a good while yet.

Prova di funzionamento del manico ricostruito

I hope this article has been interesting and helpful to someone out there. Thanks to everyone who took the time to read it—wishing you a great day! P.S. If you’ve got any questions, tips, or just want to let us know you enjoyed the article, feel free to leave a message on the forum where this post originally appeared by following this link:
Repair of grill with broken handle

Thank you all
Luciano (Capitan Farloc)

Warning!

The advice and instructions provided on this site come from hobbyists rather than professional technicians, meaning there is no guarantee that they are accurate or represent the best solution.
Additionally, using the tools and techniques described here should be done with careful consideration of one’s own abilities.
These articles assume that the tasks will be performed by individuals with the necessary skills and knowledge to use the required tools safely, without risking harm to themselves, others, or property.
Therefore, the owners of this site cannot be held responsible for any direct or indirect damages resulting from the application of the content found here.
Before undertaking any DIY activity, it is strongly recommended to read the Safety Notice, which provide a basic (though non-exhaustive) list of precautions to follow.

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