The most common reason behind your Oklahoma Joe pellet grill not heating up is due to the buildup of ashes. You can solve this problem by cleaning the interior of the grill. Besides that, these reasons are also known to cause this issue sometimes:
- An auger jam.
- Using pellets of poor quality.
- Problems with the ignitor.
- A bad temperature sensor.
- Not following the start-up and shutdown cycle properly.
I’ll talk about all these problems along with their detailed solutions in this guide so that you don’t have to face this issue anymore. So, let’s dive in!
Oklahoma Joe Pellet Grill Not Heating Up [Solved A-Z]
I’ll discuss the main reasons behind the Oklahoma Joe pellet grill not working properly along with the solutions.
1. Ash Build-Up
The buildup of ashes is beyond a doubt the number one reason behind the OJ pellet grill not heating properly. It can lead to a number of issues in the grill.
Firstly, the buildup of ashes can result in the pellets not getting into the combustion chamber. The whole thing can be jammed up, and that’ll lead to the Oklahoma Joe pellet grill not working properly.
On top of that, ashes can get in the way of glowing the ignitor. When it gets too cramped up due to the ashes, the ignitor will also fail to work like it’s supposed to. This could be why your Oklahoma Joe pellet grill keeps shutting off.
A common symptom of an ash build-up is that you’ll see smoke coming out of the hopper. If you see that happening, there’s a very strong chance that your pellet grill is clogged by ashes.
However, smoke coming out of the hopper can also indicate that the combustion chamber is not working properly. In that case, you may also see the ER3 error code, which means something is wrong with the fan.
Solution:
You have to clean your pellet grill to get rid of the ashes. Fortunately, OJ pellet grills have ash cups that are really easy to operate. You can find the ash cup in your grill at the bottom.
Just loosen it by hand and you’ll be able to dump the ashes easily. However, the cooking chamber itself can also be severely clogged up due to ashes. So, you’d have to clean inside the grill as well.
It’s not a tough job at all. Just take a vacuum cleaner and get as much dirt as you can out of the grill. Make sure the ignitor is free from any debris and the pathway for the pellet grills to come to the fire pot is also clear. I am confident that doing these things will solve this problem.
2. Auger Jam
Another common reason behind the Oklahoma Joe smoker not working properly is an auger jam. The job of the auger is to pass the pellets into the fire pot. In the fire pot, the pellets are burned to produce the heat required to carry on the cook.
However, if there’s an auger jam, the pellets won’t be able to get to the fire pot. So, the OJ smoker will fail to heat up and cook effectively. If you’ve already checked the fire pot and made sure that it’s clean, the next culprit in line is definitely an auger jam.
Thankfully, it’s quite easy to check if there’s an auger jam in your OJ pellet grill. Start out by emptying the pellets from the hopper so that you can have a better look at the auger from the bottom of the hopper. Then, you can follow these steps to check for an auger jam:
- Turn on your Oklahoma Joe pellet grill and set the auger movement settings to “High”
- Watch the movement of the auger motor closely after you do that.
If the auger works fine, it’ll start spinning very fast for a few seconds after you set the auger movement to the high setting. Then, it should continue normally later on.
However, if that doesn’t happen and you don’t see any auger movement, it’s most likely jammed up. Apart from this, the error codes ER5 or ER1 may also come up when something is wrong with the auger.
Solution:
You’ll have to clear a jammed auger so that your pellet grill works properly. It can take some time to clear it. But if you know what to do, I’m sure you won’t run into a whole lot of problems when you clear it.
As for me, I’ve faced this issue multiple times with my Oklahoma Joe pellet grill in the past and I’ve had to clear the auger jam. So, how to clear auger jam? I’ve broken down the process into simple steps that you can easily follow.
Step 01 – Ensure Your Safety
Make sure that you give enough time for the pellet grill to cool down. Unplug the grill and get rid of all the pellets in the hopper. Then, remove the hopper guard by disconnecting the four screws that hold it in place.
Step 02 – The Screwdriver Method
Once you do that, you’ll have full access to the auger. Take a screwdriver and try to move the auger back and forth in a horizontal motion. If you’re confident that you’ve cleared up the gunk, turn on the power of the grill back again and check if the auger moves freely.
Step 03 – The Wire Method
If the issue persists, you’ll have to work a little bit harder. Now, you’ll have to access the grill from the cooking chamber side. Remove all the parts that you can so that you have access to the auger tube.
Once you remove the heat baffles, you can turn the lever to SEAR mode if you have a Rider DLX pellet grill. For the other models, you’ll have to remove the other internal components as well until you have access to the firepot.
Take a long metal wire and push it through the auger tube. The idea is to get all the dirt out of the auger tube so that you can clear the jam. Once you do that, assemble the parts properly and restart the grill again. Hopefully, it’ll work just fine this time.
Step 04 – Full Access To The Auger Tube Method
If that also doesn’t work, it’s a pretty serious jam. Now, you need complete access to the auger. To get that, you’ll have to remove the hopper housing. Start by unscrewing the screws at the top of the hopper and remove the hinges. Once you do that, you’ll be able to lift up the hopper lid.
Next, you’ll have to remove the control panel. So, remove the screws that hold the control panel in place. Then, remove the control panel, and you’ll have to disconnect the wiring connections that are attached to it.
It’s a good idea to take a picture before you disconnect the wires. It’ll help you get an idea of which wire goes where when you put the whole thing back together later on. After disconnecting the wires, you’ll be able to completely pull off the control panel. So, go ahead and do that.
Remove the four screws that connect the hopper housing to the grill. Two of them will be located in the front and the others will be located in the back. If you’re doing it for the first time, the wires will be connected by a zip tie.
You’ll have to cut the zip tie. But take your time while doing it and make sure that you don’t accidentally cut any of the wiring connections. Once you do that, you’ll be able to completely pull off the hopper housing.
Now, you’ll have clear access to the auger tube with nothing in your way. Remove the screw that holds the auger in its place and gently get the auger out of the auger tube. You can use your screwdriver to glide the auger out.
The level of dirt will dictate how much cleaning you’ll have to do. You can pull the whole auger out and clean it to make sure that there are no traces of dirt in it. Then, clean the auger tube as well and make sure the path of the pellets to go to the firepot is free.
Step 05 – Test The Auger And Follow Preventive Maintenance
Reverse-engineer the process of taking out the auger and the hopper assembly to put them back together. It shouldn’t be a hard job. Then, try running the auger test again, and this time it should 100% work because you’ve cleaned the auger and the auger tube yourself.
Keep in mind that preventing a pellet smoker auger jam is a lot better than clearing it. Using pellets that are not good in quality or have moisture, leaving pellets in the system in between uses, and not shutting down the grill properly can all cause this issue.
So, be a little proactive in the future and make sure you avoid these things so that you won’t deal with this problem anymore. Cleaning your pellet grill at regular intervals goes a long way in ensuring its long-term health.
How To Properly Shutdown The Grill To Prevent Auger Jam.
Here are the steps you should follow to effectively prevent an Oklahoma Joe pellet grill auger jam:
- When you’re done cooking, pull the quickdraw hopper and get rid of all the unburnt pellets.
- Set the grill to the high settings and let it run for at least 5 minutes.
- Then, turn back on the shutdown cycle of your grill and go through the process like you normally would.
That second step will make sure that the auger motor keeps turning, and it’ll make sure that all the remaining pellets go into the firepot. Plus, it’ll also help clean grease and other gunk from the heat baffles.
The only problem is that’ll take a little longer to get the auger primed for your next week. But five to ten minutes here and there to ensure that the grill stays healthy is a price I’m always willing to pay. Hopefully, you see the benefit in it and you’ll do it too.
3. Poor Quality Pellets
The fuel source in your Oklahoma Joe pellet grill is the pellets. You have to make sure that the pellets you’re using are of good quality. OJ makes their own pellets, and ideally, you should be using them.
Even if you go for another brand of pellets, they must be of impeccable quality. Pellets of higher quality mean that you’ll get a cleaner burn with more smoke and less pellet dust.
When the buildup of pellet dust is too much in the auger, it can lead to an auger jam. Even using poor-quality pellets that have a good amount of moisture will also cause this issue.
Solution:
If you’re using pellets of poor quality, you need to replace them. If using bad pellets has already led to an auger jam, you have to make it free. If you’re going through this guide, you’ll have learned how to do it.
I have another piece of advice for you to keep the pellet dust to a minimum. Use the buckets made by OJ to get rid of the pellet dust before you put them in the hopper.
The above picture shows how I use it. All you have to do is shake the top bucket and get the pellet dust out. If you use clean pellets, the grill will stay healthier in the long run and there’ll be no more auger jam.
4. Ignitor Issues
You already know how the build-up of ashes can clog an ignitor and result in the Oklahoma Joe grill not heating up. The solution in that case is to clean the fire pot and the internal components of the grill. If you do a good job, the ignitor can light up easily and keep the fire alive.
However, there are other issues with the igniter that can also lead to this problem. If the ignitor goes bad, it won’t be able to create sparks and keep the fire going. You can easily check the ignitor after you empty the contents inside your OJ pellet grill.
Set your grill to the low settings mode and wait for the ignitor to glow red. If that happens within a few minutes, that means the ignitor is okay. But if it doesn’t get to a glowing red color, the ignitor is faulty.
Solution:
You’ll have to replace the ignitor if it has gone bad. It’s up to you whether you want to do the replacement job yourself or hire someone to do it. For me, I’ve done this replacement job quite a number of times.
I have a detailed guide on how you can replace the ignitor in your OJ pellet grill. Feel free to check it out and follow along the steps if you’re comfortable replacing it yourself. It’s not as easy as clearing an auger jam. So, if you want to get outside help, that’s completely understandable.
5. Faulty Temperature Sensor
I’ve already talked about the most common reasons behind this issue. Now, I’m getting into the issues that are quite rare. But they can still happen, and I want to prepare you for all possible problems when you’re troubleshooting this issue.
When there’s a faulty temperature sensor, the grill will get incorrect readings. So, the control panel will rely on that information and act accordingly. Thus, having a faulty temp sensor can easily lead to the grill not heating properly.
You can test the temperature sensor by lighting a lighter and placing it at the tip of the temp sensor. If it changes the readings, that means it should be okay to an extent. If the reading doesn’t change, it’s 100% faulty. Just make sure that you let the preheat cycle be completed before you perform this test.
Solution:
The first possibility is that the temp probe is covered with dirt or gunk. In that case, the solution is quite easy. You just have to clean it and hopefully, that’ll do the trick. Now, it should get accurate readings and that will solve the issue.
However, the temperature sensors can also get damaged. In such a scenario, make sure that the wires are properly connected. If any of the wiring connections are loose, you have to tighten them. If that doesn’t work, your only option is to replace the faulty temperature sensor.
6. Not Following Startup or Shutdown Properly
Whenever you’re using your grill, it’s important to follow the rules on how to use the grill. If you don’t start up or shut down the grill properly, it can result in it not working properly. One of these side effects is that the pellet grill won’t heat up.
For example, if you leave unused pellets in the hopper and continue them for your next, they can become moist by that time. To add to that, not running the shutdown cycle properly will also leave unburned pellets in the system, and that’ll cause issues when you plan to start it up next time.
Solution:
Starting your grill properly boils down to shutting it off properly after your last use. If you do that properly, you won’t have to worry about your next use of it. To do this successfully, follow these steps:
- After cooking, turn the knob to the Shutdown position.
- Within a few seconds, the shutdown process will start, indicated by the control screen flashing “DRN HOP.”
- Empty any leftover pellets from the hopper.
- Run the grill in high settings for five minutes so that there’s a strong chance of burning the unused pellets in the auger tube.
- The panel screen will then display “Coo-ling,” signaling that the grill is cooling down and burning off the remaining pellets in the auger tube.
- The grill will automatically turn off once this process is complete, which may take up to 30 minutes.
- After the grill has cooled down, unplug it from the power outlet.
How To Maintain The Oklahoma Joe Pellet Grill.
If you take good care of your pellet grill, you won’t run into this problem for a long time. Maintaining your grill properly boils down to these three things:
1. Cleaning The Cooking Chamber
From time to time, it’s a good idea to clean the cooking chamber. When the grill is cool, unplug it from the power outlet and remove all the internal components. Rinse the interior walls of the grill with water or you can also use a food-grade cleaning solution.
Once you’re happy with the cleaning job, dry the interior with paper towels. When you’re sure that the grill is completely dry, reassemble it back together. As an added layer of protection, you can coat the interior with vegetable oil so that it gets less dusty.
2. Emptying Pellets Correctly
Leaving the pellets in the hopper after your cooks is a big no-no. Make sure you empty the pellets from the hopper after all your cooks. And now it’s easier than ever with the quickdraw option. There’s no reason not to do it.
3. Emptying Ashes Properly
The build-up of ashes is more often than not the main reason behind a pellet grill not heating up. So, you need to dump it as often as you can to make sure that the grill stays healthy.
Never open the ash cup to dump the ashes in the middle of the cook. Always do it when the pellet grill is cool. If you don’t have the habit of cleaning it frequently, it can get stuck.
You won’t be able to open the ash cup by hand in such cases. You’ll have to rely on tools to open it. But if you do it frequently, it should be fairly easy to open it and dump the ashes. So, save yourself a whole world of trouble by taking out the ashes at regular intervals.
FAQs:
How do I clean the main grates and upper racks in an Oklahoma Joe pellet grill?
Firstly, make sure that you never clean them while they’re hot. You can use a combination of dish detergent, damp clothes, and brushes with non-metallic bristles to clean them.
How often should I clean my Oklahoma Joe pellet grill?
How often you clean your pellet grill will make the biggest difference in the end. I recommend cleaning it after every long cook and after every other short cook.
What type of paint should I use to make the pellet grill exterior look nice?
When it comes to OJ pellet grills, I suggest painting them in two steps. First, use a black high-temperature spray paint. Then, you can also use vegetable oil to make a protective coating.
How do I maintain food safety during my pellet grill cooks?
The most important part is to always keep the raw uncooked meat separate from the cooked meat. Whenever you’re switching between touching them, you should wash your hands thoroughly.
Conclusion:
If you find yourself in the situation of your Oklahoma Joe pellet grill not heating up, you should know exactly what to do by now. I am very confident that nine times out of ten, the issue will arise due to an ash build-up.
However, the other potential reasons can also be the culprit in some cases. Be patient with your diagnosis and follow the right solutions. Check out my Oklahoma Joe pellet grill troubleshooting guide if you ever face any grill issues. Thanks!
