Ok. I have some questions regarding a pellet grill. I'm not necessarily opposed to one, just don't know much about them.
1. How long does it take to warm up? Does is get as hot as gas? Does it take longer to cook food?
2. You prefer this type of grill over a gas grill?
3. Is Traeger "THE" brand when it comes to pellet grills?
4. What model of traeger do you have?
I'll second the pellet grill. Bought a mid level traeger, the one that was specifically made for sale in Costco. These pellet grills are often called an "easy bake oven" due to the ease of use, and that it can cook similar to an oven. You set a temp, and walk away, only checking temp of your meat, not so much the heat of the grill...aka the BBQ community sometimes looks down on it due to no work at all (why I like it). But what ppl fail to see is the versatility. I've slow smoked pork butt to sausages and ribs, I've baked a pie and mac and cheese (delicious with smoked chicken) and even "brick" oven pizza - buy a pizza stone and set it to high..and use it most often (2-3 days a week) for burgers and steak, sometimes fish. Anything you would cook in an oven can be cooked on the pellet grill, but adds so much flavor from the wood pellets. As to your questions:
1. I haven't had any 20-30 minute warm up time like the other poster, but it is routinely up to 15 minute warm up to 450-500. Food doesnt take longer to cook in my opinion, but does cook things more evenly. ETA: Mine came with a both porcelain and cast iron grates...so I can sear steaks and burgers easily with the cast iron.
2. I also own a propane grill if i need food faster, but honestly havent touched it in months. I just prefer the flavor better on my pellet.
3. Traeger is the face, but its not near the best. I believe Pitt Boss is the brand Lowes sells, Traeger is home depot. Rec Tech is routinely looked as the near top of the line pellet grills. Expensive tho.
Cons: As stated, the warm up time is a bit long, just have to prepare earlier. I'm not sure how rigorous you clean grills, but the traeger does need a good cleaning regularly if you use it often...think of a fireplace, burning the pellets builds ash in the bottom. You kind of have to monitor how many bags of pellets you go through and know when you should take apart and clean (on the flip side, cleaning is just using a shop vac). And speaking of pellets, you will go through a bunch if you use it regularly. In 6 months I've gone through 6 bags (?) thats pretty much a 2-3 times a week use, and 1 a month long slow smoke. The bags are more expensive than propane or charcoal for sure, but you get to choose from different brands and flavors, which is nice.
