I have a couple of questions. I am going to use my new DBS for the first time on two pork butts. My first question how open do I leave the damper? I know if temp drops I can close it some and heat it back up, but how do you know how open to leave it? What exactly does PID stand for?
Hi, the damper should always be at least half way open (completely open if doing poultry). Don't use it for heat control. You need to let moisture out of the smoker. If you close it you'll have problems. PID stands for Proportional Integrating Differentiating. It is a type of intelligent temperature controller that can learn and control smoker temperatures very precisely and accurately.
Actually you have it backwards. If the temp drops you should open the vent up some more. What is happening is there is too much moisture building up inside of the cabinet. The excess moisture is absorbing the heat and not the product that your cooking. After you have used your DBS a few time you will get a nice buildup of smoke on the inside of your DBS. The excess moisture will condensate in the vent and remove the buildup of smoke. This will rain down on your meat and taste NASTY. You will here it called "Black Rain". generally speaking I keep mine 1/2 to 3/4 open, mostly 3/4. I think it is glued in that position. You will here everyone has their own unique place they run there vent. But one thing everyone will agree on is if your doing Poultry of any kind keep the vent wide open.
3Rensho posted as I was posting
Thank you very much I am glad I asked. I will not use it for temp control then.
The guys have you covered. My vent is always full open and stuck there.
It's not like a charcoal grill or smoker where the vent controls air flow to the fire and therefore controls the temp.
The Bradley heats air and moist air is harder to heat. The moisture comes from both the product and the water bowl. It's best to vent it.
I'm with you cinrds, I'm a fairly new user of the OBS and plan to just leave the vent wide open and learn to cook with it so as the vent is not a variable.