So I love this thing. I store it outside under the very low and 2 foot deep eave of my house and roll it out for use. Before I bought it there were many folks that warned me about the excessive rust and you were right. This thing rusts like crazy. What I didn't expect was for rainwater to leak into the hopper through the latch mechanism. This is no bueno since those pellets puff up and turn to sawdust. Do you folks cover the hopper? Pack it with grease? Empty the pellets each time!? Is leaving this thing out under cover but in a place where sideways rain can hit it okay? I'm not interested in a whole grill cover. Total PITA on this huge grill.
I'm not sure which model you have, but you could cover the hopper portion with a heavy trash bag. Or a metal tub if there is a gap between the hopper and grill portion. Or maybe seal the latch?
Woops, I have this one. Englander Smoke-N-Sear 788 sq. in. Pellet Smoker and Grill-21-PG100 - The Home Depot There is a gap between the hopper and grill to allow a bucket to be set on top. The hopper is too big for a 5 gallon bucket but maybe a big shower cap looking thing. The latch is recessed and looks harder to seal. I was under the impression that other folks just left these things out in the rain so I was curious if they had hopper water problems.
I don't have a pellet grill personally, but I know two people who do, one is left out uncovered with no issues that I'm aware of, and the other gets cleaned and has it's own special Rubbermaid shed.