Deep clean every 20 hours
Strip it out and scrape
Main power switch off, cord unplugged, grill cold. The manual: "Disconnect the power cord before servicing the grill." Use a hand screwdriver, not a power drill: Traeger support says power tools strip these screws.
The manual, pages 25 and 26: clear the ash "after approximately 20 hours of cooking". Traeger support says every 2 or 3 long cooks.
- Make sure the grill is cold, switched off and unplugged.
- Spray the grates and the inside of the chimney with an all-natural degreaser.
- Lift out the grates, the liner, the drip tray and the heat baffle, and wipe them.
- Scrape the grease from the barrel floor and sides with a non-metal tool, then wipe with paper towels.
- Do not spray water inside the barrel to shift creosote (the manual).
Vacuum the ash, clear the grease path
The manual, pages 25 and 26.
- Vacuum the ash out of the firepot and off the barrel floor, only when the ash is cold.
- Empty the vacuum into a metal container with a tight lid, kept on non-combustible ground.
- Scrape the V-shaped grease trough and the drain tube with a non-metal tool, pushing the grease down into the bucket, then wipe them.
- Empty the bucket and fit a new liner.
- Leave the grill temperature sensor alone unless it has a visible coating: see the sensor check.
Test fire, then refit
The manual, page 26: test the grill before you put the parts back.
- Plug in and switch on.
- Set a temperature and press IGNITE.
- Watch the firepot: pellets should fall into it and the hot rod should glow. Do not touch the hot rod.
- When you see flames, start the shut-down cycle.
- Let the cycle finish and the grill cool fully.
- Refit the heat baffle, the drip tray with a new liner, and the grates.