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How about a pellet hopper shaker?!

PostPosted: August 30th, 2014, 7:33 am
by gwapogorilla
PROBLEM......I get "coning" soooo bad in my YS640. I have buffed and polished the stainless bottom....but to no prevail. More than once I went outside to see my pit temp was low...really low! Fire was out. Upon lifting the lid, I was able to see a deep hole leading straight to the auger, but with a bunch of pellets still in the hopper. I don't dare do an overnight cook in it!!! And during the day time, I won't travel far as I need to be around to stir the pellets every few hours...or hire a baby sitter to do it for me.

SOLUTION....a hopper shaker. A somewhat larger scaled motor similar to the ones you find in cell phones to vibrate the phone. Mount it on the underside of the hopper bottom. Then have it hooked up to the computer to turn on every ten minutes, and "shake" for a period of seven seconds.

RESULT...restored confidence and flexibility in cooking. Overnight cooks would be a thing of pleasure and possibility. Not to mention being able to leave your pit for an extended period of time in the daytime to clean, run errands, set up tables....you know....CATER!

Re: How about a pellet hopper shaker?!

PostPosted: August 30th, 2014, 9:29 am
by Yoder_Herb
Using BBQr's Delight pellets, close to 2 tons worth, I have never had this problem...not in a 640, 1320 or a 1500.

Re: How about a pellet hopper shaker?!

PostPosted: August 30th, 2014, 10:20 am
by Yoder_Kirby
I've never had this issue with a YS640 or YS1500 either. What brand of pellets are you using?

Re: How about a pellet hopper shaker?!

PostPosted: August 30th, 2014, 2:37 pm
by gwapogorilla
Lumberjack, but I have had this problem with all of the pellets I have tried.....even BBQ delight. It's the one thing about my Yoder I don't like. But, it's a pellet grill issue...not strictly a Yoder issue.

Re: How about a pellet hopper shaker?!

PostPosted: September 3rd, 2014, 6:27 am
by TennesseeJed
I had this problem too and still do to a degree but not as much as when it was new. Yoder suggested that I use car wax on the inside of the hopper to create a lower friction environment for the pellets. I still do get this a bit but waxing definitely made a difference. Probably time for me to do it again. I just check the hopper every few hours or so and move the pellets around in the hopper. On overnight cooks, I make sure it's fully loaded before I turn in for the night and I get up early to check it out. I always use a cover on overnight cooks too--no matter what the outside temps/weather conditions are, which definitely reduces pellet consumption. Haven't had any problems that were not user error...hope that helps. If you've already tried waxing, then you might just need to check the hopper a bit more frequently. I find that as long as I keep it relatively full and check it every two to three hours, I never have a problem.

Re: How about a pellet hopper shaker?!

PostPosted: September 3rd, 2014, 7:08 pm
by Eaglrvr
I noticed mine doing this as well, I will have to give the waxing thing a try.

Re: How about a pellet hopper shaker?!

PostPosted: September 3rd, 2014, 8:50 pm
by TennesseeJed
P.s., I've run many different brands of pellets through my 640, and pellet brand has had no effect for me whatsoever. I still get some sticking of pellets to the sides of the hopper, even w/ BBQr's Delight. Waxing made the biggest difference for me, but it can still be an issue. One of these days, I'll take a photo so folks can see. As I mentioned above, as long as I use a cover and check it every couple of hours, it's not a problem for me. I wouldn't want to leave it for too long though at present, so if there's a solution to the problem, I'm still interested too.

Re: How about a pellet hopper shaker?!

PostPosted: September 3rd, 2014, 9:19 pm
by nucornhusker
Sure some will stay on the slanted side of the hopper, but it shouldn't cause an issue where the fire goes out due to lack of fuel. I've let mine go overnight many many times and I've never had it even get close to running out of pellets due pellets "sticking". Is you cooker sloped with the hopper end lower by any chance?