Hate to fill up the forum, but I was thinking

[Tramp]

I have been reading thru the forum and have seen quite a bit about modding the DBS. Mostly PID addons and the like. So i have a question or 2 concerning this.
First, it seems that the smoke TIME is pretty much controlled by the number of pucks added (roughly 20 mins per)....... But there is a timer on the DBS controller for Smoke Timer.......why?

Also, when the smoke time runs out, does the smoke generator remain active, or can the heater (Oven Element) still function alone?

[Mr Walleye]

I have been reading thru the forum and have seen quite a bit about modding the DBS. Mostly PID addons and the like. So i have a question or 2 concerning this.
First, it seems that the smoke TIME is pretty much controlled by the number of pucks added (roughly 20 mins per)....... But there is a timer on the DBS controller for Smoke Timer.......why?

Also, when the smoke time runs out, does the smoke generator remain active, or can the heater (Oven Element) still function alone?

You are correct about the number of pucks X 20 minutes for the amount of smoke. The timer shuts down the smoke generator including the heating element. The generator is either on or off and includes the heating element and the timed advance of the pucks even if there are no pucks.

Hope that helps

Mike

[Tramp]

Ok, let me see if i got this correct......sorry for seeming like an idoit, but if ya dont ask, you'll never know  ;)

There are 2 heating elements, the puck burner, and the oven element.
Lets say i want 2 hours of smoke, and 6 hours of cook at 260 degrees.

I have to program the smoke generator to run for 6 hours, and use the puck count for smoke time? All the while the puck burner is running, and the advance mechanizim is operating?

Or can i just run the oven element alone? Sounds like the answer is NO from what you said above, but i want to clarify it....thanx in advance  :)

If the answer is no, i can see some MODS coming my way real soon.

[Mr Walleye]

Ok, let me see if i got this correct......sorry for seeming like an idoit, but if ya dont ask, you'll never know  ;)

You are absolutely correct... There are no stupid questions.

There are 2 heating elements, the puck burner, and the oven element.

On the DBS control the buttons on the left side control the SG timer. On the right side the buttons control the tower heater for both time and temp.

Lets say i want 2 hours of smoke, and 6 hours of cook at 260 degrees. I have to program the smoke generator to run for 6 hours, and use the puck count for smoke time? All the while the puck burner is running, and the advance mechanizim is operating?

You could do this a couple of ways. You could load 2 hours of pucks, program the SG for 2 hours, then program the Tower for 6 hours and the correct temp of 260 degrees. You usually program the Tower for your total cook time including the smoke time. The way I tipically do it is, preheat the DBS using both the SG and Tower heaters, next I would put the meat in, load the 2 hours of pucks, set the SG timer for 6 hours, set the Tower timer to 6 hours. As you can see most people run the SG all the time even when there is no pucks in it for the added heat. The advance mechanism does run every 20 minutes even though there is no pucks.

Or can i just run the oven element alone? Sounds like the answer is NO from what you said above, but i want to clarify it....thanx in advance  :)

Actually the answer is yes. You can turn the Tower on and leave the SG off or you can also do the opposite.

If the answer is no, i can see some MODS coming my way real soon.

The mods are usually done to better control the heat. I have done the PID and the circulation fan mods.

Mike

[Tramp]

Phew, thanx for clearing that up Mike, much appriciated.
:)

[Mr Walleye]

No problem Tramp.

Good Luck

Mike

[Consiglieri]

I have read posts where people are concerned about the puck advance mechanism wearing out prematurely from running the SG full time.  Also, doesn't the full time SG add to the difficulty with plate tar buildup? 

[Mr Walleye]

As far as build up on the SG goes I use Bubba Pucks and they really do make a difference. My burner on the SG requires very limited cleaning. As far as the wear and tear on the SG goes from my experience and everything I've read I wouldn't be concerned about it. Certainly, depending on the weather you can run without the SG on and still maintain temps. My DBS is in the garage all the time and can maintain the tower temp no problem without the SG running.

Mike

[Consiglieri]

I only have two of the bubbas; short sighted I guess.  Was more worried about wasting flavor pucks than cleaning the plate.  I take it you load up three bubbas? 

I'm not too worried about wear, but when I first found this place, I noticed that quite a few others had replaced a number of SGs. 

[Mr Walleye]

Your right I do run 3 Bubba Pucks. You can load your pucks in followed by the 2 Bubba Pucks that you have, then put in 1 more wood puck. That will push one of the Bubba Pucks onto the burner with the same effect as having 3 Bubba Pucks.

As far as the SG goes it seems that anybody who has had problems with them had the problem when it was new and under warranty. There are a lot of people here who haven't had a problem in years. My DBS is only a year old and other than having a fuse holder problem, which they resolved, I haven't had any other issues.

Mike

[Gizmo]

I use 3 so the last one sits on the burner plate.  You can put a regular puck in the last position so the 2 aluminum pucks are under the regular.  The regular will push the 1st buba onto the burner and it will be far away from the heat source.  Most of the posts on smoke gen problems appear to be right out of the box or shortly there after.  In fact, if I am not mistaken, the posts have mostly been on the original Bradley and not the Digital.  The smoke gens are different so they may have improved the design.  Like Mr. Walley, I turn the SG on during the preheat of the box so the burner is hot for the first puck.  I do not use the SG after smoking.