’ Well, the thing is, if you were using the pellet grill constantly every day, sure, the larger the hopper the better. This is a residential grade product that will likely be used at weekends etc. If the pellets start to absorb moisture from the air, you’ve potentially got problems. Hence, in most cases filling a 40lb hopper means if you want to keep the cuisinart griddler elite pellets in a good condition you are going to be emptying it pretty frequently. I’ve previously done a Pit Boss vs Cuisinart comparison article where I reference that Pit Boss also doesn’t state the main grate size on the Lockhart. From the look of the two grills, I actually think the main cooking grate on both products is probably very similar in size.
My general thoughts on the Clermont match the phase ‘two steps forward, one step back’. Hence, there is some progress here, however, its not where it needs to be on price/features. Always wash hands thoroughly with soap and hot water prior to handling food and after handling cuisinart soup maker raw meat, uncooked poultry or seafood. It cycles the air within approximately 1,000 square feet twice every hour and within 500 square feet four times every hour. Or, for your kitchen or smaller areas, take a look at the PuRXium Medium Room / Countertop Air Purifier.
Going ‘low and slow’ and high-temperature grilling are two very different things. Its basically a cross between a horizontal/vertical smoker with an upright cooking cabinet with two french doors. There is a benefit to this approach over say a typical horizontal pellet grill in that you can watch the cook through the doors.
This smaller unit cycles the air within about 500 square feet twice hourly and within 250 square feet four times hourly. The auger will not run 100% of the time, it cycles on and off depending on the temperature setting. When selecting a temperature setting, the auger will feed pellets for several minutes. This will momentarily raise the temperature, but the temperature will decrease and stabilize after minutes. If you are transporting your grill in a vehicle after cooking on it, make sure the fire is completely out and the grill is cold before placing it in any vehicle.
However, the Cuisinart Clermont is not the first pellet grill/smoker to follow this design, as you can see from the image below the Pit Boss Lockhart has a very similar design. Pellets can hang up in the pellet hopper after cooking for a long period of time. It’s important to monitor the pellet level and mix the pellets by hand to ensure they flow into the auger. A pellet grill/smoker is only as good as the BBQ pellets you put into it. The type/quality of the BBQ wood pellets you use will impact temperature performance and smoke flavour. There are many pellet flavours including Apple, Hickory, Mapel, Oak and Walnut to name but a few.