Need some help.


 
D

DMack-VA

New member
Hello everyone,
I purchased the ELX6 in October. So far, just like in life, there are bad and good things I have found with the smoker. My chief complaint is the amount of ash that ends up in the bottom of the cookbox. There it combines with the grease from the cook and makes a dam. For a long smoke the grease then flows outboard and then drips down between the legs through the unsealed wall and bottom of the cookbox. Every cook I get very little ash or grease in the removable drip tray/ash tray. I have went round and round with Weber about it. Definately doesn't seem like the smoker works like the videos on the website. Just trying to get a feel for if this is a design flaw or did I get a lemon. Pictures attached. Would appreciate any help/advice. Post Cook LH.jpgPost Cook RH.jpgPost Cook Ash Grease Pan.jpg
 
This (plus to a point) the high price is what really put me off the SF. I would recommend you use a large rimmed baking sheet as a drip pan
 
I purchased the same model in November. I use drip pans for long cooks like shoulders, briskets, ribs etc. I don't have nearly the amount of grease that you have. Hardly any. Ash will build up, which is the nature of pellet cookers. I push it down through the holes every few cooks.

The open design is great for the smoke profile and grilling but it does require some compromise with drip pans or you'll have a mess to clean up.
 
I line the bottom of my SmokeFire with foil for this very reason. You pull the foil up after a couple/ few cooks, and put fresh foil down.

Another thing I do is I pull out the clean out, put a sheet of foil down and run it like that. It keeps the ash from flying around in the grill
 
Hi DMack, welcome to the forum.

I don't think you got a lemon, it's just the nature of the beast. Check and see if the grill is level, if it's leaning, that may explain why the oil is not flowing towards the drain hole. Use cheap drip pans covered in foil make clean up easy. I cook on the top grate with a drip pan on top of the lower grate. Invest in a small shop vac to clean out the ash periodically. The SmokeFire is an excellent smoker/grill there is just a bit of a learning curve. Since I got mine a year ago my other grills go unused. 🍻

IMG_2056.JPG
 
Maybe try a different brand of pellets. Some have more and lighter ash. Bear in mind pellet grills are using a fan blowing into the burn pot. A conventional pellet grill handles grease and ash better IMO thanks to the deflector design. But even I use a drip pan on many cooks. Just to keep cleanup easier. Had I bought a SmokeFire the drip pan would have been used on all cooks.
 
JimK said:
You got a pic or some more details on this, Chuck? Probably my only beef with my Sear+ is the flying ash/dust.
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This thread shows the lining of the SF with foil

tvwbb.com

Forgive me Father, I have sinned

Tried to use the SF last night, all she gave me was a big nope. So I decided I should clean it, as I can't remember the last time I did That's flavor, right? more sin Warrantee claim? Redemption Redeemed
tvwbb.com tvwbb.com

As far as running with the ash catcher drawer out, I don't know that I have anything. Basically it was a mistake, I forgot to put the drawer in after cleaning and to my surprise, how much ash blew out. I started running it without the ash drawer in and I found my pitt to be free of ash and my food not having any ash on it. Now be aware, that not only does ash blow out of the empty drawer, so does partially burned and still lit pellets. So if you're running your smokefire on a wooden deck or near dry vegetation, take caution. And one last caution, don't approach your smokefire in bare feet. This is something you'll learn once and not forget 🥵
 
Thank you all for the advice. This is my first pellet smoker. I know it is a marketing video they have on the site but still my experience doesn't even come close so far.
I do like the smoker however. It seems to do the job just cleanup is not as advertised.
FWIW the smoker is level and I use Weber pelletts. That was the first two suggestions Weber support had.
 
DMack-VA said:
Thank you all for the advice. This is my first pellet smoker. I know it is a marketing video they have on the site but still my experience doesn't even come close so far.
I do like the smoker however. It seems to do the job just cleanup is not as advertised.
FWIW the smoker is level and I use Weber pelletts. That was the first two suggestions Weber support had.
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Your observations are spot on.
Many have come up with training wheels and workarounds and will defend the Smokefire at all cost.
Some feel the food quality is so much better it warrants pampering the Smokefire.
When you complain, it’s mosly passed off as user error in one form or another.
I have never put so much work into a cooker and still had so many failed cooks.
I love my other Weber cookers, but calling the Smokefire a yellow fruit is worth a smile.
 
Darian Hofer said:
Your observations are spot on.
Many have come up with training wheels and workarounds and will defend the Smokefire at all cost.
Some feel the food quality is so much better it warrants pampering the Smokefire.
When you complain, it’s mosly passed off as user error in one form or another.
I have never put so much work into a cooker and still had so many failed cooks.
I love my other Weber cookers, but calling the Smokefire a yellow fruit is worth a smile.
Click to expand...
The very reason I bought a pellet grill was for the ease of use...basically wood cooked food with the press of a button. I got exactly that with the Oakford 580. It's well built, easy to use and easy to maintain. I brush the grates and vacuum the slight bit of ash. That video posted on another thread by the guy that had a litany of issues with his SmokeFire...and to be fair, Weber's satisfactory customer support, would have sent me running in any direction but toward another Weber...because there are dozens of decent pellet grills out there that function reliably and have for years. The Weber EX4 is the entry level model....at $1100. Quite expensive for a device wrought with problems. I realize it's their sp-calles second generation...there wouldn't be a second generation if they got the first iteration right. Fact
 
The SmokeFire is my 2nd pellet grill. I don't find that it needs much pampering nor have I had any issues yet. I understand the first gen had problems but so far, I haven't experienced any of them with my ELX 6 Sear+. It would suck to experience all those issues and to essentially be a beta tester for Weber so I understand the frustration.

Not sure what to say about ash, it's a by product of burning wood. How could one pellet grill produce more than another? I just push it into the holes at the bottom occasionally and dump the ash tray. I don't think SF produces more ash than my RecTeq from what I can tell 🤷‍♂️. I suppose the more open design could lead to more flying around but I haven't found it to be excessive.

I like the open design vs the large drip pan design of a 'traditional' pellet cooker but a drip pan is required for fatty low/slow cooks. I think it was a mistake for Weber to market the separation of ash and grease magically into the ash pan. They should have said from the outset that a drip pan is needed for those long cooks with fatty meats. I have to do the same with my Masterbuilt Gravity and if I don't I'll get a fire the next time I try to grill at high temps.

I bought mine on sale. Is it worth the $1,600 full retail price? No. I researched extensively and watched lots of youtube videos so I knew what I was potentially getting into...

I'm by no means a Weber or SF fanboy and if I experience any issues I'll certainly post about it.
 
Pellet grills have a built in cleaning cycle: Just crank them up as hot as they go and let it clean it's self. Afterwards, get the leaf blower and blow it out



;)
 
ChuckO said:
Pellet grills have a built in cleaning cycle: Just crank them up as hot as they go and let it clean it's self. Afterwards, get the leaf blower and blow it out



;)
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I've thought about the leaf blower thing. Probably does a better job than the shop vac...just have to careful where you stand doing it!
 
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