Possible Bad Temp Sensor

[Polarisrich]

Hi guys I'm new to smoking and I think I have a problem with my smoker. Any help will be greatly appreciated!

I have a brand new Bradley Digital Smoker (4 Rack). From the first time I seasoned it, till this the third time smoking I've noticed my temp sensor always reading way lower than the actual temp inside the smoker. I'm using a Thermopro TP20 dual probe thermometer to measure and adjust the temps according to what I'm cooking. I've tried moving the probes all around the smoker, I've even placed a probe 1/4 inch away from the temp sensor and I keep getting similar results.

For Example:
Outside temp 45f, no wind, inside closed in greenhouse and no extension cord.

When I tried to season the smoker I set the Temp Setting to 150F for 2 hours plus smoke generator on. The Oven Temp display would only go to 119f but the Thermopro Probes would show the smoker temp 230 -260f. I tried to turn the Temp Setting down to 120F and turn off the smoke generator. I was able to get the temp down to 140-170F but the Oven Display read 106f.


So I tried a test today and this is what happened...

Temp Setting @ 250f for 4 hours
Oven temp Reading 215f
ThermoPro both probes reading similar 279f - 310f

I could watch the temperature change (swing) on the ThermoPro when ever a puck would advance but the Oven Temp would stay the same +-1f


It's really late as I write all of this and I don't know if any of this is making any sense but I'm suspecting the Temperature Sensor has gone bad.

I plan on calling Bradley Customer Service on Monday but I was just looking for advice....

[Habanero Smoker]

Hi Polarisrich;

Welcome to the forum.

There are swings in the temperture, and you will often see at least a plus/minus 20°F differnce between the set temperature and the cabinet temperature, but if you have a third party probe, both the cabinet and third party probe should be within 5°F when place near one another. With food in the cabinet, you can get those wide descrepancies; depending on where the third party probe is placed.

It looks like you did a thorough job of trouble shooting this issue. That is a wide discrepancy between the two readings. The only thing I can think of to do prior to calling Bradley is to "calibrate" Thermopro probes, to make sure they are giving you an accurate reading.

Ice Bath & Boiling Water Test

[Polarisrich]

Thanks Habanero Smoker for your quick reply!
I just got finished checking the calibration on my probes and they were perfect! 32 degrees cold and 212 hot for both probes.

I can understand that there are swings in temperature when the element is heating turning off and on like an electric oven in the house.
My problem is that the smoker temperature on the display unit never makes it to its set temperature. This causes the element to stay on skyrocketing the temperature inside the smoker past its set point. The swing was 50 degrees Fahrenheit above the set point and 95 degrees Fahrenheit above the BDS temp sensor  reading. This seems a little extreme to me leading me to believe there's an issue with the temp sensor that came with my BDS.

[Habanero Smoker]

Let us know what Bradley says, and if you issue is resolved.