I too agree with all your points. Like you, I also enjoy tending to the meat and the pellet cooker. I figure if I'm so busy/lazy that I need forget about the cook after I set it, I'm not in the right frame of mind to cook that day.
This is just my personal pet peeve, but it bugs me every time I read the term "pellet pooper". I guess my mind struggles to process something to do with food and something to do with sewage in the same context.
I started with a GMG (I think it’s pretty comparable to a Traeger). Upgraded to a Yoder. Love it and wish I had just started with it. Good luck on your search.
LSG Adjustable Grill/Smoker, MAK Pellet Grill, Large BGE with Several Attachments from the Ceramic Grill Store, Weber Genesis E335 Gasser, Cast Iron Pans & Griddle, Grill Grates, Mostly Thermoworks Thermometers, Anova SV Stick, BBQ Guru Controller and Fan
All that said, I can put a brisket in the Yoder at 10 PM and not even think about it until I roll out of bed at 6 AM. Then I check the temps and decide if I want to wrap it or leave it be. By lunch it has been in the faux cambro for either an hour or three depending. I didn't forget, I just didn't have to worry all night.
I love my Rec Tec, and especially with the new wi-fi controller, I can do more of a "set and forget" as I can monitor the temp from my phone. However, since I am usually spritzing, my eye is on it frequently anyway. However, it is difficult to change pellet "flavors" and it can be a pain to clean, with having to remove the foil, drip tray, heat deflector, etc. just to get to the fire pot. Also, installing the new controller was much more difficult than what their video showed, and I am not looking forward to when the auger and/or igniter rod goes out and has to be replaced.
I use my WSCGC even more than the Rec Tec. It is easier to clean and cover (try using a snug fit Rec Tec cover in 20 degree weather), and there are practically no moving parts to break down, especially if the grill is well taken care of. It is also a lot better for high heat searing, and of course is still very versatile for those low and slow cooks. Finally, it is easier to impart different smoke flavors just by using wood chunks, plus I get a lot more smoke from it than the Rec Tec.
Last edited by RAGBBQ; December 14, 2018, 11:32 AM.
New Orleans born, Mississippi raised, empty nester, living in Central Texas for 20+ years - looking to buy my first pellet smoker. Awed by the info on this site already!
Piling on with another set of kudos - great thread! Having the pellet smoker is loaded with convenience, and provided one does follow best practices of vacuuming it out on a proper cadence, they are pretty dang predictable in performance - which is a great thing! One item not mentioned, and that I was surprised by a bit when I got mine, was how much like a convection oven a pellet smoker is. All that fan blowing means a whole lot of air action inside the chamber. I don't know how to describe it better than that - but it is something to be aware of. I'm sure others here can describe this in much better detail and why it could/would matter for certain cook types.
This is just my personal pet peeve, but it bugs me every time I read the term "pellet pooper". I guess my mind struggles to process something to do with food and something to do with sewage in the same context.
I agree 100% with this comment, I too do not like that slang term for my pellet smokers!!
Great thread for sure. I have a RecTec RT680. Great grill and great company, but I am seriously considering selling and going back to charcoal. There is cleanup and the pellets you use do matter, especially when you consider the extra dust that you get from some pellets. Cooking space is great and the flavor is generally good, but it is not set and forget. There is surely a following for pellet grills and much of that is very true, but it is not for everyone....but that is why there is so many different types of grills on the market today.
Great thread. Definitely not set and forget, however, they give a great deal of flexibility and allow for as close to forgetting as you can do when messing with heat and food you wish to eat.
All that aside, "set and forget" is a real thing. I have a controller for my Primo XL. I have no problems putting a brisket or pork butt on for an overnight cook and trust the controller to maintain a set temperature. I still have to do stuff, just not monitor temperature. Same for a pellet. Set the thermostat and then relax.
You atent 100% off the hook, but a lot of the work is done for you.
I disagree with #1, My MAK puts out a good amount of smoke up until about 350 and still puts out some smoke until just over 400. From what I've read a few other brands do as well. Unless you're saying compared to a wood burner, then I guess I'd agree. But the smoke I've got on most of my cooks has outshined what the two most popular BBQ joints in my area are serving, and I'd claim conformation bias but the wife (who hates the grill) and my coworkers (who have zero ability to be anything other than blunt) have said similar.
As far as set and forget, they kinda still are. Just depends on the model and what additional gadgets you are using. I haven't got the wifi unit for the MAK yet, I think $300 is a bit over the top and then add the stupidly overpriced probes for the thing... But, I did do an overnight cook the other day. Put the pork butt on, set the cook temp, set the program to drop the temp to smoke which is roughly 170 as soon as IT hit 200. I woke up to a beautifully smoked chunk of pork that had gone to roughly 201 and then was dropping to 195 on smoke setting. Most other grills I would have woke up to a pork jerky. Until I get a wifi thermometer I won't fully trust an overnight smoke on the thing, because flameouts can and do happen on pellet grills. But many brands have the temp program feature included in their price or as a much more affordable upgrade than MAK does.
I've seen a few other pellet poopers in person now and it seems that the standard is fairly simple to clean (for the truly all SS or aluminized steel units), but it does take more effort than cleaning your oven which is more than cleaning a charcoal or gas grill for regular use... but no more than you would do a few times a year with any cooking appliance.
Otherwise I pretty much agree with your assessments
I just received a delivery today of my first pellet smoker. I'm excited to use it. I've used low end gas smokers in the past and was able to get great results . Can anyone give me an opinion of the Pit Boss 77550 5.5 ??? It has a cost of 500 dollars and to me this seems like a step up from the smokers I have owned in the past. Any help would be appreciated.
Welcome to the Pit. I don’t personally have any experience with this particular pellet smoker so can’t offer an opinion. I’m sure others will chime in and give you plenty of help.
I luv my pit boss. I use it once or twice a week I had to change the P setting to 3 so it would run with very little swing it settles in where you set it
I've never considered anything to be set and forget. Electronics of any kind is subject to fail at any given time. There have been many threads here that give testament to that. Probes can fail, fans, computer boards, fuses can blow etc. There are only different degrees of involvement.
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