First Time Use and Excessive Ash

[bisrael]

I bought my Traeger yesterday from Costco and used it for the first time today. One of the selling points from the salesman was that Traegers are 90% efficient at burning pellets and so there would be very little ash. Today, after seasoning and then a first use (between seasoning and the first use probably a total of four hours or less), there was a substantial amount of ash in the fire pot. If I had to guess, I would say probably a third to a half cup. I used brand new Traeger pellets and set it to the ten minute shutdown mode.

I went to the Traeger trouble shooting page for this issue and the three things its noted were: pellet quality, clean grill, and symptoms of other issues. As mentioned above, I used brand new Traeger pellets, so I doubt that's the issue. The grill was brand new, and as, such it was clean, so that can't be it. I'm here to figure out if the third option: symptoms of other issues, is the culprit. If I had to guess, since it' s brand spanking new, the problem is probably me and not the smoker. With that said, does anybody have any ideas what I might be doing that caused such a substantial amount of ash, or if that's normal on a first use for a smoker?

 

[CMTiger]

Possibly pellet quality as the Traeger pellets aren’t the best

 

[Timmy]

1/3 to 1/2 cup isn’t much ash for a 4 hr cook. Here is a thread that may answer some of your questions.
Thread 'Pellet Dust Test ► Results Are In'
https://www.traegerforum.com/threads/pellet-dust-test-►-results-are-in.2160/

 

[Slimpicker]

Traegers are 90% efficient at burning pellets and so there would be very little ash.

burning anything creates ash... how can you judge "excessive ash" when it's your first time using this...
Timmy is correct, look at that thread and educate.

BTW,

 

[LanakiYNWA]

Traeger pellets are not good quality. Try a better quality pellet and see how they perform versus the Traeger pellets. Try using Cookin’ pellets, Knotty Wood pellets, or LumberJack pellets. I have been testing out different pellets and found the Knotty Wood to burn very clean with little ash. Downside is they only have 2 different types: Almond wood and Plum wood. Cookin’ pellets and LumberJack have several different types. If you check out Mad Scientist BBQ on YouTube he has a video about pellets you might be interested in.

Not sure this link will work.

 

[Rexofribs]

Knotty wood pellets. Just returned 4 bags to Home Depot. Nice smelling pellets and well made but noticed a lot of slag in the pot even after a hour cook time. I used them for a couple more cooks but had to clean out fire pot after every cook. So I’m sticking with treager or B&B. Like B&B pellets have large selection of different species of wood and burn nice low ash.

 

[LanakiYNWA]

Interesting. I haven’t notice that but I’ve only done a couple of cooks with them. I’ll have to keep an eye on more of my cooks. Good idea to just try some different types to find those you like.

 

[NiceBeef]

I just set up a new Timberline 1300, and I seasoned with the Knotty Wood plum pellets. Seasoning went ok, but on my first actual cook the grill flamed out after about an hour, then would not ignite. I cleaned out the pot and found 3-4 big clumps - my guess is they were the cause.

I assumed that maybe cranking up to 500 for the seasoning might have been part of the problem, and since I didn't clean out the pot afterwards, I would give the pellets another shot after a good cleaning. Well - about 90 minutes into cooking 2 racks of ribs - same thing happened. I emptied out the hopper, purged the remaining pellets, and reloaded with some Cookinpellets blend - finished with no issues.

 

[TheGrumpyGriller]

I've found that Pit Boss pellets have been low ash and are 1/2 to 1/3 the cost of the Traeger pellets which I no longer use. I also have a few bags of Expert Pellets which is Walmart's brand, and i was surprised at how good they were, especially at $9 for 30lbs.

 

[Murphy's Law]

I just set up a new Timberline 1300, and I seasoned with the Knotty Wood plum pellets. Seasoning went ok, but on my first actual cook the grill flamed out after about an hour, then would not ignite. I cleaned out the pot and found 3-4 big clumps - my guess is they were the cause.

I assumed that maybe cranking up to 500 for the seasoning might have been part of the problem, and since I didn't clean out the pot afterwards, I would give the pellets another shot after a good cleaning. Well - about 90 minutes into cooking 2 racks of ribs - same thing happened. I emptied out the hopper, purged the remaining pellets, and reloaded with some Cookinpellets blend - finished with no issues.

There as a post here awhile back talking about this same issue. I think it's called a klinker or something like that. If I remember correctly the general consensus was to use them in a smoke tube but don't push them through the auger.

If you search for "plum pellets" on this forum you can find it (or I'll try and find it later).

 

[LanakiYNWA]

I have used both the Almond wood and Plum wood pellets and had no issues but I have a Yoder smoker. I had a Traeger but had problems so went with the Yoder. Different design for the auger/firepot so not sure if that makes a big difference. Definitely the fire pot is bigger in the Yoder than the traeger I had. You will definitely see more ash due to knottywood using the whole tree including the bark. They say that gives it more smoke flavor. I am curious to see if anyone has compared to a stick burner and if it is somewhat close to same flavor. I have done a 20 hour brisket cook using plum and other than a lot of ash I had no issues. Possibly bad batch or moisture go into pellets/auger ? This could cause them to gum up. FYI knottywood is going to be releasing an almond and plum infused wine. Anxious to try those when they release. Mad Scientist BBQ just released a YouTube video with knottywood and doing a taste test. FYI. Good luck and happy smoking.

 

[GrillMeister]

B&B is the way to go if you can get them in your area. I'm lucky that in addition to fine Texas Beef products my local HEB, carries a large selection of charcoal & bbq pellets.

 

[Slimpicker]

GM you lucky bragging SOB!!!! Gawd I wish I had HEB I'd be doing the same thing... I love to hate you sometimes!!!!

 

[GrillMeister]

View attachment 8994 GM you lucky bragging SOB!!!! Gawd I wish I had HEB I'd be doing the same thing... I love to hate you sometimes!!!! View attachment 8993

LOL. I wrote it that way just for you..

 

[BBQLUV]

Possibly pellet quality as the Traeger pellets aren’t the best.

LOL. I wrote it that way just for you..

They are very good. Traeger Pellets do a great job in my Timberline 850.