Replace Door Seal?

swissy · September 07, 2006, 08:44:08 PM

Well, I had/have a problem. Smoked a brisket today and halfway thru I noticed a pile of 'goo' accumulating below the door. Opening the door to investigate, I heard a 'kaWHUMP', saw a blinding flash and felt the heat. The damn thing somehow had started dripping on the heat element, accumulated enough that when I opened the door, introducing O2 into the box it ignited. (I managed to save the brisket and finished it off in the oven ;) ) but the thing was so hot that I closed the door hoping to extinguish the flame, which it did. However, the door seal is toast!

has anyone replaced theirs before? if so, how... any pointers would be GREATLY appeciated. Like parts, glues, etc...

looks like the unit is ok- element still heats. I pulled the smokebox off as soon as I saw what was happening, and everything else seems intact. The door aluminum is a little wavey now, but the door still seals with the (slightly melted) door seal. I do need to clean it tho- for whatever reason, there is a TON of goo inside... everywhere!

Help? can the seal be replaced, or is it time to upgrade? :D and to clean EVERYTHING, what is recommended? oven cleaner? simple green? special product? I mean, there is black, greasy, semi-solid goo that was dripping out of the door, down the sides, everywhere. It's GROSS!

I have no idea what happened- the brisket was a little fatty but I trimmed it down... the drip pan was not overflowing (it was pretty empty!), and the smoker is well loved and taken care of. Gremlins?

Oldman · September 08, 2006, 02:06:06 AM

Quote I noticed a pile of 'goo' accumulating below the door...The damn thing somehow had started dripping on the heat element... whatever reason, there is a TON of goo inside... everywhere!... I mean, there is black, greasy, semi-solid goo that was dripping out of the door... the drip pan was not overflowing (it was pretty empty!)

It sounds like you did not place the V pan in correctly? It must be pointing down like this V not up like this /\. Having the V pan upside down is the only way I know of that could cause the problem as stated.

If you need a door seal you can order one from ChezBubba--he is a member here.

I will let others jump in on suggested cleaning as I have never had to clean out the inside of my box.

EDIT: May I suggest you check your rheostat and see if the grease got to it. I had a rheostat that "shorted" wide open and you could not lower the heat.

Good Luck!
Olds

Habanero Smoker · September 08, 2006, 02:57:37 AM

I agree with Olds. It seems you had the "v" pan positioned wrong, or the pan's vent slots where plugged up, or you forgot to put the pan in (which I have done on at least one occasion :-[).

Here's Chez Bubba's website: [email protected]

swissy · September 08, 2006, 08:03:41 AM

I wish it were something that simple- but the pan was in right, holes were not plugged, and drip pan was in as well. The water bowl was in as well, and was just about to be empltied and refilled. I'm not sure WHAT happened or why, only the end result. I'm going to have to disassemble the whole thing to make sure that goo didn't get into everything and bugger up stuff... >:(

I'll look up ChezBubba and get with him on parts... thanks!

iceman · September 08, 2006, 09:19:33 AM

Make sure your meat wasn't touching the cabinet walls front, back, or sides. The grease does bad things to the smoker when that happens. What was the interior temp when you opened the door?

swissy · September 08, 2006, 10:22:41 AM

that's the weird part- I thought of that and looked- the meat was nicely centered on the racks (2) and nothing was touching the edges. The temp was a nice even 225 degrees UNTIL the door opened. Once the flames ignited the temp SOARED, of course. in hindsight, I should have left the door open and let the grease burn off I suppose- might not have hurt anything and burn off quickly. Closing the door may have extinguished the flames, but the heat generated stayed inside, melting the seal some. I have the smoker here at work with me and will be disaasembling/cleaning it and see if anything else was damage. funny part is the seal still seals the door fairly well, even tho it's about twice as wide now and hanging down on the top!

the only thing I can think of was the brisket was abnormally fatty (I trimmed it some, but not ALL) and the dripping fat plugged the holes, causing it to run down the back/sides and getting on the element. I use the CRAP out of my smoker- butts, ribs, bacon, cheese, salt, and tons of salmon, and never had a problem until this one. Hope the thing is fixable, or I'll have to go get a new one.

iceman · September 08, 2006, 10:29:29 AM

I guess like you said it could be a build up over time and a combo of extra fat on the meat. Make sure the heat defelctor under the element gets cleaned every use. Keep a real close eye on the temp next use to make sure the slider temp control is still working properly. Good luck. ;)

pfowl01 · September 08, 2006, 12:57:17 PM

How far open was your vent?

bubbagump · September 08, 2006, 01:54:35 PM

Quote from: swissy on September 08, 2006, 10:22:41 AM
the only thing I can think of was the brisket was abnormally fatty (I trimmed it some, but not ALL) and the dripping fat plugged the holes, causing it to run down the back/sides and getting on the element.

Were the holes plugged when you pulled the drip pan out? If they were then that's the answer to your question. The first time I did two brisket's I noticed when I went to empty the water bowl at the 4 hour mark a large amount of fat had accumulated on the pan. It was not only plugging some of the vents but it had totally clogged the drain hole in the drip pan. I removed the drip pan and cleaned the vents and drain hole. Since that time I always keep an eye on the drip pan when when cooking fatty cuts like brisket.

For what's it worth I think you did the right thing by shutting the door when you saw flames. Leaving the door open would have just allowed the fire to burn longer, possibly causing more damage.

Glad to here you weren't hurt and the damage was minor. Also thanks for sharing your experience as it may help prevent the same thing from happening to someone else.

Take care,

Bubbagump

Habanero Smoker · September 08, 2006, 02:55:18 PM

I agree with bubbagump; closing the door was the best thing you could have done under the circumstances.

swissy · September 08, 2006, 05:45:22 PM

thanks guys... I'm a firefighter by trade and that's what i'm trained to do... but i wondered if it would have burned off and out quicker and not damaged the seal. I guess it depends on the insulation between the interior/exterior wall.

I just spent the last 2 hours tearing it apart, and cleaning it up. looks kinda good/kinda bad. the interior walls are a little bit warped- theres some rippling effect going on. However, the corners are still tight and it doesn't look like anything pulled out. The lower plastic piece, where the temp slider is, is cracked and broken in a few places. it still screws in, but it'll allow water/goo to drain in now if this happens again. But, the wiring, connections and circuit board all seem to be intact and undamaged. Whew! i had to REALLY clean it out- degreaser and HOT water. Now it'll sit, tilted to allow for drainage, for a week while I'm out of town to dry. then it'll be a couple of test runs to make sure everything is ok- no melting wires, heat/power surges, etc...

When I cleaned the drip pan, it was plugged and sealed shut, so there's my problem. And I KNOW that it was good to go before I used it- that is a habit of mine and I never pass that up. So obviously i didn't trim enough fat, it drained all over the drip pan and plugged thing up when it heated and caused the fire. So now I know... not only am I going to have to inspect and change the water bowl but the drip pan as well. Since this was my first brisket I wasn't aware i had to watch the pan as well.. never have before with butts or ribs. Also, could a boat of Alum foil, or another pan, be placed under a brisket to chatch excess drippings?? just a thought...

I also found how the door seal is applied so it'll be a snap to change.

Nuts... but I guess the bright side is if it's toast I might be able to talk my way into a 6 rack digital! ;D

Oldman · September 09, 2006, 03:53:49 AM

Quotebut i wondered if it would have burned off and out quicker and not damaged the seal. I guess it depends on the insulation between the interior/exterior wall.

IMO if you had allowed it to burn off you would have lost most if not all of your unit.
1. You would have burn out the wiring and high limit switch in the back.
2. The wiring to the rheostat burned
3. The wiring to the hot plate burned
4. Depending up the amount of grease I would think the box would have warped.

BTW that black plastic at the bottom cracks a lot. You can get a new one from Chez or seal it up.

The good that has come out of this is an awareness to all of us. For that I thank you, as I have never given thought to this possible problem.

Habanero Smoker · September 09, 2006, 04:07:06 AM

There are a couple of members who's smokers caught fire when they opened the door. The fire continued and destroyed their smokers.

Thanks for trouble shooting and finding the origin of the fire. That is a new problem that I know of. I would alert Bradley to that problem; and it has alerted me to monitor the "V" pan more closely.

As you stated the cracks in the lower face plate can allow moisture and grease to get to the electrical components. When you order the door seal, you should order the lower face plate, it's only $5.00.

I know that some members have put in an aluminum pan on the shelf below to catch dripping from chicken and turkey. Doing it for a brisket should be alright if the pan allows enough heat and smoke circulation, but the pan would be in the smoker much longer for brisket then it would be for poultry. If I did it I would take the pan out of the smoker about half way through the smoking/cooking time. By that time a good majority of the surface fat should have rendered out, and there should be no problem that the drip pan could get clogged up after that.

PS (edit)
Olds you beat me to the reply :)

smkdbrd · September 16, 2006, 07:12:17 PM

I use old aluminum cake pans under my briskets to catch the drippings. These make great starts for sauces and when added to pork and beans it's super. Before the fat congeals from the drippings i put it in plastic containers and freeze it. Try adding a little bit to meatloaf / burgers to give them a whole different taste.