I've been through a few pellet grills over the span of 15 years. And I've found that the failures come from the components, not usually the grill body, as long as you keep it protected from the weather. Protecting a pellet grill from weather (rain/snow) is crucial, simply because wet pellets swell like wet particle board and will create a messy auger jam that isn't easy to clear. I've learned that lesson the hard way. That said, there are many sources of replacement components available. Most, if not all, are generic parts from the same Chinese factories that are building the big name/market grills (Pit Boss, Traeger, etc). There are also "upgrade" parts that are higher quality than stock/factory parts from smaller vendors, like smokedaddyinc.com.
I upgraded the parts on my Traeger Tex Elite with components from smoke daddy. The the heavy gauge steel used for the heat shield and drip tray are great - no warping and the heavier steel helps even out the heat distribution. The auger motor... no noticeable difference. The PelletPro PID controller was a big improvement over the stock controller from the factory in 2013. But newer grills have similar features.
So can an inexpensive pellet grill last a lifetime? Sure. But you'll eventually need to replace parts. That will also be true of the high-end pellet grills. But you will likely get more life out of the expensive grill before something fails. And you will likely get better support from the mom & pop companies when they do. I recently acquired my Lone Star Grillz pellet smoker. Very expensive, but well-built, well-supported and very-well engineered. When you compare it to the top end Traeger grill, the price difference isn't that far off. But the build quality between the two is night and day - LSG wins bigly, in my opinion.
That said, here's my 2 cents on pellet grill durability:
- Center burn pots with long feed augers jam more often than side burners. Longer augers have to move pellets a longer distance. That's harder on the motor. Longer feed tubes accumulate more pellet residue over time, creating more drag on the pellets as they are pushed through that tube, and thus making the motor work progressively harder to push the pellets. I've learned this the hard way with my Traeger. Thus, shorter feed augers are less prone to jamming and are easier to clear. Does that make the center burn pot a bad design? No. But it is more prone to jamming, harder to clear, and benefits from an annual cleaning of the feed tube to remove the pellet residue (comes from cheaper quality pellets... and that's a whole other discussion).
- Keep your pellet grill dry. Wet pellets swell. Already said it.
- Clean out your burn pot regularly. Ash buildup will degrade the airflow in the pot, making it burn less efficiently. Also, as I've learned recently, some brands of pellets have more mineral content than others, and will leave a mineral-laden ash in the pot that needs to be cleaned out more frequently (before each cook on my LSG). I experienced this with Knotty Wood pellets. They are all wood (no fillers, oils, etc). But they include the bark. Bark has more minerals in it than the wood. Great pellets. But a little extra maintenance may be required. Take home: clean your burn pot, get to know how different pellets burn in your grill... some pellets leave more ash residue than others.
- Keep your smokestack clean if you have one. Grease can condense and accumulate ash and smoke particles in the stack, resulting in a sludge buildup that will restrict the airflow. Pellet grills need airflow... constant airflow. Choke the stack, choke the grill. Solution: clean the stack when needed, or replace if you're not motivated to clean. A generic Traeger stack is around $20.
- Ash in the grill body, not the pot: not a big deal. It settles and doesn't impede airflow. Clean it out periodically. Clearing the burn pot is more important... much more important.
Can an inexpensive grill last a lifetime? Yes. Take care of it. And replace parts when needed.
