A Pre-Start Checklist from the Manual

Makers publish short checks to do before lighting. This page gathers them in the order you'd walk round the grill.

None of this replaces your own manual. Maker pages here describe their own grills, and the details change from model to model.

1. The spot and the space around it

Look before you plug in. Clear the area of rubbish, clutter and anything flammable. The CFA fire authority in Victoria, Australia, lists removing rubbish, clutter and flammable items from around a BBQ.¹ Pit Boss and fire services also give distances from walls, covered in the page on clearances.

2. The fire pot and ash

Ash is the item that gets the most attention from makers.

Pit Boss asks whether the fire pot has been vacuumed recently, so the air holes aren't blocked by excess ash.² The same page says the fire may die down when there's too much ash, because the airflow suffers.²

For timing, Pit Boss recommends cleaning the fire pot after 40 to 60 pounds of pellets, or any time you see excess ash.² The figure is for that maker's grills. Your manual may give another.

3. Parts in the right places

A grill is built to run with its inner parts fitted. Traeger's guide says to check your owner's manual to make sure all your grill's internal components are installed correctly.³

4. Grease

Grease is fuel. The CFA says a build-up of grease and fat can mean a flare-up spreads easily and becomes a dangerous fire.¹ The International Code Council also says to clean your grill regularly.⁴ Pit Boss adds that you should empty your grease bucket regularly.²

5. Hopper and pellets

Open the hopper lid and look inside. Traeger's seasoning steps include inspecting for any foreign objects in the auger.³ The steps for one model, the Woodridge, also say to fill the hopper with pellets at least to the safety grate and close the lid.³ Other models may differ, so check your manual.

Then look at the pellets. Pit Boss says good pellets should snap crisply and look a little bit shiny on the outside. If they aren't in good condition, the page says to replace them.² It also says to store pellets in an airtight container whenever they're out of the grill.²

6. Vents and chimney

Smoke and air need a way through. Pit Boss says that if your unit has a chimney, you should raise the chimney cap up as high as it can go. Its only exception is extremely cold weather when the grill struggles to hold temperature, and then the cap can be lowered just about an inch. If the unit has vent holes on the back of the barrel, keep them open and uncovered, and don't block those holes with foil.²

7. The lid and the start-up setting

Your manual says whether the lid goes open or closed at the start. Makers differ on this, which is why your manual wins. Two makers' lid advice sits side by side in this smoke explainer.

8. Fuel in the tube

If the grill is new or the hopper ran out, start with the notes on priming. An empty feed tube means a first start that can fail.

9. Stay with it

Once it's lit, someone should be there. The Code Council says never to leave a grill unattended.⁴

Quick list

• Open air and a clear space around the grill.
• Fire pot vacuumed, air holes clear.
• Internal components installed correctly, as your owner's manual shows.
• Grease cleared and grease bucket empty.
• Hopper checked, pellets dry and in good condition.
• Chimney cap up (unless your manual says otherwise) or vent holes open.
• Lid set the way your manual says.

Keep your manual to hand. Where it differs from this page, follow the manual. The startup overview shows how these checks fit into what the grill does next.