Some interesting results for Pellet Grill Geeks

[veryolddog]

Hello Everyone,

Over a month ago I ordered and received a new Yoder YS480 grill which introduced me to the world of pellet smoking. Previously, I had owned an MES 30 and a Brinkman Propane Smoker which introduced me to the "sport", just kidding, hobby and passion five years ago. I guess that I just by-passed wood/charcoal smoking and did not pay my bonafides in that area. So, I do not have that valuable expertise that the wood/Charcoal burners bring to the table. In any event, I am enjoying my time with the Yoder and the cooks are really fantastic.

I started in the information technology field back in 1967 and I always have an interest as to how things work and to collect, analyze and interpret data so that it can be valuable information for me to use going forward. So, every time that I fire up the Yoder and smoke a specific dish, I collect the data from the experience and store it in a very simple EXCEL spreadsheet. It is elementary data such as start time, finish time, brand of pellets, hours cooked, pounds of pellets used, food cooked, cooking temperature, and cups of pellets used. From this information, I know that a cup of pellets inside a Pyrex 4 cup measuring cup weighs 5.5 ounces. So, the entire 4 cups equals 4 x 5.5 or 22 ounces = 1.375 lbs. If I know how many cups that I used, which I do because I refill to the same mark in the pellet hopper every time, then I can compute total cups and then determine pounds of pellets used per hour for each cook at a specific temperature.

Here are some examples:

1. Pork butt - cooked for 16 hours at 225 degrees using 19.25 lbs. of pellets. The average pellet consumption was 1.2 lbs. of pellets per hour.

2. Whole roasted chicken - cooked for 5 hours at 250 degrees using 4.125 lbs. of pellets. The average pellet consumption was 1.375 lbs. of pellets per hour.

You see where I am heading with this. I am learning how my Yoder YS480 performs and what to expect.

Now you say so what. All that I do is toss pellets into the hopper, set it, forget it and cook your food. That's ok. I just have that curious nature to understand what is happening to my pellet cooker and and how it behaves. That's just me.

Now keep in mind, that this is as scientific as it gets. I do not pretend to use infrared data collectors; I do not take exactly one pound of pellets and see how long one pound burns at a specific temperature and I am not particularly anal or exact about this. But this works for me.

I also am beginning to know what it costs me to operate the smoker. Why? Cost of pellets. I know that I will need 20 lbs. of pellets to run a 16 hour smoke for a pork butt at 225 degrees. And this costs $9.99 at Academy Sports.

Cost of pellets: This can be an issue if you are paying $18.00 for a 20 lb. bag. Fortunately, I have an Academy Sports in my area where I can purchase B and B Pellets in apple, hickory, and mesquite for $9.99 per 20 lb. bag. Perhaps, someone in your area will provide the benefit of a bulk purchase. The lowest I can get is $0.37 per lb. or $7.50 per 20 lb. bag from a dealer in Texas for a 600 pound purchase. At Academy, I pay $0.50 per lb. In order for me to get the $0.37 per lb. I would have to drive 500 miles round trip to Conroe Texas. Since my son, goes to Houston on business quite often, I may have him swing by Conroe and pick up that 600 lbs. and bring it back to store in his business. If they would drop the price to $5.00 per bag, i would get 2000 lbs.

I do not know if this is informative for you as it is for me, but, at least, I am able to share this information. And, you can decide if this is valuable for you or not. It really does not matter whether this is a Yoder, Rec Tec, or GMG, I just think that this is good stuff to know. And, it would be nice to compare my results on the Yoder with someone doing the same thing on a Rec Tec, etc.

I really am enjoying this experience with the Yoder. Any time that I can continue to learn new things and be immediately gratified by the outstanding results of my efforts is a great combination. In this case, good quality smoked food.

Have a great day!

With kind regards,

Ed

[Savannahsmoker]

I did not know the Yoder YS480 pellet usage was that high as my Traeger and Royall run at about half of that at 225.

Great info and thanks much for posting it.

It will benefit all current and future pellet users.

[smokeasaurus]

After I got the Yoder Thermal Cover my pellet usage went down by almost a lb an hour.

[muebe]

Ed it is good to know this information. It is helpful to others to know what the true cost of pellet grilling can be for them.

Some people do not have access to a cheap source for pellets. So even though you might save money buying a cheaper pellet grill the higher pellet consumption can cost you in the long run.

My Memphis is double-wall insulated and I have calculated 0.53 lbs an hour consumption at 225F for overnight cooks during Fall weather(high 40s) using Bear Mountain Pellets. This pellet grill is not cheap on the initial cost but it does use less pellets than almost every pellet grill out there. I say that because there is a possibility there could be insulated models that perform better but none I am aware of. Pellet cost savings can quickly make up for the difference.

Those who have access to cheap cost pellets this might not matter as much.

Also different brands and pellet types can burn at different rates. And a ash filled firepot can affect the number too. It is important to clean out the firepot for a complete burn.

The Yoder is built like a tank. There is a lot of mass to bring up to temp. And with that mass there is more potential for thermal loss. This is a trade off for having such thick gauge metal. And as the wind blows across that metal the loss is even greater. But your cooker will be around for a very long time.

A welding blanket or manufacturer made thermal cover can help with heat retention and less pellet consumption for a non-insulated pellet grill. Yoder makes a nice one. You might want to look into getting one. It will pay for itself.

The controller is also key. Some controllers are smart and manage the fuel rate to keep a steady temp. My Memphis also controls the fan speed and will bellow the fan to regulate temps and create smoke. Some cheap pellet grills come with controllers that just use timing settings that do not compensate for temps in the cooker. There is a lot of calculations and adjustments being made on the fly by an advanced controller.

Getting the fuel consumption information will give you the true cost of the pellet grill. This will allow a potential buyer to make a better informed decision on what pellet grill will work for them.

[smokeasaurus]

as a side note the YS-480 is on the 34th revision of programming and Yoder CS says that is the last revision for the YS-480 so there is nothing coming down the pike in the ways of new programming................

[veryolddog]

Hello Everyone,

I really appreciate the great feedback.

I posted this because I am interested in sharing this information. Before I made the purchase of the Yoder I had heard that the 640 model was using 2 lbs. of pellets per hour for an ordinary smoke based upon subjective evaluation. The Yoder website states: "Pellet consumption ranges from 1½-pounds to 4-pounds per hour depending on the cooking temperature and environment." So I made a open decision to purchase this product knowing full well that it was going to be a high consumer of pellets. That is why I began to measure what I have. However, there is really very little information available that tells me how other pellet smokers perform with respect to pellet consumption except for this chart:

(we will build a chart and they will come)

This chart is the only thing that I could use to compare pellet performance among a variety of brands. However this test was based upon placing (supposedly) an exact one pound of pellets into a hopper and burning that amount until it was consumed at a specific temperature. For example, the Memphis which was mentioned tracks with the report somewhat but these are not real cooks. They are just the burning of pellets. The Rec Tec which is today's popular seller appears to consume pellets like my 480 but has a larger grill area. I think that muebe has made some excellent points with respect to the issue. And, perhaps, an insulated cover is in order. However, an average summer day in the San Antonio area is over 90 degrees.

I think that if there were some repository of actual pellet consumption during a live cook no matter the level of consumption, this would be extremely helpful to perspective purchasers who have to make a decision on the ability to spend; reliability, personal needs, and expectations. What I have reported are real experiences good, bad or indifferent and I think that an individual would be interested in that information just as they would be in information concerning the reliability and availability of that product along with the customer service support from the vendor.

If muebe would post his experience on his Memphis and Smokeasaurus would post his experience on his Yoder and others would post their experience on their pellet grills, this would be very informative for example cooking 3 things: whole chicken, pork butt, and brisket with list temps and utilization this would be an excellent example of experience information.

With kind regards,

Ed

 

[muebe]

Ed I think a pellet consumption area in pellet smokers is in order for those who decide to do the testing. Smoke if you can get that area created or maybe if Tim needs to do it.

Then people can post their actual results for their pellet grills. Ambient temps, pellet type, wind, type of food being cooked, and temps/settings used during the cook. This should be a universal pellet cooker area so that people can go to one place to see all the numbers.

I think I am going to pick up a cheap scale that I will place under my Memphis so when I cook I can take the weight of the cooker before and after to try and get a true pellet pound usage.

Anyone have any input on what else should be included for testing please speak up

[smokeasaurus]

This is gonna be a good thread

The type of pellet used can also effect consumption.

An alder based pellet does not burn well in my Yoder and also caused those dreaded temp swings.

For example: alder based pellet at 300 degrees burned 3.6 lbs an hour while a de-barked oak pellet was 1.9

at 225 degrees the alder based pellet was 1.5 an hour and a de-barked oak was .84 an hour

now these tests were done with the Yoder Thermal Cover in place

uncovered with de-barked oak was 300 degrees  2.5 an hour and 225 degrees 1.8 lbs an hour

so with the cover, consumption dropped just about a lb an hour and the Yoder is pretty close to the other pellet grill offerings 

[smokeasaurus]

for my testing I started by cleaning out the hopper and just leaving the auger primed.

Also for my testing, the time and consumption also included heating up the pit to target temp.

I weighed the pellets out each time so the weights would be accurate.

In my Yoder the Lumberjack de-barked oak pellets worked the best and Green Mountain Gold was a close second.

[muebe]

I think the cheap scale idea might work for me but for a Yoder that weighs as much as a tank not so much. So weighing the pellets is your best option.

But we should have some uniform guidelines for people posting test results. Now I say guidelines because every situation is different. But however puts the first post will set precedence of what others should follow. So the first post should act as a guideline for format and information making it simple to read.

Then when we have enough data we can create a graph like what Ed posted to give a snapshot of real user averages.

[veryolddog]

Hello Everyone,

The pellets available to me are BBQ Delight which is an oak and hickory blend and B and B pellets which I purchased from Academy Sports. These are also a 60/40 blend of oak matched with hickory, mesquite, or apple.

The idea of a pellet consumption or pellet smoker performance section would be interesting. I really would like to see how the Yoder 480 compares with manufacturers as well as other Yoders given the nature and diversity of pellets.

I believe that I will be looking into that cover soon. The only question that I have about the cover is: can you open and close the lid while the blanket is placed on the Yoder?

Thanks and have a great day!

Ed

[smokeasaurus]

I have had the cover on for about 3 months now. It is on all the time and is very well made.

[Jaxon]

Guess I should go ahead and get a pellet smoker so I can be part of this study. Certainly Deb couldn't argue with that..

Ed, thanks for a great study. It will have me thinking about charcoal / wood consumption as I cook this summer. With the price of gas going up, I am more aware of it every time I start the grill.

[smokeasaurus]

I dont think I answered your question completely Ed.

The Yoder thermal cover is in three sections when you get it.

One section clips to the bottom opening and covers the front bottom under the door opening.

Then the other two sections hook together just under the counter weight and the pc that covers the lid has clips that hook to the bottom of the lid.

Then you have some velcro straps on the bottom that you simply click together.

Down the road if you decide to add a thermometer, the cover has a opening so you will know exactly where to drill. I was darn lucky because I installed the thermo before I got the cover and I just happened to drill in the exact spot...............

[veryolddog]

Hello Everyone,

I just emailed Byron Funk at Yoder Customer Service and Distributor relations with respect the Thermal Jacket. I suspect that after I complete my conversation with him, that I will order this accessory.

The point of this matter is: if I had this conversation about the thermal jacket and it's direct impact upon heat retention and pellet consumption, I would have probably ordered this from the get go with the smoker. If this forum could create a repository of information about a variety manufacturers equipment and the experiences of operating from the folks who have them, then a perspective buyer would be able to evaluate owner experiences with the equipment. This can be done in an organized fashion by having a variety of categories that people can comment on when they provide feedback on their own smoker. Those categories would be generated by a common discussion and could come up proposed categories like:

Reliability and Failure Rates
Pellet Consumption by meat, by temp, by brand of, by lbs. per hour, etc.
Customer Service estimate
Accessories purchased at time of order
Pellet Costs and accessibility
Whatever
Whatever
Etc.

i think that this would be more informative than burning bacon on grill or doing a "biscuit" test, or making a pizza on the grill. And, frankly, I really value the input of the folks who have owned these products and have the real life experience with it.

These are some initial thoughts. I'm sure you guys could really build a great way to orchestrate this.

With kind regards,

Ed