Traeger Won’t Turn On and Ignite? (Here’s why…..)

What happens when your Traeger won’t turn on? If you are in the process of cooking a delicious meal and all of sudden your Traeger grill turns off, there is likely an issue with one or more components. This blog will tell you what to do if this ever happens.

So, why Traeger grill is not turning on or igniting? There can be different reasons that are not letting the Traeger grill ignite or turn on. These include: the power cord is damaged or not fully plugged in, GFCI outlet has cut off the electric supply, the heating element (ignition rod) is burnt out or not getting power, the overheating has damaged the Traeger controller, the firmware has issues.

How to Fix Traeger That is Not Turning On or Igniting?

Here are the tips to fix your Traeger grill to turn on.

1. Check Power Cord and Extension Cord

Unplug the Traeger grill and inspect any damage in the power cord and extension cord, if you’re using it. Go through the bottom of the hopper to access the internal portion of the power cord. Also, make sure if you’re connecting the extension cord with Traeger, its length and thickness are optimum to avoid damage. You can check my guide on connecting the extension cord with Traeger for more details.

2. Check Power Outlet

Make sure that the power cord is firmly plugged into the outlet of the power source. If it is a GFCI outlet, it may have caused the tip due to which Traeger is not turning on. Rest the GFCI outlet by pressing the center button. Also, before plugging in your Traeger grill, test the outlet with other appliances. If the outlet is sourcing power, but Traeger is not turning on, you should look for other causes of it.

3. Unscrew Control Panel and Check the Fuse

On the back of the controller, there is a fuse that prevents the control board from getting too much power. If this fuse blows, no power can get to the control board. Before unscrewing the control panel, the knob of Traeger should be set to shutdown setting (this setting is not available on modern Traeger grills), it should be turned off and unplugged.

In older Traeger models, the fuse is contained within a black cylindrical container vertically placed on the lower left side of the panel. In newer models, the fuse is in the same place, but it is placed horizontally. You can check out this video to replace a fuse in the Traeger grill.

Note: If your Traeger grill has a D2 controller, it will not have any fuse. D2 controllers have a DC supply power module that is secured to the back wall under the pellet hopper, called power brick. There is a green light on the power brick of Traeger grills with D2 controllers if you look up from the ground into the underside of the hopper. If the green light is not lighting up, it means the power brick is not working.

4. Start Hooking Up One Wire at a Time in the Controller Board

This step is specifically related to Traeger grills that feature Pro or Conventional controllers. If the power cord is fine, there is no issue at the outlet, and the fuse is not damaged, you’ve to play with the wires that lead from controller board to auger motor, ignition rod, RTD probe, and the induction fan.

Here are the different wires in the controller board of Traeger that lead to electric components of the Traeger grill:

• Black wire: Power Chord
• Orange Wire: Induction Fan
• Red Wire: Auger Motor
• Purple Wire: Hot rod

Now, you need to check for broken wires or scorch marks on them, which will indicate that they are damaged. Also, there should not be a loose connection for each wire on the control board.

If each wire and its connection with the control board is fine, the next step is to unplug each wire from the controller.

Make sure you don’t unplug black wire as it directs to the power cord of Traeger. Now, turn on Traeger and set it to the smoke setting. If the fuse blows after you set Traeger to the smoke setting, there is an issue in the controller. If the fuse does not damage, you need to plug all wires one by one and check which electric component is faulty. The faulty component will blow the fuse.

Once you’re done with the inspection of wires, zip-tie them so that they don’t block the induction fan and get damaged.

5. Replacing Faulty Parts of Traeger Grill

After plugging connecting wires one by one in the above step, you have found which electric component has caused the control panel to display an error or blow the fuse.

Replacement of Ignition Rod

The most possible component due to which Traeger is not igniting is due to ignition rod. An ignition rod is located in the firepot that releases the heat to burn the wood pellets. If the ignition rod is not heating up, that means you should replace it. You can buy a hot rod from here.

You can check out the video below to replace the hot rod of Traeger. You can also call Traeger customer support for assistance.

Traeger Induction Fan Replacement

The induction fan in Traeger is responsible to suck the air needed for the combustion of wood pellets. If the fan is stopped working, Traeger won’t ignite. If the induction fan runs but Traeger is not igniting, you should inspect the induction fan speed.

To check whether the induction fan is spinning fast, take a pencil between two fingers and stick it up into the fan. If the fan stops, it’s either faulty or clogged with grease and ash. If the fan just knocks the pencil or of the way, it’s still in good condition.

You can buy this induction fan for your Traeger grill. To learn how to replace induction fan, check the below video.

Auger Motor Replacement

If the auger motor is not turning, it doesn’t matter how hot the ignition rod will be, Traeger won’t start and ignite as the wood pellets will not be fed in the firepot.

There are two reasons of Traeger auger not turning on:

• Wood pellets have compacted in the center of the auger cylinder
• Auger drive (motor) stops working

So, if the auger is blowing the fuse in the control panel, you should check whether the auger needs to be cleaned or not. When the auger is jammed up with pellets, it overloads the motor, due to which the fuse in the control panel is blown up. If the auger is cleaned and sawdust is not jammed up, you need to replace the auger motor.

Replacement of RTD Probe

Sometimes, the RTD probe is either damaged or its connection is loose, due to which it shows error codes on the control panel and does not let Traeger grill turn on. You can check my guide on Traeger error codes to eliminate those errors. I’ve also included a procedure for replacing the RTD probe in this guide.

Firmware Issues

Traeger grills such as Ironwood, Timberland 1300, or Pro 575 feature WiFire technology that allows users to control their grill through an app on their smartphones. This has the added benefit of showing the current time and temperature inside your grill, which makes it easier to know when you’re ready to put food on, or if your meat is ready to come off the grill.

Sometimes, there are firmware issues with the Traeger grill, due to which Traeger is not turning on. In that case, all you need to do is to delete the app of Traeger from your phone. Traeger will start, but you will lose WiFi functionality.  Try to redownload the Traeger app on your smartphone again. According to users, Traeger has started to turn on again after reinstalling the app.

If there is an update of firmware installed in your Traeger, update it by going to Menu/Settings/About Grill. During firmware updates, make sure that the power supply to Traeger is not cut off. If Traeger turns off during the software update, you can try to turn off the power from the main switch and unplug power for 10 minutes and try again.