It’s not just the size that counts, the pellet hopper for Traegers do vary from model to model, there are some other factors that undoubtedly influence the burn time you will get from the wood pellets.
I also want to delve into the burn time factors, since this will influence how long you get out of the hopper.
From experience, you’ll find the factors of wood pellet type, temperature, moisture of wood pellets and the environment surrounding the pellet grill will all have an effect on the time you get from a full hopper in a Traeger pellet grill.
Which Traeger has a Hopper Size Large Enough for Beef Brisket?
If you are looking for a Traeger model to do long low temperature indirect hot smoking like brisket. The Pro 22 should smoke/cook for 18 hours, all the more expensive models with 18-pound or more hoppers will have enough pellets.
Different Size Hoppers for Traeger Pellet Grills
Here are the Various Size Hoppers for the Range of Traeger Pellet Grills, the reason you want to know this – is to see how long the hopper will last. I’ve included that information in this table also.
| Hopper (lbs) | Hopper (kg) | Burn Time approx. at 200°F/93°C | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Traeger Ranger | 8 | 3.6 | 8 hours |
| Traeger Tailgater | 8 | 3.6 | 8 hours |
| Traeger Pro 22 | 18 | 8.2 | 18 hours |
| Traeger Pro 575 | 18 | 8.2 | 18 hours |
| Traeger Pro 780 | 20 | 9.1 | 20 hours |
| Traeger Silverton 620 | 20 | 9.1 | 20 hours |
| Traeger Ironwood 650 | 20 | 9.1 | 20 hours |
| Traeger Timberline | 22 | 10 | 22 hours |
| Traeger Timberline XL | 22 | 10 | 20 hours |
| Traeger Ironwood 885 | 24 | 10.9 | 24 hours |
| Traeger Timberline 850 | 24 | 10.9 | 24 hours |
| Traeger Timberline 1300 | 24 | 10.9 | 24 hours |
How many hours per pound of wood pellets for a Traeger grill?
0.5 to 3 pounds of wood pellets per hour
Understanding the duration of pellet usage is essential for planning and preparing your cooking sessions. The worst thing is to run out of wood pellets while you are halfway through cooking something, and you don’t notice.
Factors Affecting Pellet Consumption
- Temperature Setting: Higher temperature settings will require more pellets to maintain the desired heat, leading to faster pellet consumption. The heat comes from the pellets, not via the electricity, which some people get confused about initially.
- Grill Size: The size of your pellet grill and its cooking area also impact pellet usage. Larger grills generally require more pellets to generate and sustain the heat necessary for even cooking.
- 0.5-pound pellet consumption on a low temperature of 200F can double with larger pellet grill smokers.
- Pellet Type & Quality: Hardwoods versus fruit wood smoking pellets can vary the burn time, whilst also the quality of the pellets. One main factor in this is how much moisture is in the wood pellet (not something shown on the packaging or easy to find out).
- Insulation: Either standard on the pellet grill, or additional insulation Traeger blankets
Average Pellet Consumption
On average, a pellet grill will consume between 1/2 to 3 pounds (0.23 to 0.91 kilograms) of pellets per hour, depending on the factors mentioned earlier. The temperature you cook at will have the most impact on this consumption rate.
This estimation can help you gauge how much pellet supply you might need for your cooking session.
Traeger Hopper Features
You can get some models of Traeger with different useful additions to the hopper.
A pellet chute at the back is useful when you are storing the pellet grill for a while or want to change the wood pellet type.
Windows on the front of the hopper are useful also, although as you’ll see below, the low pellet alarm is on most models of Traeger pellet grills, see below:
Traeger Hopper Features
| Hopper Chute | Window | Low Pellet Alarm | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Traeger Ranger (Portable) | No | No | No |
| Traeger Tailgater | No | No | No |
| Traeger Pro 22 | No | No | No |
| Traeger Pro 575 | Yes | No | No |
| Traeger Pro 780 | Yes | No | Yes |
| Traeger Ironwood 650 | Yes | No | Yes |
| Traeger Ironwood 885 | Yes | No | Yes |
| Traeger Timberline 850 | Yes | No | Yes |
| Traeger Timberline 1300 | Yes | No | Yes |
Here is a link to the official Traeger comparison guide, I’ve tried to make the information about hopper sizes slightly more useful with the burn times, hope it helps.
