I find that when i run out of pellets there's usually about half a bag still in the hopper but the pellets are stacked on the tapered side of the hopper just before they fall into the auger pit. i would get a bit more burn out of a full hopper if there was some kind of lube or something to keep the pellets sliding all the way down the hopper. seriously when i push them all to the bottom of the hopper there is about 10" of pellets left to go thru before another fill. i would love to put some noncombustible coating on the sides to keep them constantly filling the auger pot and not stacking up the slanted sides of the hopper.. any best practices would be appreciated! if there are any.