Easiest to clean...

[mowin]

Looking for my next pellet pit.
Had a original GMG DB that I liked. Bought a pit boss that the controller overfed the burn pot and almost caused a disaster.
Pit boss was sparkling clean before the misshap.

But both my GMG and pit boss took a decent amount of time to deep clean.
Is there a pellet pit that lessens that deep clean time or amount of cleanings? Call me lazy if u want. But my time is better spent then constantly cleaning a pellet pit.

 

[Rafter H BBQ]

I get ya on time… it’s spread very thin at the best.

I can only offer my opinion on my Camp Chef… it still requires some effort to keep clean. But will say the ash dump has been a game changer.

 

[mowin]

Same as my pit boss. Burn pot super easy to clean.
But I'm grasping at straws. I had my 3 yr old pit boss controller go bad and overfed the burn pot and cause a dangerous situation. I had deep cleaned the pit 3 cooks prior which were vegetable cooks, so no grease. Brisket was trimmed to 1/4". Almost caught the house on fire. Controller fed 15 lbs of pellets in 4 hrs.
I guess I'm trying to figure out what pit to lessen this happening again.

 

[1MoreFord]

Same as my pit boss. Burn pot super easy to clean...........................

From my understanding Pit Boss burn pots do not dump and clean like Camp Chef's do.
Like R H B said, it is a game changer. Simply let it cool down and dump it every time. Nothing easier. I bought a new, empty metal paint can and dump into it and then put the lid on, just in case there are any coals left burning.

 

[normanaj]

It's my understanding that the Weber's are easy. @chopsaw has lots of experience with the Weber.

 

[chopsaw]

Is there a pellet pit that lessens that deep clean time or amount of cleanings?

The Weber SmokeFire and Searwood are super easy to clean . They're an open design , and don't use the traditional full size deflector . My SmokeFire takes about 15 minutes to clean . 4 " scraper and a paint brush . No vacum needed . They have a self contained ash and grease tray , that pulls out and dumps .
I use a foil lined drip pan for long cooks that create a lot of grease . That's just a matter of wadding up the foil and putting new on the tray .

Almost caught the house on fire. Controller fed 15 lbs of pellets in 4 hrs.
I guess I'm trying to figure out what pit to lessen this happening again.

That can be an issue with any of them . Clean or not , and if it happens you'd better be prepared and have a pre thought out plan , as you now know .

15 lbs. of pellets in 4 hours ?? I pay close attention to all my grills / smokers . That should never happen . Over filling is one thing . 4 hour time span is something else .

 

[sandyut]

My RecTeq probably takes 15 minutes to clean. I clean it after 3-4 long cooks or equivalent. Its pretty forgiving if I let it go.

crape and pull the grates, remove the drip pan, replace the foil cover on it, vacuum the burn box and reassemble.

Controller fed 15 lbs of pellets in 4 hrs.

The controller is f'ed. thats is a ton of pellets in a short time. I dont think I use 20lb in 8 hours unless its below zero out, even then not sure. I fill the 40lb hopper infrequently.

 

[Sammie The Bull]

My Rec.teq BYB1200 takes me 10 minutes to clean out. I have never had a cooker so fast and easy to clean out when i`m done. I clean mine out after every cook when it cools down. I use a pellet stove (stainless steel) vacuum cleaner to clean out the burn pot and the interior. There is no chance of a fire when i put it away until the next cook. I like mine cleaned out and ready for the next cook. It just makes things go so much faster and easier. Before powering it up, i add whatever pellets i`ll need for the cook. It only takes about 5 minutes after powering it up, it`s making smoke. A few minutes later, i`m putting my meats in.

To clean the exterior stainless body, i use BarKeepers Friend for stainless. I use one of those blue "Scotch-Brite" soft scrub pads for the heavy stained areas. Then wipe it with a microfiber cloth after scrubbing the stainless body clean.

Some of the Recteq`s have rear louvers on the back of the body as a chimney. I use a gun barrel brush to knock the built-up debris out of the louvers.

You can get gun barrel brushes pretty much anywhere. Walmart has these in a kit w/handle.

Can find at walmart for $5.00

You can get these pads at walmart for around $3.00

 

[zwiller]

When @chopsaw says 15m that's a full clean. I am also lazy (read that as busy). Access to pot is like 1-2m ZERO fasteners to remove. I have been experimenting with simply hitting pot area with compressed air and VERY happy with my results. I feel this should be standard practice for every pellet grill. Takes seconds. I do not remove anything at all. I have torn it down after to confirm how well it works. All that being said, s*** happens. A pellet grill is not pure set and forget like a MES with the physical action of the pellet chute and firepot. Run out of pellets, pellet clogs, loss of ground of glow plug, dust in the chute can jam auger, loss of fire due to wind, etc. I absolutely LOVE my Smokefire but have had a few incidents. I think this par for the course for a pellet grill. I am still in awe of the stuff I have been pulling off with it and yeah throwing up my brisket pic for like the 20th time.

 

[mowin]

Thank for the replies everyone. I'm still researching pits. Rectec and gorilla are two that are on the list.
@1MoreFord , not sure how camp chef burn pot clean out works, but my pit boss has a clip and the pot slides out. Takes 20s.

That said, I've fired up the PB again, and it seems to run fine, but I just don't trust it, and half of it is missing it's paint. Looks ugly, lol.

 

[sandyut]

Thank for the replies everyone. I'm still researching pits. Rectec and gorilla are two that are on the list.
@1MoreFord , not sure how camp chef burn pot clean out works, but my pit boss has a clip and the pot slides out. Takes 20s.

That said, I've fired up the PB again, and it seems to run fine, but I just don't trust it, and half of it is missing it's paint. Looks ugly, lol.

Ive had my RecTec for over 10 years and love it every time I use it. They have hands down the best customer service of any company I have ever worked with. If that helps.

 

[Fueling Around]

My buddy has a re branded Cabelas Pit boss. It is a thorn in his side. Replaced a lot of parts to learn the connectors don't stay connected. He locked them down with cable ties.
Still has to replace the auger shear pin on a regular basis. Why PB didn't replace the entire unit is beyond me. Too late now with the change of ownership.

Uh, no one mentioned the need for a side thermometer to monitor the pit temps.
I use a couple of Thermoworks units so it alerts me if temps go over or under the set limits.

 

[mowin]

My buddy has a re branded Cabelas Pit boss. It is a thorn in his side. Replaced a lot of parts to learn the connectors don't stay connected. He locked them down with cable ties.
Still has to replace the auger shear pin on a regular basis. Why PB didn't replace the entire unit is beyond me. Too late now with the change of ownership.

Uh, no one mentioned the need for a side thermometer to monitor the pit temps.
I use a couple of Thermoworks units so it alerts me if temps go over or under the set limits.

I've got a couple different therms to monitor cooks, but I rarely use them. I know, my fault. One gets complacent after 100's of cooks with no issues. That won't happen again.

 

[chopsaw]

Uh, no one mentioned the need for a side thermometer to monitor the pit temps.
I use a couple of Thermoworks units so it alerts me if temps go over or under the set limits.

I'm spoiled I guess . The SmokeFire reports cooking temps without a probe hooked up . Sends an email alert even if I don't have the app open .

If I do a long cook , I do hook up my Signals .

@mowin which brings up a thought , your trouble could be a bad thermocouple not reading the temp correctly .

 

[mowin]

I'm spoiled I guess . The SmokeFire reports cooking temps without a probe hooked up . Sends an email alert even if I don't have the app open .

If I do a long cook , I do hook up my Signals .

@mowin which brings up a thought , your trouble could be a bad thermocouple not reading the temp correctly .

That's definitely possible.

 

[chopsaw]

That's definitely possible.

Take a look at it , and see what it looks like , then clean it up and do a test run empty . Low temp .
Might be able to use it while thinking about what to get .

 

[mowin]

Take a look at it , and see what it looks like , then clean it up and do a test run empty . Low temp .
Might be able to use it while thinking about what to get .

I did fire it up the other day, and I seemed to get to temp ok and hold it for a hr or so.

 

[1MoreFord]

....................................
@1MoreFord , not sure how camp chef burn pot clean out works, but my pit boss has a clip and the pot slides out. Takes 20s.
..........................................

Just as you don't know how the Camp Chef clean out works, I was unaware the Pit Boss pot is removable.
With the Camp Chef, you pull the release and then slide the bottom out of the pot. All the ash then falls out into the container I place under the pot. Also, maybe 20 seconds.