Pellet grills and associated methods of operation are disclosed. An example pellet grill includes an ignitor configured to be activated. The ignitor has a duty cycle associated with a number of activations of the ignitor. The example pellet grill further includes one or more processors configured to determine whether the duty cycle has violated a threshold. The one or more processors are further configured, in response to determining that the duty cycle has violated the threshold, to generate a notification indicating that the threshold has been violated. The one or more processors are further configured to cause the notification to be presented at a user interface of the pellet grill.

Pellet grills and associated methods of operation are disclosed. An example pellet grill includes a one or more processors configured to detect an improper shutdown of a control system of the pellet grill. The one or more processors are further configured to generate a notification in response to the control system regaining power following detection of the improper shutdown, the notification indicating that the control system was improperly shutdown. The one or more processors are further configured to cause the notification to be presented at a user interface of the pellet grill.

A cooking apparatus can include an enclosure defining a heating chamber configured to be heated and used for cooking food, a burn box proximate to the enclosure and which is configured to provide heat to the heating chamber, a hopper fluidly coupled to the burn box and configured to hold fuel, and a fuel conditioner disposed between the hopper and the burner to condition the fuel prior to burning in the burner. The fuel conditioner can be, for example, a wood chipper configured to reduce the size of the fuel.

This solid fuel burner is provided with: a venturi tube in which a channel for mixed fluid in a fuel nozzle narrows toward the center in the channel cross section; a fuel concentrator that imparts, to the mixed fluid, a velocity component away from the center of the fuel nozzle; and a channel separation member that separates the channel of the fuel nozzle into an internal side and an external side; wherein the channel separation member is shaped in such a way that the cross sectional area of an external channel is larger at the downstream end than at the upstream end, and the upstream end of the fuel concentrator is located between the upstream end and the downstream end of an expanded portion of the venturi tube. This solid fuel burner prevents solid fuel particles, which is ground biomass fuel, from adhering and depositing inside the nozzle.

Pellet grills and associated methods of operation are disclosed. An example pellet grill includes a main body defining a cooking chamber. The example pellet grill further includes a grease deflection bar assembly located within the main body. the grease deflection bar assembly includes a first rack removably positioned on first tabs of the main body, a second rack removably positioned on second tabs of the main body, and a grease deflection bar extending between and removably positioned on the first and second racks.

A grilling device includes an auger feeder system, a heating element, a blower and a temperature control system. The temperature control system includes at least a first temperature sensor inside the firepot and a second temperature sensor inside a cooking chamber above the firepot. The heating element can also serve as the first temperature sensor. A method for controlling the temperature of the grill can include receiving temperature feedback information from one or more of the temperature sensors and adjusting power provided to the auger feeder system, heating element, and blower. The temperature control system produces cold smoke resulting from the combustion of lignin in solid wood fuel while minimizing temperatures inside the cooking chamber.

A biochar apparatus and a related biochar module may have a horizontal table-shaking mechanism and a tapered channel for causing biochar pieces generated in a firebox to fall through openings in the table to a conveyor system below. The table may be configured with replaceable grate panels. A quenching reservoir pan for holding quenching liquid receives a drainage basket at a discharge end of the conveyor system for quenching hot pieces of biochar and allowing easy retrieval of the quenched pieces.

A method and device for drying wood chips to be used as raw material for a gas-generating reactor, the device being disposed between the storage for wood chips and the reactor. Product gas of the reactor is at least partially used in a block-type thermal power station (BHKW), and hot air from the housing of the block-type thermal power station is used to heat and dry wood chips in a drying hopper which has at least one outlet for the cooled humidified air. The wood chips enter the drying hopper through a first air-tight lock and exit the drying hopper through a second air-tight lock.

Pellet grills and associated methods of operation are disclosed. An example pellet grill includes a lid, a cooking chamber, an engine, and one or more processors. The lid is movable between a closed position and an open position. The engine is configured to output heat to the cooking chamber. The one or more processors are configured to detect a closing movement of the lid. In response to detecting the closing movement, the one or more processors are configured to command the engine to operate in an increased output mode that increases the heat output of the engine.

A biomass heating system for burning fuel in the form of pellets and/or wood chips is disclosed, the system comprising the following: a boiler with a combustion device, a heat exchanger with a plurality of boiler tubes, wherein the combustion device comprises: a combustion chamber with a rotating grate, with a primary combustion zone and with a secondary combustion zone; wherein the primary combustion zone is enclosed by a plurality of combustion chamber bricks laterally and by the rotating grate from below; wherein a plurality of secondary air nozzles is provided in the combustion chamber bricks; wherein the primary combustion zone and the secondary combustion zone are separated at the level of the secondary air nozzles; wherein the secondary combustion zone of the combustion chamber is fluidically connected to an inlet of the heat exchanger.