Pellet Fan

Pit Talk -- Comments and Questions Regarding These Pellet Pits => Blaz'n Grills => Topic started by: litzerski on January 12, 2019, 10:18:57 AM

Title: Do you foil your drip tray?
Post by: litzerski on January 12, 2019, 10:18:57 AM
Glitchy started a thread in the Memphis sub-forum, and since Memphis has a different drip tray design than Blaz'n and most other manufacturers, I thought I'd ask the question here.

I've been running my Grid Iron pretty heavily for the past 6 months and have been diligent about foiling the drip tray.  I've been strongly considering ditching the foil and scraping when necessary.  What's your experience regarding this?
Title: Re: Do you foil your drip tray?
Post by: Bar-B-Lew on January 12, 2019, 10:52:45 AM
nope....i used to on my first pellet grill the traeger...then determined it was too much of a pain to foil and unfoil and the cost of it was unnecessary

i scrape and vacuum periodically
Title: Re: Do you foil your drip tray?
Post by: Bobitis on January 12, 2019, 11:15:15 AM
I may be off topic here as this is a Blaz'n question. I can only suggest you try it sans foil.

I have a bottom of the line Traeger that's 4 years old.  I started by foiling as the roll fit perfectly 'inside' the pan.
The result was that grease still escaped the outer edges, and I still had to scrape.

When I went to foiling around the edges, I had to overlap the foil to complete the coverage. I still got grease on the pan, and the temp control was compromised. I went from 80 deg swings to 120. And I still had to scrape. 3 and out. No foil for me.

It's up to you.
 
Title: Re: Do you foil your drip tray?
Post by: triplebq on January 12, 2019, 11:25:07 AM
I have been foiling my drip tray. Honestly I don't think it makes a difference one way or the other.
Title: Re: Do you foil your drip tray?
Post by: Bentley on January 12, 2019, 01:30:43 PM
The only problem I ever had with using foil was, depending on the unit, it could cause performance issues!
Title: Re: Do you foil your drip tray?
Post by: litzerski on January 12, 2019, 02:50:57 PM
The only problem I ever had with using foil was, depending on the unit, it could cause performance issues!
What performance issues does foiling cause?
Title: Re: Do you foil your drip tray?
Post by: Bentley on January 12, 2019, 03:05:41 PM
I had trouble with temperature control when I did it on some of the units that were Performance Tested...
Title: Re: Do you foil your drip tray?
Post by: litzerski on January 12, 2019, 03:13:14 PM
That's interesting.  I have a big temperature difference between the left and right sides of the cooker.  Foil can't affect that, can it?
Title: Re: Do you foil your drip tray?
Post by: Bobitis on January 12, 2019, 03:24:25 PM
That's interesting.  I have a big temperature difference between the left and right sides of the cooker.  Foil can't affect that, can it?

Try it and report back.
Title: Re: Do you foil your drip tray?
Post by: Bentley on January 12, 2019, 03:37:53 PM
I have to concur with Bobitis...It was hit and miss from unit to unit, so I just stopped doing it to give the Manufactures a fair shake!

I have had Members tell me over the years that shiny side up or down can make a difference in performance!
Title: Re: Do you foil your drip tray?
Post by: KNIGHTDAD on January 12, 2019, 06:13:17 PM
When we picked up the GS from the factory they told us to foil. I have done it since day one. So far I have not noticed any temp swings, I use a Smoke to monitor pit temps. When I do a cleaning I will put 4-5 layers on the drip pan, when I need a clean one I just remove the top layer. The commercial aluminum foil from Sam’s is thick and wide enough to wrap around the sides, no problems at all with grease getting under it. Reynolds brand is a different story, it’s thinner and not as wide, always had grease under it.   
Title: Re: Do you foil your drip tray?
Post by: MP09 on January 12, 2019, 06:22:11 PM
I foil, easy cleanup, no grease under the foil. I use the HD foil from costco. I've checked the temperatures with the smoke and no difference with foil or no foil. I make sure the foil is wrapped around the right side and tucked in so i have no air restrictions.
Title: Re: Do you foil your drip tray?
Post by: triplebq on January 12, 2019, 11:47:04 PM
Like some I haven't notice any difference in performance with or without foil on my Grid Iron.
Title: Re: Do you foil your drip tray?
Post by: litzerski on January 13, 2019, 07:54:50 AM
I use the heavy duty foil and fold it tight to the drip tray.  I don't expect there to be a difference, but I'll skip the foil on my meatloaf cook today and monitor the temps.
Title: Re: Do you foil your drip tray?
Post by: litzerski on January 13, 2019, 04:19:47 PM
I already had fresh foil on the drip tray so the meatloaf is cooking over foil.  When the foil comes off, I'll do another biscuit test and report back.
Title: Re: Do you foil your drip tray?
Post by: Hoosier Daddy on January 14, 2019, 07:04:24 AM
Very pricy but as anyone seen these? https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01G3WLDUE/ref=twister_B01G3WLDS6?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

Looks like they have them in sizes to fit most grills including my Rec Tec.  I currently scrape because foiling was a hassle.
Title: Re: Do you foil your drip tray?
Post by: glitchy on January 14, 2019, 02:19:43 PM
Just as an FYI, Reynolds does make a heavy duty foil and has it in wider than standard rolls. After I tried to foil my Traeger junior with regular Reynolds foil, I switched to heavy duty and never looked back. I pretty much only use regular foil for tenting resting meat, baked potatoes, and under food on a baking sheet when using the broiler to toast and melt cheese on a sandwich. When foiling drip pans it creases easier and stays tighter to the tray (which should affect performance less).

I buy 2 big rolls of heavy duty at a time from Costco.
Title: Re: Do you foil your drip tray?
Post by: Casper08 on January 14, 2019, 02:57:15 PM
I use 18" heavy duty foil, and have never had an issue on other grills.  So far on the Grid Iron foil doesn't seem to bother anything.  I'm thinking whatever you prefer.  I don't mind taking some extra time foiling.
Title: Re: Do you foil your drip tray?
Post by: litzerski on January 31, 2019, 08:17:22 AM
FYI...over the weekend, I performed testing on foil vs no-foil temperatures and was surprised at some of the results.  I've started organizing my thoughts and typing a post regarding the results.  I should have it posted by the end of the day.

I'll be creating a new post with my data and analysis.