{"id":1071,"date":"2020-05-11T17:06:51","date_gmt":"2020-05-11T17:06:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/pelletgrillreviews.com\/?p=1071"},"modified":"2021-06-22T16:00:08","modified_gmt":"2021-06-22T20:00:08","slug":"mobile-pellet-grills-portable-power-options","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pelletgrillreviews.com\/mobile-pellet-grills-portable-power-options\/","title":{"rendered":"Portable Power Options for Pellet Grills [2021 Update]"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Portable power is a unique need for pellet grills. Unlike gas and charcoal grills, you need a power source to run the fan and auger. So how do you solve the power issue on the road? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you own a pellet grill, then you definitely know the pleasure of sharing the amazing food you cook on it. A pellet grill has a distinct advantage over gas or charcoal grills in that it allows you to be social at your social gathering. No fire-tending, no flipping or checking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But what about when you\u2019re camping or at a tailgating? One downside to pellet grills is that they are dependent upon a power source to run the controller, auger and fan. And unless you have a portable pellet grill, you need 110V power, like a normal household outlet. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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image courtesy of Goal Zero<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

But we have a low-cost and easy to use solution to allow you to take your grill away from household outlets. For less than about $100, you\u2019ll be able to load up your pellet grill and go literally anywhere with it. This is an especially good solution if you own a smaller portable grill like the GMG Davy Crockett<\/a> or the Recteq RT-340, which folds up, rolls, and can fit in the trunk of a car. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Pellet Grill Power Requirements<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

First, let\u2019s talk about the power needs of a pellet grill. I spoke with an electrical engineer, pored over specs for various grills and came up with the following:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The typical pellet smoker requires about 30 watts (30W) of electrical power when running, and anywhere from 300-500 watts (300-500W) for the 5-10 minutes during startup when the ignitor is running to light the pellets and the fan is running to build the fire in the fire pot. This is very different from an electric grill or smoker which have between 500-1500W continuous power requirements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You\u2019re going to need a power supply that can handle a short-term 500W startup need, and can then run a 30W device for at least 12 hours, more if possible. And you\u2019ll need a way to invert the DC power from a battery to the 110V AC power the grill uses. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

How Long Will my Pellet Grill Run on Portable Power?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The watts of your power source lets you know if the power source is big enough to handle the overall power needs of the grill. But it’s the Watt Hours (Wh) that’s going to give you a clue as to how long your power source will power your grill. The formula is:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Operating time= Total Wh * 0.85 \/ operating power of grill. <\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n
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Bluetti AC50S Power Station has 500Wh capacity<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Example:<\/strong> This BLUETTI AC50S Power Station<\/a> has a 500Wh rating. So it should power a 30W grill (about average for, say, a Recteq RT-340) for:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

500wh * 0.85 (425) \/ 30W = 14 hours.
Remember, though, that the startup sequence of your grill (firing up the ignitor, running the fan until set temp is reached) is going to use up some of that power. So to be safe, I’d say that unit would power the portable Recteq for 12 hours. Not bad, and plenty long enough for a tailgate of ribs, steaks, wings and whatnot. It might be a little iffy for a typical smoked pork butt, but it’s worth pre-testing if you bought one of these units.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n