Pellet clean out.

Corners

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Still looking
I successfully completed my initial burn. Emptied pellets out of hopper. Noticed large amounts of pellets that did not come out that goes to the auger.
Additionally, while cleaning up area around fire pot, I noticed a lot of pellets at the end of the auger and going up the inside of the auger.
Not wanting to leave a lot of pellets in the grill for fear they would turn soft, I used my small shop vac to clean them out. There was an awful lot of pellets in both areas. Was wondering if this should be done every time if one does not plan on using the grill for a few days. Just concerned about pellets going soft and clogging up the auger.
I emptied the pellets into Weber’s pellet bag. That bag works great for storing pellets for a short time.
 
I rarely empty my hopper and auger and it’s never jammed up.
couple of flameouts but they were due to temp changes
 
Unless you're in an area of high humidity, the pellets in the hopper are ok to leave. Same as the ones around the auger. But if you're going for more than a week between cooks that's up to you. Maybe/Maybe not.
 
TKS. Depending on this time of the year, I may go a week or more before I fire up. Summer time, well it’s almost every day.
 
There is no way I would ever own a pellet cooker if it required that level of maintenance or concern. Not in a million years. 🤣
 
Takes less than 5min to drop the auger which would get rid of the rest of the pellets.
As said above, worth doing if you live in a humid area and dont use all the time.
Its also worth doing every few cooks to get rid of just that may be packed up or to look for things like this (not mine).

1618636117762.png
 
What is that? Basically, I keep an eye on out for soft pellets.
 
I live in the SF Bay Area, don't empty the hopper or vacuum the pellet's in the auger. Had one flame out and that was probably my fault as I pushed the dust down the auger chute in the hopper. The replacement auger is better construction, and weber will send out w/o question if you don't have Gen 2. I made sure the cotter pin was flat - have had no issues since (even though first one was most likely my own fault). BTW- my grill is covered, but stored in the open - so it does get exposed to moisture (occasional rain/fog - nothing major).
 
I just fired up my ex4 yesterday after almost a 4 month hiatus—a bit beyond my control. The whole time it was outside with only the Weber cover, sitting out in snow and rain with temps ranging from -10F to 70F. It still had half of a hopper full of pellets when I uncovered and turned it on to update the firmware/software, and started it. Added more pellets on top of the old ones, ran at 350F for 30 minutes to sanitize the inside and clean the grates, followed by 5 hours of smoking ribs at 220-250F.

The unit ran flawlessly the whole time and temps held rock steady. That is why I am a steadfast Weber fan!
 
TKS. Depending on this time of the year, I may go a week or more before I fire up. Summer time, well it’s almost every day.
Mine just sat idle outdoors for almost 4 months and fired up perfectly.
 

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