BRADLEY SMOKER | "Taste the Great Outdoors"

Miscellaneous Topics => General Discussions => Topic started by: hutcho on January 12, 2014, 02:22:14 PM

Title: Help please.
Post by: hutcho on January 12, 2014, 02:22:14 PM
Im sure this wont take the experts long to figure out.  I got my pid installed today and it will run up to about 81 on the pid (around 74 on the bradley) and wont go any higher.  Element is not hot or red at all.  Only settings I have changed is CoOl to 11(change to f) and I programmed the first 3 steps.  250 for first 1/2hr bump to same temp on second for 7hrs then 3rd step was same temp with -121 for time to stop. Just trying to test it is all.  I have 120v at the plug going into the element and its showing around 30ohms resistance.    Which according to ohms law should be good technically.  But even showing good ohms and voltage it is not glowing or even getting remotely hot.  Any suggestions?  I will try and add some pics of my setup if it helps.(http://img.tapatalk.com/d/14/01/13/nezegyga.jpg)(http://img.tapatalk.com/d/14/01/13/2ymuzy9u.jpg)(http://img.tapatalk.com/d/14/01/13/ejysunab.jpg)

On a side note I think the cord end I got with my temp probe is wrong.  Its got 4 screws to screw in and only a place for 2 and it doesnt fit right.  Thats what the last pic is of.  Anyway thanks for the help guys!

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Title: Re: Help please.
Post by: hutcho on January 12, 2014, 02:24:18 PM
Also I plugged it straight into the wall for a few seconds and the element never lit up.  Is it safe to leave it longer for testing purposes?

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Title: Re: Help please.
Post by: hutcho on January 12, 2014, 03:06:22 PM
Tore it all down and checked connections and polarity and everything is good there too.  Is the light on the ssr supposed to come on?

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Title: Re: Help please.
Post by: hutcho on January 12, 2014, 03:56:34 PM
Another update.  Plugged it in direct and I got heat.  So must be something I have done wrong.   Just doesnt make sense as I have 120 at the plug, same as directly in the wall....:banghead:

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Title: Re: Help please.
Post by: TedEbear on January 12, 2014, 08:33:33 PM
Wow, yours is the first digital Bradley I've seen with the PID controller installed in the SG.  Others have said there isn't enough room.

Anyway, check it with your multimeter and see if there's 120V at the output side of the SSR that goes to the tower when the PID controller is on.  If not, then there's a wiring problem inside the SG.

And the plug on your K-type TC should look like mine in the pic below.  2 of the 4 screws hold a bracket for the wire.

(http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b355/roadijeff/Food/PA070029_zps9d0b3d85.jpg)
Title: Re: Help please.
Post by: hutcho on January 13, 2014, 02:08:50 AM
It was a tight squeeze but I it fits pretty good.  Thats what I was shooting for was to be the first to do it.  I have 120 at the ssr but I cant measure any across the relay power either at the ssr or the pid.  I have the cord plugged in to the sg box but not into the cabinet and can get 120 there.  At first I thought I may have a neutral issue but everything looks good so kind of ruling that out.  As far as power goes I took it straight off the fuse to a terminal strip and fed/refed everything from there.  Neutral came straight from the plug and did the same.  Im still not sure if I have a programming issue since I cant get the light on the ssr to come on.  Anyway its too late for my brain right now (4am) so im gonna go back to bed and think about it latet :P

Sent from my Samsung Galaxy Note 2

Title: Re: Help please.
Post by: hutcho on January 13, 2014, 02:38:17 PM
Got it to work! Cool needs to be set to 10!

What do you guys run your hy settings at? I'm at
Hy 5
Hy-1 30
Hy-2 20

When its heating up my sv stays the same but pv is at like -75 bradley temp reads 210ish...is this common?

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Title: Re: Help please.
Post by: TedEbear on January 13, 2014, 06:06:44 PM
When I installed my PID controller I added a second element at the same time.  I didn't go in and manually change any of the settings, I just ran the autotune and let it configure itself.  I have the Auber SYL-2352 (http://www.auberins.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=1&products_id=3). 

After I got it working the only manual setting I messed with was the AL1.  I set it to "100" so that it would trigger the first alarm relay when the temp reached 100*F.  I was planning on adding an air circulation fan and I wanted it to turn on when the chamber temp reached 100 degrees.  I haven't installed the fan yet.

I think you're scaring everyone with this tech talk or something.  Over 150 views and no one else has replied.   ;D

Title: Re: Help please.
Post by: TedEbear on January 13, 2014, 06:30:44 PM
Quote from: hutcho on January 13, 2014, 02:38:17 PM
What do you guys run your hy settings at? I'm at
Hy 5
Hy-1 30
Hy-2 20

When its heating up my sv stays the same but pv is at like -75 bradley temp reads 210ish...is this common?

I just checked mine:

Hy: 0.3
Hy-1: 9999
Hy-2: 9999

Those are the factory default values, according to the instruction manual.  Since I never changed them manually I expected them to be those values.  While I was in there I did change the cycle time (t) to "2", since I'm running it through an SSR and there are no mechanical relays to wear out.  That should result in an even tighter temp control.

From the manual:

4.6 Cycle time "t"
It is the time period (in seconds) that the controller uses to calculate its
output. e.g. When t=2, if the controller decides output should be 10%, the
heater will be on 0.2 second and off 1.8 seconds for every 2 seconds. Smaller
t values result in more precision control. For SSR output, t is set at the
minimum (2 seconds). For relay or contactor output, it should be set longer to
prevent contacts from wearing out too soon. Normally it is set to 20~ 4 0
seconds.


Title: Re: Help please.
Post by: hutcho on January 13, 2014, 06:47:24 PM
Thats what I had and auber told me I needed to set hy for a safe start or something like that.  I emailed them again so hopefully I can get it dialed in.  I will look at changing that other setting.  Theres another I was gonna swap too, think it was am switch it to 2 to auto tune. This thing has a very rough learning curve.  I have programmed several vfds or plcs but this thing takes the cake lol

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Title: Re: Help please.
Post by: TedEbear on January 13, 2014, 06:59:50 PM
Yes, if you set "At" to "2" it will start the auto tune whenever it is put back into run mode.  If you set it to "1" it will still start the auto tune but you have to initiate it by pressing the "A/M" button when in run mode.

Lots of parameters to mess with, which is why I left most of them alone and mostly let the autotune configure it for me.  Did you d/l the 8-page PDF instruction manual?

Title: Re: Help please.
Post by: hutcho on January 13, 2014, 07:08:48 PM
Yep got it.  Been reading through it.  Everything looks about right it just doesn't seem to be shutting off now...:-\

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Title: Re: Help please.
Post by: TedEbear on January 13, 2014, 07:16:41 PM
Quote from: hutcho on January 13, 2014, 07:08:48 PM
Yep got it.  Been reading through it.  Everything looks about right it just doesn't seem to be shutting off now...:-\

If you're talking about the auto tune still running, it takes over an hour, maybe several.  You can even run the auto tune while you're smoking something.  At the very least they say you should have something in the chamber, like a couple of cold bricks, to simulate a load of meat while you're running the auto tune.

Don't stop the auto tune in the middle of its tuning process or you'll have to do it again because it needs to run through the cycle and go back to run mode on its own.
Title: Re: Help please.
Post by: hutcho on January 13, 2014, 07:21:35 PM
Nope havent ran autotune yet will run it either sometime this week with my fire bricks or wait til I can get some meat in it.  I got the pid running tonight and had it set at 230 and the bradley showed 262 when I shut it off because I assumed it wasnt working quite right.  The pid showed -133 or something like that on thw pv.  (http://img.tapatalk.com/d/14/01/14/y8uzu8y6.jpg)

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Title: Re: Help please.
Post by: hutcho on January 13, 2014, 07:34:35 PM
I wonder if my temp probe could be backwards....or if polarity even matters on that.....

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Title: Re: Help please.
Post by: TedEbear on January 13, 2014, 08:02:26 PM
Yes, the polarity matters.  I doubt that it is 133 degrees below zero in the cooking chamber.   ;D

Switch the wiring inside the plug or at the panel mount, don't just try to turn the plug around.  The prongs are not the same size.

How to handle the braided metal shielding at the mini connectors
(http://www.auberins.com/images/Manual/braided_metal_shielding.pdf)
Mini connector installation guide for PVC thermocouple cable
(http://www.auberins.com/images/Manual/Mini_connector_installation_guide_for_PVC_thermocouple.pdf)
Title: Re: Help please.
Post by: hutcho on January 14, 2014, 03:10:45 AM
Quote from: TedEbear on January 13, 2014, 08:02:26 PM

How to handle the braided metal shielding at the mini connectors
(http://www.auberins.com/images/Manual/braided_metal_shielding.pdf)
Mini connector installation guide for PVC thermocouple cable
(http://www.auberins.com/images/Manual/Mini_connector_installation_guide_for_PVC_thermocouple.pdf)

I kind of figured that could be the issue.  Out of bed early this morning to give it a shot before work.  Also I dont think you could flip it and plug it in, unless you were really forcing it! Lol!

Were those last 2 things you posted links?  Not sure what you meant there....?

Sent from my Samsung Galaxy Note 2

Title: Re: Help please.
Post by: TedEbear on January 14, 2014, 04:27:19 AM
Quote from: hutcho on January 14, 2014, 03:10:45 AM

Were those last 2 things you posted links?  Not sure what you meant there....?

Yes, links to details on the wiring for the TC plugs.  Click on the links.

Title: Re: Help please.
Post by: hutcho on January 14, 2014, 04:44:57 AM
Crap they arent working for me.  I swapped the leads in the plug this morning and reset the pid to 130 temp so I could see if before work and it fired up and held between 130-131 with the bradley showing about 142.  Looks like its working great now! Just some fine tuning to do now.  Thank you for all your help I really appreciate it! Gonna make a build thread now or maybe just change this one to that.  Seems to be a bit of interest in mounting the pid in a dbs. Thanks again man!!

Sent from my Samsung Galaxy Note 2

Title: Re: Help please.
Post by: TedEbear on January 14, 2014, 09:18:06 AM
Fabulous!  Glad you got it working.  Persistence pays off.   :)

I'm sure there are others who would be interested in seeing the details of how to install a PID controller in a digital Bradley SG, as everyone up to now said there's not enough room.  With over 260 views of your thread thus far it seems you have quite a silent audience here.
Title: Re: Help please.
Post by: hutcho on January 14, 2014, 09:30:36 AM
I tried to remember to take a few pics as I went but got lost in the moment and forgot.  I may pull it all apart this week and get some good photos.   It honestly was a very simple project.  It is a pain to get it together, gotta put pid side in first then slide the back around.  If I could do it again I would raise the pid about 1/8-1/4" so it would clear the white box ib the bottom better.  And make the hole look a little nicer.   HF Dremel was sucking it up so I broke out the tin snips lol!

Sent from my Samsung Galaxy Note 2

Title: Re: Help please.
Post by: TedEbear on January 15, 2014, 04:44:37 AM
Quote from: hutcho on January 14, 2014, 09:30:36 AMIf I could do it again I would raise the pid about 1/8-1/4" so it would clear the white box ib the bottom better.  And make the hole look a little nicer.   HF Dremel was sucking it up so I broke out the tin snips lol!

I drilled several holes near the corners where I wanted the square cutout and then used a jigsaw to make the cuts.  Something like blue painters tape covering the metal will prevent scratches.  I used a Dremel and a metal file to fine-tune the edges.

Wow, over 300 views now.   ;D
Title: Re: Help please.
Post by: devo on January 15, 2014, 06:10:20 AM
Nice setup for the digital. I have the digital but prefer my plug & play as I use it for many different things. Plug & play allows you to be portable with your PID. I use in the smoker for sausage and then move it to the hot water bath to keep a steady temp on the water. Guess you would have to buy another pid if you ever need a PID for another application.  I also use it for sous vide cooking.
Title: Re: Help please.
Post by: hutcho on January 15, 2014, 07:53:24 AM
Quote from: devo on January 15, 2014, 06:10:20 AM
Nice setup for the digital. I have the digital but prefer my plug & play as I use it for many different things. Plug & play allows you to be portable with your PID. I use in the smoker for sausage and then move it to the hot water bath to keep a steady temp on the water. Guess you would have to buy another pid if you ever need a PID for another application.  I also use it for sous vide cooking.

Do you have a home built waterbath? For now I plan on just finishing in the bradley.  I do like the plug and plays but the buikd it yourself offers so many more options, and at 40-80 bucks a pop I will just add another when I do that project.  Not nearly as convenient or cost effective but it makes for a nice clean install, and makes for a fun project.

Sent from my Samsung Galaxy Note 2

Title: Re: Help please.
Post by: hutcho on January 15, 2014, 07:58:20 AM
Quote from: TedEbear on January 15, 2014, 04:44:37 AM
Quote from: hutcho on January 14, 2014, 09:30:36 AMIf I could do it again I would raise the pid about 1/8-1/4" so it would clear the white box ib the bottom better.  And make the hole look a little nicer.   HF Dremel was sucking it up so I broke out the tin snips lol!

I drilled several holes near the corners where I wanted the square cutout and then used a jigsaw to make the cuts.  Something like blue painters tape covering the metal will prevent scratches.  I used a Dremel and a metal file to fine-tune the edges.

Wow, over 300 views now.   ;D

Thats what I should have done.  Didn't have a jigsaw at the house and it was my only day to do it so I made due.  Thinking about making a trim plate to put around it later anyways.  One thing I have never liked about those kind of devices, you gotta be exactly perfect the first time or you're screwed.  Trim ring or something would be nice to hide defects....

Sent from my Samsung Galaxy Note 2

Title: Re: Help please.
Post by: devo on January 15, 2014, 08:30:26 AM
Quote from: hutcho on January 15, 2014, 07:53:24 AM
Quote from: devo on January 15, 2014, 06:10:20 AM
Nice setup for the digital. I have the digital but prefer my plug & play as I use it for many different things. Plug & play allows you to be portable with your PID. I use in the smoker for sausage and then move it to the hot water bath to keep a steady temp on the water. Guess you would have to buy another pid if you ever need a PID for another application.  I also use it for sous vide cooking.

Do you have a home built waterbath? For now I plan on just finishing in the bradley.  I do like the plug and plays but the buikd it yourself offers so many more options, and at 40-80 bucks a pop I will just add another when I do that project.  Not nearly as convenient or cost effective but it makes for a nice clean install, and makes for a fun project.

Sent from my Samsung Galaxy Note 2

No I use on one of those turkey cookers. and also on a small fridge for fermentation as I do a lot of dry cured sausage. Have even used it in the green house to control the heat on those cooler nights in the spring time. Some people use them for incubators for there chicks.  Being portable helps me out a lot.

(https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-x4CdqbQlh94/TxoAlk3ovzI/AAAAAAAAB2k/4sivU-Lbb5c/w702-h465-no/DSC_0005.JPG)