death by shovel?

[duncanshannon]

Hi folks-

long time since i've been here.... i have some sad news. I'm concerned i killed OBS with a shovel over the winter.  I live in MN, keep her out side, and while clearing snow and ice I did something bad.

I ended up puncturing the front bottom panel where the led and temp slider are with a flat head shovel... oops.

it seemed to work for a while, as it did keep smoking and cooking. After some time, it did turn off all by its self.   The smoke stack unit seems just fine at this point.  I was investigating a bit more this past weekend now that most of the snow is gone.  I plugged it in, and the light doesnt turn on and the heating element didn't warm up.

have i killed it? or is there hope?

thanks in advance... i'm itching for a fix and some brisket!

duncan

[MidKnightRider]

Sounds like the slider that controls the temp went bad.
You can get replacement parts, slider and faceplate from Yard and Pool.
You could also straight wire it and use a PID to control the temp. But you WOULD HAVE TO USE A PID if you did that.

[duncanshannon]

Thanks MidKnightRider.  so might be a good time to upgrade to the PID is what you are telling me!  Alternatively I can replace the slider.  good tip.

I've been thinking about the PID for a while... sounds like its just a device to enable a more controlled environment right?  It would essentially replace the slider and behave more like the electricly controlled bradley, right?

[MidKnightRider]

Yes it would repleac the slider, but you would have to rewire it / bypass the slider.
Yes it would make it a electricly controlled bradley.

[Bavind]

My slider also came to an untimely end, A buddy drove over it with his quad. Luckly didnt damage the rest of the smoker. I straight wired it and now use a PID. I think I get better control over the heat now so all in all it was a good thing hes a clumsy driver lol. ;D ;D

[Habanero Smoker]

If you don't replace the faceplate right away I would seal the broken area with duct tape to protect it from the weather.

[duncanshannon]

Hrm.... got the PID in the mail today and finally the weather is nice enough to sit on the deck for a while and investigate.

I cleaned 'er up a bit, took off the front slider panel, reconnected one of the wires powering the red light, closed it back up... everything works but the heating element.  set it on high, let it run for a few minutes and no change in temp.  hooked up the PID to see if that would make any difference, and nothing.

so... off I go to search the forum.  thought for sure it was related to the panel considering the blow I gave it this winter and that it stopped heating during that smoking session. 
:-\

[MidKnightRider]

Be carefull and check for power with a vote meter across the element.
If you have power and no heat the element has gone out.

[Quarlow]

Plug the cabinet direct to the wall and see if the element comes on. Don't leave it on for too long or you could burn it out. If it doesn't work take the back panel off the cabinet and check the fuse. Its for the heat element.

[beefmann]

i would check the electronics where the slider is first, if any of it is damaged then it needs to be replaced

[duncanshannon]

Been a long time since I started this... wanted to close it off to be complete.

Thanks all for the tips.  Called Bradley for a new heating element. They were friendly, speedy and the I think the parts are reasonably priced.  I continue to be very happy with the bradley.  Now if only it could clean its self...

I keep recommending it to my friends.. I finally wrote up what I had to say and posted it online.  I know I left off the PID... any feedback on what else to include when giving someone the basic sales pitch for the bradley?  I wrote this for a friend who may buy one for her husband..

http://aboutduncan.com/2011/11/intro-to-smoking-bbq/

[Quarlow]

Glad you got up and running again. Now I didn't click on it before but I have to ask, Bavind, what the heck was your slider doing laying out where your buddy could run it over? Or did he run the whole smoker over ? And if he ran the whole thing over take his keys away! LOL