How Long Will Your EX6 Feed Pellets On It’s Own

[Lew Newby]

Sunday I got 10.5 hrs. run time after removing the finger guard and adding the UHMW tape. I don’t know if the time was due to the tape or not. If we compare my time to other Ex6 times maybe we will have a better guess on the tape. How long has your EX6 run at 225 to 275 before you had to help the pellet flow? Note that you have the insert in your hopper if that’s the case.

I just realized that someone might take this as a brag post. It is not. If we find out that it improves performance then we can eliminate one downside to the EX6 and maybe the EX4 with a simple tape job.

 

[Bruno]

Do you have a link to the tape you used?

 

[Lew Newby]

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00823JFAI/?tag=TVWB-20 OK fearless pathfinder I gave you that now give me a run time from your vastly greater EX6 experience than mine.

 

[Bruno]

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00823JFAI/?tag=TVWB-20 OK fearless pathfinder I gave you that now give me a run time from your vastly greater EX6 experience than mine.

I wanna say 8 hours but I’ve never just let them sit until it stopped, I’m a hands on type and I certainly never minded mixing some pellets up. That being said this tape intrigues me. You would think it’s something Weber would try.

 

[Lew Newby]

I’m sure Weber could have a thin sheet fused to the bottom during manufacturing. It might be cheaper than the inserts and would maintain the capacity of the hopper.

 

[Matt Q]

Sunday I got 10.5 hrs. run time after removing the finger guard and adding the UHMW tape. I don’t know if the time was due to the tape or not. If we compare my time to other Ex6 times maybe we will have a better guess on the tape. How long has your EX6 run at 225 to 275 before you had to help the pellet flow? Note that you have the insert in your hopper if that’s the case.

I just realized that someone might take this as a brag post. It is not. If we find out that it improves performance then we can eliminate one downside to the EX6 and maybe the EX4 with a simple tape job.

Not sure if there is a difference in the hopper feed with different pellet types but what pellets did you use?

 

[Lew Newby]

I used Pit Boss Competition Blend. They're a hair larger than Weber but heat grill performance meets specs using them.

 

[Lew Newby]

I wanna say 8 hours but I’ve never just let them sit until it stopped, I’m a hands on type and I certainly never minded mixing some pellets up. That being said this tape intrigues me. You would think it’s something Weber would try.

I'm on a public Facebook group: Weber Smokefire Woodfired Pellet Grill Owners Group.. I asked the same question over there. The number that keeps coming up is 8 hours. My research is certainly not scientific so I can't conclude anything for sure. Since I read the first report of pellet feed problems back in Feb. my gut has been telling me "it has to help some" Next time I do a long cook I'm going to see how long it will run before it starves. I think it does help but I had to buy an EX6 to satisfy my curiosity. I am really glad that beast is sitting in the garage.

I haven't explained my experience with UHMW that caused my belief. Before my heart attack I had a well used flats boat. Bunks on a boat trailer are carpeted 2x4s where the boat rests on the trailer. I replaced the carpet with 3/4" thick UHMW strips and the difference in sliding friction was amazing. Friction practically disappeared. A boat ramp is about the same angle as the hopper ramp. Then I found the tape online and my curiosity surged..

 

[DrewM]

Are there any reported time lengths with people using the updated ramp? I haven't done a long cook yet but I have the updated ramp and also removed the finger guard. I would imagine I wouldn't have any issues?

 

[Lew Newby]

Are there any reported time lengths with people using the updated ramp? I haven't done a long cook yet but I have the updated ramp and also removed the finger guard. I would imagine I wouldn't have any issues?

I've been doing a bit of reading on this and it seems that anyone who has done an overnight cook with the EX6 has stirred the pellets when they get up. No complaints concerning pellet feed with the insert. Have fun.

 

[DrewM]

Kind of a related topic but yesterday while doing my brisket, I burned through 28-30 pounds of pellets in about 12 hours. I did 1 hour of smoke boost about 5-6 hours of 225 and then 5-6 hours at 250. Seems a little fast to me, anyone else go through this quickly?

 

[Lew Newby]

Are you having an early winter up there? Sunday I ran 3 hrs. at 225 then 7.5 hrs at 250 and I used about half of a full hopper. My average air temp was at least 91° F. My son-in-law looked in the hopper and was surprised at how many pellets were left. So was I. I used the Pit Boss Competition Blend.

Thanks for posting this. I got to answer a couple of my questions. I used the grill once since Sunday and that was 30 minutes at 600 so I took a picture of what remains. 11 hours with 30 of it at 600. I then dumped the pellets and they weighed in at an even 12 lbs. Doing that I got to find out if the UHMW tape on the dump face in the hopper interfered. It didn't.

 

[DrewM]

Are you having an early winter up there? Sunday I ran 3 hrs. at 225 then 7.5 hrs at 250 and I used about half of a full hopper. My average air temp was at least 91° F. My son-in-law looked in the hopper and was surprised at how many pellets were left. So was I. I used the Pit Boss Competition Blend.

Thanks for posting this. I got to answer a couple of my questions. I used the grill once since Sunday and that was 30 minutes at 600 so I took a picture of what remains. 11 hours with 30 of it at 600. I then dumped the pellets and they weighed in at an even 12 lbs. Doing that I got to find out if the UHMW tape on the dump face in the hopper interfered. It didn't. View attachment 9653

Not that I’m aware of lol. I’ll have to contact Weber to see if there’s any issue I’m having then.

 

[DrewM]

Looking further just now, I’m definitely contacting Weber as it looks like 1. I’m burning through pellets more than twice the rate that you are, even with low temps and 2. I noticed this tonight when looking at the grill underneath

 

[Bruno]

Kind of a related topic but yesterday while doing my brisket, I burned through 28-30 pounds of pellets in about 12 hours. I did 1 hour of smoke boost about 5-6 hours of 225 and then 5-6 hours at 250. Seems a little fast to me, anyone else go through this quickly?

That does seem like a lot to me.

 

[Lew Newby]

Looking further just now, I’m definitely contacting Weber as it looks like 1. I’m burning through pellets more than twice the rate that you are, even with low temps and 2. I noticed this tonight when looking at the grill underneath

Good idea. Although some of our hi and low cook temps were a little different we should have burned through about the same amount unless your air temp was 30 or 40 degrees lower than mine. If that was the case I don't know how much you should burn in 12 hours but if it was 61° at your place you had to heat 30 more degrees every hour of the cook. Only Weber could calculate the difference. I hope this makes sense? One other thing, different brands of pellets have different BTU output.

 

[DrewM]

Good idea. Although some of our hi and low cook temps were a little different we should have burned through about the same amount unless your air temp was 30 or 40 degrees lower than mine. If that was the case I don't know how much you should burn in 12 hours but if it was 61° at your place you had to heat 30 more degrees every hour of the cook. Only Weber could calculate the difference. I hope this makes sense? One other thing, different brands of pellets have different BTU output.

Thank you. I’ve strictly used Weber pellets so far and we were high 80’s to low 90’s all day yesterday and I was going through them at 2 pounds or more an hour...

 

[DrewM]

And it was in direct sunlight until the sun went down.

Just thinking about it, I’ve probably used it a total of around 13 1/2 to 14 hours with 30 minutes at 600, 10 minutes or so at 525, about 20-30 minutes varying between 275 and 375, 1 hour smoke boost, 5-6 hours at 225, 3 hours at 250 and then a couple hours at 275.I probably have 5-7 pounds left of an initial 40 pounds of pellets I had to start.

 

[Lew Newby]

That does seem like a lot to me.

I agree with Bruno. A call to Weber may entail a long hold and a hope that you get someone other than one of their new hires. I called once and got one of those. They try hard but just don't have the knowledge that I'm accustomed to with Weber CS. That pile of pellets in your picture might give their techs a clue.

 

[AHoneyman]

I am wondering if you are running at the right temp. If you are actually at higher temps, you might be burning them up. Have you checked the temp with another thermometer? A cheap oven thermometer will do to see if the SF is running hot.