How To Operate A Traeger Grill
Knowing how to operate a Traeger grill is important as some of its design characteristics mean that its operation varies somewhat from a conventional BBQ grill or smoker.
To start with you should always start your Traeger grill in a high setting, to feed enough pellets into the firepot and ensure that the fire starts properly.
You may now lower the heat as necessary and start cooking on your Traeger grill. Here are further Traeger operation tips.
What Type Of Grill Is Best For Smaller Spaces Like Apartments
Depending on your space, you might not have many grill options. Many apartments dont allow gas or charcoal grills on balconies because gas and charcoal use open flames and are prone to flare-ups. Wood pellet grills, including portable pellet grills, are generally safe to use on an apartment balcony and are less likely to be banned in a lease because theyre mostly HOA approved.
What Are Some Great American Made Alternatives
You still have some great American made wood pellet grills, but we would like to point out how they will cost more than a Traeger or a Pit Boss. Because of that, many of the American made wood pellet grills dont have as big of a presence online. You see them more as regional players rather than playing on a big scale.
American Made Wood Pellet Grills: Weber
One of the few exceptions to this rule being Weber, which makes its grills in Palatine, Illinois. All but two of the latest models continue to be manufactured here. The Spirit Series and the Genesis II Series come manufactured and assembled in either Taiwan or China.
Weber says that they make their SmokeFire pellet grills in Chicago. They do use globally-sourced materials, but you would be hard-pressed to find a better American made company at a lower price. Their wood pellet grills are durable, stylish and reliable. It also comes backed with a 10-year warranty. You would consider the SmokeFire grill a great smoker, and it does an expert job at searing as well.
We also found their pricing reasonable in comparison to some of the other American made grills.
Cookshack: An American Icon
Existing within the grilling industry for over 50 years, Cookshack shows you another great American made wood pellet grilling company. They make their products in Ponca City, Oklahoma. All of its products are engineered and made there.
Smokin Brothers Wood Pellet Grills: Made in America
Read Also: Register Your Weber Grill
Will The Usa Ever Welcome Back Traeger Manufacturing
We dont know if the pellet grills from Traeger will ever make a return to manufacturing in the United States. However, Traeger announced plans in the spring of 2021 to build a $3 million facility where they will manufacture hardwood pellets. The wood products bought from Traeger will have exclusive sourcing from Virginia.
Speaking of the wood pellets, where are Traeger wood pellets made? Traeger wood pellets are actually made in the USA. You can find out more about their manufacturing of wood pellets in this video below.
This decision will create 15 new jobs in Wythe County. Traeger says that they will coordinate their efforts with Musser Lumber Co. Inc. to produce materials for their wood pellets. One of the great things about the wood pellets from Traeger comes from its environmentally friendly approach to manufacturing them. For example, their wood pellets come as a byproduct of cabinet flooring, wood construction and things of a similar nature.
They take the materials and compress them to create the wood pellets, rather than having to chop down trees or other things for these materials, which would be less environmentally friendly. It makes use out of something that would have gone to waste.
Even if this doesnt bring back a huge number of jobs to the United States, Traeger plans to purchase a few million pounds of hardwood products every month. The investment will create a blossoming job market for the sawmills and forest owners of Virginia.
Why Do Users Choose Traeger Products
Users of Traeger grills are very connected with the brand. If you are one of those, you know why. Traeger grill brings superior taste, ease of use, and excellent results every time you want to prepare food.
They claim that these grills bring unrivaled wood-fired flavor to the table, and no matter which grill you select, with its 6-in-1 ability, you can grill, smoke, bake, roast, braise, and BBQ the ingredients you love.
Traeger grills are compact and portable and have features that will help you prepare your meal and do it quickly and securely. Thanks to their precision temperature control and a simple start-up you get grilling quicker, with no flare-ups.
Their latest technology lets you monitor and control your grill from anywhere using the Traeger app. You don’t need to babysit the grill, meaning you can focus on flavor rather than tending to the fire. Their do-it-all versatility allows you to cook hot and fast or low and slow.
Read More:How Do I Get More Smoke From My Traeger?
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Smokin Brothers Pellet Grills/smokers
Based in Southeast Missouri, Smokin Brothers was started in 2008 and is a family-owned business. Their desire to produce their own wood pellet grills started from hosting family gatherings and competing in BBQ competitions. By 2011 the Smokin Brothers had developed their own range of wood pellet grills. Below is a quick video from Ryan discussing the foundation of Smokin Brothers.
Smokin Brothers produce a range of wood pellets grills all made in the USA
As you can see from the video above the Smokin Brothers have got some interesting pellet grill designs that Ill do a more in-depth review of in the future. Quickly though as shown in the video above they produce traditional style pellet grills and their premium and premium plus models with a front positioned hopper which also conveniently acts as a shelf. Smokin Brothers now also manufacture a range of commercial pellet grills.
Do Traeger Grills Have A Lifetime Warranty
The Traeger grill warranty is a 3-year warranty, where defects that happen within three years of your purchase anniversary will be replaced and covered at the expense of Traeger.
Like most warranties, there will not be any replacements done to parts that were damaged intentionally or maliciously. Keep in mind that if your Traeger has to be serviced, the labor expenses are not covered in this warranty.
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Launching Additional Products: Traeger’s Timberline Series
After building an IoT platform that enabled Traeger to grow and scale seamlessly, Traeger engaged OST as a trusted partner to develop their new Timberline Series. The product featured new capabilities that would directly impact end users and the digital experience. More capabilities also increased complexity in areas like messaging structures. As Traegers primary AWS platform vendor, OST needed to collaborate with product, mobile, firmware, web and content teams to build advanced features in a highly optimized and IoT-ready way.
OST immediately delivered additional business value to Traeger. We provided strategic direction related to firmware over-the-air updates and telemetry data ingestion. OST architects hardened the platform via integration and code coverage tests while updating security measures for the platform, firmware and end users. With future maintainability and reduction of technical debt in mind, OST also improved live service monitoring systems and built a user-friendly web portal for engineers and developers to better manage device configuration, firmware updates, users and other tasks.
With this work complete, Traeger launched the new Timberline Series with confidence that their IoT platform could accommodate new users, increased traffic and additional complexity while improving security, reducing uncertainty and saving on cloud costs.
Ler Code Fixing On Traeger Grill
LER means low-temperature error. This Traeger error code occurs when the temperature is inside the grill drops below 125 degrees. . There are a few different things that can cause this, such as:
- The pallet inside the fire pot is missing causing the temperature to drop. check to ensure that the pellet is in the fire pot. If it is not, add more pellets to the grill.
- Chimneys height is too low. The Traeger Pellet grill needs a 12-inch clearance from the top of the chimney to the bottom of the grate.
- Windy weather may also cause LER. If it is windy, try to position the Traeger grill so that the wind does not blow directly into it.
- Traeger suggests checking the grills temperature sensor and comparing it with the temperature inside the grill. If they are not reading the same, Traeger recommends replacing the temperature sensor.
- Remove the grill gate and clean the fire pot. Sometimes, ashes and debris can build up in the fire pot and cause the temperature to drop.
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Traeger Pellet Grills To Expand Salt Lake City Headquarters
The Utah Governors Office of Economic Development is pleased to announce that Traeger Pellet Grills LLC will expand its headquarters in Salt Lake City, Utah, creating up to 120 new high-paying jobs in the next seven years.
As Traeger continues to grow, so does the popularity of its products, said Val Hale, GOEDs executive director. Were glad to have such a well-known product headquartered in our own backyard. A unique part of this new expansion is that its new facility will be located in an Opportunity Zone, which will help revitalize the Granary District of downtown Salt Lake. We wish Traeger all the best with this expansion and its continued growth.
Headquartered in Salt Lake City, Traeger designs, manufactures and sells wood pellet grills and related products. The company is a leader in the pellet grill category and a well-known brand in the grill industry. Traeger continues to innovate new technology solutions, such as Wi-Fi-enabled grills. The company has a large selection of wood pellets, rubs, recipe books, and one of the most downloaded cooking apps.
Traegers culture and growth has been shaped by all the amazing things Utah has to offer, said Jeremy Andrus, Traeger Grills CEO. The opportunity to expand our worldwide headquarters in the Granary District is exciting the space speaks to the innovation thats core to Traegers DNA. Were thrilled to continue growing our brand and giving back to Utah both in new jobs and incredible food.
Where Is Traeger Grills Adding A New Location
2021/May/Fri
Traeger Grills is one of the top selling brands for wood pellets as well as wood pellet grills. As a result of steady success, they are now investing $3 million toward a new location in Wythe County, Virginia. This will help them increase manufacturing and also continue to grow and reach more customers. In addition, they plan to create 15 new jobs. So this will be a great addition to Virginias economy as well!
From Area Development Magazine:
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Understanding Why Joe Traeger Sold His Brand In 2006
We would like to speak about Joe Traeger selling the brand because of how deeply it impacted the companys manufacturing in the USA. Joe Traeger was the mastermind behind the Traeger Grills, which started in 1985. It began with him patenting his ingenious wood pellet burning grill.
What made the wood pellet grill so great came from how you could influence the flavor of the meat with different species of woodever heard of a mesquite barbecue? Mesquite is a specific wood species that creates a distinct smoky flavor.
At the same time, wood pellet grills created less ash, and therefore, less cleanup than other grills. From 1986 until 2006, Joe Traeger held a patent that kept out all competition against his company. When 2006 rolled around, Joe thought it better to sell the company than to deal with the new competition that would soon flood the market. In particular, he may have realized how difficult it would be to compete with companies that were manufacturing abroad.
Since 2006, you have had several competitors that have begun to make wood pellet grills of similar quality.
Wood Pellets And Flavoring Chips
The first thing youll need to do is ignite wood pellets in the firepot. Then, put the lid on the grill and wait a few minutes for it to heat up to cooking temperature. Once its hot, place your food on the grate and close the lid.
The next step is to add flavoring wood chips to the pellets. This can be done by opening the door on the side of the grill and adding them to the chip tray. Be sure to close the door when you are finished, as this will keep the chips from burning.
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Alternative Pellet Grill & Smoker Products
Traeger isnt the only manufacturer of pellet grills. Dansons Inc. is quite the pellet grill manufacturers, making both Pit Boss grills, and Louisiana Grills. And as the popularity of backyard grills that use pellets continues to grow, more and more pellet grill companies have started to emerge.
On Amazon, you might find brands such as Z Grills, which make a standard pellet grill, and if you spend much time researching via Google, you might run across a brand called RecTeq, as well. Plus, you may find that a traditional barbecue grill manufacturer like Weber or Char-broil has started to introduce a pellet grill & smoker, too. Still, despite the growing amount of competition, Traeger is THE MARKET LEADER in the pellet grilling industry. In most instances, Pit Boss is the most logical alternative to Traeger. Of course, Pit Boss grills are made in China, too, so if you are looking for American-made pellet grills, you might be out of luck. Grilla Grills are made overseas as well.
We understand searching out for American quality standards. Mak Grills are one of the few brands that make their grills in the USA. And in case you are wondering, Mak Grills are manufactured in Dallas . The reality is that to stay competitive and survive, many companies have to manufacture their products overseas, just to stay alive, and we shouldnt hold that against them.
Are You Supporting American Business And American Jobs By Purchasing These Products
Buying a Traeger Grill no longer supports American manufacturing jobs on a large scale. They do prop up some other jobs in the USA like retail and distribution, but it no longer gives jobs to people who work at factories. Traeger has begun to reinvest in United States manufacturing in 2021 for its wood pellets, which shows you how the company does want to keep jobs within the USA.
The manufacturing of wood pellets may also one day become a big contribution because of a growing market share in the grilling industry. In the past, wood pellet grills accounted for one percent of all grills. Today, wood pellet grills hold close to a 20 percent market share. That information shows you how you still have room for growth with wood pellet grills.
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Jeremy Andrus And The Traeger Grills Takeover In 2014
In 2014, the Traeger brand was 26 years old. Entrepreneur Jeremy Andrus of Skullcandy saw something special in the brand and decided to acquire Traeger while partnering with Trilantic Capital Partners.
When he looked at Traeger, Andrus noticed that it wasnt just about the grill itself. The company built an entire lifestyle brand, with a loyal band of followers who wanted to infuse Traeger style into all aspects of their lives. The brand has nearly 1 million followers on Instagram, a testament to the number of Traeger owners who cant get enough of all that their wood pellet grills and smokers have to offer. Sometimes a venture capitalist might strip down a companys culture, but it was largely because of this culture that Jeremy Andrus know he was on to something special that he could transform into a larger company.
Andrus belies in the importance of talking with consumers about the experience theyll have with Traeger, as its more than just a tool to cook food. When customers purchase a Traeger grill, they get to experience cooking in a new way and can talk with others who are enjoying this new, exciting way of cooking as well.
When Did Production Move To China
Joe decided that instead of competing with other brands, he would sell his beloved Traeger Grills for a hefty $12.4 million. Up until he sold the company in 2006, Traeger grills were American-made and production was located in the state of Oregon.
Once the new owners took over, they decided to move manufacturing over to China.
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How To Clean A Traeger Grill The Right Way
Traeger grills are unique in that the burning of wood pellets creates heat for cooking.
These are fed from the hopper into a small firepot by an auger. The temperature of the Traeger grill is controlled through a digital temperature setting dial .
An electrically powered, thermostat-controlled hot rod ignites the wood pellets as and when needed and keeps the grill temperature at the desired heat setting.
The all-steel design of the Traeger grill, of course, means that some care is needed to ensure the grill looks good and stays in excellent working condition.
Steel exposed to heat and moisture will rust and tarnish if not cared for adequately. The internal surfaces need to be cleaned regularly to ensure the internal protective coatings are not damaged.
Depending on the model, the Traeger cooking grid is made either from stainless steel, porcelain-covered metal grate, or cast iron. These require different cleaning techniques.
Cookshack/fast Eddy Pellet Grills/smokers
Ive previously written a full article on the Cookshack pellet grill range, so please check out that article for the full details. Here Ill just quickly run through a few details about the company and their products. Cookshack is based in Ponca City, Oklahoma and they have been producing electric smokers since the 1960s.
Then in collaboration with BBQ expert and Pit Master Fast Eddy they developed their range of residential and commercial pellet grills/smokers. Their smallest unit is the PG500 seen at the top of this post, their other residential pellet grill is the PG1000 which is a more conventional design and features an insulated construction.
The PB1000 is one of two residential pellet grills/smokers made in the USA by Cookshack: Image BBQGuys.com
All Cookshack pellet grill/smokers are made from stainless steel. They feature a 4 cooking zone design. The first area is the hottest cooking area directly over the pellet fire where direct flame broiling is possible. The heat/smoke is then carried up to the upper rack which is the second cooking area before it is pulled down over the second grate which is the third cooking area. Below that is the fourth cooking area in a draw. Frequently used as an area to keep cooked food warm it can also be used as a cold smoker.
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