Restoring/cleaning up a GMG pellet smoker

[jackelope]

A coworker decided he didn’t want his Green mountain Grill Daniel Boone anymore and asked me if I wanted it.  Figured why not.  I’ll give it a try. Has anyone torn one of these things down and cleaned, repainted etc one before? It’s not terrible but I figured it was free so maybe I’ll put a little elbow grease into it and get it spiffed up. I haven’t tried it out yet but he said everything worked. He bought a Blackstone and didn’t have room for both.
Thanks.

[HHPro]

Does it have the shop vac port on the bottom of the cook area?If it does that makes cleaning the cooking chamber easy,the rest is fairly simple with just elbow grease.

[jackelope]

Does it have the shop vac port on the bottom of the cook area?If it does that makes cleaning the cooking chamber easy,the rest is fairly simple with just elbow grease.

Not sure. I’ve taken everything out of the cooling area already though. That was easy.  I’m thinking of disassembling the whole thing. Some high temp black paint where needed. Maybe new grates.  We’ll see how the old ones clean up.

[HHPro]

They added a shop vac port the past few years and all the grates were stainless steel as well,go on Amazon and order some bar keepers friend that stuff helps clean amazingly fast.

[jackelope]

Thanks. I’ll get some. And I think this unit is definitely more than a few years old.
I’ll get it out of the garage later and post a few pics. It’s just got a lot of baked on caked on crud and some rust on the outside.

[HHPro]

Worst case scenario maybe have to buy some new grates but as long as the auger functions and the igniter ignites that's a heck of a deal.

[Boss .300 winmag]

https://www.amazon.com/Green-Mountain-Daniel-Replacement-Grates/dp/B07BCHPJHR/ref=mp_s_a_1_17?adgrpid=64506951588&hvadid=274737198457&hvdev=m&hvlocphy=9033365&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=b&hvrand=5419503045805413338&hvtargid=kwd-340347793410&hydadcr=5412_9609490&keywords=green+mountain+grill+parts&qid=1688319441&sr=8-17

[Rainier10]

Threads like this are why I love this forum. It is literally my only social media because you can the answer to just about anything right here.

[Sr15]

I restored my dads 1980's manufactured Traeger. It is one of the first models they produced. The fire pot was burned clear through so needed to make a new one. It doesn't even have an ignitor so need to light pellets manually. I found some high temp paint that was a nearly perfect match to the original color. It works great and seems to do a better job of smoking than my newer model so that is what I primarily use it for. Enjoy your restoration project and post pics when done

[jackelope]

I restored my dads 1980's manufactured Traeger. It is one of the first models they produced. The fire pot was burned clear through so needed to make a new one. It doesn't even have an ignitor so need to light pellets manually. I found some high temp paint that was a nearly perfect match to the original color. It works great and seems to do a better job of smoking than my newer model so that is what I primarily use it for. Enjoy your restoration project and post pics when done

That’s cool and kind of what I want to do with this one. I don’t know how old it is. Not too old but old enough that it’s got miles on it and it shows in the bbq gunk built up on it.

[jackelope]

[wadu1]

As stated once before, if auger functions and the igniter still works don't mess with it. I would head to Hobo Freight and get a set of wire brushes for a drill and clean up the outside and paint. Ace Hardware has some decent hi-temp paint for BBQ's that works well. As for the insides I would use some heavy-duty stove cleaner to remove the gunk. Be sure to use some disposable gloves when using stove cleaner. The grill rack may clean up, might be easier to just replace them. 

[jackelope]

Just threw some pellets in it and fired it up. Lit right away. Auger works. Blower fan, not so much. It works, but it sounds like it doesn’t really want to work. Pretty sure that’s a cheap part to replace so I’ll just do that. Otherwise I think it works like a champ. Can’t wait to try it out with some meat in it.

Question for you pellet smoker guys. I was told they don’t smoke as much as a stick burner which is all I have any experience with. It seemed to smoke quite a bit at the initial startup which I expected. How long do they smoke heavily? I heard it dissipates after a bit because they burn real efficiently. Reason I ask is because my wife is bothered by the smoke. I really want to buy a nice Rectec but I don’t want to spend a bunch of money on one and then have my wife not be able to deal with the smoke due to her asthma issues. So this is kind of an experiment with the free one.

[carlyoungs]

If you want more smoke just buy the pellet holder that sits on top of the grates. You fill it with pellets and light it with a torch. They are like $15 bucks on Amazon. I tend to only use it for smoking fish to get a little more smoke.

[wadu1]

From my experience they all smoke a lot until they come up to temperature. I think the brand and type of pellets also make a difference in the amount of smoke. I use apple or apple blend pellets when I use Alder, I get a lot more smoke.