About to give up on the amnps

[outback32]

As the title says I've tried everything. I've searched I've read about all the tricks. Well In my gen2.5 mes 30 it won't stay lit. I've dried the pellets Ivery tried hickory and the blend. I even built a mailbox mod and I got 4hrs. It quit in the middle. I took the amnps out lit it started again. Burnt 1hr then went out again. I had very high hopes for the amnps. But so far it's just been very frustrating and dissapointing.

 

[b-one]

Have you talked to Todd about your issues,he maybe able to help if you haven't.

 

[BGKYSmoker]

Never had any issues in my Bradleys, POS MES and no in my Sausage Maker smoker, tray, and tubes smoke great 

Dont know what to tell you that you prob already have tried. BTW how do you light the pellets? I use a propane torch, like plumbers use.

 

[outback32]

I use a propane torch let it go for 10 min. The use a blow dryer to get them red hot. I'm going to try putting legs on the maze and see if that helps.

 

[schlotz]

If it keeps going out my first thought is the issue has to do with airflow.  Even more so once I read about wanting to attach legs.  It might help those trying to assist if you could provide a photo showing how the amnps is positioned in your MES.

 

[cmayna]

How about doing a mailbox mod. That's what I did to my MES40. Never looked back.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[outback32]

I built a mailbox mod. I raised it in the mailbox. It's been going since 7 hopefully it will work this time. Trying bearcarvers Canadian bacon

 

[outback32]

Well it's been 6 hrs and it's still going. I guess raising it in the mailbox did the trick. Hopefully it keeps going

 

[photomatt]

I have an MES 30 inch 2nd gen.

I have absolutely no problems with it staying lit. Actually only issue I have is the burn ratio I think maybe I have too much airflow I can fill up the tray and I get about four and a half to maybe five hours and it's totally burn through.

I have my tray sitting on the bottom grated Shelf. I sure don't know how people get this 10 + 11 hour burn duration

 

[dr k]

Yes! Yes! Raise it because the X steel framing on the bottom of the AMNPS on a flat surface blocks bottom air flow.  When your AMNPS is elevated, in the draft, in a mailbox mod, so the cherry is burning with the draft, you'll never get better than that. 

Remember the bagged vacuum cleaners with the motor in the bottom, blowing crap up with a belt on the agitator roller brush, with debris smacking the fan blade and blowing dirt into the dirt bag?  That's why motors are at the end of vacuum cleaners these days, puling joints together. They now suck!  Literally!  Convection is the motor  The smoke generator should be in the middle, between the convection maker and air intake of a electric/propane source.  Otherwise it's fuel/flavor heat from wood/charcoal.  Otherwise your cooking the smoke generator/pellets for no reason.  I guess we didn't evolve and since the Amnps it is hot and smoldering we need to put it in with the heat source where the food is.    

No matter where the Amnps is, the cherry may want to go out in the middle of the middle row (where the X marks the spot.)  That's when it's burning against the draft in the MB mod.  After five hours of smoke I take the AMNPS out of the mailbox and turn it 180 degrees and put it back in so the burn goes with the draft into the smoker, stoking the pellets.  I get four hours per row on the AMNPS. 

When hot smoking with a watt burner, smoke needs to be sucked not pushed.  Or a push me, pull you and wonder why your getting too much smoke or none when the smoke generator fails. 

Just like idiots trying to get on a packed elevator.  Those SOB 's won't get on till someone gets off.  Kinda like the top vent on the Mes fully closed.  Since you can compress air and it's driven by heat, you'll get all kinds of convection out of a fully closed top vent with probe leads coming out of it without any worries with the Amnps on a mailbox mod failing.  My top vent keeps idiots from getting into my elevator before others can get off.  If your not using the Mes the way it was intended to be used, then get the after market smoke generator out of the product chamber.  Do a test!  If your're making smoke, then your making creosote.  Let a horizontal chimney work for you.  It's a cleaner, drier, lighter and IMHO a higher quality smoke.  Chimney sweeps clean crap out of a chimneys, so if it was horizontal going into my smoker that crap didn't make it to my food.  Especially cold smoking.

-Kurt

 

[outback32]

Great news I got about 9 hrs burn. Raising it in the mailbox did the trick

 

[rickc1970]

I built a mailbox mod. I raised it in the mailbox. It's been going since 7 hopefully it will work this time. Trying bearcarvers Canadian bacon

How did you raise it? I'm working on a mod myself.