Lumberjack pellets are the rave because they are a great way to add flavor and variety to your cooking experience. You’ve likely asked whether you can use Lumberjack pellets in a Pit Boss? This article is meant to answer all your questions regarding these pellets vs the Pit Boss brand.
Can You Use Lumberjack Pellets In A Pit Boss?
The short answer is yes, you can use Lumberjack pellets or any other brand of high-quality food-grade pellets. These BBQ pellets are made from 100% all-natural wood, that contains NO fillers or additives. That said, they differ from the Pit Boss brand, in various ways, which we’ll discuss below.
Lumberjack pellets claim “The best BBQ pellets in the industry!”
If you’re like me, you like to venture out and try different wood pellets brands in your Pit Boss grill. I decided to pick buy a 20-pound to test it out and see if there’s a difference in flavor, smokiness, and ash content residue.
In this article, I share everything I’ve learned from researching the pellets online and doing both a long and short cook. I even created a video, so scroll below to watch it.
*This page contains affiliate links to products I recommend. If you purchase something from this page, I may receive a small percentage of the sale at no extra cost to you.
If you’ve been considering buying these pellets, you can do so from here. Want to know more about using other brand pellets in your Pit Boss, then keep reading, I share everything I learned from using the Lumberjack pellets in my Pit Boss Pro Series 820.
- Maple-Hickory-Cherry Blend (1/3 Maple, 1/3 Hickory, 1/3 Cherry) - Blend MHC Competition
- Maple-Hickory-Cherry Blend (1/3 Maple, 1/3 Hickory, 1/3 Cherry) - Blend MHC Competition
- Works great in Pellet Grills, Tube Smokers and the Smokin Wedgie
- Made in the USA
But first, let’s take a closer look at what Lumberjack wood pellets are and some other stuff.
Who Makes Lumberjack Pellets?
GLRE aka Great Lakes Renewable Energy, Inc. is the company that owns Lumberjack wood pellets. The company was started in 2005 by three professional loggers from Northwest Wisconsin.
They knew the northwestern Wisconsin forest trees were a great source of renewable wood fiber for the manufacturing of premium wood pellets.
Pit Boss Vs. Lumberjack Pellets
All wood pellets even fuel pellets are manufactured virtually the same way. With some differences such as; the trees used, stripping off the bark, etc.
That said, the biggest difference between the Lumberjack and Pit Boss pellets is the bark. Pit Boss removes the bark (or at least most of it) and Lumberjack toats their blends are flavorful bark-on wood chips mixed with de-barked oak.
This means they leave the bark on during manufacturing production. They believe the smokey flavor we crave is in the bark, which is why old-timers left the bark on wood they gathered when they smoked fish and meat.
How Lumberjack Pellets Are Made
All their blends start with de-barked Red Oak as a base wood, which is then mixed with flavored wood chips with the bark left on for maximum flavor.
Ingredients
When I looked at the bag, the first thing I noticed is 100% Virgin Tree Fiber with No additives. Other than that, I couldn’t find any ingredients on the back of the bag.
Texture
I didn’t notice any difference in the Lumberjack pellets compared to the Pit Boss. That said, the Lumberjack pellets are much thinner than the Pit Boss pellets.
According to Lumberjack, the smaller diameter pellets light more quickly, burn hotter and more evenly, and prevent fewer auger jams.
That’s a great thing, especially, since no one wants to deal with an auger jam.
Flavors
Similar to the Pit Boss pellets, Lumberjack offers a variety of flavors that are all made with 100% all-natural wood pellets.
- 100% Oak
- Apple Blend
- Mesquite Blend
- Fruitwood Blend
- 100% Hickory
- Competetition Blend
- Supreme Blend
- Char Hickory
- Pecan Blend
- 100% Cherry
- Hickory Blend
- Supreme Blend
- 100% Maple
They even offer a flavor guide that helps you mix and match different flavors to create your own signature blend, you can see it here.
For example, if you wanted to create a Cherry / Char Mix you would mix half 100% Cherry + half Char Hickory.
If you’re unsure of which flavor to use when cooking, the flavor guide shows you which flavored pellets go best with food categories.
According to their website, you can create over 20 different flavors!
Cost
The first thing I noticed was the difference in the cost. Pit Boss pellets are cheaper, in fact, you can buy a 20-pound bag for around $9 – $10, depending on where you buy it.
A 40-pound bag will cost you about $20-30 depending on where you purchase it. I usually buy mine at Lowes or Amazon and find their prices reasonable.
I paid $16 for a 20-pound bag of Lumberjack pellets. That said, prices will vary depending on where you buy it.
Using Lumberjack Pellets In A Pit Boss
I wanted to find out what the rave of these pellets was, so the only way I could do this was to pick up a bag and test them out. That’s exactly what I did.
I’ve created a video of me doing both a short cook and a long cook using these pellets. (Coming Soon)
For those of you that prefer reading then scroll below as I share everything, I learned below.
How To Use Lumberjack Pellets In Pit Boss?
Yes, you can use other brands of pellets in your Pit Boss. That said, they will differ from the Pit Boss pellets. Here’s what I learned from using the Lumberjack pellets for the first time and what I think about them.
Emptying the Pellets
First things first, you’ll want to remove all the pellets from your hopper. I also primed the hopper, to ensure all the Pit Boss pellets were removed from the auger.
Adding the Pellets
Once all the Pit Boss pellets are removed from both the auger and the hopper, it’s time to add the Lumberjack pellets. I just emptied the bag (almost all of it) into the hopper. The hopper was able to hold about 19 pounds.
Any leftovers, you can store in an airtight container and keep them away from humidity and moisture.
I’ve written a step-by-step article that will show you how to add pellets from the hopper.
Powering The Grill
If you’ve removed all the pellets from both the hopper and auger, you’ll need to prime the grill when powering it on.
Because the auger doesn’t currently have any pellets to feed into the firepot. It’s the same process you use if your grill runs out of pellets during a cook.
Set The Temperature
Once you start seeing smoke and the pellets have caught fire, it’s time to set the temperature you want. We cooked hamburgers and chicken, so we set our grill to 450°.
How Much Smoke Do The Pellets Produce?
Everyone wants their pellet grill to produce a lot of smoke. In fact, this is why the Lumberjack pellets are so popular because they leave the bark on the pellets, which produces more smoke.
So did I notice more smoke than when cooking with Pit Boss pellets?
Short Cook
We didn’t notice any difference in the amount of smoke. That said, you don’t get a lot of smoke when you do a short cook at a high temperature, regardless of what pellets you’re using.
With a short cook, the food isn’t on the grill long enough, and it’s kind of like using a regular gas or charcoal grill. You’ll still get a hint of smokey flavor, just don’t expect a lot of smoke.
Long Cook
We cooked a Boston Butt for around 6.5 hours and we noticed the grill did produce more smoke than the Pit Boss pellets, especially while the grill was in the cooking at a lower temperature for an extended period of time.
Is There A Difference In The Smokey Flavor?
I personally couldn’t tell a huge difference in smokey flavor in the burgers or chicken. The food did have a hint of flavor, but all the food I cook on the Pit Boss has a hint of smoke, regardless of the type of pellets you use.
According to the Lumberjack website, the 100% varieties produce more flavor than the blended pellets. So keep that in mind if you are purchasing these pellets because of the smokey flavor.
The 100% flavored pellets come in the following flavors:
- Apple
- Cherry
- Hickory
- Maple
- Oak
Unfortunately, I didn’t see that otherwise, I would’ve tested out the hickory flavor.
How Much Ash Residue Do They Leave?
One of the biggest downsides of using the Lumberjack pellets is the amount of ash you get after a cook. We noticed a lot of residual ash compared to what the Pit Boss pellets leave behind.
Here’s the amount of organic ash left behind after a cook both hamburgers and chicken breasts (about an hour).
What does this mean? It means you’ll need to vacuum and clean your Pit Boss after each cook. Otherwise, the ash build-up can impact the way your grill works overtime.
Not only that, but the ash buildup will circulate inside the smoker while you’re cooking, making your food dirty.
How Long Will A 20 Pound Lumberjack Bag Last?
Based on my two cooks, a 20-pound bag will last about 15-20 hours. Expect to go through these pellets pretty quickly, which is why I guess they produce so much ash.
Of course, how long the pellets last will depend on the cooking temperature, outside temperature, and the P-setting used.
Are Lumberjack Pellets Any Good?
Based on my experience the Lumberjack pellets are okay, but not worth the extra money. They are 100% premium pellets, making them safe to use in your Pit Boss or any other pellet grill.
That said, you’ll need to do more maintenance, otherwise, you could reduce the lifespan of your grill and run into other issues.
Where To Get Lumberjack Wood Pellets?
These wood pellets are sold at various retail stores such as:
- Dicks Sports Authority
- Walmart
- Amazon
Always do your research to find out where the best deals are. As mentioned, they are more expensive and burn more quickly, so you’ll go through a bag faster than the Pit Boss pellets.
Related Questions
No, they are premium pellets, which is what Pit Boss recommends. As a consumer, you are protected under the Consumer Protection Act / Magnuson Mass Warranty Act. Meaning manufacturers can’t require consumers to use OEM (original equipment manufacturer) products.
Final Word
Hopefully, this article has shown you how to use the Lumberjack wood pellets in your Pit Boss grill. As long as you take proper care of your grill and vacuum it out after each cook, it should be fine.
Lumberjack wood pellets are made of 100% all-natural wood, making them safe to use with the Pit Boss. Just keep in mind, the bark is left on the wood chips and some people believe that bark-on pellets can cause auger jams.
Based on my experience, I might pick up another bag to test out a different flavor. But I’ll stick with the Pit Boss pellets because I don’t like cleaning my smoker that often.
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