Safety
Pellet grills are a great way to cook food, and they’re also very safe. If you follow these simple tips when using your grill this season be sure that it will go smoothly all day long:
- When you notice that your grill has gone cold during a cooking session or failed to light, there might be some pellets leftover from when it was previously used. Check the burn area and remove any unburned ones before starting again with fresh fuel in order for this not to happen at all.
- Keep your children away from the grill and any other hot appliance.
- When it is raining, do not use an electric grill.
- When you are cooking, use gloves to protect your hands from burns and other injuries.
Troubleshooting
Grills are not perfect, and as with any other cooking appliance, there may be issues that arise. However, the great thing about pellet grills is most problems can easily get solved with some troubleshooting tips.
When it comes to your grill, the most common things that go overlooked are airflow and pellets. Airflow affects how well you’re able to cook while also affecting smoke production in terms of taste/quality which can make or break one’s experience with their pellet smoker. The storage might seem self-explanatory but often times people don’t think about what they’ll need until there’s no room left on deck for more wood chunks and beer cans.
Here are a few of the most common issues and solutions to help you troubleshoot them:
- The grill will not light: Cleaning the firepot is important for good performance. Make sure to clean out any burnt-out holes, and unblock all of them so that air can flow through freely.
- Soot on food: Cleaning the induction fan is important to ensure a clear airflow. Check if there are any clogged areas and try different blends of pellets, or contact the manufacturer for help in cleaning it up properly.
- The grill is not getting hot enough: Try using new pellets, or blend. You might also contact the manufacturer if necessary and let them know about your issue so they can help fix it.
- The grill is losing its fire in the smoke setting: If you are using a digital controller, drop the P-setting and try new pellets. If that doesn’t work get in touch with your manufacturer to see what they recommend for better performance.
- The grill is tripping GFI or breaker: The igniter on your stove is burning out and it needs to be replaced. You can contact a local manufacturer for help with that, or if you’re feeling adventurous there are always online resources where we specialize in solving all sorts of heating problems.
- The grill has some hot spots: You can use the grill’s hot spots to your advantage. Make sure you contact a manufacturer if there is an issue with any of them because this could be considered a defective product and they will replace it for free.
- Pellets aren’t getting to my fire pot: Your grill likely has an auger jam. To remove it and purchase a cover for your griddle, follow the instructions on its manufacturer’s website.
- My grill runs too hot in Smoke: Check the ambient conditions to make sure your grill won’t overheat. Sun and high temperatures can cause this problem.
- Temperature swings: It’s important to have some patience when using the grill. It will usually calm down once you reach a certain temperature on your flame, and this is something that can’t always be controlled in advance so just try not to get frustrated.
