Pellet and cook calculator

Planning numbers for time, pellet weight, and whether the hopper survives the cook. Not a promise. Wind and weather will move this.

Inputs

Change anything. The estimate updates live, and the address bar keeps up. Use Copy link to this estimate on the results panel (or the mobile bar) when you want to paste the exact scenario into a reply.

Protein / cook type

Meat weight (lb)

Target grill temp (F)

Grill model

Generic profile. Nothing is assumed about your grill, so set the hopper size and the burn rate below yourself. Pick a model from the list to start from listed specs instead.

Ambient condition (you pick it)

PelletDeck does not look up the weather at your address. This is a setting, and it is the one that surprises people: sub-freezing roughly doubles pellet use in this model.

Mild (about 60 to 80 F)Assumes 1x pelletsCool (about 40 to 59 F)Assumes 1.25x pelletsCold (about 25 to 39 F)Assumes 1.55x pelletsWinter / sub-freezingAssumes 2.1x pellets

Hopper size (lb)Type the hopper size printed on your lid or in the manual.

Burn rate at 225 F (lb/hr)Community ballpark is often 0.5 to 1.2 lb/hr in mild weather. Not a lab number.

Collagen cooks on the clock, not the scale. Weight still moves the estimate. Pellets for pork shoulder

Estimate

Cook time: 13 hr 15 min; 13.3 hours
Pellets: 13.1 lb; 0.96 lb/hr once running. How burn rate moves

ClearHopper covers this cook on paper

About 4.9 lb left after 13 hr 15 min. A full 18 lb hopper runs about 18 hr 18 min at this burn rate.

Still look in the hopper before you go to bed. Paper margin is not fuel.

Hopper load: 18 lb
A full hopper runs: 18 hr 18 min
Left at the end: 4.9 lb

How hopper hours are counted

The link carries these exact inputs, so whoever opens it sees the same numbers.

Assumptions

Cook time starts from 0.5 hr plus 1.4 hr per lb, then scales by (225 / target temp)^0.85.
Pellet burn starts at 0.85 lb/hr at 225 F, then scales by (target temp / 225)^1.2 and an ambient multiplier of 1x (Mild (about 60 to 80 F)).
Ambient is the setting you picked, not a live forecast. PelletDeck never looks up the weather at your address.
Startup waste is a flat 0.35 lb. Real ignition can use more if you leave the lid open.
Wind, wet pellets, a dirty fire pot, and a leaky lid are not in the math. They usually burn more, not less.
This is a planning estimate, not a promise and not food-safety advice.

Full formula writeup · Food-safety disclaimer

You pick the inputs. Every constant behind them is written down. How the formula works · Listed hoppers by model