Smoker not working

Duckmax · December 25, 2007, 10:26:16 AM

I bought the 6 rack digital smoker less than a week ago. Did the break in, everything went fine, plenty of smoke. Today, Christmas day, with family over- preheated- everything ok. Loaded it with 6 racks of ribs and a large tenderloin- tryed to turn the smoker on and nothing happened. Unplugged everything and reset-up everything- twice I got the same results. It has been on now for 4 hours, internal temp is 219 (outside temp here is about 40) and no smoke. This is very frustrating!! Has there been problems with the smoker part of this? Any suggestions??

Mr Walleye · December 25, 2007, 10:33:40 AM

Duckmax

Is your tower heating up ok? It sounds like it is.

Does your smoke generator come to life? (The display)

Is there any error messages on the screen?

The one thing I have seen happen a couple of times is sometimes people don't push the power button hard enough. It seems some of the push buttons take a pretty good push. When you first plug the unit in it will beep and flash on screen then turn off. Next you have to turn the smoke generator on, then turn the tower on.

Mike

Smoking Duck · December 25, 2007, 10:34:11 AM

Hey Duckmax,

Kind of new myself. Couple of quick things to try:

Are you running your DBS on an extension cord? If so, plug directly into outlet and try using an outlet that is dedicated solely to the DBS.

Make sure all cords are pushed in as tightly as possible. Sometimes it seems like they're pushed in all the way, sometimes they're not. Sometimes just switching the direction of the plugs works, i.e. just reverse the cords.

Check the fuse as well. Sometimes it can be a blown fuse.

Hopefully, someone more learned than I will be by shortly to help.

Good luck!

Smoking Duck · December 25, 2007, 10:40:29 AM

Duckmax,

Mr Walleye is definitely more learned than myself. Try his methods first.

I'm just a squirrel trying to get a nut in the world of smoking ;D

Mr Walleye · December 25, 2007, 10:45:10 AM

Smoking Duck is right as well. You do want to make sure all the cords are seated good. By your post though it sounds like the tower is heating up but the genterator won't fire up????

Mike

Duckmax · December 25, 2007, 03:20:15 PM

It is not on an extension cord. The heating unit comes on although in six hours the max. temp it achieved was 219 degrees (I had it set for 260). The panel shows the tempurature set and internal temp, and timer- but the smoke side of the panel is just blank. The smoke power on switch may be bad- but it worked fine on the break-in. This one is going back to Bass Pro. I may try another but I am pretty frustrated.

KyNola · December 25, 2007, 06:12:17 PM

The problem is definitely on the generator side as the tower gets its power via the generator. Sounds like the power switch to the generator may not be making a good connection. I would let Bass Pro exchange with you. Give the Bradley another chance although I'm sure you are really frustrated. One other thing you might try is open the generator and see if a wire came loose or something. The Bradley is a great machine. Granted, it has a few bugs now and then but the pros far outweigh the cons. Let us know your outcome.

KyNola

KyNola · December 25, 2007, 06:23:42 PM

DuckMax,
Just re-read your original post. On your preheat this morning, did you turn on the smoke generator to aid with the preheat? Did it fire up then? If so, then I would definitely say the problem lies with the power switch to the generator.

KyNola

Duckmax · December 26, 2007, 09:24:48 PM

How hot should the inside temp get? Mine, with the smoker not working only achieved 219.

West Coast Kansan · December 26, 2007, 09:35:51 PM

With six racks of ribs and a large loin it will take a while for the temp to get up to your set point. The meat will be absorbing heat for a quite a while before the tower temp builds much beyond 219. There are several tricks that people use to help this such as starting with hot water in the water bowl and preheating the tower well above the intended set point. The operation of the vent is inportant as well. Closing the vent down "some" can help keep some of the heat in however if you close it too much you will trap moisture and the tower temps will never rise to where you want them.

Really 219 is a pretty good temp to smoke what you have in the tower for this run. Low and slow... is an advantage.

reading through your postl, the unit should beep when you press the power button for the smoke generator. Digitals I believe also cycle the puck when the generator is first turned on.

KyNola · December 27, 2007, 07:03:58 AM

WCK is on the money about a heavy load like the one you were cooking taking a long time to let the temp climb. Another thing is you can't depend on the DBS that the box temp the DBS is showing you is accurate. Mine has been off as much as 25 degrees either way, especially when first loading the cooker. That's why many of us use the Maverick ET-73 to monitor the box temp and the meat temp.

KyNola

ttpawpaw · January 05, 2008, 03:24:38 PM

Bradley has a big flaw in the design of their smokers. They have a safety cutoff switch in their unit, which is a good thing, BUT the switch should be at least the high temp design. If you have ever noticed, no one talks about being able to cook above 220. Just by coincidence that is the same temp as the cut-off switch. Brqadley has refused to address this issue, instead they have accused me of not knowing how to cook. I have used the same recipie for a number of years which calls for sa pork butt to start at 300 for the first hour. This has worked great thuough many smokers without a problem. When my wife died I decided to go to a bradley, it looked like it could work with a smaller piece of meat. Maybe it can, I really don't know. My unit will not go above 220, the same as the cut-off switch. I can not get it to go to the advertised temp and notw they won't help me.

Good luck if you ever want to go above 220------YOU CAN"T.

Mr Walleye · January 05, 2008, 03:52:30 PM

ttpawpaw

I don't know about anybody else but I have no problems such as this. I've had mine regularly up to 260 and 280 on preheat.

I have seen your same posts a couple of times now. What I don't understand is several of the members here have made suggestions for you and you don't respond.

I'm sorry if you feel the way you do but if the only reason you are posting here is to slam the product that most here have great success with... then it's time to take a hike.

I can explain it a little clearer if you like!

West Coast Kansan · January 05, 2008, 03:53:06 PM

ttpawpaw, ??? The temp cutoff is at 300+. There is no problem with the unit getting to temps above 220. Many here smoke at higher temps. If your unit cycles at 220 I suspect a cutoff switch is defective and Bradley is very good about providing replacements.

The unit will require time for the tower to reach the temps because it is an electric, low and slow smoker. Think about 6, 100w light bulbs as your power source. Your meat load has to warm along with the tower temps.

That is the design, it is not a design error. If you need sustained tower temps of 300F you will want a different smoker. That is probably where you got sideways on the dont know how to cook comment. For me any temp above 240 to 250 (and then for specific cuts of meat only) is barely related to smoking at all. The issue I have with other "smokers" is the battle to keep the temps down.

It does sound like your unit is broke however. Very sorry to hear about the problems. Give Bradley another try and they should provide you the repair. They have been very good in the past

Wildcat · January 05, 2008, 08:36:22 PM

I smoke butts all the time and have absolutely no desire to go over 210. The BS is designed to cook low and slow and that is why the majority of us have such good results. My unit will go to at least 260 easily when empty but could be hard to reach that temp with a load in it - not that I would want to. If you really want to smoke butt at 300, then you need another smoker because the BS was not designed for it IMHO.