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Pellet Cooker went BOOM!

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    Pellet Cooker went BOOM!

    I apologize for not being around in a long, long time! I was cooking on the back porch, going in and out of the house and not really paying much attention to the cooker (doesn't really matter what brand, this can happen on ANY pellet-fired device).

    As said, I turned the cooker on and then went to do something else. Came back 30 minutes later and no fire. Well, I just turned it off then back on. Went back to the kitchen to finish something else. I had the back door open so my dog could go in and out. All of a sudden -- BOOM! -- smoke pouring out of the cooker, it blew the door open and a super nasty smell to the smoke. I pulled the plug and shut the door to get the flames extinguished. I did get the beef off!

    Going back in time, I had a customer service call about exploding pellets that blew the board on a cooker. This customer hadn't put the fire out and it burned back into the hopper and melted the electronics. I didn't believe the pellets were the problem, but did help with the board replacement. Asked customer to return some pellets from the exploding ones and the pellets were just fine.

    When this happened to me, I knew what caused it. Failed ignition and pellet pile up. After all, it was on and pushing pellets out for 30 minutes before I reset everything.

    So, I learned a valuable lesson. Pay attention to your cooker, especially at start up. If there's a failure to ignite, clean out the pellets and start fresh without pellet buildup.

    The beef was fine -- it had gotten a real good BLAST of smoke!

    #2
    Really good advice. Thanks for that. Also good to have your cooker placed well away from the house and anything flammable. It’s a fire after all.

    Comment


      #3
      Wow. Thanks for the lesson. Was wondering where you went. All ok?

      Comment


        #4
        I had the same thing happen two different times on me. I cringe when people call pellet cookers "set it and forget it" grills. I was lucky and wasn’t too far from the grill both times. But I can see where it could have burnt the grill up and caught my house on fire.
        I no longer have a pellet cooker and trust my PBC and kettles way more.CandySueQ So glad to see you back!!!

        Comment


        • ItsAllGoneToTheDogs
          ItsAllGoneToTheDogs commented
          Editing a comment
          assuming one cleans their grill regularly, once it's ignited it's almost always set and forget after that point, but just like any fuel type, things can happen.

        #5
        I've done that once, will always check the pellets going forward

        Comment


          #6
          Perhaps not surpisingly, this is decidedly not makin me hanker fer a pellet smoker...

          So very nice to hear from ya, Sister, hope all is well...

          Reckon runnin a Business, an bein President of th KCBS couldn't possibly be tyin up too mucha yer time...
          Last edited by Mr. Bones; November 5, 2020, 08:22 PM.

          Comment


          • ItsAllGoneToTheDogs
            ItsAllGoneToTheDogs commented
            Editing a comment
            no different than the propane/gas goin' out and not checkin' and relighting... kaboom.

          • bbqLuv
            bbqLuv commented
            Editing a comment
            Pellet grill, Pellet grill, Look deep into my avatar, think pellet grill.

          #7
          I'm glad it wasn't more serious, and I'm also happy that you have visited, even though not under the best of circumstances. We know that you have been extra busy, so don't worry 'bout it. Visit when you have time...

          Comment


            #8
            I don't think pellet cookers are inherently more dangerous than other cookers. I've also had this happen in similar circumstances that CandySueQ describes . Like any other cooker it's necessary to keep an eye on the cooker when it's in use. It's also necessary to follow a startup procedure, as CandySueQ describes after there's been a flameout. Use the cooker according to the instruction manual and I believe they are as safe as any other type of cooker.

            Comment


              #9
              Glad nothing serious happened... but you out of all people. Almost sound like a rookie... ;-)

              Comment


                #10
                for the most part the door of the pellet grills should be open when starting. it is my understanding this has to do with gases that develop as the pellets get hot enough to catch on fire. Also if the fire goes out the grill still needs to go through the shut down process.

                Long live the Pellet Grill.

                Comment


                  #11
                  CandySueQ I've learned the hard way, too. These are not "set it and forget it".
                  Glad yours didn't hurt anyone or anything!
                  I don't put the deflector or grates in till it fires. Sometime i have to light it with my propane torch!
                  Sometimes it freaks out and runs 500' for no reason.
                  Happy nothing bad happened!
                  Thank you for sharing!
                  Last edited by Fire Chicken; November 6, 2020, 01:55 AM.

                  Comment


                    #12
                    Great reminder. I no longer have a pellet grill but would not hesitate to do it again one day. I did have this happen to me and your advice is spot on. I would also add that when it happened to me and this is a good reminder to those who have pellet grills.

                    Comment


                      #13
                      CandySueQ good to hear from you again, as we know you do not sit idle, so is the reason the igniter quit? And pellets did no get lit, the pellets piled up, then igniter started?

                      Comment


                        #14
                        My Original Grilla is so reliable, I just check for pellets in the hopper, turned it on and went inside to make a salad. Got busy and when out 30 minutes later, planning on putting on the meat. No fire. I turned it off and back on to get it going thru the start cycle again. Just didn't think about pellet pile up! Igniter has worked great ever since! I'm glad I pulled the plug and snuffed the fire before any damage was done to OG!

                        Comment


                          #15
                          Same thing happened to me on my Pitts and Spitts. If you're familiar with that cooker it has a 10 ga. rolled steel lid that's very stout and very heavy.

                          Click image for larger version  Name:	image12.jpeg Views:	0 Size:	861.1 KB ID:	995255



                          Anyway I had a really bad ignition explosion similar to yours. It had such force that it literally bowed that heavy stainless rolled lid about 1" in the middle !! I literally had to remove it and pound it flat again with an 8# sledge hammer and a 2x4. Since then I clean things out religiously and make sure I have ignition before walking away from mine !!

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