Cold weather pellet grill/smoker, SS

[TwoCoasts]

Help me spend my money! I’m looking for a pellet grill / smoker as a nice gift for my husband, so I’m willing to invest some cash. Assume no budget limit. Requirements:
1) Insulated or enough thermal mass to work well in cold temperatures
2) WiFi control so he can adjust temp from inside (see, cold temperatures, above)
3) Good stable temperature control
4) Can get plenty hot enough for direct grilling or hold a low & slow temp for smoking
5) Much prefer all stainless steel: our summers are about 1000% humidity and dealing with rust on non-stainless is a constant problem, even under covered patios.
6) Nice to have—grease trap that’s in a tightly closed enclosure, not an open bucket, so we don’t have to fight off the animals while cooking.
The Cookshack PG-1000 and Louisiana Grills Estate 860C look like they hit most of these requirements (not sure about location of the grease catcher, or whether WiFi control is available). The Recteq RT1070 looks like it is not insulated so it might not work in our cold winters, but otherwise seems to hit everything (and advertises it can get up to 700 degrees, which sounds like a plus). Memphis Grills has models that look like they hit every point, but at the prices they’re charging, I’d need to be very sure they deliver on what they promise. The MAK grills in SS are unavailable. Advice?

 

[bigfurmn]

RecTeq and a few other companies offer an insulated blanket that you can put over the grill in colder weather that helps keep the heat in. Otherwise there are guys here who use welding blankets to cover the grill to help insulate it. I've used my Pit Boss in Minnesota winters down to -40F without an issue.

 

[sandyut]

What part of the country are you in?

I use a rec teq RT-700 all year here in SLC, Utah. The RT-1250 is a newer more kicked up version, same size. Rec Teq is a great company with great products and unrivaled customer service. Ive have mine about 4 years.

When I did my search and reconnaissance my top three pellet smokers were Rec Teq, Yodeer and MAC. I think all three of these are very good.

Keep us posted on the search/shopping. I love both activities.

 

[sandyut]

RE: Insulation - its not really required - works fine without. Rec Teq stopped selling the blanket/cold weather cover because they didn’t feel they were necessary. as bigfurmn stated, some use welding blankets as needed.

 

[DougE]

My Camp Chef SG24wifi does everything you're looking for aside from the stainless steel part. I use it all winter without issue, but I do use a welding blanket on top of it in cold weather.

 

[TwoCoasts]

What part of the country are you in?

I use a rec teq RT-700 all year here in SLC, Utah. The RT-1250 is a newer more kicked up version, same size. Rec Teq is a great company with great products and unrivaled customer service. Ive have mine about 4 years.

When I did my search and reconnaissance my top three pellet smokers were Rec Teq, Yodeer and MAC. I think all three of these are very good.

Keep us posted on the search/shopping. I love both activities.

Mid Hudson Valley in NY. Cold enough, but not as bad as Minnesota winters mentioned above. It can get to -10 or -20 on the worst days, but not often. 0 to 20 is more typical in recent winters. So could be I can relax the insulated firebox requirement.

 

[thirdeye]

Welcome and

I've never owned a pellet cooker, but I like the fact you have no budget and you have done some pretty good research.

I can tell you that Rec-Tec has a good reputation in the intermountain west, in my neck of the woods, where we cook year 'round. Snow or no snow.

 

[Winterrider]

RT 590
Welding blanket (Harbor Freight ) used in ND winter -25°
Takes a while to get to temp but when it does, holds quite nicely. I very rarely open the smoker for any reason until my Ink bird Thermometer gets me my optimum temp I'm looking for.

 

[48°North]

I would recommend you look at Pitts and Spitts. All stainless options, WiFi, and insulated blankets.

 

[TwoCoasts]

Thanks to all. You’ve given me some valuable info and suggestions of grills I hadn’t thought of and will look into. Follow up question: Anybody have the RecTeq RT-1070 specifically (especially the one on a free-standing cabinet)? Opinions about it? Pros/cons?

 

[ofelles]

Have you looked at the Lone Star Grillz pellet. High quality build and thick metal. No SS option though. Have heard nothing but good about this cooker.

Pellet Smokers

Lone Star Grillz Pellet Smokers Lone Star Grillz builds the very best custom pellet smokers available by hand one at a time in Conroe TEXAS. We have two sizes currently and they are priced to fit your budget with quality made to last a lifetime. Our offset pellet smokers are second to none and...

lonestargrillz.com

 

[Smoking Audi]

We have a Traeger Pro 34 but it does not have wifi or an enclosed grease trap. I know you were looking for those options. Just providing other information at this point.

We bought a wifi grill probe system for $50 as opposed to several hundred extra for a built in wifi system.

We also went with the insulated blanket for cooler weather cooking / smoking. I tried to cook steaks when it was about 30F and it was a failure but when we smoked later after the blanket install it was awesome. Our grill is just the thin stamped shell so there is no built in insulation. The blanket helped it get up to temp and hold temp plus it allowed us to use less pellet fuel.

 

[civilsmoker]

The Memphis Elite or Pro are extremely nice smokers! Both are 100% double walled stainless cooking box. They will perform very efficient at cold temps. I had the precursor to the Belle street (partially double walled) for 11 years. I smoked ribs in it at -26 and North Dakota wind. If money were no issue I would get the Elite.

All that said when my electronics started faltering I got a Reqtec 1250. The 1070 has the same electronics and internal parts as the 1250. I got it this past summer when it was released and used it all winter (eastern Idaho cold and windy). It did burn more pellets than the old Memphis but the smoke profile is better.

I would consider the Memphis the flag ship and it will out perform (efficiency wise) over the Rectec in the cold and wind, but one could buy a lot of pellets for the price difference, so I would consider the 1070 the race horse that will get you there just with less “comfort”. Reqtec is going to sell TONs of 1070’s as it is the only thing on the market like it and at a reasonable price point. I love my 1250!

Last thought, the interior design of the Memphis is better suited for grilling or searing temps and it even has an open flame grilling feature. The Reqtec does get hot enough for pizza (I do it all the time) but it won’t “grill or sear” as good as my older Memphis but I have a new 2022 model Weber (new design that is a game changer in performance) for grilling and again you could get both (1070 & Weber) and a pallet of pellets for less.......

Good luck with the decision!

 

[TwoCoasts]

The Memphis Elite or Pro are extremely nice smokers! Both are 100% double walled stainless cooking box. They will perform very efficient at cold temps. I had the precursor to the Belle street (partially double walled) for 11 years. I smoked ribs in it at -26 and North Dakota wind. If money were no issue I would get the Elite.

All that said when my electronics started faltering I got a Reqtec 1250. The 1070 has the same electronics and internal parts as the 1250. I got it this past summer when it was released and used it all winter (eastern Idaho cold and windy). It did burn more pellets than the old Memphis but the smoke profile is better.

I would consider the Memphis the flag ship and it will out perform (efficiency wise) over the Rectec in the cold and wind, but one could buy a lot of pellets for the price difference, so I would consider the 1070 the race horse that will get you there just with less “comfort”. Reqtec is going to sell TONs of 1070’s as it is the only thing on the market like it and at a reasonable price point. I love my 1250!

Last thought, the interior design of the Memphis is better suited for grilling or searing temps and it even has an open flame grilling feature. The Reqtec does get hot enough for pizza (I do it all the time) but it won’t “grill or sear” as good as my older Memphis but I have a new 2022 model Weber (new design that is a game changer in performance) for grilling and again you could get both (1070 & Weber) and a pallet of pellets for less.......

Good luck with the decision!

That’s really helpful, thank you! My husband is very loyal to his old charcoal Weber kettle grill. So maybe the right approach is a 1070 to replace the huge stick-burner smoker he no longer uses because it’s more time & trouble than he’s willing to invest, plus keep the old Weber or upgrade it to their Performer Deluxe charcoal version with gas start. I do know replacing the charcoal grill with propane is a hard “no” for him—I offered that and got told not to, in no uncertain terms.

 

[civilsmoker]

That’s really helpful, thank you! My husband is very loyal to his old charcoal Weber kettle grill. So maybe the right approach is a 1070 to replace the huge stick-burner smoker he no longer uses because it’s more time & trouble than he’s willing to invest, plus keep the old Weber or upgrade it to their Performer Deluxe charcoal version with gas start. I do know replacing the charcoal grill with propane is a hard “no” for him—I offered that and got told not to, in no uncertain terms.

That sounds like a win win to me! The 1070 will give a smoke profile very close to his wood burner, it will just be a lighter level but a similar tone. Oh and then matched with a Performer.....well that would be a very nice setup!

 

[BCP3006]

Help me spend my money! I’m looking for a pellet grill / smoker as a nice gift for my husband, so I’m willing to invest some cash. Assume no budget limit. Requirements:
1) Insulated or enough thermal mass to work well in cold temperatures
2) WiFi control so he can adjust temp from inside (see, cold temperatures, above)
3) Good stable temperature control
4) Can get plenty hot enough for direct grilling or hold a low & slow temp for smoking
5) Much prefer all stainless steel: our summers are about 1000% humidity and dealing with rust on non-stainless is a constant problem, even under covered patios.
6) Nice to have—grease trap that’s in a tightly closed enclosure, not an open bucket, so we don’t have to fight off the animals while cooking.
The Cookshack PG-1000 and Louisiana Grills Estate 860C look like they hit most of these requirements (not sure about location of the grease catcher, or whether WiFi control is available). The Recteq RT1070 looks like it is not insulated so it might not work in our cold winters, but otherwise seems to hit everything (and advertises it can get up to 700 degrees, which sounds like a plus). Memphis Grills has models that look like they hit every point, but at the prices they’re charging, I’d need to be very sure they deliver on what they promise. The MAK grills in SS are unavailable. Advice?

Are you that sure that you want a pellet grill?

Is your husband in love with that deep down Smoky flavor when you bite into that barbecue ???
If he is then you better start looking for an offset smoker because pellet smokers won't give you that flavor that an offset smoker will.

I was burning sticks for 35 years on an offset that changed over to a pellet grill just to see what it was all about and no you will not get that Smoky flavor from a pellet grill now don't get me wrong some people like how little smoke gets on the meat... And some people like white smoke coming out of their smoker.

White smoke comes from the dehydrating phase of a fire which carries away a lot of the impurities in the wood and when that white smoke stops that's when the blue smoke starts.Blue smoke won't give you that deep Smoky flavor on your meat but it's a sign that the fire is telling you the conditions are right to get that smoke flavor on your meat because of the combining gases inside your cook chamber when those gases mix that creates the blue smoke but the pellet smoker I have I get blue smoke out of one brand of pellets and that is pit boss charcoal blend and I did a little testing with a hygrometer and I measured the moisture content of the pellets that i was using and it was 41% moisture.
Moisture affects your possibility of having blue smoke.

Moisture
In split wood for a stick burner is roughly 20% when it's cured and dried and ready for smoking. Some pellet manufacturers are trying to reduce the moisture to 5 to 10% instead of 10 to 15% moisture.

But if your husband really loves that smokey wood flavor you better stick with us offset smoker

 

[BCP3006]

Are you that sure that you want a pellet grill?

Is your husband in love with that deep down Smoky flavor when you bite into that barbecue ???
If he is then you better start looking for an offset smoker because pellet smokers won't give you that flavor that an offset smoker will.

I was burning sticks for 35 years on an offset that changed over to a pellet grill just to see what it was all about and no you will not get that Smoky flavor from a pellet grill now don't get me wrong some people like how little smoke gets on the meat... And some people like white smoke coming out of their smoker.

White smoke comes from the dehydrating phase of a fire which carries away a lot of the impurities in the wood and when that white smoke stops that's when the blue smoke starts.Blue smoke won't give you that deep Smoky flavor on your meat but it's a sign that the fire is telling you the conditions are right to get that smoke flavor on your meat because of the combining gases inside your cook chamber when those gases mix that creates the blue smoke but the pellet smoker I have I get blue smoke out of one brand of pellets and that is pit boss charcoal blend and I did a little testing with a hygrometer and I measured the moisture content of the pellets that i was using and it was 41% moisture.
Moisture affects your possibility of having blue smoke.

Moisture
In split wood for a stick burner is roughly 20% when it's cured and dried and ready for smoking. Some pellet manufacturers are trying to reduce the moisture to 5 to 10% instead of 10 to 15% moisture.

But if your husband really loves that smokey wood flavor you better stick with us offset smoker

But if your husband really likes it Smokey wood flavor on his meat you better stick with a offset smoker. Would hate to see you get a pellet smoker and regret ever buying it . Maybe if you know someone that has a pellet grill maybe see if you could taste with some of the meat taste like when it comes off the grill and compare that to what your husband likes.

 

[stevessmokeshack]

Help me spend my money! I’m looking for a pellet grill / smoker as a nice gift for my husband, so I’m willing to invest some cash. Assume no budget limit. Requirements:
1) Insulated or enough thermal mass to work well in cold temperatures
2) WiFi control so he can adjust temp from inside (see, cold temperatures, above)
3) Good stable temperature control
4) Can get plenty hot enough for direct grilling or hold a low & slow temp for smoking
5) Much prefer all stainless steel: our summers are about 1000% humidity and dealing with rust on non-stainless is a constant problem, even under covered patios.
6) Nice to have—grease trap that’s in a tightly closed enclosure, not an open bucket, so we don’t have to fight off the animals while cooking.
The Cookshack PG-1000 and Louisiana Grills Estate 860C look like they hit most of these requirements (not sure about location of the grease catcher, or whether WiFi control is available). The Recteq RT1070 looks like it is not insulated so it might not work in our cold winters, but otherwise seems to hit everything (and advertises it can get up to 700 degrees, which sounds like a plus). Memphis Grills has models that look like they hit every point, but at the prices they’re charging, I’d need to be very sure they deliver on what they promise. The MAK grills in SS are unavailable. Advice?

Lot of good suggestions. Since no one else mentioned this brand i will throw it out. Grilla Grills is all stainless steel construction of grates, burn pot, reflector and lid. They also have double wall SS construction inside. They have a video with thermal temp gun showing 3 grills one theirs and two competitors in the Michigan winter and the outside temp is 30 degrees less approx. may want to give them a look.

 

[WaterRat]

Even my old 5yr old el cheapo PitBoss (old model) ran fine in CT winters. Since cost is no option look at Yoder, not sure they come in stainless but they aint gonna rust out anyhow. As far as that goes my old cheapy doesnt have rust after spending 5 winters outside (cover on).