New owner soon

[eaglefan]

Ordered the 590 on Saturday, this will be my first experience with a pellet smoker. Ive used my 22in WSM for 10 years and it has been great, especially with the Guru. The WSM is a pain to move around is the main reason for the switch.
Couple questions: I want this to be as "Problem free" as possible, don't want any pellet jams and other issues during a cook. I've read about long pellets causing a problem. Is there a brand of pellets that is usually problem free? What brand of pellets do I have the best chance with avoiding these jams? Seems a lot of people use chicken for their first cook after burn in. Is this just because its cheap in case there are issues?

Thanks for the replies

 

[Chevys10zr2003]

I've never had an issue with Lumberjack pellets or Bear Mountain.

I believe the rule of thumb is something higher in fat for the first cook, so a lot of people will do bacon or chicken thighs or something along those lines but I could be wrong.

 

[Motodad1776]

I've never had pellets jam or cause issues in the auger, but if moisture gets in the pellets/hopper/auger.....yeah gonna have issues.

 

[eaglefan]

After a cook, do you leave the pellets in the hopper? I live in the humidity ridden state of Florida in the panhandle. Smoker will be kept under a awning with a cover over it.

 

[padlin00]

3+ years, no jams. I do however put in only the amount of pellets I guess I will use per cook. Usually it leaves me a couple inches at the bottom which I would think are the first used on the next cook, so the pellets don’t sit in the hopper for for long. Many times I have to add more, which means I have to check the supply a 2 or 3 times a session at which time I move them around a bit. No idea if this makes no difference, it’s just what I do. Occasionally I run it to empty in test mode and blow the dust out of the auger, like once a year.

I use Bear Mtn and Lumberjack when I can get it. They work for me.

 

[Greg Jones]

I had some major bridging challenges with too-long charcoal pellets in my Bullseye. I want to say they were LJ pellets, but I seriously don’t recall now. The same pellets worked just fine in the 340 and 700. I’ve never had a bridging problem with any other pellets. I posted about it here, in case anyone wants to do a search to see which pellets were in question.

 

[eaglefan]

Thank you everyone for the replies. If anyone has anything else to add for a first timer please post.

Also, any mods they have made that have worked out. Ive looked at the Peterson shelves, pretty sure that's the name. Pretty slick setup

 

[padlin00]

Only things I did was add a front shelf, rain deflector for the back vents, and remove the kiddy grate from the pellet bin.

I tell my wife when to start whatever she’s making for sides or what not once I know when I’ll be ready. She tells me how long she’ll need. Things don’t always get done when you planned.

 

[pungo]

Congrats on the new grill, enjoy...
Cooking chicken thighs is an urban myth, cook what ever you have on hand. the gill will season with use.
I've used many brands of pellets over the years without any issues, though I removed the finger guard. I never remove the pellets, even with high humidity, just store the bags of pellets in low humidity environment.
I added a DIY front folding shelf, Gene Gauger heavy duty 100% stainless steel upper sliding grate, lid gasket and a GMG pizza oven.

 

[Greg Jones]

Nice setup! I’m sure you have posted pics of that second shelf before, but with my low memory storage I don’t recall it. That’s like a perfect setup for anyone wanting a recteq in that size range.

 

[DesertRat]

I've used several brands, but mainly bear mountain. I did read of one brand that has long pellets. I'm not sure of the brand so I won't take it kiss at the name. I think if you clean it regularly, every third or fourth cook and keep your pellets dry I see no reason you should have a problem. I've had mine for I believe two and a half years now and never had a single problem. I have a 590 with the competition cart. Good Smokin'!

 

[eaglefan]

Thanks guys. Looks like it will be shipped out tomorrow. Going to look into the 2nd shelf some more. I seen the one guy is on facebook. I dont do facrbook, twitter, my space, or any of that stuff so contacting him probably wont happen

 

[Chevys10zr2003]

Thanks guys. Looks like it will be shipped out tomorrow. Going to look into the 2nd shelf some more. I seen the one guy is on facebook. I dont do facrbook, twitter, my space, or any of that stuff so contacting him probably wont happen

Check out https://pcsrackworks.com/. This is who I was thinking about going with for the 2nd shelf in the 700 before the 1250 was announced.

 

[pungo]

Going to look into the 2nd shelf some more. I seen the one guy is on facebook. I dont do facrbook, twitter, my space, or any of that stuff so contacting him probably wont happen

I DM'd you the email contact for the 2nd shelf made from stainless steel as shown in my pic above.

 

[v1per95]

Ordered the 590 on Saturday, this will be my first experience with a pellet smoker. Ive used my 22in WSM for 10 years and it has been great, especially with the Guru. The WSM is a pain to move around is the main reason for the switch.
Couple questions: I want this to be as "Problem free" as possible, don't want any pellet jams and other issues during a cook. I've read about long pellets causing a problem. Is there a brand of pellets that is usually problem free? What brand of pellets do I have the best chance with avoiding these jams? Seems a lot of people use chicken for their first cook after burn in. Is this just because its cheap in case there are issues?

Thanks for the replies

I go back and forth between Pit boss comp blend, and Bear Mountain, and I've never had issues with either. I've found the easiest thing is just to check the bag before dumping, usually its pretty clear if you happen to get a bag with long pellets in it. For the first cook you wanna go with something fatty to season the grill, which is why most people go with chicken thighs. They're good, they're hard to mess up, and theyre plenty fatty.

 

[Pete6737]

Ordered the 590 on Saturday, this will be my first experience with a pellet smoker. Ive used my 22in WSM for 10 years and it has been great, especially with the Guru. The WSM is a pain to move around is the main reason for the switch.
Couple questions: I want this to be as "Problem free" as possible, don't want any pellet jams and other issues during a cook. I've read about long pellets causing a problem. Is there a brand of pellets that is usually problem free? What brand of pellets do I have the best chance with avoiding these jams? Seems a lot of people use chicken for their first cook after burn in. Is this just because its cheap in case there are issues?

Thanks for the replies

Congrats on your Recteq purchase. A year and a half ago I also switched from WSM22in with BbqGuru. I BBq on a pool deck. While I modded it with wheels, it was pain. The mess and cleaning and prepping the WSM prompted my move to Recteq. I’ll admit, the consistent great bbq it turned out is missed from time to time. I gave it away but my friend hasn’t used it once. I’d love to do a shootout with it. Or take it back altogether. Lol

Using the Recteq will come with a learning curve. The smoke is different. It’s easier to use, IE putting food on, cleaning etc, than the WSM, which is the exact reason for buying it. My family and guests don’t notice the difference in the bbq taste, but I do. I’m currently going through a multiple pellet trial with different wood pellets to get what I determine to be the best compromise between WSM flavor and convenience of the cook. I’ve done long smokes, hot and fast grilling using sear grates. There are times I miss the flame kissed char on a steak, in which case I use good ole charcoal grilling but most of my grilling is in the Recteq.

I cover my grill and it’s protected from direct rain under an awning as well. Humidity may have an affect on your pellets if they’re in the hopper for a long time. I noticed some weird temperature fluctuations. I checked the pellets and there were a number of discolored pellets. I vacuumed them out and replaced with fresh and had no issues. (See pic). They were in the hopper over winter. I don’t fill the hopper as full lately.
I never had a jam, Recteq, pit boss , Costco and Royal oak charcoal pellets.
Any issues I had is likely my fault. The fire pot needs a little cleaning out every now and then, and after a high temp cook I lower the temps and get the grill settled at say 250 before turning it off will help with any residual burn in the pot or hopper. Many suggestions here will benefit you as you transition to pellets. This forum has helped me greatly!
Congrats and happy bbqing!

 

[eaglefan]

Thanks Pete. I can't see me getting rid of the WSW. It's a pain to move, messy, but it does produce great food and it can cook a lot at one time. I also have a weber performer charcoal grill that we use a lot. The taste that hardwood charcoal adds to steaks is a must for us. Since the pellets are real wood, do they add the same type of flavor to a steak?

Like you I have an awning off of the house, aluminum, that the smoker will sit under along with being covered. There are mornings here, hell really anytime, were the weather app says 99% humidity. Its awful. If leaving the pellets in the hopper for a couple weeks won't be an issue, then I will. I just don't want to plan a cook and an hour in I have to clean something out. But then, a bucket vac takes maybe 20 seconds get them all out.

Is there a way to run the auger without lighting the pellets? Or can you get to those pellets without spinning the auger?

 

[padlin00]

I’m sorry I got rid of my 14” WSM, it’d be nice to have for the times I’d prefer taste over ease of use. Not that I’d get rid of the RT.

 

[Waterboy]

Is there a way to run the auger without lighting the pellets? Or can you get to those pellets without spinning the auger?

Yes. There are Recteq videos on YouTube that will tell you how to put your smoker in test mode. When you put the auger in test mode it runs without anything igniting.

 

[padlin00]

It’s in the manual too.

Do people still use manuals?