Hello Members & Guests
With regards to all your questions about the Bradley Smoker Main Heat Elements . We have used the same type of metal heating element for the past 8 years. In this time we have found it to be superior to the previous glass heat element that was previously used.
All component parts of the Bradley Smoker undergo rigorous testing and tracking of results. Our research and development department is constantly monitoring the quality of our products. As happens from time to time a component may break down. Bradley Smoker stands behind our products with a full one year warranty. Other smokers on the market either have no warranty or a 90 day limited warrantee.
While it may seem that the heat element is malfunctioning more than usual we have found that during the fall and early winter a high amount of people are using their Bradley Smoker and so we get a cluster of warranty at this time. In actual fact that repair is less than 0.7% of smokers sold. Considering the amount of shipping and handling the smoker goes through to arrive at the customers house we believe this is a really low number of repairs. We have spent many years improving our packaging and product we believe this has certainly helped with the low defect rate of our products.
Brian.
Thanks for your response. There does seem to be a lot of posts regarding element failures at the moment but your point about increased use at this time and that it represents a small percentage of the number sold is taken, although if it is your element that is little consolation. Keep up the excellent customer support and I am sure all will be forgiven.
Brian,
thank you for your response and excellent customer service with the bradley smokers
Dale
Brian,
Thank you for the clarification.
Brian,
Great job addressing this head on. Very glad to hear such an extremely low percentage on replacement to orders. I received my OBS at Christmas last year so it does make sense repair issues really pop up this month and next.
You guys are top notch and I know I speak for many on here. THANK YOU for a great product.
I like my bradley smoker and wouldn't trade it for any other in the same market (home consumer).
With that said, I am not buying into this, seems to be nothing but blowing smoke to cover up issues. I have seen way to many broken plastic and now the recent reports of elements going out fairly quick, to assume anything other than a defect. I still think the plastic is defective, regardless if bradley front office don't see it that way. I have worked with plastic for years, and I can tell you it shouldn't be brittle (crumbles) like this on the OBS.
I just figured I will get my money worth out of this OBS either way. If my cabinet completely falls apart then I will just put the smoke generator on a custom cabinet.
I still like the concept of the smoke generator, puck feeding, etc.. It makes it so much easier than doing wood chips, etc..
Keep up the good work bradley, hopefully you get these defects taken care of and get a higher quality product on the market.
I don't know if we can determine the # of defective elements from what people have posted here on the forum. I'm sure not everyone who experiences a failure will post about it or even call for a replacement. Perhaps some think their unit only has a 90-day warranty or whatever.
In my case my OBS would not get up above 165*F the other week, even after several hours. I bought it about 8 months ago. Instead of calling for a warranty repair I just ordered two new elements and related hardware and did the dual element mod. Everything is fine now and it gets up to temp real quick.
I guess one way to see if this is a case of a batch of bad elements or just something that happens every winter is to ask those who have been on here for a few years whether or not this element problem was this high this time last year. I know I'm not using my smoker more in the cold weather, in fact I'm using it a bit less. There's something about sub freezing temps and staying indoors that relate to my outdoor activities.
Brian, thanks for the feedback. I do love my OBS, and customer service has been outstanding. But the increased number of users and thus increased number of failures just doesn't seem like a good answer to me.
I bought my OBS in late Oct '10, and have had two element failures since. There are two things I've notice from the element failure reports from this thread:
1. The reports come from very recent purchasers.
2. The failures occur after only 2-3 uses.
I know this is all anecdotal "evidence." I'm not a statistician. But I've had two failures in short succession. I doubt whether an increased number of other users had any affect on my particular failures. I'd be interested to know the percentage of reported element failures for new registrations over the last 3-4 months. You don't have to post that here, just suggesting another perspective with which to view the issue. Of course, not all new purchases get registered and not all failures get reported.
Add my smoker to the list of recent heating element failures. Mine was purchased on Oct. 8, and I probably got 6 or 7 smokes out of it before it quit over the weekend.
Thanks to all the great information on this site I was able to troubleshoot it down to the element. Bradley is sending a replacement element, so no concerns there.
Thanks to all of you who put in so much time and effort making this a wonderful website.
Larry
Brian,
Does Bradley use a burn-in mechanism to reduce early life failures?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burn-in
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burn-in)
Thanks,
Mike
Quote from: mjdeez on February 04, 2011, 10:46:46 AM
Brian,
Does Bradley use a burn-in mechanism to reduce early life failures?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burn-in
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burn-in)
Thanks,
Mike
Hi Mike
Thats a good question
The elements are tested however I do not know if they are run through a burn in
I will see what I can find out.
Brian.
I work for a semiconductor company. We burn in ICs that we sell for certain grade parts (e.g. military, automotive). It adds a lot of cost but reliability in these cases is much more important than your average consumer part, e.g. computers.
First you'd want to make sure that the burn-in test you implement is causing the early life failures that you hear of from customers. No point in generating a new failure mechanism and losing yield over that.
Then it comes down to economics... Does the cost of implementation outweigh the gains, either directly or indirectly? 500W elements @ xxxx hours in an accelerated (heated?) environment could be expensive! By directly, how much does Bradley spend on each customer return? By indirectly, for example, how much more business with a lower defect rate? I'm simplifying a lot, and keep in mind... i'm not a business guy.
Just smoked food for thought.
Gotta chime in,
I received my my OBS for Christmas. Had some minor issues with the obs looked like it was due to shipping.
Temp slide switch was broken off. Reflector shield was bent. Customer service sent me out new switch and new shield/drip tray. I love the smoker. I have smoked about 9 times since Christmas always had great results. It sucks to have problems with something new, but it is really bad when the company doesn't stand behind their product. I thank the people at Bradley for standing behind their product 100%. I have recommended the smoker to all my friends. Smokin two bone in Pork loins right now. Can't wait.
Brian,
I understand your comments,but it appears that there is an issue with the elements. I have been a Bradley owner since Dec 2009 and was a lurker on the forum for months before that. At no time did the amount of complaints regarding element failure reach the number that are appearing. In fact, I don't remember reading about any. I realize that this is not a scientific statistic. But it would seem that there is a problem with the newer Bradley's going into service recently and since it is a metal element it appears unlikely that it is a shipping /packaging problem.
While the overall failure rate is low, what if it were based upon units sold within the last 6 months or so. I think it may surprise you. While Bradley stands behind its product and provides the best Customer Service I have experienced, you can read the frustration in the people that have plans ruined due to element failures. I have a few acquaintances that have hung around the forum and want to buy a smoker. They are relunctant to do so until they hear a better response regarding a solution other than the failure numbers are low. It is like a recession - it is a small recession if your neighbor loses his job, its a deep depression if you lose your job. Same thing when your plans are ruined because your element failed.
Quote from: GusRobin on February 06, 2011, 11:41:48 AM
Brian,
I understand your comments,but it appears that there is an issue with the elements. I have been a Bradley owner since Dec 2009 and was a lurker on the forum for months before that. At no time did the amount of complaints regarding element failure reach the number that are appearing. In fact, I don't remember reading about any. I realize that this is not a scientific statistic. But it would seem that there is a problem with the newer Bradley's going into service recently and since it is a metal element it appears unlikely that it is a shipping /packaging problem.
While the overall failure rate is low, what if it were based upon units sold within the last 6 months or so. I think it may surprise you. While Bradley stands behind its product and provides the best Customer Service I have experienced, you can read the frustration in the people that have plans ruined due to element failures. I have a few acquaintances that have hung around the forum and want to buy a smoker. They are relunctant to do so until they hear a better response regarding a solution other than the failure numbers are low. It is like a recession - it is a small recession if your neighbor loses his job, its a deep depression if you lose your job. Same thing when your plans are ruined because your element failed.
Well put GusRobin!
I have owned my OBS since 2007 and my original element is still functioning fine. But when I purchased 2 new elements (and fortunately kept my original element) they both died within a few smokes. Now I have 2 new elements again which I have procured from Bradley and will be installing them. Although it's relatively easy to replace it's still not like changing a light bulb.
Have all the Bradley smokers, elements, front plates, etc always been manufactured/assembled at the same place? Canada, USA, Mexico, China? Has there been a change in said manufacturing/assembly and/or components?
Quote from: GusRobin on February 06, 2011, 11:41:48 AM
Brian,
I understand your comments,but it appears that there is an issue with the elements. I have been a Bradley owner since Dec 2009 and was a lurker on the forum for months before that. At no time did the amount of complaints regarding element failure reach the number that are appearing. In fact, I don't remember reading about any. I realize that this is not a scientific statistic. But it would seem that there is a problem with the newer Bradley's going into service recently and since it is a metal element it appears unlikely that it is a shipping /packaging problem.
While the overall failure rate is low, what if it were based upon units sold within the last 6 months or so. I think it may surprise you. While Bradley stands behind its product and provides the best Customer Service I have experienced, you can read the frustration in the people that have plans ruined due to element failures. I have a few acquaintances that have hung around the forum and want to buy a smoker. They are relunctant to do so until they hear a better response regarding a solution other than the failure numbers are low. It is like a recession - it is a small recession if your neighbor loses his job, its a deep depression if you lose your job. Same thing when your plans are ruined because your element failed.
Hi Ray
I do have some burnt out heat elements being sent back to me by our Galesburg office for further testing,
and if necessary I will send them onto the manufacture for inspection as well.
I will keep you and this forum updated on our findings.
Brian.
thanks
This is not a complaint as Bradley has agreed to replace the element, was told that it will be replaced for the full 12 month warranty period regardless of how many times it fails. I can only hope that if it is indeed a small issue it does not become a prolonged reoccurence.
As far as stats go the unit was an OBS purchased from Cabelas on 12/13/2010 and used 3 times. If it is due to a bad batch of elements or a switch in materials hopefully it can be rectified ASAP. I'm quite concerened that the more I'm reading on this it seems to be with units bought in the previous year and not units prior to that. If that is the case I hope the replacement elements are of a better quality.
Quote from: Bradley (Head Office) on February 06, 2011, 04:42:21 PM
Quote from: GusRobin on February 06, 2011, 11:41:48 AM
Brian,
I understand your comments,but it appears that there is an issue with the elements. I have been a Bradley owner since Dec 2009 and was a lurker on the forum for months before that. At no time did the amount of complaints regarding element failure reach the number that are appearing. In fact, I don't remember reading about any. I realize that this is not a scientific statistic. But it would seem that there is a problem with the newer Bradley's going into service recently and since it is a metal element it appears unlikely that it is a shipping /packaging problem.
While the overall failure rate is low, what if it were based upon units sold within the last 6 months or so. I think it may surprise you. While Bradley stands behind its product and provides the best Customer Service I have experienced, you can read the frustration in the people that have plans ruined due to element failures. I have a few acquaintances that have hung around the forum and want to buy a smoker. They are relunctant to do so until they hear a better response regarding a solution other than the failure numbers are low. It is like a recession - it is a small recession if your neighbor loses his job, its a deep depression if you lose your job. Same thing when your plans are ruined because your element failed.
Hi Ray
I do have some burnt out heat elements being sent back to me by our Galesburg office for further testing,
and if necessary I will send them onto the manufacture for inspection as well.
I will keep you and this forum updated on our findings.
Brian.
Hi Brian,
If you want my element back for testing, let me know.
Larry
QuoteHi Brian,
If you want my element back for testing, let me know.
Larry
Hi Larry
Thanks for the offer.
I have a few on the way from our US office if the testing on these proves to be inconclusive I will be asking for more.
Brian.
I'll save my 2 that just died.
Bradley can have my old one that wouldn't heat over 166*F after 10 hours if they'll send me a new replacement. I'll even pay return shipping charges.
I wonder whether it's a bad batch of elements. Is there an aftermarket element of better quality that can be purchased? I'm really new to this but would like the OBS that I just put in service to be able to get to a higher heat than 165 after 3-4 hours. Dual elements? Different elements? What's the usual way of dealing with the lack of horse-power in the heating department. It's not a problem for me now, but if I do a turkey it probably will be.
Thanks folks. I sure like the way my OBS works so far (other than the low power) It makes it effortless to smoke in a controlled fashion and I really like that.
Regards,
Pat
Quote from: Patsplace on February 27, 2011, 11:43:10 PMWhat's the usual way of dealing with the lack of horse-power in the heating department.
I'd say adding a second element would be the best way to get it hot faster. I did this about a month or so ago and it makes a big difference. Initial preheat now takes less than 15 minutes, even when the outdoor temp is below freezing. Heat recovery times, when I have to open the door for something, just takes a few minutes to get back up to cooking temp. Also, make sure the vent on top is open at least halfway or moisture will buildup and make it hard to reach higher temps.
I also wonder if adding a second element would make both of them last longer since a single element would no longer be running for as long. I added a second one because it took many, many hours for the chamber to get up to temp when I was trying to smoke a Thanksgiving turkey. My remote thermometer said it never got above 166*F in the chamber, after 10 hours of trying. I finished it in the oven. Maybe the element was going out (only had the smoker 6 months) but I didn't want to deal with that headache anymore so I did the conversion. I didn't even bother calling Bradley, so I had a potentially bad element that didn't make it to their statistic list.
If you're going to add a second element you might also want to add a PID controller. The one I bought from Auberins was a little less than $45. It sure makes things easy to smoke now.
Quote from: Patsplace on February 27, 2011, 11:43:10 PM
I wonder whether it's a bad batch of elements. Is there an aftermarket element of better quality that can be purchased? I'm really new to this but would like the OBS that I just put in service to be able to get to a higher heat than 165 after 3-4 hours. Dual elements? Different elements? What's the usual way of dealing with the lack of horse-power in the heating department. It's not a problem for me now, but if I do a turkey it probably will be.
Thanks folks. I sure like the way my OBS works so far (other than the low power) It makes it effortless to smoke in a controlled fashion and I really like that.
Regards,
Pat
Pat my question to you would be What kind and how big was the chunk of meat you had in your OBS. I know with my 4rk if I stick a big ole 8-10lb butt in there it takes quite a while for the temp to come up. Are you reading your temp from the door? If your meat was below the thermometer in the door it will give you a cooler reading. What was your vent opening? closed down to far to "Get more Smoke" will also hold n moisture and keep your temps down. I'm not picking on you I am just trying to figure things out and then offer suggestions to help you get the best experience you can get with your smoker. Yes there have been some issues lately with elements but them elements are dead and Bradley is working on that issue. Yours is NOT dead, so lets see how we can get you back to smoking and enjoying life. If you want send me your number in a pm and I will try to give you a call and help if I can. Or start another post and we can get a meeting of the minds going and get everybody involved.
I just wanted to give my two cents worth, my original element is still working perfect after more than 4yrs. I noticed pics that were posted of the failed elements they seemed to be lacking the red high heat silicone sealant on the terminals ends. IMO i think moister is getting in and when the element heats up its cracking the porcelain inside and causing the element to fail. Maybe Bradly can check this out. I,ll post pics of my replacement element that I've had for over three years just for back up but never used. It has the red silicone under the terminals.
I,ve got the pics of my element, but first I have to say that my OBS has performed perfect since I've had it. There must be more than 200 + hours on my origanal element. These are the #s that are on the element CQC DF120v 500w 0902.
(http://i686.photobucket.com/albums/vv230/darrenbondy/bradly010.jpg)
(http://i686.photobucket.com/albums/vv230/darrenbondy/bradly011.jpg)
(http://i686.photobucket.com/albums/vv230/darrenbondy/bradly012.jpg)
I think that if i got a replacement element for bradly I would pull the insulater off and check for the sealant, if no sealant I would apply some high temp silicone before installing the new element. ???
Quote from: Tenpoint5 on February 28, 2011, 06:51:41 AM
Quote from: Patsplace on February 27, 2011, 11:43:10 PM
I wonder whether it's a bad batch of elements. Is there an aftermarket element of better quality that can be purchased? I'm really new to this but would like the OBS that I just put in service to be able to get to a higher heat than 165 after 3-4 hours. Dual elements? Different elements? What's the usual way of dealing with the lack of horse-power in the heating department. It's not a problem for me now, but if I do a turkey it probably will be.
Thanks folks. I sure like the way my OBS works so far (other than the low power) It makes it effortless to smoke in a controlled fashion and I really like that.
Regards,
Pat
I agree with Chris (10.5) - if it was a dead element most likely you would not be that high a temp (165). I think it would be more like one of the common issues 1) vent is closed too much; 2) opening the door too much;3) on an extension cord (or an outlet on a circuit with a number of items) so that the unit is not getting full power; 4) reading off the door thermometer when the meat is lower than or equal to the probe level.5) you have any foil on your v tray.
As stated before, none of these are intended to be criticisms but these are the common issues when the element is not dead
Pat my question to you would be What kind and how big was the chunk of meat you had in your OBS. I know with my 4rk if I stick a big ole 8-10lb butt in there it takes quite a while for the temp to come up. Are you reading your temp from the door? If your meat was below the thermometer in the door it will give you a cooler reading. What was your vent opening? closed down to far to "Get more Smoke" will also hold n moisture and keep your temps down. I'm not picking on you I am just trying to figure things out and then offer suggestions to help you get the best experience you can get with your smoker. Yes there have been some issues lately with elements but them elements are dead and Bradley is working on that issue. Yours is NOT dead, so lets see how we can get you back to smoking and enjoying life. If you want send me your number in a pm and I will try to give you a call and help if I can. Or start another post and we can get a meeting of the minds going and get everybody involved.
Quote from: dbondy on February 28, 2011, 09:51:54 AM
I,ve got the pics of my element, but first I have to say that my OBS has performed perfect since I've had it. There must be more than 200 + hours on my origanal element. These are the #s that are on the element CQC DF120v 500w 0902.
I think that if i got a replacement element for bradly I would pull the insulater off and check for the sealant, if no sealant I would apply some high temp silicone before installing the new element. ???
I just got around to changing mine out this evening, thought I'd check in for any updates from Bradley. Your post intirgues me on two counts, the first being the numbers stamped on the element, and the second being the red sealant. Neither of which my failed element nor the replacement element have. Both are stamped DF 120V 500W 1006 GYQ Series. Maybe we can get others to verify the number stamped on their failed units and those that have years/hundreds of hours on a single element to do so as well.
I think that difference alone is enough to determine there was indeed some sort of material/manufacturing change. My expectations are not high on this replacement element living up to others experiences that have the older units. I find it absolutely frustrating knowing that all of my future smoking endeavors will require constant monitoring to make sure the element hasn't failed, and if and when it does, having to finish it in the oven which defeats the purpose of buying the smoker to begin with. I really wish I would have researched more than just reviews on the Cabelas website, may have found this site and bought another brand or held off until the problem was found and corrected. While it is admirable that Bradley sticks behind their product and offers replacement elements free of charge during the warranty period, there comes a point to where it becomes redundant to continually replace them.
I'll reserve official judgement until I get a few smokes on the new element, I'll be doing my next smoke this coming weekend. I'm putting 15 pounds of venison jerky at risk.
The element I bought from Yard and Pool for my 2nd element mod, is stamped DF 120V 500W 1006 GYQ Series. It has some white sealant under the insulator. Is this series the same one that has been failing? Anyone know what Y&Ps policy is if this one flames out after a couple smokes?
I have numerous elements laying around and 2 have COCDR120V500W0902 (used) stamped on them.
I have a cple of new one that was bought last summer that have the same number as yours.
Quote from: classicrockgriller on February 28, 2011, 07:41:58 PM
I have numerous elements laying around and 2 have COCDR120V500W0902 (used) stamped on them.
I have a cple of new one that was bought last summer that have the same number as yours.
When you say used, do you mean failed? Any idea when purchased or lifespan?
Thanks, and not trying to step on toes but sometimes its easier for the consumers to delve into the issue rather than wait for the manufacturer to rectify the situation.
Never had a failed element.
guess they are 1 1/2 year old.
When I dualed out my smoker, I bought news one for them.
Again, Bradley will get to the bottom of it and fix the problem.
I just measured the resistance of my original element that I removed when I did the dual element mod. It is 26.2 ohms. I'm not sure what a brand new one, right out of the box is supposed to be. My two new elements have been used several times already but I guess I could take one end loose and check it sometime, if no one else has a brand new one handy and an ohm meter.
Same reading on two new elements and two older elements.
SmokinEverything, can you show me a comparable smoker in this price range? If theere is something better I would like to have a look at it.
I'M sorry if I raised any concerns, I know that Bradly will fix the problem they are top for customer service. It seems to still be a very small % of elements that are failing out of all the smokers that they sell. The numbers on the element that I posted are at least 4yrs old,its still new and I only have it for a back up. As far as smokers go I think IMO that the Bradly's are top notch and I will continue to use them. As of the moment I'M thinking of buying another 6rack so I can smoke more sausage.
Folks, it's not about bashing Bradley. I wouldn't trade in my OBS for anything and customer service has been top notch.
But clearly there is a problem. So far the only official statement on the cause has been increased seasonal use. That just doesn't seem like a plausible response to those of us with new smokers and multiple failures.
I'd just like to hear from Bradley that they acknowledge a problem and are Researching. I'll be smoking some ribs this week ( second use of my 3rd element since Oct) and I'm kinda nervous
Sent from my Sprint Evo 4G using Tapatalk
Tony,
Take a look at this thread http://forum.bradleysmoker.com/index.php?topic=21039.0 In it you will see where Bradley is asking for some of the failed elements to be shipped to them so they can analyze them. They know they have a problem.
In the meantime once you get the smoke on those ribs this weekend you can always finish them in your home oven. I certainly understand you're being nervous about your heating element. Just trying to give you an alternative in the event an issue arises while doing those ribs.
To add to what KyNola said, this whole thread was started by Bradley (Head Office).
I had a couple of them go out which Bradley cheerfully replaced, and they have the bad ones for analysis as well, so we know they are on the problem.
Quote from: Quarlow on March 01, 2011, 09:08:13 AM
SmokinEverything, can you show me a comparable smoker in this price range? If theere is something better I would like to have a look at it.
This isn't so much about the Bradley smoker's in general, this is about a batch of heating elements manufactured within an undetermined timeframe. For the items I have smoked I am extremely satisfied with the products it turned out and other than the element failure I have no qualms with it. This isn't about whether there is a better product in the same price range, more so are there current products out there with better dependability at this given time?
Had I read review after review stating failed elements after 10-20 hours of use, I can assure you I would have either bought a different brand, possibly inferior, or waited until a fix was found.
With that being said, these smokers are not exactly cheap in price. If I as the consumer don't have a right to be somewhat upset at what appears to be a recallable defect then I'm not sure what to think. You wouldn't buy a new car knowing that the engines are seizing up within the first 4,000 miles, nor would the manufacturer continue to sell them knowing it to be the case.
Bradley has in a sense acknowledged there may be an issue(I have yet to read the linked thread above), but I think they are downplaying the numbers. This forum represents a small portion of their owners and there are a lot of posts on it. I am new to Bradley and their line of products, and by most members of this forum it sounds like they will do what it takes to correct it. I'm not so sure they should continue selling the product until a fix is found, that will do far more damage to their image than a few posts on this forum.
These are only my opinions.
My failed element says DF 120V 500W 2010 04 GYQ Series.
Even knowing about the heating element problem I'd still buy this smoker. It's going to be painful for us for a bit longer, but with a little extra vigilance I think I can deal with potential problems as they arise.
Larry
I have had mine for a few years now, and I am completely satisfied. Having said that, some people are Bradley "fanboys" and take insult to even the most benign of comments ;D it's perfectly natural human response. Hey I am a Dallas Cowboys Fanboy......so what does it mean?? It means we are all nuckin futz
I am a new Bradley Original Smoker customer. I also have experienced a heating element failure. Received unit in January, smoked successfully 4 times. Then no heat from main element. Used voltage tester to verify power at the connecting cord, also at the element itself so the rheostat seems to be working also.
Other than this admittedly catastrophic turn of events, I am very happy with the Bradley smoking unit.
This is why its pointless to hear from long time owners that they've not had any problems. That is the whole point. This issue seems to be affecting new smokers. All heat elements will eventually burn out. But the rate of burn outs in relatively new smokers (say purchased within the last 6-8 months) and the first few smokes seems to be very, very high. It doesn't take a Six Sigma Black Belt to know that SOMETHING has changed. I'd look at all changes in the last 8 mos - nothing is too small or insignificant to be dismissed.
Someone in another thread suggested a single, sticky thread where all element failures can be discussed. Many of the long term owners - mostly those who have not had the problem - wanted to know what good that would do. Well, there IS a problem and not talking about it doesn't make it go away. Plus there are some very positive benefits to a single, open elements issue thread:
1. It collects all of the frustrated post into one location.
2. Information about the issue - circumstances, product codes, etc can be shared with Bradley and with others which might show patterns and help root cause analysis.
3. Bradley can give updates on what it is doing to find the root cause (even things that have been eliminated) and how things are progressing. That way people won't have to keep asking what Bradley is doing.
4. It would show all forum readers that Bradley cares(we know that, but other lurkers may not.
5. When the root cause is found and resolved, Bradley can declare victory to it's customers - maybe even CLOSE the thread.
Not discussing a problem is usually the WRONG thing to do. Be open and forthcoming. There's no such thing as too much communication. The grapevine feeds on a lack of real information.
PS - my 6hr rib smoke went off without a hitch. That's my second use of my 3rd element.
Must be the new guy that was hired a little while back on the assembly line over there in China. :D
Nah, probably one of the long time employees who doesn't see what the big deal is. ;)
Quote from: TonyL222 on March 04, 2011, 08:02:22 AM
This is why its pointless to hear from long time owners that they've not had any problems. That is the whole point. This issue seems to be affecting new smokers. All heat elements will eventually burn out. But the rate of burn outs in relatively new smokers (say purchased within the last 6-8 months) and the first few smokes seems to be very, very high. It doesn't take a Six Sigma Black Belt to know that SOMETHING has changed. I'd look at all changes in the last 8 mos - nothing is too small or insignificant to be dismissed.
Someone in another thread suggested a single, sticky thread where all element failures can be discussed. Many of the long term owners - mostly those who have not had the problem - wanted to know what good that would do. Well, there IS a problem and not talking about it doesn't make it go away. Plus there are some very positive benefits to a single, open elements issue thread:
1. It collects all of the frustrated post into one location.
2. Information about the issue - circumstances, product codes, etc can be shared with Bradley and with others which might show patterns and help root cause analysis.
3. Bradley can give updates on what it is doing to find the root cause (even things that have been eliminated) and how things are progressing. That way people won't have to keep asking what Bradley is doing.
4. It would show all forum readers that Bradley cares(we know that, but other lurkers may not.
5. When the root cause is found and resolved, Bradley can declare victory to it's customers - maybe even CLOSE the thread.
Not discussing a problem is usually the WRONG thing to do. Be open and forthcoming. There's no such thing as too much communication. The grapevine feeds on a lack of real information.
PS - my 6hr rib smoke went off without a hitch. That's my second use of my 3rd element.
Tony This all looks good on Paper and in theory it sounds like a really great thing. But Lets break this down a little and see why this idea of a sticky wont work.
One your wanting a sticky or centralized thread by Bradley to put all the information about the Heating elements in. The principle behind this is so that "lurkers" and new folks would have someplace to go to put this information and view whats been happening. Here is the problem with that idea. Most people are frustrated when their element goes out and they just want to post. So they don't look to see if there is a central place to post about elements. They just post and more often than not they post several times in several areas. This makes it look worse than it actually is. Besides there IS a thread started by Bradley all about elements that thread header is labeled "Heat Elements" and by the way we are posting and discussing elements in that thread at this moment. Yes my friend we are there now. Which proves my point some times the obvious is the hardest to see, so a sticky wont work.
Two I AM NOT AN EXPERT but I see the answers to all of the rest of the questions being done right here in this thread. Bradley has said that they are looking into it. They have requested dead elements from people. They have replaced elements. They are active on the forum and respond to questions, comments and concerns. That sounds a awful lot like a company that DOES care about its product and its customers.
I myself have a brand new 6rk smoker. Is the element bad? nope. Is it going to go bad? nope. Why can I say this because I have faith in the way things are and the odds are that there is more GOOD elements than there are bad.
I thought about replying to this post because I know i'm going to get flack from some of the older members here, just like I did before but hey here goes. First off I like my smoker. Second their custumer service is second to none. So why am I replying to this post well here goes. As some may already know my element failed after my 6th smoke or there abouts. And yes the very nice people at bradley sent me another one a week later. Well after 5 hours on the new one it also failed. I never reported this on the forums because all you ever hear is they are working on it. So I decided to get a hold of a fellow from ASB Heating Elements Ltd. I explained what the element was used for, gave him all specs that I new of and asked if they could either make one up for me or if they had ones in stock. After talking back and forth for about a week he said yes they could supply one but it would cost about 60 to 70 bucks. So I said why so much? He said because a company contracts out something like that and are probably made in made in China or Mexico and would be expensive to have something made to order to replace them. He also went on to say "If they are causing premature failure the only thing you could do to address that would be to go to a lower wattage or lengthen the elements. Unfortunately the design of the bradely smokers probably won't allow for that. They are made to hopefully last through the warranty period and then they are a throw away item, just like most things these days"
So now back to bradley support, again they are sending me another but this time I paid for an extra one. I guess my point to this whole thing is maybe till they get this solved they should throw in an extra at no cost so the custumer still has his unit going till this problem gets solved
Well said 10.5.
There are lemons in all products on the market. IMHO the percentage of bad elements is small when compared with the quantity of elements out there. Perhaps it is a certain batch of elements. Bradley is super on their customer service/satisfaction. I am confident they will come through for all the folks who are having problems as soon as they get it all sorted out with the manufacturer of the element. Unless I am wrong, I believe that everyone that had bad elements have stated they were supplied with free expedited replacements. How many companies do this today?
The thing with the Bradley smoker and any and all smokers is that these are pretty extreme conditions inside of them. My dads ugly plywood smoker (UPS) ;D used a single element hot plate. This UPS was 8 feet tall and smoke poured from it in all the corners and around the doors. So you know there was not as much moisture in there like in the Bradley. But even still we would have to replace those hotplates every other year as the metal would corrode and the element would fail. Those things were/are hard to get a hold of around here for some reason and they were expensive too. Now you have a smoker that is shrunk down in size and more air tight and you have compounded the conditions inside. So the fact that they work at all is something of a miracle. All it takes is for one thing to be not right and now you have failures. This string of bad elements really sucks but they are doing more to find out why and to fix it than any other company would be willing to do. Most large company's would just drop this item from their sales and leave everyone in the lurch. Like I said before, I can't even remember how many bad products I have had that just ended up in the garbage.
Are some of us longer term guys devout to our Bradley's and the company, YES cause we have been smoking for years with less than comparable smokers.
Do we get a little uppity when someone comes on and slags the smokers, YES because until someone can show us a better comparable price smoker than doesn't have any problems we will be loyal to the brand.
I know it is a pissoff when you spend this much money on on something and it fails you. But those who haven't had trouble are adamant about these smokers They are a far cry from where we came from and you could spend $2000 to $3000 for a really great smoker, but you would have to sell one car to park it in the driveway.
We like to help as much as we can in this forum and you have to admit, it also is second to none with the info, friendship and generosity of the members. Hell we even have our own newsletter, well most of the time. wink wink.
We are not trying to beat you guys up but we get a lot of people who come on here just say these are pieces of 0 and we know better, so our hackles come up kind of quick lately. I know that Bradley will solve this and that they are not happy with this problem either. This is not a giant that just wants to make money, they care about their product and their customers. Remember, they started out as a guy and couple of buddies that wanted a better smoker, just like if you and your budswere sitting around out back having a few beer and decide you could build a better hunting rig than say, Argo. You try a few things, fix this and change that and the next thing you know you have a better rig than say, Argo, except the brake disc you are buying from somewhere in Thailand keeps melting.
OK I am starting to ramble but you get my drift. Lets just say they are working on it and they will fix you up and this problem can't last forever.
My last post was deleted by Bradley, wish it would have been edited to remove the content they didn't want in it rather than deleted, but it is what it is.
One of the main points I wanted to make known is that I did not sign up on the forums to witch hunt and complain. I signed up before any problems and didn't learn about an element problem until after researching my own element failure. This site has a wealth of knowledge within it and that is the true reason behind my joining. Hopefully once everything has been resolved and this is put to rest those of us who spoke up about the issues won't be chastised for voicing concerns on our recent purchases. A lot of you have older models and do not have this problem, most failures are from a new customer base. I'm not here demanding my money back, but when the only response from Bradley themselves was it was a seasonal issue and in a sense normal, I wanted to voice my displeasure and disagree.
I do believe that the date on the element is relevant to the situation at hand, and if anyone has a working element known to be more than a year old I will gladly trade you my new one for it, it has less than 5 minutes on a test heat. I doubt I will get any takers on this, but thought I'd throw it out there. PM me with the stamping on the element if so. I will refrain from posting any numbers as that seems to be what Bradley didn't like. Hopefully this post will be allowed to stay.
All that being said I will be attempting to smoke some jerky tonight and tomorrow. If the new element fails I guess I will be contacting Bradley again on Monday. I'll remain cautiously optimistic that it will hold up for hours to come, but a constant worry on whether it is working or not will remain.
I'm your huckleberry!
Pm me your addy and I will send you an older element.
Smokineverything, we are not trying to beat you up here and mostly I am aiming at the ones who sign up and there first post is just an asskickin to Bradley. I know you are frustrated and I would be too. I was having trouble with my puck advance, and I wasn't sure if it would work after cleaning a seemingly clean SG. But low and behold, it worked. Please don't take any of what I said personal. As I said, you were not the intended target, you just got hit by overshot. :) I can see you are a great addition to the forum and I hope you don't think I am being a jerk. I would do anything to help that I could also. Soon this will be behind us and I wouldn't want any hard feelings among the new and old members. So hang in there and hopefully this will just be a distant memory.
Quote from: Quarlow on March 05, 2011, 09:32:52 AM
Smokineverything, we are not trying to beat you up here and mostly I am aiming at the ones who sign up and there first post is just an asskickin to Bradley. I know you are frustrated and I would be too. I was having trouble with my puck advance, and I wasn't sure if it would work after cleaning a seemingly clean SG. But low and behold, it worked. Please don't take any of what I said personal. As I said, you were not the intended target, you just got hit by overshot. :) I can see you are a great addition to the forum and I hope you don't think I am being a jerk. I would do anything to help that I could also. Soon this will be behind us and I wouldn't want any hard feelings among the new and old members. So hang in there and hopefully this will just be a distant memory.
No offense taken, and we were posting at the same time. Kind of hit on the same points as well.
Exactly what you said, everyone here has given me the satisfaction that Bradley will not let this go unresolved. So much so yesterday that just yesterday I ordered 4 more additional jerky racks. Seen a pic in the jerky section where they piggy backed racks to double capacity without extra rack mod. I wouldn't continue investing in something I felt would be useless.
I've got about 60 pounds of ground venison to modify into some sort of smoked treat over the next few months and don't want to be hampered. Sausage on the first smoke, jerky next and then I'll decide on the newest venture.
Thanks for trying to clarify things, sometimes the Internet isn't the smoothest at conveying moods and tone. Rest assured your brand loyalty speaks volumes towards Bradley as a whole, still think I made the right choice in smoker and forum. Just a small technicality to get past.
Quote from: Quarlow on March 05, 2011, 09:32:52 AM
I am aiming at the ones who sign up and there first post is just an asskickin to Bradley.
The problem with this is, if you go to Google, and type in
"Bradley Smoker heating element died [or burned out]" the first three of four pages that come up is this site. Like most people do now, is hit the net when you want info.
It would take a minute for someone to gather the info they need, to remedy their problem if all the info was in one place. A thread titled
Heating Elements with all the needed info to get a replacement, who to call, what to expect. Tell them how to respond.
Lock the thread down. Then when someone new comes along and posts another thread about the elements, PM them info thread and move their post to the trash.
Quote from: Tenpoint5
Tony This all looks good on Paper and in theory it sounds like a really great thing. But Lets break this down a little and see why this idea of a sticky wont work.
One your wanting a sticky or centralized thread by Bradley to put all the information about the Heating elements in. The principle behind this is so that "lurkers" and new folks would have someplace to go to put this information and view whats been happening. Here is the problem with that idea. Most people are frustrated when their element goes out and they just want to post. So they don't look to see if there is a central place to post about elements. They just post and more often than not they post several times in several areas. This makes it look worse than it actually is. Besides there IS a thread started by Bradley all about elements that thread header is labeled "Heat Elements" and by the way we are posting and discussing elements in that thread at this moment. Yes my friend we are there now. Which proves my point some times the obvious is the hardest to see, so a sticky wont work.
Two I AM NOT AN EXPERT but I see the answers to all of the rest of the questions being done right here in this thread. Bradley has said that they are looking into it. They have requested dead elements from people. They have replaced elements. They are active on the forum and respond to questions, comments and concerns. That sounds a awful lot like a company that DOES care about its product and its customers.
I myself have a brand new 6rk smoker. Is the element bad? nope. Is it going to go bad? nope. Why can I say this because I have faith in the way things are and the odds are that there is more GOOD elements than there are bad.
Bradley moves post to threads of a better fit every day, so I don't see that as a problem.. Yes people will continue to post about this problem until it is resolved. IMO the best way to handle that is to address it head. Not discussing a real problem is like wanting people not to notice the 700lb gorilla in the room.
QuoteDo we get a little uppity when someone comes on and slags the smokers, YES because until someone can show us a better comparable price smoker than doesn't have any problems we will be loyal to the brand.
THAT is the frustrating part for me. I LONG to be in that number. Not sure how I can better say that I LOVE this smoker. But I've had two failures in short succession. Hearing about the years of trouble free performance from long term owners just reinforces that fact there's something wrong with the newer ones. In Six Sigma terms, there's some process that's out of control.
Dear customer,
Lately we have been experiencing a higher volume of heating elements prematurely burning out. We have ordered new elements to replace any heating elements that are burned out. Some of these replacement elements have also prematurely burned out making for a very frustrating situation. We have always tested all components of our products prior to packaging & shipping. Like light bulbs, there is no way of knowing when a heating element is going to burn out.
Bradley has always been responsible & pro-active regarding our products. If your heating element is not working, please contact us immediately so we can arrange to get you a new heating element as soon as possible.
Yours truly
Wade Bradley
President
I would say that this is being discussed quite a bit. And the fact that Bradley head office started this thread themselves shows that they will talk about it and that they are trying to work it out.
Tony if you hang in there you will be a longerterm happy customer too. 8)
Touche Wade, Touche.
I just received my replacement element in the mail and noticed the numbers are different than what was stamped on my dead one. Decided to post em up for comparison.
Old/dead element- DF 120V 500W 1006 GYQ series
New Element- E217286 GYQ DF 120V 500W 1101
We shall see how long this one lasts. Looks like some change has been made? Batch numbers to track maybe?
Quote from: Fernslinger on March 07, 2011, 04:51:40 PM
I just received my replacement element in the mail and noticed the numbers are different than what was stamped on my dead one. Decided to post em up for comparison.
Old/dead element- DF 120V 500W 1006 GYQ series
New Element- E217286 GYQ DF 120V 500W 1101
We shall see how long this one lasts. Looks like some change has been made? Batch numbers to track maybe?
Hopefully this is a step in the right direction. Good thing is the newest element was made after failures started to be reported. Doesn't necessarily mean anything was changed yet, but with the time frame difference it is, at the least, a fresh batch. Time will tell the tale.
So is the 1006= 2010/june
and the new 1101=2011/january
Dont know...but most of the failures I saw were from the DF 120V 500W 1006 GYQ series I think. Both mine were at least...
Good luck Fern I hope this works out. Alot of people are watching.
Doing a butt Saturday....that ought to test her :)
Hi all
I can now add myself to the element failure population
Wonder if Viagra will help that?.... LOL
I am out of warranty now and have been contemplating a dual element for a while now
As it turns out I am going to be in Maine for the week next week and thinking I should order the kit from Y and P
Any thoughts or suggestions? Either way this costs me money
QuoteHi all
I can now add myself to the element failure population
Wonder if Viagra will help that?.... LOL
I am out of warranty now and have been contemplating a dual element for a while now
As it turns out I am going to be in Maine for the week next week and thinking I should order the kit from Y and P
Any thoughts or suggestions? Either way this costs me money
Call Bradley first and tell them your situation. Describe the problem though (may not be an element failure but something else that seems like it). Since they know they have an issue with heat elements maybe they will help you out even though it is out of warrantee... I don't know but the worst they can say is no. Worth a call.
Quote from: 33SMET on March 08, 2011, 08:36:59 AM
So is the 1006= 2010/june
and the new 1101=2011/january
That would be it. Last two are the month first two year. Did notice on one earlier, April of 2010 was 2010 04
PS, note to mods. Using my phone, I accidentally hit a report this post button. Please ignore, it was inadvertent.
Lost my 3rd element today. I actually had the opportunity to watch it burn out. It was time to move racks around a bit. And when I saw a red glow was brighter that earlier I looked under the V tray. Only the center inch was red and extremely bright. Is it possible the elements are shorting then blowing at the weakest point. I'm going to contact Brian and see if he want this one back to investigate.
I had a spare so did the quick change so I didn't have to finish in oven. lol, lost a set of finger prints but ribs were awesome.
Almost wish Bradley would install the connectors as push on fittings. 7mm wench suck when everything it hot.
Quote from: Cleaver on March 12, 2011, 07:51:22 PM
7mm wench suck when everything it hot.
Ok this is just to easy. ;D Sorry to hear this but glad you had another.
I have to commend Bradley's response to my recent heat element failure. I have used my smoker around 6 times (Lox, Bratwurst twice, Beef ribs, Pastrami, Baby back ribs) And the element failed after the smoking part of the Pastrami. I called them today, and I should receive the elements Saturday or early next week.
I was able to recover the pastrami in the oven, and the baby back were purposefully cold-smoked 3 hours then oven cooked (I would not have done that with a working element, but by then I knew it was not working so I adapted the recipe). I shall do cold-smoked cheese this week, and resume smoking-cooking once I get the element replaced.
Thanks for the quick response Brian and Mikeala.
My wife thought I was nuts for trying to hotswap the element as well. I noticed that the sealant was cracked at either end of the element and a white powder had been produced at the ends.
And I just finish a shoulder and the element made it through that. I think I'm pretty much using my bradley once a week now if not twice.
And I never did speak to Brian, just got another element on warranty, and it should be here for the next smoke just in case.
Thanks Bradley!
I received my replacement heat element, thanks Bradley.
I will be installing after work tonight. Does Bradley need my old element back for testing/failure analysis? ???
Another one bites the dust!! My element justt died. The old one was glowing off to one side and after a hour my temp never climbed past 115* But my power light on the front panel is on wierd. This is the second obs. It has 5 smokes on it. Called Bradley and they are going to ship me one. They are only 30 mins away from me. I should have it within a day.
Apropos to my previous post, I installed the new element, it is working like a champ.
Is any seasoning suggested for new elements?
Just heat it at let say 200 empty for 1hour and you should be fine.
I ordered 2 replacements for my blown element last Tuesday
I am thinking having a spare is a good idea
Hoping they show up soon
Next weekend is Masters Weekend and the patrons are demanding pulled pork
When I sent a note to Brian on the issue of the elements, offering mine for failure analysis, he said that Bradley had rejected their entire inventory back to the manufacturer, and had a completely new stock. I also thought my new element was heavier, but I never handled the 2 at the same time, so could be simply a memory issue! My new one has run for nearly as long as my old one did (though only 3 smokes and 2 dry runs with empty cabinet), and is going great so far.
This is good news.
If they have identified the bad batch I wonder if they would voluntarily swap the bad ones out with the known good batch? I have one "extra" Element that I bought from Yard and Pool just in case my replacement from Bradley went bad. How can we Identify if we have an element that may have issues?
Quote from: gbritten_nh on March 29, 2011, 03:06:17 PM
When I sent a note to Brian on the issue of the elements, offering mine for failure analysis, he said that Bradley had rejected their entire inventory back to the manufacturer, and had a completely new stock.
That IS good news!!! I got my last replacement before this, obvioulsy, and wonder if I'm on borrowed time.
I would actually like to hear some official word from Bradley about the element issue being resolved. Not that I doubt you at all Gbritton, but straight from the horses mouth would be great.
I just ordered an OBS from amazon. Seeing this thread has me concerned I will get one of the defective ones. Fingers crossed.
RA
I just found this . My bradly is only 2 months old and burnt the 1st one out today!!
Do you folks have a number for me to call??
Vargy
Telephone
In Canada:
Customer Service Toll Free: (800) 665-4188
Phone: (604) 524-3848
Fax: (604) 524-3839
Our Canadian phone lines are open 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. PST Monday through Friday
In USA:
Customer Service Toll Free: (866) 508-7514
Local: (309) 343-1124
Fax: (309) 343-1126
Our USA phone lines are open between 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m CST Monday through Friday
Just had one of my replacements burn out after 3 smokes
Thankfully I ordered 2
I have been using my Bubba a lot these days and was going to slow cook some ribs in my BDS4 and no tekp !
Replacement works great
The awesome people at Bradely are sending me a replacement for my replacement
Not sure I would be without a spare now
Thanks for the great service Bradley
I have had my Bradley Smoker OB since 12/10. When it works it does a great job however I have had two elements stop working. The plastic on the door became brittle and broke to where the door fell off the hinges and the bottom plate where the temperature control and light are has broken twice.
There are some severe quality issues going on with the elements and the plastics that become brittle under the heat.
Luckily the customer service at Bradley is superb. I am just concerned with what is going to happen when my warranty runs out.
Thank you for the phone Number. I called them and they sent me one right away. I got it installed and just like jmf
I love the smoker. It works great. Now the bottom plastic on the door hing broke and the door fell off!!!
I will call them on monday again. I sure hope I dont need to put thier number on speed dial cause I sure like the smoker.
I only had it 2 months.
Vargy
Vargy that sucks. But I have had my OBS for 2 years now and have not had a thing break or burn out. Had to open the SG a couple of times to clean it but that is all. Oh and welcome to the forum. Best bunch of smokers I ever met.
Vargy... Sorry to hear about your troubles.
I've had my OBS for 8 months. I had cracking issues on my front plate and the bottom of the door. I was very close to having the door fall off due to the cracking and I was not aware of the problem until I did a close inspection(due to other recent complaints of doors falling off). Instead of having it replaced with another plastic front panel under warranty that would crack again I just made a replacement out of aluminum. I also made a aluminum plate for the bottom of the door & changed the hinge point so it attached to the aluminum plate directly and not the plastic. Now this solution may not be for everyone but it worked well for me.
I did not have my element die like you did but I decided to do a element mod. I did the 900w element mod instead of the dual element mod because of the element issues that Bradley was experiencing. Again... I decided to take care of the problem myself. My hope is that my unit is now fixed of any issues :)
My smoker is only 2 months old. I have some thing in it every weekend!! Today I smoke a pork Loin and it turned out great!!! I will call Bradley in the morning to see what they think. I was very impressed with the service on the heating ele. It was a simple fix and worked great after.
Vargy
Better wait till tuesday. We have a long weekend this weekend. They will be close.
I just experienced an element failure, I love my smoker and would of recommended to anyone, but I am very dissapointed with the response I got when calling Bradley about the element, My whole unit was replaced 7 months ago after a fire, They were great and I the smoker was back to me in no time. My new unit has only been used 3 times and half way through a Salmon smoke my element goes out, I called bradley and they said since my unit was replaced, the warranty runs from my original smoker and I would have to replace the element at my cost. So basically I am pretty dissapointed that they are not willing to stand behind their product, and furthermore I am still waiting for the element it was ordered two weeks ago. :-[
So you caught your Bradley on fire and they replaced the WHOLE unit. ($400)
Now a $13 element goes out and you are MAD?
OK.
Quote from: classicrockgriller on August 06, 2011, 09:00:24 PM
So you caught your Bradley on fire and they replaced the WHOLE unit. ($400)
Now a $13 element goes out and you are MAD?
OK.
$24.99 at yardandpool.com ;D
Hows this texas heat treating you? :'(
Quote from: mikecorn.1 on August 06, 2011, 09:22:52 PM
Quote from: classicrockgriller on August 06, 2011, 09:00:24 PM
So you caught your Bradley on fire and they replaced the WHOLE unit. ($400)
Now a $13 element goes out and you are MAD?
OK.
$24.99 at yardandpool.com ;D
Hows this texas heat treating you? :'(
I am a indoor Hermit from 10am to 7pm and maybe longer.
Quote from: classicrockgriller on August 06, 2011, 09:00:24 PM
So you caught your Bradley on fire and they replaced the WHOLE unit. ($400)
Now a $13 element goes out and you are MAD?
OK.
No I paid for the new unit, the warranty does not cover fires, I am dissappointed that the new unit has on 15hrs on it and I am on the hook for more money out of pocket, I would think if I pay for the best I should get better quality.
Quote from: natemr2 on August 06, 2011, 07:57:02 AM
I just experienced an element failure, I love my smoker and would of recommended to anyone, but I am very dissapointed with the response I got when calling Bradley about the element, My whole unit was replaced 7 months ago after a fire, They were great and I the smoker was back to me in no time. My new unit has only been used 3 times and half way through a Salmon smoke my element goes out, I called bradley and they said since my unit was replaced, the warranty runs from my original smoker and I would have to replace the element at my cost. So basically I am pretty dissapointed that they are not willing to stand behind their product, and furthermore I am still waiting for the element it was ordered two weeks ago. :-[
Quote from: natemr2 on August 07, 2011, 08:06:54 AM
Quote from: classicrockgriller on August 06, 2011, 09:00:24 PM
So you caught your Bradley on fire and they replaced the WHOLE unit. ($400)
Now a $13 element goes out and you are MAD?
OK.
No I paid for the new unit, the warranty does not cover fires, I am dissappointed that the new unit has on 15hrs on it and I am on the hook for more money out of pocket, I would think if I pay for the best I should get better quality.
I am thinking there is more to this than what you are telling us.
My orignal unit had a fire, last year maybe my fault maybe not, Bradley service was great I did not expect them to cover the fire but they did cover the taxes on the new smoker, I was happy to have it back. The new unit arrived within a few days and was put away for the winter ( I am in Ontario). brought out the smoker last month, did some salmon. I did one more smoke after that with it and half way through 10 pounds of salmon the element goes out. Called Bradley and expected the element to be replaced being it had less than 15hrs on it, I mentioned my smoker was replaced last year and was told the warranty goes from the original unit.
In my opinion that is wrong, this is a new unit, 15hrs on an element there is obviously an issue with quality here, I am upset because I have over $900 spent on smokers now, so yes a $13 part burns me a bit. :(
How long ago did you buy the replacement. 15 hours doesn't matter if you had it over a year. Its like my car, 36 months or 36K miles. Did you explain that you bought it and it was not a warranty replacement? The way you say "it was a replacement" gives the impression that it was a warranty repair. I would call and re-explain it and if you get the same answer ask to talk to the boss.
Natemr2....It sounds to me like a misunderstanding between you and the Bradley service rep. If your unit was replaced for free I could understand but if they just covered the taxes then the unit should be covered under warranty IMHO.
Sorry to hear about your fire. The fires that I have heard about have been due to too much grease build-up over long, overnight cooks where the grease was allowed to build up in the v-tray and water bowl causing a grease fire. So Bradley may have deemed that it was not a result of a faulty unit but user error. Remember to change the water over long cooks periodically and scrape the v-tray.
The element issue is a tough one. Many companies depend on different manufacturers to build parts for their products. If another company makes a faulty part then the blame will be put on the main company of the product. In this case Bradley did identify the issue and moved to a different element. But there are still bad elements out there that are slowly being replaced. The next step would be to recall the units that are known to have the defective elements or send one to new owners that have registered their units. But it would be tough to know what units have the bad elements or not because not every unit sold in the past year is having the issue.
I already paid them for the element, two weeks ago, don't get me wrong I love my smoker and have done many pounds of fish in my original unit, but it burns me a bit that this is a known problem, like others have mentioned it would be easy to get the serial #'s of the affected elements, and remedy the issue. I will continue to use my smoker and keep an extra element on hand, but I feel I shouldn't have to do that, I have contributed to many bradley purchases by friends and family and mostly touted the quality in comparison to other brands but after this experience I can no longer do that.
Yes it is a known problem with the elements and has been dealt with. They now have a different supplier.
The problem with the elements is definately not fixed. I have had two elements go out and this time they are not only replacing the element but also the temperature control. Last time they replaced the element and the temperature sensor. Did not work. I don't think they know what makes the elements go out or how to fix them. They just keep replacing random parts hoping to get the right combination.
This time my smoker went out the last week in July and I have been waiting over a month for the parts to ship.
I called Bradley today to check on the progress of the parts and they said they are still waiting on some of the parts.
>:(