New MES Bluetooth Digital smoker

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That is a great idea Bear. 
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Will that keep them drier than in Zip Lock Bags? Mine with the exception of the 2 I have opened, are in Zip Lock Bags. The other 6 kind are still in their original sealed plastic packages, so I am asking if they will stay drier in bottles like you have them as I really like that idea ... just need some bottles now. 
I think this way keeps them Drier than any other way I know of. It should be a screw-on lidded Jug, and try to get a relatively wide mouth opening too, so it's not too hard to load & dump them.

I use a big old funnel to fill them, and as soon as I open a bag from Todd, I fill as many jugs as that bag will fill, so none stays in the air.

Right now the Humidity is 88% here. It was 94% earlier, but it's raining pretty good here now.

Bear
 
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I have an air tight dog food bin that will come handy as I just lost my sweet English Bulldog "Snickers" after 13 years. She would have been glad it will be put to good use. Skokin' tomorrow!!!
 
Put em in a zip lock bag and seal it up against a straw on one side. Suck out the air and seal it real quick after pulling out the straw. I put 1.3 cups in my 12" AMNTS. I don't fill it up all the way but level it evenly across the tube. I just throw em on a paper plate and nuke 2 min. Roll up the paper plate and pour in the tube.
-Kurt
 
 
That is a great idea Bear. 
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Will that keep them drier than in Zip Lock Bags? Mine with the exception of the 2 I have opened, are in Zip Lock Bags. The other 6 kind are still in their original sealed plastic packages, so I am asking if they will stay drier in bottles like you have them as I really like that idea ... just need some bottles now. 
Brickguy  Ever looked at a zip lock baggie in the freezer. Over time they leak. Bear uses juice bottles I recycle apple sauce jugs. The large ones hold under 2 pounds so the are manageable.  I put Hickory pellets them over two years ago and store them in a waterproof but not air tight tub outside on the porch and in Virginia humidly they are bone dry. Think of them as little sponges.  Jted
 
 
Brickguy  Ever looked at a zip lock baggie in the freezer. Over time they leak. Bear uses juice bottles I recycle apple sauce jugs. The large ones hold under 2 pounds so the are manageable.  I put Hickory pellets them over two years ago and store them in a waterproof but not air tight tub outside on the porch and in Virginia humidly they are bone dry. Think of them as little sponges.  Jted
Hmmm .... makes sense. 
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What about the bags the pellets come in, do they let moisture in and if so, would the pellets need to be nuked slightly before putting them in bottles in insure dryness?
 
 
Brickguy  Ever looked at a zip lock baggie in the freezer. Over time they leak. Bear uses juice bottles I recycle apple sauce jugs. The large ones hold under 2 pounds so the are manageable.  I put Hickory pellets them over two years ago and store them in a waterproof but not air tight tub outside on the porch and in Virginia humidly they are bone dry. Think of them as little sponges.  Jted
Exactly---I have some Dust in those Jugs since Todd invented the AMNS (6 years), and Pellets in those Jugs since he invented the AMNPS (5 Years), and I have never had to Nuke anything, except my Leftover Pizza & Cheesesteak.

Bear
 
Hmmm .... makes sense. 
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What about the bags the pellets come in, do they let moisture in and if so, would the pellets need to be nuked slightly before putting them in bottles in insure dryness?
I have always gone directly from Todd's shipping bag to my Juice Jugs. No Nuking involved.

Bear
 
Jugs are a great idea. Would be easy to fill the AMPS. Definite nuke pellets if it's humid. Watch Wade's video.

Im making beer can burgers tomorrow!!!!
 
Lamb turned out excellent. A little rare for me, but that's what our guest neighbor requested and liked. The ends were perfect for me. (My wife and our neighbor's wife had salmon). This was a Costco Australian boneless leg. I learned that Sam's Club sells New Zealand lamb. Not much difference as far as I can tell - Australia and New Zealand are neighbors.
Dennis
 
 
Hmmm .... makes sense. 
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What about the bags the pellets come in, do they let moisture in and if so, would the pellets need to be nuked slightly before putting them in bottles in insure dryness?
I can't answer that question. I bought 5 lb of Oak several weeks ago and the bag was very heavy duty.  I think if you did not open it a lot it would be fine. I think I recall DaRicka

say ing he stored his in them. He lives in Seattle so there is little humidly. If I were not sure I would just cover the seal with clear packing tape. Just a thought      Jted
 
 
So far I like what I see.

I haven't seen much yet, but they turned some of the suggestions I gave them into reality.

It's easy to see they're trying to make up for the Gen #2 & it's problems.

I told them to get rid of the left "side" vent & move it to the top left, opposite where the Gen #1 vent is.  They did.

I told them to turn the interior into something close to the interior of the Gen #1, and get rid of that stupid long slanted drip plate that traps heat on the right side. They Did.

I told them to keep it hinged left like the Gen #2, instead of hinged right like the Gen #1. They Did.

I told them to go back to the digital controls being in an easy to replace box like the Gen #1. I can't really tell by the pics how easy it is to replace, but if it doesn't have problems like the Gen #2 had, it may not need replacing.

So I wouldn't be so quick to condemn it. It could be even better than the Gen #1.  We'll see!!

Just my 2 cents.

Bear
Too bad you can't tell them to answer their phone or respond to emails when a customer has a problem.
 
I've always been able to reach them via phone but communication over email is non existent. Probably because they don't want to commit to anything in writing.
 
I've always been able to reach them via phone but communication over email is non existent. Probably because they don't want to commit to anything in writing.
I am hearing impaired enough that I can't talk on the phone, so I am forced to communicate with them by Email. Had a problem getting this set up trying to work thru the person that answers to "customer service", but finally had my wife call and get connected to a technician and told her about my hearing problem, thus not being able to talk on phone, and the tech gave me her Email address and all went well after that. However, don't Email around Holidays like Christmas, New years, etc as when I did, I had to Email 3 times and after approx 3-4 weeks, the customer service person finally responded giving me a "story" how busy she was during holidays and too busy to respond and etc.
 
 
That's Great---You'll be set up real good !!

If you keep your Pellets Dry, you won't have to Nuke them.

For those of you who have an "A-MAZE-N-SMOKER", or any other dust or pellet burning smoke generator,

This is how I keep my Dust & Pellets dry. Humidity will effect how the dust burns.

I have never had to Nuke any Dust or Pellets:

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Hey Bear, is that the dust or the pellets? Which would you recommend with the MES 40 2.5? pellets or dust from A MAZE N?
 
 
Hey Bear, is that the dust or the pellets? Which would you recommend with the MES 40 2.5? pellets or dust from A MAZE N?
The Jugs in that Picture are holding Dust, because there was no AMNPS when I took that pic, however I put both Dust & Pellets in those Jugs.

I use both, but I have an AMNPS and an AMNS:

I use my AMNPS with pellets for anything that takes a smoker temp of more than 200°.

And I use my AMNS with Dust for anything that requires a Smoker temp of under 200°, like Bacon, Cheese, and such.

I also sometimes use Dust when it only requires less than 3 hours of smoke (One Row).

Bear
 
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For the guys with the iGrill 2, the next time you do a smoke, I would be really curious to see your charts.  My MES 40 BT has big temp swings for the first 1.5 hours before they settle nicely to my desired temp.  I am curious to see exactly how far the swings are in the beginning and how long it takes other's temps to settle.

All you do is set your smoker to 225F and push the power button, and start recording the chart (dont open the door, dont change the temps etc).   

On the first run up, my Maverick probe hit 225F while my smoker was in the 190s.  So not only does the smoker stay on and continue to heat until it's probe says 225F, but because the heating element has been on for such a long time, it still continues to heat even once it's off and cause a big overrun (probably hitting around ~300F+). 

My guess is it will look something like this.  If you are doing shorter smokes (chicken, salmon etc), then adjustments are definitely necessary. 

 
I'm seasoning my 2.5 now. Should there be a big temp difference between the meat probe and stove temp ? Like 20 degrees ? The probe is stored in it holder on the side.
Sorry for the rookie questions.
 
 
What a great help. I picked up my new AMZNPS and will smoke a small pork picnic tomorrow. I did buy a propane torch to light and thanks to the video link Bear sent me I bought a Wagner heat gun to get it smoking fast. I have an old wire rib rack that I will set it on for better air flow. and plan to pre dry my hickory pellets in the microwave for a minute before I load them.Can't wait to Smoke.
I've begun lighting mine with gelled alcohol which works very well. No need for a propane torch anymore. I've never used a heat gun and I never nuke my wood pellets because I've never needed to do either.
 
I'm seasoning my 2.5 now. Should there be a big temp difference between the meat probe and stove temp ? Like 20 degrees ? The probe is stored in it holder on the side.
Sorry for the rookie questions.
The meat probe is too close to the side of the smoker to get an accurate reading.  Makes sense it would be higher.  Pop the probe into a grid holder thing (like the ones with the Maverick) and test it.  THERE ARE NO DUMB QUESTIONS. 
 
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