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Pellet grills in NE winter

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    Pellet grills in NE winter

    So i have a grilla OG that i just bought fairly recently. Im having a lot of trouble getting anything over 300 in typical cold NE winter weather. Gor the feed rate maxed out but set for 350 its maxing out at 290ish. Is this normal? First pellet grill ive owned.
    Last edited by grantgallagher; February 5, 2022, 05:45 PM.

    #2
    Not sure what typical NE weather weather is, but my OG has no issues maintaining pretty much any temp in typical Colorado winter weather using Grilla comp blend. What pellets are you using?

    Comment


      #3
      Keep it out of the wind as much as possible and throw on something like a welding blanket across the chamber. Just did an overnight cook the other day when it was hovering around 10F and only saw a very slight increase in pellet consumption overnight.

      Comment


        #4
        Don't have me no kinda pellet cooker, but fire basics apply, still, Amigo...

        What were yer ambient temps / winds / humidity? All factours...

        As mentioned above, fuel source / type could also be a factour...

        What are ya usin / an where, fer takin temp readins...?

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          #5
          Talking 10-25 ambient with a nasty wind. Not gale force or anything, just bitter cold. Been using BBQers delight pellets. But it really struggles to get over 300. I vacuum before every use and dump the pellets after every use so i know they arent sitting in there getting wet.

          Comment


          • CandySueQ
            CandySueQ commented
            Editing a comment
            The wind is the culprit more than likely. If you're using BBQr's Delight apple blend (20# bag), that could be part of the problem. Apple has the lowest BTU. But it's likely the wind.

          • grantgallagher
            grantgallagher commented
            Editing a comment
            CandySueQ its been a consistent problem regardless of the pellets. Started with the grilla comp blend, then bbqd comp, then peach, then pecan. Consistently cant get over 300. I guess its just the wind/cold.

          • CandySueQ
            CandySueQ commented
            Editing a comment
            Stay on customer service then. Like DrJimmy2112 said.

          #6
          Play around with it and see. I ordered the new wifi board and somewhat disappointed with it in that it worked fine the first cook after install then the second cook wouldn’t go above 225. I called and got some really annoying customer service agent telling me it was the pellets I felt like saying the pellets your a$$ but I was polite and said thank you as they were dry as a bone. I call again and they suggest checking all the connections which I did everything was snapped into place but seemed to get past 225 easily again but now was making a weird noise. Call again and they are like check wires aren’t rubbing. Rubbing where in the auger, I said to myself, it was fine nothing was touching. So after this long rant check position and then I would double check nothing is loose wire wise. I’ve cooked no problem in a nor Easter snow storm with wind, but I guess anything is possible.

          Comment


            #7
            I had a very similar problem with my new OG in late 2020. I live in Wisconsin and was trying to cook in single digits. I love to cook year round and have come to love deep winter outdoor cooking. Had much back and forth w Grilla, lots of tinkering and trial and error, replaced the RTD internal temp probe. Ultimately had enough. They ended up sending me a replacement OG, coincident with arrival of spring. It seems to work better but I have learned to use the OG for temps < 325 degrees, and use my gasser for higher temps especially if the ambient temp is below 40. Mainly due to time constraints and impatience.
            Here is the post link I shared of my troubles here, in case you are interested:
            Hey folks, I ran into a problem with my relatively new OG shutting down in mid-cook. The fire goes out after reaching temp of 300 or so. I think it’s the auger jamming. I’ve been vacuuming the fire pot and area under the drip pan after each cook. I’ve read some sift pellets to remove dust and small pellet fragments to


            I must say that Grilla customer service was very responsive.
            Hope this helps, and that you get satisfaction soon.

            Comment


              #8
              My Silverbac is bolted to the outdoor kitchen so I can’t move mine around. It’s under the soffit and up against my wall. So far so good. I haven’t had any temp issues. I’ve done mainly low temps but have raised to 450 a few times. For high temps I would normally use my genesis but it’s covered with snow and ice. And the Amazon cover I have gets very stiff when it’s cold so I’ll wait for the weather to warm up before uncovering it.

              Comment


                #9
                We had a very cold January and my Silverbac did not miss a beat. Just very impressed with the cooker overall. I will add though that like others mine is shielded from the wind and I think wind is the biggest issue and I think that with any cooker. If you think the wind may be the issue then the welders blanket is a good option as mentioned.

                Comment


                  #10
                  My Grilla OG has issues getting to super heat as well. I spoke with the Grilla folks and they suggested I crack open my cooking chamber a smidge and it worked! Before I couldn't get above 360 and it took forever, now I can blast into the 400s. That might help your grill as well.

                  Comment


                  • grantgallagher
                    grantgallagher commented
                    Editing a comment
                    I tried that and the temp was dropping. Ill give it a shot for longer though.

                  #11
                  I live up in that region and my experience is that wind is a big factor when it gets below freezing but I only use my Yoder pellet grill/smoker as a smoker and rarely crank it past 300. It could be an issue with the internal components not feeding the pellets fast enough, the controller, fan, or thermometer. If you're burning around the same amount of pellets when its below freezing as you do on warm day then you're either not getting enough fuel or air. If there advise is to crack open the cooking chamber to heat it up, it sounds like there might be an airflow issue with there fans but that is just a guess.

                  Comment


                    #12
                    I have a Recteq RT-700. I'm in the Milwaukee, WI area and as you can imagine it gets COLD here. But I use it year-round with no problems at all. I DO have the RT insulated blanket for it which really seems to help in various ways. Also, as noted above, I am shielded from the wind which I think is the biggest challenge with these cookers in any season.

                    Comment


                      #13
                      I am starting to wonder about my planned purchase of the Grilla OG eventually as I can’t protect it from the winds on the driveway. I do notice the MB struggles as well sometimes while the Akorn doesn’t even notice.

                      Comment


                      • grantgallagher
                        grantgallagher commented
                        Editing a comment
                        Im going to be running a few tests next time its cold and windy. We have a run of some decent weather coming before it dips again. I have been talking to grilla and they said if wind is the issue then having it head on into the wind is the best. I also bought a cheap welding blanket and will test that in both orientations. Overall though, i do love the OG and 90% im using it for lower temps so its typically not an issue. Just want to see if i can figure this out.

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