40” masterbuilt issue, NEED HELP PLEASE

[cowboy109]

Question to all. I have an older masterbuilt 40” electric smoker. Model 20073012. When I plug the smoker in it trips the breaker. I believe I have a bad circuit board on the smoker. If I unhook the heating element and run power straight to the element with a temp power cord, the heating element gets hot and doesn’t trip the breaker. As soon as I plug the smoker in though it trips the breaker. I also went as far as unplugging the control panel incase for some reason there was a short in the control panel. Still have the same problem. Also if you pull the circuit board out of the bottom of the smoker it does appear to have a slight dark spot on it which is why I’m thinking the board may be bad. It looks like you can buy new circuit boards online built everything I find says it’s not for my model masterbuilt (20073012) I only use this smoker to do deer bologna in but it’s that time of the year. Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks

 

[normanaj]

Perfect time to add a PID controller.

Do the simple rewire and add an Auber PID.

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

This will turn your MES into a smoker so much better than a stock new model!

tallbm is the guy to converse with.

 

[tallbm]

Question to all. I have an older masterbuilt 40” electric smoker. Model 20073012. When I plug the smoker in it trips the breaker. I believe I have a bad circuit board on the smoker. If I unhook the heating element and run power straight to the element with a temp power cord, the heating element gets hot and doesn’t trip the breaker. As soon as I plug the smoker in though it trips the breaker. I also went as far as unplugging the control panel incase for some reason there was a short in the control panel. Still have the same problem. Also if you pull the circuit board out of the bottom of the smoker it does appear to have a slight dark spot on it which is why I’m thinking the board may be bad. It looks like you can buy new circuit boards online built everything I find says it’s not for my model masterbuilt (20073012) I only use this smoker to do deer bologna in but it’s that time of the year. Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks

Hi there and welcome!

I agree with normanaj . It sounds like time to just rewire and convert to using a PID controller. You are basically to that point anyhow with all your troubleshooting.

The PID controller with hit and hold dead on (or within 1-2 degrees) of whatever temp you enter into the controller.

You do the simple rewire (cut ends off 4 wires at the lower circuit board and wire-nut to make 2 whole wires) so now the MES plug feeds power to the heating element while still keeping the safety cutoff switch in the mix.

You Plug the PID controller into the wall and clip it's temp probe under the center of the lowest smoking rack so it will read the smoker temp.

You Plug the MES cord into the PID.
Enter the smoker set temp into the PID controller and the PID will take power from the wall and feed it to the MES element to hit and hold the temp you entered. Easy!

This will give you TIGHT and superior temp control which is very very very desired for doing sausage, bacon, and jerky. This sounds very useful for you with your venison sausages (and probably jerky too).

It turns your golf cart of a smoker into a Ferrari. All of us guys who did it, wonder why we waited so long hahhaha.
A ready to go PID controller can be had for about $150 which is a non-trivial chunk of money BUT it turns your MES into smoker that performs better than any electric smoker you get until you hit the $1,000+ units!

Ask all the questions you may have :D

 

[cowboy109]

So how do you know what generation masterbuilt I have and I see you recommend an a auber PID but which one or does it matter? When I look up PID’s online/Amazon there is an unlimited amount to pick from.

 

[normanaj]

So how do you know what generation masterbuilt I have and I see you recommend an a auber PID but which one or does it matter? When I look up PID’s online/Amazon there is an unlimited amount to pick from.

Generation doesn't really matter.

This is the controller you want:

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

 

[normanaj]

.

 

[cmayna]

Yes for Auber WS-1510ELPM. My 40 was a dead curbside freebee. With the help of tallbm and others here, I rewired it for the PID and it's been running perfectly for quite awhile now.

 

[PAS]

What breaker is it tripping, GFCI..?

 

[tallbm]

So how do you know what generation masterbuilt I have and I see you recommend an a auber PID but which one or does it matter? When I look up PID’s online/Amazon there is an unlimited amount to pick from.

Yep like normanaj stated. The generation wont matter and he has you a link to the minimal Auber PID controller that will work for you (get the multi purpose probe). If you wanted to go fancier you could get the wifi model that can run a 1400W element but no need if you just want to be up and running and get to smoking :D Some like the extra bells and whistles.

The options you are seeing on amazon are not the complete controllers but just the main component(s) to build one. You would still need an SSR, a project box, the temp probes, cords, wires, connectors, etc. etc. to make a complete unit and if you've never done one before, it's actually cheaper to buy an Auber.

Generation doesn't matter but I'll give you an answer (that I think is correct) :

Gen 1 = vent on top in back right corner, controller us top mid of the smoker and there is NO slanted drip pan metal in the smoker

Gen 2 = vent on left side wall of smoker at the top (yes the left side wall), controller is across the front of the smoker above the door (not on top of the smoker), HAS slanted drip pan metal in the smoker

Gen 2.5 = vent on top and back left corner, everything else the same as Gen 1

 

[cowboy109]

What breaker is it tripping, GFCI..?

Yes a gfci

Yep like normanaj stated. The generation wont matter and he has you a link to the minimal Auber PID controller that will work for you (get the multi purpose probe). If you wanted to go fancier you could get the wifi model that can run a 1400W element but no need if you just want to be up and running and get to smoking :D Some like the extra bells and whistles.

The options you are seeing on amazon are not the complete controllers but just the main component(s) to build one. You would still need an SSR, a project box, the temp probes, cords, wires, connectors, etc. etc. to make a complete unit and if you've never done one before, it's actually cheaper to buy an Auber.

Generation doesn't matter but I'll give you an answer (that I think is correct) :

Gen 1 = vent on top in back right corner, controller us top mid of the smoker and there is NO slanted drip pan metal in the smoker

Gen 2 = vent on left side wall of smoker at the top (yes the left side wall), controller is across the front of the smoker above the door (not on top of the smoker), HAS slanted drip pan metal in the smoker

Gen 2.5 = vent on top and back left corner, everything else the same as Gen 1

so you don’t think building a PID controller yourself that went straight to the heating element would be better? What do you gain by making the wire configuration of the original wire set up on the smoker and then plugging the original power cord into the auber. Just weighing out the options and trying to do what will be best.

 

[dr k]

Yes a gfci

so you don’t think building a PID controller yourself that went straight to the heating element would be better? What do you gain by making the wire configuration of the original wire set up on the smoker and then plugging the original power cord into the auber. Just weighing out the options and trying to do what will be best.

You gain unplugging the Auber PID in a few seconds and bringing it inside when not in use as a plug and play small controller or spending the same amount of $ casing it into an over sized fugly box.

 

[cmayna]

You could simply bypass all the wiring of the smoker by attaching a power cord directly to the element and then plug the power cord to the Auber.

 

[dr k]

You can still go straight to the element with a power cord with connectors and wrap the ground around an element access screw and tighten to ground the chassis but some like having the dime sized switch over temp snap disk in circuit. I don't bc they will screw up a smoke when they fail so I bypassed them on my two smokers and use the high low alarm on my multi probe therm with the pit probe. I made a direct connect power cord to the heating element just to isolate the element for trouble shooting bc I did the no back removal. Got a free Mes 30 on FB Marketplace an found the over temp had a wire disconnected so bypassed it with a wire nut. in 45 min.

 

[PAS]

Yes a gfci

so you don’t think building a PID controller yourself that went straight to the heating element would be better? What do you gain by making the wire configuration of the original wire set up on the smoker and then plugging the original power cord into the auber. Just weighing out the options and trying to do what will be best.

GFCI's can go bad. Did you try using an outlet that doesnt have a GFCI in the circuit, to see how if operates?

 

[cowboy109]

GFCI's can go bad. Did you try using an outlet that doesnt have a GFCI in the circuit, to see how if operates?

Yes it’s not the gfci unfortunately

 

[cowboy109]

Thanks for the help all! I ordered the 1800watt, Wi-Fi, 3 probe port with the smoke generator plug. Figured this way when I decide to build a bigger box to smoke in I can use this auber PID for it.

 

[cmayna]

So, does this mean that you are going to connect a power cord directly to the element or not?

 

[cowboy109]

So, does this mean that you are going to connect a power cord directly to the element or not?

So, does this mean that you are going to connect a power cord directly to the element or not?

Haven’t decided yet but leaning that way

 

[cmayna]

Way back when, I removed the small cover plate that covers the connection to the element. Drilled a hole in the cover plate. Ran an extra power cord through the hole and connected the cord to the element. I now plug the other end of the cord into the Auber.

Doing this bypasses all of the smoker's original wiring. Here's a pic.......

 

[cowboy109]

Way back when, I removed the small cover plate that covers the connection to the element. Drilled a hole in the cover plate. Ran an extra power cord through the hole and connected the cord to the element. I now plug the other end of the cord into the Auber.

Doing this bypasses all of the smoker's original wiring. Here's a pic.......View attachment 681052

Great ideal and thanks for the picture