low heat

stevergs · October 29, 2010, 03:27:48 PM

i bought a obs in june and by august the temp would not go over 100. they sent me a new heating element which fixed the problem. now happened again. they felt mayby a heat sensor problem and sent a new one. just replaced it tonight and again went to 100. tested with probe and temp is correct. guessing it is heating element again. has any else had this problem. company has been very good, but getting tired of this new machine.

Wildcat · October 29, 2010, 05:07:54 PM

Sounds a bit strange. I guess even Bradley has a lemon once in a while. Keep them informed - they will make it right.

classicrockgriller · October 29, 2010, 06:00:49 PM

Are you using an extention cord to run your Bradley?

Habanero Smoker · October 30, 2010, 01:55:14 AM

Did they send you an in-line fuse when they sent you the sensor? If not that could be part of the problem. If the fuse burnt out then the element will not receive any electrical current.

Have you tried unplugging the cabinet from the generator and plugging it directly into an outlet. To do this you will need to swap the power cord that came with your smoker, and use a desk top power cord. If the element works after plugging it direction into an outlet, then you may have a loose wire in the generator.

stevergs · October 30, 2010, 05:51:41 AM

yes, using a short heavy appliance cord,was not a problem before. no they did not send a new fuse, i will take back off and check this morning. thanks

Habanero Smoker · October 30, 2010, 01:25:23 PM

I recently learned you can't tell by looking at it. It either needs to be tested with a ohm meter, or you need to temporarily by pass it, by replacing it with a length of 14 gauge high temperature wire. This should only be temporary, just to do a test. You should not by past the fuse permanently.

stevergs · October 30, 2010, 02:45:27 PM

the fuse in the generator is good. is there a second one in line by the heat sensor? thing is the temp comes up tp about 100 and just stays there. tried bypassing the generator and still just gets warm. still guessing the element is bad.but why 2 in 5 months. confusing.great machine when working, but hate to have it down for so long

12AMNSX · October 30, 2010, 03:44:06 PM

This may be of help:

http://forum.bradleysmoker.com/index.php?topic=15710.msg188163#msg188163

stevergs · October 30, 2010, 04:17:06 PM

thanks for the info. that should take care of my sunday before i call bradley on monday morning. thanks again to all.

Habanero Smoker · October 31, 2010, 02:14:53 AM

Quote from: stevergs on October 30, 2010, 02:45:27 PM
the fuse in the generator is good. is there a second one in line by the heat sensor? thing is the temp comes up tp about 100 and just stays there. tried bypassing the generator and still just gets warm. still guessing the element is bad.but why 2 in 5 months. confusing.great machine when working, but hate to have it down for so long

I was speaking of the in-line fuse. You will need to take the back of the smoker off, and it connects to the temperature sensor you installed.

This is what it looks like, and where you can purchase it:
OBS In-line Fuse

stevergs · November 01, 2010, 12:17:12 PM

new in-line fuse on its way :) got my fingers crossed.

stevergs · November 05, 2010, 03:58:10 PM

well, fuse came today. first one sent was for a different machine. now fri afternoon. installed new inline fuse and again machine went to 100 degrees and 1 hour later was still there. same ole issue. now smoker will be down 1 month since ive had it since june. of course its fri afternoon and they are closed till monday morning. well keep you posted. frustated in wisconsin.

Habanero Smoker · November 06, 2010, 01:57:47 AM

Sorry your smoker is still down. Brian often logs on so he may be by to assist, but if it is another parts problem, it will be further delays.

When the initial problem was the heating element, I over looked another common problem. It still looks like the only heat you are getting is from the generator. Does your faceplate have a crack in it, just above the temperature slider control? Even if there is not a crack, has Bradley ruled out the heat control switch. If that goes bad it will kill the power going to the element.

stevergs · November 06, 2010, 01:57:24 PM

thank you for the info. there is not a crack in the face plate, but i will mention this to them on monday.see what we can do. thanks again mr. H.smoker

Bradley (Head Office) · November 06, 2010, 07:51:42 PM

Hi Steve

Sorry to hear your having so much trouble getting this fixed normally the fixes are real simple.

First question do you have a meter you could check the continuity of the heat element with?

If no meter then try this:

Plug just the tower directly to the wall outlet and slide the temperature control switch all the way to the right
I need to know if the power indicator light on the front of the tower comes on?

Brian