How To Prime Pit Boss Pellet Grill (2 Easy Steps)

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Want to know how to prime a Pit Boss pellet grill? You can’t just switch the smoker on, stick your food inside, close the grill lid, and start cooking.

At least, not for your first cook! Before you begin enjoying all that your new smoker has to offer, you will need to prime it.

Don’t worry if you have no idea where to begin. Just keep reading on and you’ll know exactly how to prep and prime your pellet grill!

Learn How to Prime Your Pit Boss

Priming your Pit Boss smoker grill is important. It gets rid of any chemicals, dirt, debris, and even smells that might be lingering on your appliance. You need to prime your Pit Boss the first time you use it as well as each time the smoker runs out of pellets in the hopper.

During the manufacturing phase, the pellet smoker may be covered or exposed to chemicals or dirt. If you don’t prime grill properly before cooking your food in it, then you could end up consuming these chemicals and debris. This will be damaging to your health and you’ll end up ruining the food you cook inside the smoker too.

There Are Two Priming Procedures

1. The first time the smoker is ignited
2. Each time the smoker runs out of pellets in the hopper

First I will outline the steps for the the first time the smoker is ignited, and each time the smoker runs out of pellets in the hopper. Then I will show the smoker burn-off you need to do for your first-time use.

Step 1: Turn the Unit on and Set it to SMOKE

To prime your hopper you will first want to plug your grill into an electrical outlet and turn on the power button. Then just turn the temperature control dial to the ‘Smoke’ Setting. 

You don’t need to remove all of the cooking components if you’re starting it up for the first time. It’s good to leave all of the cooking components in there so that they can get cleaned during the burn-off procedure too.

Then you’ll want to listen out for a loud engine sound. It should make a sound that is reminiscent of a plane engine. This is a sign that the auger motor is starting up. 

Step 2: Feel for Heat Then Turn “Off” The Unit

Next, you should just place your hand over the little pot at the end of the auger tube. This is the fire pot and you’ll know if it’s ready if you can feel some air movement. Don’t place your hands inside the burn pot.

Then you should smell the igniter burning, don’t touch this gets very hot. The next step is to hold the Power Button on the Pit Boss to turn the unit off.

Step 3: Fill The Hopper

Now it’s time for you to fill the hopper with wood pellets. Be careful though, you do not want to overfill your hopper. Make sure to leave about an inch of space between the unused pellets and the hopper access panel. 

Step 4: Turn The Power “On” Switch On the ‘Prime’ Function

Next, you will need to press the Power button turn the unit on, turn the temperature control dial to SMOKE, then press and hold down the ‘Prime’ function until you see pellets entering the burn pot from the auger tube. When you see the pellets dropping into the burnt pot you stop pressing the ‘Prime’ button. 

After that, you will need to just wait for a couple of minutes, allow the pellets to ignite, and create a flame. When you see flames coming out of the burn pot press and hold the Power Button to turn the unit off and let the unit cool down.

How to Perform a Smoker Burn-Off for First-Time Use

Before using the unit to cook food for the first time you need to perform the hopper priming I outlined above. Then you want to do a full burn-off. Turn on your smoker and set the temperature over 177°C /350°F, close the door and leave on for 30-40 minutes, this will complete the burn-off process and get rid of any foreign matter in the unit

What Is The Purpose of Priming Your Grill?

The process of priming your pellet grill involves letting it run on high heat without placing any food in the cooking chamber. This will allow all of the electrical components to run for the very first time and just prep your grill nicely for future cooks.

Priming also makes the pellets travel along the entire length of the auger to the burn pot and fill it. If you don’t prime the igniter may timeout before the pellets you put in ignite.

There are also other benefits of priming your Pit Boss cooker. These include the fact that it’ll prevent rust from forming and even prolongs the lifespan of your appliance.

Why Is Priming the Pellet Grill’s Hopper Important?

It is very important to prime your hopper properly. This is because it not only affects the hopper but also your auger feed control system. As well as the grill’s fire burn pot. 

Once you’ve set the cooking temperature using the grill’s temperature dial, the auger starts to work. It will control the speed and amount of pellets that go into the fire pot. 

The auger helps ensure that your pellet smoker maintains a consistent temperature. If there’s an auger jam or an issue with the auger feed then a lot of temperature issues will begin to arise.

So, if you don’t want to deal with a lot of temperature fluctuations then be sure to prime the hopper of your grill properly!

Running Out of Pellets While Grilling — What Should You Do?

If you’ve run out of pellets while your grill is running, then you will need to refill the hopper with unused pellets.If there are a whole bunch of broken-down pellets in the way, then you might need to switch off the appliance

After that, you’ll need to take to time to clean the pellets in the way and you’ll need to remove the cooking components. Once you’ve done that, then you can pour more quality wood pellets into the hopper and let it run as per usual. 

Issues to Look Out For — Grill Not Heating and Strange Noises

If your grill is not turning on then there might be an issue with the power connection. Make sure that your power outlet is working properly and that your power cord isn’t damaged. 

But what if your grill is turning on properly but it does not seem to be heating up? Then there is most likely an issue with the pellets that you are using.

You have to make sure that you are using high-quality wood pellets. And you want to ensure that you’ve got plenty of it. Poor quality pellets or insufficient pellets will result in temperature swings and the flame might just go out entirely. 

It is very important to prime your smoker grill because it ensures the appliance’s longevity in the long run.

It will also guarantee that none of the food that you end up cooking on the grill with have any nasty manufacturing dirt or odors on it.

Smoke On!

Charlie

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