Picture standing at the DualFire 1200 with a quick bite for the smaller, direct-heat chamber and something slow for the other. The first thing you will notice is that the two sides do not answer the temperature knob in the same steps.
The recteq DualFire 1200 is a two-chamber pellet grill that recteq says gives each chamber its own set of controls. We think it suits a cook who wants two jobs running at once and will keep up the foil and grease routine between cooks. It will frustrate you if you want one uniform control scheme.
Every spec below belongs to the DualFire 1200 alone, the grill recteq's manual titles "RT-1200 / DualFire 1200". Other recteq grills have their own manuals. Our recteq Wi-Fi setup guide covers the app side for recteq grills in general. Every owner quote below is a single forum post, so read each one as that person's account and not a recteq statement.
Two Sides, Two Knob Step Sizes
recteq's manual describes the temperature control knob in one line. It selects computer-maintained temperature in 25° increments on the left and 5° increments on the right side.
That makes the two chambers differ at the dial before you light anything. A target that exists on the right side may fall between two steps on the left. The manual gives no reason or workaround.
If a cook hinges on one exact number on the left side, check it against the 25° grid first.
What the Manual Lists for Each Side
When you assemble it, the manual has you build the two sides differently. On the right side, Step 12 installs a deflector, a drip pan, grates and a bucket, and you attach the drip bucket to the grease chute underneath the grill. On the left side, Step 14 installs only a deflector and cooking grates.
So the grease-handling parts go on the right, and the left gets a deflector and grates. That is the per-side parts difference recteq documents in its manual.
Which Side Sears
recteq's product page says you can cook a quick bite in "the smaller, direct-heat chamber" while something cooks low and slow in the other. Owners name the sides. Dons60, a DualFire 1200 owner on the recteq forum, describes a small hole with a door on the left side of "the searing unit" and says he found no way to run a cable to "the smoker side/right side." He also says he ran the left side at 500 for 1 hour and 15 minutes for large potatoes, and they were done all the way through.
Another DualFire 1200 owner, cholthe22, says he will "keep them separate and smoke on the right." If you plan your cooks around one side, hold that habit up against how you actually cook.
The same forum has a harder report. SacSmoker, a DualFire owner on the recteq forum, says the direct heat side "doesn't sear or smoke any better than the other side." He also says he is not used to "this lack of smoke" after smoking ribs, and that the grill "feels more like an oven." He says he is used to the thick white smoke his "master built" puts out, and his post does not name the sides. Put that beside recteq's marketing as one owner's experience, not a verdict on the grill.
recteq DualFire 1200 — What Works
- Each chamber has its own set of controls and a 180 to 700°F range, per recteq
- 1264 sq in of cooking space in recteq's product page text and a 70-lb hopper, both per recteq
- 6-year limited warranty in the manual, for the original owner in normal residential use
recteq DualFire 1200 — Watch Out For
- The manual's knob moves the left side in 25° steps against 5° on the right, so the left side cannot be set as finely as the right
- recteq says the foil must be changed before high-temperature cooking if a low and slow cook left grease on it
Temperature Range, the App and Probes
recteq says the DualFire 1200 holds heat from as low as 180°F to as high as 700°F. That is recteq's stated range. None of the sources behind this review gives an accuracy figure for either end, so do not plan a cook around the dial reading being exact.
The same page says the recteq app is optional. The grill comes with onboard push-button start and temperature controls. Dons60 says he downloaded the app and used it for the one-hour, 400-degree burn-in, and wrote "so far so good."
If you like to monitor a cook from the couch, probes matter to you. Dons60's port report under Which Side Sears is the owner account on that.
Cooking Area, Two Figures
recteq's product page text says "With 1264 square inches of cooking space, you can fit a lot of food!" That is recteq's figure for the DualFire 1200. recteq's pages give more than one figure, so use 1264 sq in as the descriptive-text number and check the listing you buy from. Our Grill Size Calculator turns grate area into a guest count.
Hopper and Clean-Out
recteq says the grill has a massive 70-lb hopper for 70 hours of continuous cooktime. That could mean a long cook between refills for you, but treat the 70 hours as recteq's claim, not a measured result.
recteq's maintenance article for the DualFire 1200 adds a chore for you. After you have run 4 to 5 bags of pellets through the grill, it is always good practice to clean out the hopper itself. A big hopper means fewer refills and a clean-out later.
Foil, Grease and Burn Back
The fire question here rests on two sources, and neither is about this grill's flare-ups. NFPA's general grilling advice is to keep your grill clean by removing grease or fat buildup from the grill and from the trays below it. NFPA says nothing about the DualFire 1200 specifically.
recteq's own instruction is narrower. If you have done a low and slow cook that has caused grease to build up on your foil, recteq says you must change the foil before cooking at high temperatures. A mixed cook day becomes a cleaning job as well as a temperature change.
One more account needs a flag. SacSmoker says that after taking his grill apart to clean it for the first time, it "looks like there's burn back in the direct heat side." It is a single report. We found nothing from recteq or a second owner that confirms or explains it, so if this worries you, ask recteq before you buy.
First Burn-In
Your first job is the burn-in. recteq's manual has you run each side at 400°F for 1 hour before the first cook. cholthe22, a DualFire 1200 owner on the recteq forum, says his first burn was chicken thighs and drumsticks and they were "really good."
Warranty and Build
The manual gives the DualFire 1200 a 6-year limited warranty from the date of purchase by the original owner. It covers defects in material and workmanship in normal residential use. It does not cover paint, the grill cover or corrosion damage. If you live in a damp climate, read the corrosion line before treating the six years as a rust promise.
For build quality, our sources give one owner account. SacSmoker says he plans to use RTV inside the barrel because there is "leakage between the chambers."
Value Without a Price Tag
No price appears here, since retailer prices move and recteq's own page is the place to read the live number. Whether it is good value comes down to that number set against what two separately run chambers are worth to you.
SacSmoker, who was otherwise disappointed, says he likes the grill and will find a way to make it work, "especially for the price I've paid." He gives no number, so we can't turn it into a value verdict for you.
Our Pick: DualFire 1200
If that two-job brief fits how you cook, the recteq DualFire 1200 is our pick, going by the documents. We rest that on what recteq documents and what owners report, not on cooking with it.
If you are still deciding whether a pellet grill is the right shape of cooker, our pellet grill guide covers the wider decision.