Tips on cleaning out the hopper

[TommyTuba6]

Hello All,

I'm not new to smoking but I am new to a vertical pellet hopper. I am curious if any of you would share any tips on clearing out the hopper. Any storage container suggestions? Any suggestions on any tools you use to clear out the last remaining pellets; such as a dow rod or scraper or whatever.

Thanks in advanced.

 

[meanmom]

I also find find it hard to clean out the hopper. I prop the door open with a clothes pin and prop my container up under it. I use a metal yardstick to push the pellets to the door. I'm still working on a better way.

 

[biffhero]

I have a PB700S. I use a broken yardstick through the protection grate (I bet that device doesn't last too long), and push the pellets out the side. I kinda poke at the ones that are in the auger feed, and if they skip out, they skip out. If they don't, well, they don't. So far, so good.

 

[MikeInFla]

yeah that grate in the way in a royal pain. My problem is that a lot of the pellets end up on the ground even with a bucket to catch the pellets. I empty it out on concrete so I can sweep up the ones the fall and save them.

 

[biffhero]

Agreed. I'm thinking of the right way to fix this. We are storing pellets in Homer Buckets. I have been keeping them from spilling by holding it up at the beginning of emptying, and then setting it on the ground after things get moving. I only spill a few pellets. But there's a way, I just haven't figured it out yet.

 

[pwilson]

im having a hard time cleaning mines as well

 

[jiven]

I have the lockhart and was also ticked about the hopper guard to the point that i removed it. Remove the 2 bolt that hold the hopper lid in place. 2 screws behind hopper lid. 2 screws in front of hopper and screen comes right out.

 

[DaveXDm9]

I have removed the safety grate from mine and my kids know to stay away. I have 5 gallon buckets to store my pellets an after about 10 cooks I will remove the pellets and vacuum out the pellets from the auger and all the dust.

 

[biffhero]

I have the lockhart and was also ticked about the hopper guard to the point that i removed it. Remove the 2 bolt that hold the hopper lid in place. 2 screws behind hopper lid. 2 screws in front of hopper and screen comes right out.

I took mine out and thought the hopper was too flimsy with it out. "Value engineering" at its' finest! Do you think it is going to hold up OK?

 

[DaveXDm9]

I took mine out and thought the hopper was too flimsy with it out. "Value engineering" at its' finest! Do you think it is going to hold up OK?

so far it is holding up and the grate itself is not that strong at all. I was thinking about placing it back in and then cutting out the middle so at least I can move the pellets around. If they had some kind of strring mechanism that spun slowly every 5 minutes that would be ideal.

 

[MikeInFla]

Would be nice if the safety grate snapped into place instead of screws. I removed mine last year and no problems but it is still on my Series 3.

 

[biffhero]

That's a good idea. Pull out the grate, and then run long machine screws through it, maybe some allthread, with nuts to hold it in place. Lay the grate on top of it so that it provides the structural stability that it would if it were screwed in place.