New home Smoker Temperature controll

[Genometrix]

New to home smoking, I know the flavor profiles and have used an electric digital smoker at my work. Just bought the analog masterbuilt MB20070210, i was getting 15 to 20 degree swings both ways trying to achieve 225 degrees after the initial 275 degrees burn off. I was wondering if i went ahead and got a controller for it what would be the best one and how would i want to set it up?

 

[SecondHandSmoker]

15 to 20 degree swings are normal for an electric smoker whether it is analog or digital.
For precise control, an Auber PID would be the way to go.

PID Controllers : Auber Instruments, Inc., Temperature control solutions for home and industry

Auber Instruments, Inc. : PID Controllers - PID Controllers SSRs & Contactors Auto gauges, EGT Boost Coffee Machine Kits Accessories Plug-n-Play Controllers Sous Vide Cooking Smoker Controllers Timer, Counter, Tachometer Thermometer, Process Meter Temperature Sensors Enclosures (Boxes) Humidity...

www.auberins.com

 

[SecondHandSmoker]

BTW,
When you get the chance, drop in to Roll Call and introduce yourself.
And if you have questions or need some about wiring up a PID, check out posts by tallbm .

MES Rewire Simple Guide - No Back Removal Needed!!!

Lately I've seen a number of posts about guys wanting to rewire their MES. I had wanted to post a quick and simple guide for those out there that are curious or those that simply need to rewire but need a little assistance. Well here goes. Disclaimer: When messing with electrical equipment...

www.smokingmeatforums.com

 

[Murray]

With an analog smoker don’t you set the dial to maximum and plug the smoker into whatever temperature controller you want to use?

 

[tallbm]

With an analog smoker don’t you set the dial to maximum and plug the smoker into whatever temperature controller you want to use?

Yep. Just gotta make sure the controller you use can handle the Amps to support the power pull and Wattage :)

 

[tallbm]

New to home smoking, I know the flavor profiles and have used an electric digital smoker at my work. Just bought the analog masterbuilt MB20070210, i was getting 15 to 20 degree swings both ways trying to achieve 225 degrees after the initial 275 degrees burn off. I was wondering if i went ahead and got a controller for it what would be the best one and how would i want to set it up?

Hi there and welcome!

Yeah the electrics are built so they temp swing to keep the chips/wood smoking.
Once you switch to a PID controller you will have to provide smoke a different way an improved way to supply smoke in my opinion).

This PID should handle the Amperage and Wattage requirements of your smoker (12.5A 1500 Watt over 120V):

Multi Purpose Controller [WS-1510ELPM] - $159.95 : Auber Instruments, Inc., Temperature control solutions for home and industry

Auber Instruments, Inc. Multi Purpose Controller [WS-1510ELPM] - The WS-1510ELPM is a versatile temperature controller to have in your home. It can be used for various applications such as Sous Vide cooking, controlling an electric smoker, making yogurt, dough proofing, controlling the...

www.auberins.com

You just turn your dial to max and plug the smoker plug into the PID and the PID will read the temp inside the smoker and cut power on/off to the smoker to hit and hold the temp you punch into the PID.

With all that said you are going to lose the ability to burn chunks or chips in your smoke pan but that's really no big deal because you have a better option!

The option is called a "Mailbox Mod".
If I owned an analogue smoker like this I would get a 3inch hole saw bit and drill a hole in the side of the smoker opposite of the power cord and between the element and lowest meat rack.
You can then use 3inch duct joints and such and build a mailbox mod.
In the mailbox mod you use the A-Maze-N Pellet Smoker (AMNPS) tray and burn wood pellets.
The AMNPS tray provides PERFECT Thin Blue Smoke (TBS) with no fuss for up to 12 hours!!!!

So with this kind of setup you have the PID for great temp control and the mailbox mod + AMNPS with pellets for perfect smoke for up to 12 hours! My setup is like this except I have the digital MES40 and my mailbox mod is super compact and uses a wall hanging mailbox instead of a traditional mailbox:


Finally, the analog units have zero insulation so later if you are having trouble hitting and maintaining heat you may want to get some kind of insulation wrapping (mylar type or welding blanket type) and wrap your smoker to insulate it. One guy went as far as to take out the inner wall of his analog and stuffed it full of fiberglass insulation (doesnt burn) and then reassembled it to have a rock solid insulated analog unit :)

I hope all this info helps :)

 

[Genometrix]

Hi there and welcome!

Yeah the electrics are built so they temp swing to keep the chips/wood smoking.
Once you switch to a PID controller you will have to provide smoke a different way an improved way to supply smoke in my opinion).

This PID should handle the Amperage and Wattage requirements of your smoker (12.5A 1500 Watt over 120V):

Multi Purpose Controller [WS-1510ELPM] - $159.95 : Auber Instruments, Inc., Temperature control solutions for home and industry

Auber Instruments, Inc. Multi Purpose Controller [WS-1510ELPM] - The WS-1510ELPM is a versatile temperature controller to have in your home. It can be used for various applications such as Sous Vide cooking, controlling an electric smoker, making yogurt, dough proofing, controlling the...

www.auberins.com

You just turn your dial to max and plug the smoker plug into the PID and the PID will read the temp inside the smoker and cut power on/off to the smoker to hit and hold the temp you punch into the PID.

With all that said you are going to lose the ability to burn chunks or chips in your smoke pan but that's really no big deal because you have a better option!

The option is called a "Mailbox Mod".
If I owned an analogue smoker like this I would get a 3inch hole saw bit and drill a hole in the side of the smoker opposite of the power cord and between the element and lowest meat rack.
You can then use 3inch duct joints and such and build a mailbox mod.
In the mailbox mod you use the A-Maze-N Pellet Smoker (AMNPS) tray and burn wood pellets.
The AMNPS tray provides PERFECT Thin Blue Smoke (TBS) with no fuss for up to 12 hours!!!!

So with this kind of setup you have the PID for great temp control and the mailbox mod + AMNPS with pellets for perfect smoke for up to 12 hours! My setup is like this except I have the digital MES40 and my mailbox mod is super compact and uses a wall hanging mailbox instead of a traditional mailbox:
View attachment 483927

Finally, the analog units have zero insulation so later if you are having trouble hitting and maintaining heat you may want to get some kind of insulation wrapping (mylar type or welding blanket type) and wrap your smoker to insulate it. One guy went as far as to take out the inner wall of his analog and stuffed it full of fiberglass insulation (doesnt burn) and then reassembled it to have a rock solid insulated analog unit :)

I hope all this info helps :)

Would the mailbox be required if i got the controller? Would my chips not burn through out the smoke?

 

[Norwester55]

Would the mailbox be required if i got the controller? Would my chips not burn through out the smoke?

I've got a PID in my Smokin-It and it burns chips fine. That said I usually burn chunks and have only used chips once. I don't know how long a load of chips last in a Masterbuilt
but in my gas smokers it was generally less than a couple hrs so in that case a mailbox mod would be a good option for longer smokes.

 

[tallbm]

Would the mailbox be required if i got the controller? Would my chips not burn through out the smoke?

I would think so.
You have to understand the behavior of the PID well in this case.
When you start your smoker the element will be going full blast and red hot until it hits the set temp. During this point in the smoke your wood chips would have no problem smoking.

Once the smoker hits set temp then the PID will pulse off/on heat to keep the set temp hit.
This means the element may never be going full blast again and if so may only do it for a few seconds. THIS is where you can and likely will run into problems heating up new chips to continue smoking.

Now a wood chunk from the start may work IF it starts a good smolder when the smoker is coming up to temp. See at this point the wood embers keep going they dont burn out until the whole chunk burns out. If/after the chunk burns out you have an issue again getting another chunk to light up.

In the end only trying will let you know exactly what you can/can't get away with using your setup but as others have reported and taking an educated guess I think you will either have to use chunks or mailbox mod with pellets.
I cannot speak to direct behavior of chunks so you would have to play with that and tell us if/how you can/can't work with them so we all know :)

 

[Genometrix]

I went ahead and got the pid i will try it without mod at first and see what happens.

 

[Genometrix]

Either way my 2 trips and 3 racks of ribs on test day came out amazing. Was surprised the ribs fit seeing how small the smoker is.Just had to sit there with my probe reader until i found the sweet spot which was easy with the tri-tip run but the ribs having to open the door twice to do the 3-2-1 messed with the temp quite a bit.

 

[tallbm]

Either way my 2 trips and 3 racks of ribs on test day came out amazing. Was surprised the ribs fit seeing how small the smoker is.Just had to sit there with my probe reader until i found the sweet spot which was easy with the tri-tip run but the ribs having to open the door twice to do the 3-2-1 messed with the temp quite a bit.

Glad to hear it all came out well!

SmokinAl has a great rib approach that is simple and has been foolproof for many of us.
You put a temp probe between the bones in the center meaty top area of the ribs.
When it its 195F Internal Temp (IT) then u have bite off the bone ribs.
I go to 198F to have a little softer but not exactly fall off the bone ribs.

No opening the smoker, no filing, no fuss, and all goodness!!!!
Feel free to give it a shot sometime, just know the ribs may take a little longer since they arent foiled. U can just crank up the heat in this case since ribs dont care what temp they are cooked at :)

 

[cmayna]

Yes for the mailbox mod. You will never look back. Oh and your mail will smell wonderfully

 

[Genometrix]

Controller worked out great and ribs came out great as well. Eventually i will do the mod for briskets and such but i was oddly surprised how much smoke flavor there still was and the chips were ash.

So for now anything between 1 to 6 hrs of smoke is fine but eventually i will mod for more flavor in the meats especially for those briskets i love so much.

 

[tallbm]

Controller worked out great and ribs came out great as well. Eventually i will do the mod for briskets and such but i was oddly surprised how much smoke flavor there still was and the chips were ash.

So for now anything between 1 to 6 hrs of smoke is fine but eventually i will mod for more flavor in the meats especially for those briskets i love so much.

That's great info to know!
Do you pile up a ton of chips at the start or do you feed it chips every 30min-1hr of the smoke for now?

As you get more and more things figured out with your system be sure to let us know. I love to hear about what people are tinkering with, how they made it work, and the great food they are making with it :)

 

[Genometrix]

That's great info to know!
Do you pile up a ton of chips at the start or do you feed it chips every 30min-1hr of the smoke for now?

As you get more and more things figured out with your system be sure to let us know. I love to hear about what people are tinkering with, how they made it work, and the great food they are making with it :)

I did pile up the chips and just for the last hour I added another pile up.

Unless you have a better idea i need to attempt a brisket for a birthday. I was thinking about smoking it on Saturday to 140 then finishing it on Sunday(day of party) so i can try and get a double smoke on it.

Is that unheard of, is there a better way?

 

[tallbm]

I did pile up the chips and just for the last hour I added another pile up.

Unless you have a better idea i need to attempt a brisket for a birthday. I was thinking about smoking it on Saturday to 140 then finishing it on Sunday(day of party) so i can try and get a double smoke on it.

Is that unheard of, is there a better way?

I don't have a better approach. I was just curious. The only other thing I can think of but it would need to be tried is to get a small wood split or a big wood chunk and if it gets started smoldering, then hopefully it just continues to do so for a long time and your element jus helps it along... as long as it doesnt ignite it somehow hahahaa.

As for your brisket plan it could work but you will really want to plan that well. A brisket has no problem getting up to 140F Internal Temp (IT). HOWEVER, it takes forever to get into the low 200's and probe tender.
I like to do no smaller than 15 pound whole packer briskets and that 2 day approach really just turns into 1 long smoke since day 2 would take me at least 17hrs to smoke to tendreness hahaha.

Brisket does very well if you smoke it completely a few days before and then reheat it. You can even slice it better when it is cold and it reheats well in cambros. I eat it multiple times a year like that when my mother makes brisket for family gatherings. There is no way to do it all in one day with how many people and how much food comes to the gathering so she manages it easily that way and it is always fantastic :)