Slow to hit temp

[fishhunter]

New to the forum, but I've been looking at it since I got my new BDS. The wife gave it to me for Christmas, yes I opened it up early....hehehehe.
I used it for the first time to smoke a Brisket for Christmas dinner. After cooking I sliced it up and put in vacuum bags. Can't wait for Christmas dinner.

I did run into a few problems with the smoker. First I had trouble reaching the cooking temp I had programmed. The day started out cool ( in the 50's ) but the high for the day reached the mid 70's.

The second problem was the temp took a long time to get back up after the door was opened. I've seen several posts here about adding a controler and a second heating element. I'm NOT at all electrically inclined, but willing to try. I just don't want to screw the unit up. Any help in adding a second element and controller would be great.

[Habanero Smoker]

Hi fishhunter,

Welcome to the forum. The modifications you mentioned work great, but before you attempt those, take a look at the link I've included below. It has several tips and troubleshooting techniques that may help you.
Bradley FAQ's

A better description about your problem would be helpful in determining if you Bradley if functioning as it was meant to be or if some of the help in the link I provided can help.

What was you set temperature you wanted to cook at, and how long did it take to reach that point?
Are you using a temperature probe to monitor the cabinet temperature, and if so where did you place the probe?
What was your vent setting? I generally will keep mine 1/2 - 3/4 open if I am only cooking a single brisket.
Did you allow the brisket to sit at room temperature for an 1 or so?
How long did the full cook take?

[fishhunter]

The set temp was 200 degrees. I let the meat sit out at room temp for 30 to 40 minutes. No temp probe was used. The vent was wide open ( Left wide open ). I smoked the brisket for 9 hours and then placed it in the oven at 200 degrees for 8 hours.

I let the box pre heat before turning on my smoker and then turned on the smoke generator for 20 minutes before I started using the wood pucks.

Very interesting about the vent. I was under the impression that the vent was to stay wide open to keep undue moisture from accumulating in the box.

I have used smokers in the past ( IE 30 inch pipe with external firebox ), but this is my first electric smoker

[UncleAl]

 Welcome from Michigan - You have come to right spot to learn all about your new smoker.

[beefmann]

welcome aboard,

try a  few things to help with  box coming up to  temp

1) keep the top vent  open
2) preheat your box for  30  minutes
3) keep your  puck  burner  on
4) allow the meat to come up to room temp for about an  hour before putting it into the smoker
5) if you are  doing a  larger  load of meat,,, 10 lbs + the box temp will drop 30 f easily ,, sometimes even  more and take for  ever to recover just  because of the  meat  load,,, this is  normal.

also if you  can  plug into a low  load circuit or a  dedicated  circuit to help the  heater  get the most  voltage and  produce the  most  amount of  heat

[KyNola]

When you open the door to place the brisket in the tower you lose a great deal of heat.  Then, the cold piece of meat acts as a heat sink, sucking up all of the heat energy the 500 watt heater can produce.  That's why they call it low and slow. ;)

As for the modifications, they may help but you need to be advised that doing either or both of the modifications will immediately void the warranty on your brand new smoker.  I would suggest using your new Bradley a few times to learn how it works before determining if you want to modify it.

[Habanero Smoker]

There are many that leave the vent wide open for all cooks, but my experience with this smoker is that if you have it wide open, you may be letting too much heat escape. The problems with moisture is when it build up to the point that condensation builds up inside the smoker, and more heat is used to convert that newly form liquid into steam, which will then cause a drop in the cabinet temperature, along with black rain. As long as the vent is open just enough to prevent condensation inside the cabinet is the best setting. The next time you have your vent wide open and not achieving the heat you want, experiment and close to vent to 3/4 if the heat rises, next try 1/2 opening, and set it at the opening that works best.

[Saber 4]

Welcome from Texas

[fishhunter]

Well I used my smoker again on Monday. The outside temp was in the 40's when I started and got into the 60's as the day went on. I preheated the tower to 250 degrees, turned on the smoke generator and added a clay brick to the inside of the tower just in front of the drip/water bowle.

I pre heated the tower for about 1 hour. Had the meat ( 2 whole chickens, 9 country style ribs and 4 steaks ) inside for about 1 1/2 hours at room temp befor putting into the tower. I smoked the meat for about 6 hours and took it off. The tower lost temp when the door was opened ( to add more water to the bowle ), but used hot water to fill the bowle back up again.

The tower did get back to my set temp of 210 degrees a lot quicker then the first time I smoker used it. Thanks for all the help guys.

[ragweed]

Congratulations!  It's nice to see a success story with the DBS for a change.

[tskeeter]

fishhunter, I'm one of the keep the vent wide open school.  I came to this perspective after I forgot to open the vent during the first hour or so of a sausage smoke.  Not pretty.  Since I'm subject to brain cramps, I prevented the possibility of this happening again by removing the damper mechanism.

[fishhunter]

I had the vent 3/4 open. I didn't get " Black Rain" on the inside, but I did get some leakage on the right side of the door. The liquid that leaked out was a nice brown color, but the was not much.

I've heard/read on here that when smoking a chicken with the skin on it, it's best to leave the vent all the way open. I like using my vent and won't take it off, but I will play with it until I get this crazy thing figured out.

I do enjoy the ease of this smoker, but like I said in an earlier post I learned on a homemade pipe smoker with a firebox. I can make that old thing kiss my rear end and I'm sure that I'll be able to do the same with my Bradley

[Habanero Smoker]

If your are getting liquid leaking out the door you have too much moisture built up in the cabinet and it is condensing, and you need to open your vent wider. Are you using the standard water bowl that came with the Bradley or are you using a larger pan, that many have opted to use. If you are using a large pan, that provides a lot of water surface that is expose, and will evaporate quickly and put a lot of moisture in the cabinet.

Chicken with skin will put out a lot of moisture, the same if you left the skin on a picnic shoulder; that will also release a lot of moisture.

[renoman]

I get black goop leaking out of my door on every smoke and I use the stock water pan and have completely removed the vent.

[Habanero Smoker]

During cold weather because the door seal is not air tight, cold outside air will cause the moisture in the hot air to condense, that my be the cause of your moisture build up at the door. You will also see this at the top vent, where moisture will condense when it hits the cold air, and drip back down into the smoker.