If you had it to do over.

[Mike From R.I.]

Hey congrats on the new controller and better increments! I got the same smoker but with the large increments. But I DO have my app running good. They say it ain’t the one that’s suppose to run….. but after going back and forth for four days there’s not much chance of me doing it again. Lol.

I tried both apps and the Legacy works best for me, the newest app kept loosing connection when in the house. Changing the controller out is easy if you do not follow the owners manual, they have you taking out a dozen screws. Controller has 6 plastic tabs holding it in. I used a putty knife to depress each one and it comes out. New one snaps into place after the connections are made.

 

[Edchad]

I tried both apps and the Legacy works best for me, the newest app kept loosing connection when in the house. Changing the controller out is easy if you do not follow the owners manual, they have you taking out a dozen screws. Controller has 6 plastic tabs holding it in. I used a putty knife to depress each one and it comes out. New one snaps into place after the connections are made.

I may look in to the new controller. Thanks for the info. And for the record Legacy is running for me as well. Pretty much perfectly so far. That other one just wouldn’t work with mine. Even when I had a connection I couldn’t do anything with it. And it would not sync to my control at all.

I’m very happy with Legacy as far as that goes.

The smaller Incs, the other board. That’s something for me to think about.

 

[Dan-H]

Not sure I'd get another pellet grill.

If aliens transported all my grills to space and I had to replace them, I would get another genesis like the E330 and another BGE, probably an XL.

I think i would look into a stick burner and try to master that.

Edit. My reasons are:
1. Fan noise
2. Needs power
3. Uneven temp throughout locations in the smoker

I thought more about this and I'll be candid. I'm not sure what smoker I'd get if I didn't have a pellet.

I would like quieter as the fan is pretty loud. Are they all that noisy

I would like it to not depend on A/C power as this is a limitation. We lose power some times ( PGE power shutoffs ) Once we lost power mid smoke. It took a few mins to get the BGE started and stable temp but having something not need power, or to be able to run via a car battery would be better. It also limits where I locate the smoker.

I'm working on ways to even out the temps, but this seems common across many brands.

Maybe a larger pellet smoker would have more areas not directly affected by the firebox.

I guess my point is, I'm not unhappy with my pellet grill, but I'm still not sure I'd get another.

TBH, I probably would buy another as I like the convenience, and I'd likely spend way to long analyzing which one to get and in the end wonder if I should have gone another direction.

 

[Edchad]

I thought more about this and I'll be candid. I'm not sure what smoker I'd get if I didn't have a pellet.

I would like quieter as the fan is pretty loud. Are they all that noisy

I would like it to not depend on A/C power as this is a limitation. We lose power some times ( PGE power shutoffs ) Once we lost power mid smoke. It took a few mins to get the BGE started and stable temp but having something not need power, or to be able to run via a car battery would be better. It also limits where I locate the smoker.

I'm working on ways to even out the temps, but this seems common across many brands.

Maybe a larger pellet smoker would have more areas not directly affected by the firebox.

I guess my point is, I'm not unhappy with my pellet grill, but I'm still not sure I'd get another.

TBH, I probably would buy another as I like the convenience, and I'd likely spend way to long analyzing which one to get and in the end wonder if I should have gone another direction.

You made a good point about power. I’m out in the sticks up in the mountains and power outages are common. And I’ve been caught a couple of times cooking.

That’s why I like a gas burner too. Lol.
The wife even insists one. We got the Weber spirit 310 (I think that’s right. Newer model. Side burner and sear station?)
And we’ve used it during outages.
But a little gas oven helps as well. Lol.

Our arsenal at this moment
PBV4PS2 that gets used very often
Pit Boss Hammertone. Occasional use since I got the pellet.
Weber
Old Oki Joe offset. For those times I want a stroke in the heat maintaining. Lol
Gas smoker. Well the new one is t here yet. I let a friend have my old one with the intentions of a new one. Wife’s request btw.

 

[Dan-H]

You made a good point about power. I’m out in the sticks up in the mountains and power outages are common. And I’ve been caught a couple of times cooking.

That’s why I like a gas burner too. Lol.
The wife even insists one. We got the Weber spirit 310 (I think that’s right. Newer model. Side burner and sear station?)
And we’ve used it during outages.
But a little gas oven helps as well. Lol.

Our arsenal at this moment
PBV4PS2 that gets used very often
Pit Boss Hammertone. Occasional use since I got the pellet.
Weber
Old Oki Joe offset. For those times I want a stroke in the heat maintaining. Lol
Gas smoker. Well the new one is t here yet. I let a friend have my old one with the intentions of a new one. Wife’s request btw.

In summer, my Genesis E330 and my BGE are my ovens. When daytime temps are over 100, the last thing I want to do is heat up the kitchen, which uses expensive electricity only to have to run the A/C harder too keep the house cool.

 

[Mr.coon]

I would have got a Camp Chef or Smoke Daddy Inc. Pellet Pro like I wanted to in the first place. The price and marketing on the 1600 got me. My next grill will be one of those or even an Oklahoma Joe Rider DLX if they fix their issues.

My 6 gripes:

1. Temp Range. The low temp on this thing is 180 which is ridiculous. Had I realized that I would not have bought it. There is no reason for it to be that high. It should be at least 160 if not 150. This is very easily accomplishable. Other brands have a 160 to 500 heat range. You could actually smoke meat instead of cooking it. I can't even properly make jerky on this thing because of that. My fault for not realizing that.

2. The PID. Why the lack of 5 degree increments? It makes no sense. Why not let me choose my temps. Every other brand with a PID seems to allow this. That is the point of a PID, precision. Even with the update it goes 180 to 300 in 10 degree increments, then from 300 to 400 in 25 degree increments, and finally 400, 450, 500. REALLY! They gave up at 400. I can't cook at 425 or 475. This doesn't make sense unless they want you to buy a Louisiana Grill for those options and over the air updates. Yes, the Louisiana Grills have all that we want and a bag of chips. They even get up to 600 degrees!

3. There is about an inch of slack in the grates which bugs the heck out of me. They move all over the place when scrub the grates or try to move stuck food.

4. The Cooking Chamber. It is narrower than the other Pit Boss grills. Heaven forbid they give you measurements on their marketing. One of the main reasons I didn't get Pellet Pro 1190 or Camp Chef 36 was because I figured I could drop a Heavy D or Sear Daddy right into the Pro Series 1600 and save $680 to $400. Due to this chamber being narrower than every other Pit Boss chamber I can't do that.

5. The Griddle. The griddle itself is fine, but the pit doesn't get it hot enough to use as a proper griddle. It is almost pointless to have. As soon as you open the lid it drops temp dramatically. I am going to get a welder to make something up for me that will direct all the heat from the fire pot up to the griddle so it can be used as a griddle. It can sear a steak if you feel like waiting 45 literal minutes for it to get hot enough to do so.

6. The App. It is not the greatest. It is much more functional for the Louisiana grills. They get real wifi capability and even over the air updates!

All that said I don't hate the thing. All the food that comes off it is very good, and I like the space inside the grill. The construction on the body is pretty good. One can't have everything I guess, and I did save quite a bit of money considering my other options. It is still a darn good value compared to the rest. Pit Boss sent me the new and improved PID controller that is supposed to boost warm up times. If it does what it says I will keep it. If not, I am putting her up for sale.

Edit: I was a little worked up when I wrote this. I researched these things for months and watched countless videos. You really can't beat this grill in terms of bang for the buck. It can't be perfect. None of them are. That is why I had such a hard time deciding. They all had something I thought I wouldn't like. It if doesn't do sausage and jerky well I guess I will just have to get anther toy dedicated for that, darn.

I got the new temp controller in, and it completely solved the heating issues. Thing runs like a jet burner on high now. Will update this thread again when I try out the griddle again.

 

[Edchad]

I would have got a Camp Chef or Smoke Daddy Inc. Pellet Pro like I wanted to in the first place. The price and marketing on the 1600 got me. My next grill will be one of those or even an Oklahoma Joe Rider DLX if they fix their issues.

My 6 gripes:

1. Temp Range. The low temp on this thing is 180 which is ridiculous. Had I realized that I would not have bought it. There is no reason for it to be that high. It should be at least 160 if not 150. This is very easily accomplishable. Other brands have a 160 to 500 heat range. You could actually smoke meat instead of cooking it. I can't even properly make jerky on this thing because of that. My fault for not realizing that.

2. The PID. Why the lack of 5 degree increments? It makes no sense. Why not let me choose my temps. Every other brand with a PID seems to allow this. That is the point of a PID, precision. Even with the update it goes 180 to 300 in 10 degree increments, then from 300 to 400 in 25 degree increments, and finally 400, 450, 500. REALLY! They gave up at 400. I can't cook at 425 or 475. This doesn't make sense unless they want you to buy a Louisiana Grill for those options and over the air updates. Yes, the Louisiana Grills have all that we want and a bag of chips. They even get up to 600 degrees!

3. There is about an inch of slack in the grates which bugs the heck out of me. They move all over the place when scrub the grates or try to move stuck food.

4. The Cooking Chamber. It is narrower than the other Pit Boss grills. Heaven forbid they give you measurements on their marketing. One of the main reasons I didn't get Pellet Pro 1190 or Camp Chef 36 was because I figured I could drop a Heavy D or Sear Daddy right into the Pro Series 1600 and save $680 to $400. Due to this chamber being narrower than every other Pit Boss chamber I can't do that.

5. The Griddle. The griddle itself is fine, but the pit doesn't get it hot enough to use as a proper griddle. It is almost pointless to have. As soon as you open the lid it drops temp dramatically. I am going to get a welder to make something up for me that will direct all the heat from the fire pot up to the griddle so it can be used as a griddle. It can sear a steak if you feel like waiting 45 literal minutes for it to get hot enough to do so.

6. The App. It is not the greatest. It is much more functional for the Louisiana grills. They get real wifi capability and even over the air updates!

All that said I don't completely hate the thing. All the food that comes off it is very good, and I like the space in side the grill. The construction on the body is pretty good. One can't have everything I guess, and I did save quite a bit of money considering my other options. Pit Boss sent me the new and improved PID controller that is supposed to boost warm up times. If it does what it says I will keep it. If not, I am putting her up for sale.

I’m not familiar with that model at all but sounds like there’s some issues. I’m gonna watch this one. Curious if the new controller works.

 

[MikeInFla]

Mike,
How’s yours after the storm? Everything checkout ok?

Honestly I have not had time to check. Been so busy at work and haven't thought about it when I get home. Will try to get to it this weekend but I may be going to work on Sat or Sun.

 

[Cowboy1955]

Stay safe over there.

 

[MikeInFla]

I thought more about this and I'll be candid. I'm not sure what smoker I'd get if I didn't have a pellet.

I would like quieter as the fan is pretty loud. Are they all that noisy

I would like it to not depend on A/C power as this is a limitation. We lose power some times ( PGE power shutoffs ) Once we lost power mid smoke. It took a few mins to get the BGE started and stable temp but having something not need power, or to be able to run via a car battery would be better. It also limits where I locate the smoker.

I'm working on ways to even out the temps, but this seems common across many brands.

Maybe a larger pellet smoker would have more areas not directly affected by the firebox.

I guess my point is, I'm not unhappy with my pellet grill, but I'm still not sure I'd get another.

TBH, I probably would buy another as I like the convenience, and I'd likely spend way to long analyzing which one to get and in the end wonder if I should have gone another direction.

I have seen some people use a Jackery or similar portable (quiet) generator to operate their pellet grills.

 

[drtyneedlz77]

I'd do it again for sure. Once the updated control board was in and it'd hold temp, everything has turned out near perfect and really stepped up my game. I'm a rookie to the smoker world, but no one that has had my grub knows it. The 1150 is big enough for my needs plus a little wiggle room.

 

[Mr.coon]

Update: I got the new controller installed. It gets up to temp quick! After initial warm up to 180 degrees it took 22 minutes to get up to a max temp of 490. I am very pleased. It couldn't break 450 before even after waiting over an hour. She may be a keeper.

 

[Cowboy1955]

Update: I got the new controller installed. It gets up to temp quick! 22 minutes to get up to a max temp of 490. I am very pleased. It couldn't break 450 before even after waiting over an hour. She may be a keeper.

That’s great news!!
now you can roll that smoke.

 

[Edchad]

Update: I got the new controller installed. It gets up to temp quick! 22 minutes to get up to a max temp of 490. I am very pleased. It couldn't break 450 before even after waiting over an hour. She may be a keeper.

Awesome!!
Glad to hear it all worked out!!

 

[Dan-H]

I have seen some people use a Jackery or similar portable (quiet) generator to operate their pellet grills.

I have a generator to keep the fridge and freezer going. It's fairly quiet as generators go, but still too loud.

I would like a nearly silent source of power to run the pellet grill, like an automotive 12V battery.