Power Lost Farther Away From Power Source

Started by BBD42, July 31, 2013, 03:15:24 AM

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BBD42

In a previous post it was suggested to me to power up my BS6 smoker directly to my outlet, don't use a power strip/extsion cord or be on the same circuit that uses this power (entertainment room for me).
Ok, this time my smoker reached 260 degrees. I had my smoker in my garage next to my main power box loaded with a 25lb top round beef cut & a 18lb turkey. The temperature only reached 207 degrees & my turkey was done. Continued cooking the top round beef cut & the temperature began to slowly rise up to 260 degrees.
When I used my BS6 on my patio/outlet it would only reach 190 degrees.
Does anyone know of a solution to this issue outside of having a dedicated more powerful line installed by by an electrician on my patio?

beefmann

in thins issue it is a voltage  drop most likely due to  loads on that  circuit, not  to many good ways to approach it...

1) dedicated  circuit to the smoker
2) voltage compensating transformer ( the input voltage can vary...  out put voltage  remains constant )

the first option i believe is the best

tskeeter

BBD42, if I'm reading your post correctly, when plugged into the electrical circuit on your patio your BS6 will only reach 190F.  But if you plug the BS6 into an outlet in garage, the smoker will reach 260F.

I agree with Beefman, this indicates that there are some other electrical loads on the patio circuit that limit the amount of power available for the smoker.

If it were me, I'd try one of three options.  Have an electrician install a dedicated circuit to your patio for your smoker.  (If you do this, you might have the electrician install a 20 amp circuit, instead of the standard 15 amp circuit.  An upgrade to a more robust circuit will not cost a whole lot more.  And it will ensure that you always have access to all the power you want.)  Identify and remove the other appliances from the patio circuit to make more power available for the smoker.  (This is the lowest cost alternative.  And things would only need to be unplugged while you are using the smoker.)  Or, get a heavy, 12 gauge, extension cord and run the smoker off the outlet in the garage.  I know that the Bradley literature says not to use extension cords.  That is because some folks try to run their smoker on a light extension cord intended to power a 60 watt bulb in a table lamp.  That doesn't work very well.  My smoker, with a dual element mod, runs just fine on the 25 foot 12 gauge extension cord I use.  But, I do take care to make sure that everything else on that 15 amp circuit is turned off when I am smoking. 

KyNola

What are you using to measure the temps in your tower?

BBD42

I'm using the Bradley Smoker temperature monitoring system & and a analog temperature probe in my meet. My digital thermometer is no longer functional & I will be replacing it soon.

BBD42

KyNola

The temp sensor system in the Bradley digital units are known to be inaccurate.  I wouldn't trust your findings until I could verify it with something like a Maverick ET-732 or something comparable.

beefmann

agrees  with a dedicated  circuit,, i  generally use  one with  minimal use on it,,, and have a   dedicated circuit that i can  grab very  quickly  is needed so i do have  options