Pit Boss at Menards

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Congrats on the new Rec Tec jamyj!  I bet you'll really like it.  IMO the key to good pellet smoking is the temp controller...if that Pitboss didn't cut it, you're better of without it.

It's good on Menard's for making it right for you. and shame on Dansen for not giving you better customer service.

Red
 
Yup, I emailed Dansons twice and called once.  They never did reply to my emails and the phone call was pointless as the "guy I needed to talk to" wasn't there.  That's when I broke down and called Menards.   The rectec should be here Monday.   Now just to decide what to break it in with.....     : )
 
The pitboss pellets at menards seem ok.  Will definitely work in a pinch.  I got my Rectec yesterday and LOVE it.  I made bacon wrapped, stuffed pork tenderloins last night and right now I've got some beef and st. louis ribs going.   Set it at 225, left my house and went to town for 2 hours, came home and it was sitting at 226.   Love it!
 
Glad to hear you like it, thanks for the response on the pellets.
I have some 2" thick chops I'm going to smoke to about 125 degrees
@ 225, then crank her up & finish with a sear on the Grill
Grates I ordered with my Rec Tec.
 
Nice!  I want the grill grates too.  Future xmas gift maybe...   for now I still have the Tru-Infrared grill for warp 10 heat/searing.   Gonna smoke some burgers tomorrow night then finish them off on the tru-infrared.   How do you get your bbq equipment listed below your name on every post?  Is that your signature??   I'd like to list my Rectec, Maverick remote thermometer, etc.   Thanks!
 
Yes just click on "edit signature". Hover the pointer over your screename at the top right of the page and you will see it....    
icon14.gif
 
Hi jamyj. I was looking at the pit Boss for a smaller grill than my commercial traeger and am curious if you played with adjusting the smoke setting at all? These new grills coming out lately are the same parts as traeger just modified a bit and a different controller added but the controllers mock the same smoke or "p" settings. I know with my traeger I have to adjust the setting depending on ambient temp and will have high temp swings as well if I don't. Thanks
 
I tried all the settings.   It has 7 "P" settings for the auger delay on smoke setting.   I tried all of them.   On P07, which is supposed to be the slowest/lowest temp setting it was still pushing 300 degrees several times.   Set on 200, which was the lowest cook setting, I believe, it was going between 230 and 265 on a regular basis.   It will work for a cheap grill; I just wasn't happy with the temp control.   I noticed Lowes and Home depot and even Hy Vee all carry 400-500 dollar pellet grills now as well.  All very similar to this pit boss grill.  Maybe you'll have better luck than I did but I wasn't happy at all.   Glad I spent the extra money and got a Rec Tec.  It's AWESOME.
 
You will not be disappointed with the Rec-Tec. I have had mine since Dec. it cooks awesome holds temperature with in 2 degrees of your set point all night long. There is not one bad thing bad I could say about a Rec-Tec.  
 
I have had the Pit Boss 820 for about 2 months now and I could not be happier.  I initially noticed what JamyJ mentioned about pushing high temps.  I have found that regardless of the temp you initially set, it will increases to about 300 then works its way back down the desired temp.  I have used the Maverick ET-732 to determine the reliability of the temp and it was consistently within 3 degrees for the duration of my brisket and pork shoulder smokes.  I haven't needed to change the P setting.  

Just putting this out there for anyone who may be considering the Pit Boss 820 from Menards. 

Bigaman
 
I just received my weekly ad from Cabela's and they have the Pit Boss on sale for $399.00 ! ! ! !
Me too..... I was searching for reviews of the Pit Boss when I stumbled on this thread... I wonder what Cabela's return policy is... I have been looking for a used Traeger

to take to our place in northern MI. I thought for $400 this might do the trick ??
 
There are quite a few user/owner comments on the unit at pelletheads.com. at 400 buck a great start to pellet cooking, I think.
 
I recently got the same model Pit Boss, I picked it up at a trade show direct from the manufacturer. They had used it for 3 days as a demo unit. I dont know what pellets were initially in there but the heat did creep on me the first time or two I used it. Which did prompt me to actually read the directions and find this thread. ( I had not adjusted the 'P' setting). I also had no idea what pellet type was in the hopper when I got it. 

I then loaded it with a Cherry and Oak mix I hand blended from stock Traeger pellets. Couldn't be happier. It has been holding smoke temperature great and not had any significant drift. Had no problems doing Salmon, Cheese or 3-2-1 ribs. Best ribs I've ever made. 

My only desire really is that the 'P' setting not default to 4 every time you turn it on, or just have a dial instead of a recessed micro button.   

Not to over analyze but I grill at 7,000 ft altitude, and perhaps the oak slowed down and evened out the temps, but honestly I think I was just getting used to using the product.

Great interaction with the company when I met them. Not to make excuses but as a small business owner our customer service can suffer a little when we are at trade shows. Perhaps the original poster and Pit Boss had a similar bad timing issue. 

I've owned a few $600 to $800 gas grills, first time with a pellet grill, but I couldn't be happier and the other more expensive grill is sitting around unused. 
 
I bought the Pit-Boss at Cabela's for $399 and was very excited to try it. My problem isthat everytime the igniter comes on it trips the gfci on the outdoor plugs. Do you think the gfci is bad or the grill is likely bad? Perhaps I should replace the gfci first and see if that fixes it. But at $40 for a good gfci I hate to waste that effort. Any one ever had this issue with a pellet smoker?
 
I bought the Pit-Boss at Cabela's for $399 and was very excited to try it. My problem isthat everytime the igniter comes on it trips the gfci on the outdoor plugs. Do you think the gfci is bad or the grill is likely bad? Perhaps I should replace the gfci first and see if that fixes it. But at $40 for a good gfci I hate to waste that effort. Any one ever had this issue with a pellet smoker?

An old gfi that has tripped many times can be an issue. As stated above run an extension cord insife and try another gfi circuit and see if it works. You could do a non gfi to fire it up but I wouldn't leave it like that.

If that doesn't fix it you could have a bad hot rod, or a lose ground
 
A loose ground is the most common electrical problem. That being said I'd try a different outlet before digging into things. Even checking the directions might give you a sense of the amps required. 

I'm fairly ignorant of all things electric, I wouldn't guess the Pit Boss needs a ton of juice, but if that auger were jammed or misaligned I could see it possibly 'tripping' things up. 

GFI's dont last forever either. ..Good Luck I love mine. 
 
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