AMNPS AMNS observation.

[ahakohda]

 I am big fan and supporters of Amazen Products stuff. Using it for almost a year now.

 But I was having some problems with last few smokes made in a cold weather.

First thing first. Cold smoking salmon. Outside T is around 45F. Every step by the book. MW pellets for 45 sec then maple on a bottom cherry on top. Light it up waited 10 min burned almost two inches of the first row. It smoked good and than stopped at the end of the row. I reignited it and its smokes good for 15 min but wont go further just stops dead. I was repeating this 3 or 4 times.

 I cleaned AMNPS and put some hickory dust. Ignited it on both ends. It produced VERY thin smoke and I was kind OK its smoking. By my calculation AMNPS with dust ignited on both ends will smoke for around 2-3 hours. After 2.5 hours I opened MES40 to check and to my surprise it barely burned to the middle of the first row on both ends.

 Vent was fully open. Loader removed. Ash trey opened.

On a side note. I also got AMNS and when I use it dust burns trough the walls. I put some foil on walls but all it does is dust burning in the middle of the row and than just stops.

The only difference I see is a colder air. I do everything same as I did last summer and everything was fine.

Another observation. I noticed that cherry dust always ignites and burns the best.

 

[daveomak]

First, try drying the pellets and dust for a couple hours at 250 or so... I put mine in a throw away pie pan while preheating the smoker for an hour or so....  Mixing pellets and chips/dust... I have found the dust burns faster than pellets... I have also found that the pellets need to be on the bottom with a sprinkling of chips on top.... The chips will be burned up long before the pellets... 

I have my pellets in tin cans with a plastic lid on them... In this cold weather, 10*, they still suck humidity out of the air when it warms during the day, (fog in the morning).... I ended up drying them and bringing the cans in the house to keep them dry... 

You may need to preheat the smoker to get a convection draft started to keep air flow moving for the burning process....

Difficult to trouble shoot exactly what is happening...   Dave

 

[SmokinAl]

I nuke the pellets & dust for 1 minute, let them cool then 30 seconds more. It dries them right out. I always do this before I use them.

 

[venture]

I had a similar problem on my last smoke and I am chalking it up to our foggy weather.

Good luck and good smoking.

 

[stovebolt]

 Removing the loader may be your problem. Todd posted once that removing the loader during hot smoking would make the AMNPS go out. I found that to be true on my MES 40. I guess it's okay for cold smoking though. The heat from the element I guess tries to exit the loader opening being right above it instead of pulling air in and exiting the upper vent. Either way it upsets the air flow. If you pull the loader back about 1 1/2 inches it seems to help.

 Chuck  

 

 

[alaskanbear]

Did some cheese  (15lbs) for Christmas stockin-stuffers in 24 below zero weather--was a huge pain, but, the AMAZNPS burned slowly but contineuosly for 9 hours. I dried out my pellets in the MW, sit on the woodstove for 15 minutes and then had no probs with it staying lit. I used my little burner, (propane) to keep the box temps at 85 degrees.  May need to give a bit more time to the pre-drying process and make sure you have plenty of available air flow.

Rich

 

[ahakohda]

I got two days of smoking coming. Got 5lb of bacon, 7lb of salmon and 10lb of polish kielbasa. Plus 4 turkey drumsticks.

Will dry pellets for an hour at 250F and rig MES40 with fish tank air pump for oxygen. Crossing my fingers......

P.S. I assume I can dry dust same way at 250F?

 

[ahakohda]

Well I did all of the above. Pellets started burning like crazy but they wont stay lit. As soon as I open MES and air goes in everything is back to normal. So its an obvious oxygen starvation. Looks like my next step would be drilling three one inch hole in a box where three small holes are already exist.

 

[tjohnson]

Crazy....

What's the outside temp?

When it's 40° or lower, I set me MES to 100° to warm up the box, then shut it off

The pellet burner seems to keep the box at a 70° temp.

I just keep an eye on it and after 3 hours or so, I turn on the MES for a few minutes.

Weird things happen when the temp drops.

Try moving the AMNPS up, above the level of the chip loader

Todd

 

[ahakohda]

Yeah its around 38-40 right now. But I am hot smoking kielbasa right now so internal is around 160F. Nothing was working. I placed it on first shelf from the bottom and it still goes out.

Funny part is that I started up dust right now and its burns. Slowly, very thin smoke but it does burns.

 I don't blame it on anything else but oxygen. Its obvious when i open the door and you can see 15 sec later pellets start smoking again but go out as soon as door closed. I guess air temp got something to do with it. Up untill it got to upper 30s I had no problem whatsoever.

 

[big casino]

I used my dust burner in my mes30 I have to put it on the bottom floor under the rails cause it wont fit on the rails, I leave out the chip loader, and take out the chip tray, and left the vent wide open, and then when I see everything smoking good I use a fridge magnet over the loader hole and start choking off the air until I see the smoke slow down to where I like it, and it has worked ok for me, and I am in western Pa but our weather has been sounding similar, and I did  microwave the dust for a minute, did you try making a stack for the top vent to help improve draft?

 

[ahakohda]

Dust is burning with no problem with less than 5 minute of igniting time. Its pellets i am having problem with.... Yeah i tried all combination with different trays placement. It burns and smokes good at first and than just dies. Its OK I am fine with dust.

 

[ahakohda]

Well regardless of slow start with pellets smoking session was a success as always with help of Amazen Products.

Dust was slowly burning producing TBS in both AMNS and AMNPS placed on a first from the bottom shelf. Polish kielbasa first. Bacon was left overnight. I woke up to check on dust condition - it was burning. Finished it at 8am and next was salmon. It got colder outside and it seems like dust was about to go out so I set temperature to 100F on MES40 and waited until it raises to 65F and shut it off which brought dust back to normal.

Bacon and Kielbasa with hickory dust and salmon with alder dust. Thank you Todd for info, support and great products. It makes smoking so much fun and so much easier.

I know Q-view is important but I remembered about a little to late so here it goes.

 

[scottk]

I am having the opposite problem.  40 degrees or under outside air temp and I get a 50 degree temp rise inside while trying to cold smoke cheese with the AMNPS and mesquite pellets - ruining a lot of cheese.  Twice now.  What gives?  Are pellets catching a flame somehow?  MES 30 totally off today.  Internal temp climbed to over 90 degrees with just the AMNPS in there on the bottom.  I took the loader out to try to let more cold air in after having problems the other day with it only about 1.5 inches out.  Chip tray out about 1.5 inches like always.

 

[ahakohda]

It seems that I found a good solution for my problem. I mix dust with wood chips I ordered long time ago from Lem products. I mix about  half a cup of chips with 2 cups of dust and it burns perfect while cold smoking.

Just placed an order with an Alaskan outfit  for 8 lb of wild King salmon - they have a very good sale today. Should be a great cold smoking session next Wednesday.

 

[sam3]

I nuke the pellets & dust for 1 minute, let them cool then 30 seconds more. It dries them right out. I always do this before I use them.

Great info AL. I had a problem with a maple/cherry smoke over the weekend with my AMZNPS. Never stayed lit, but I will certainly do this next time!

 

[ronald]

First off I want to thank every one that has taught me so much!!! I started off building my own smoker. I started with a 1200 W hot plate, too much white smoke that I learned here! I purchased a 6x6 AMNS and have never looked back. I have since converted to 220 V, a PDI controler that I learned how to do on this site. I can run the smoker at 230 for about 5/12 hrs at 0 degreas with the AMNS and have never jump a row. I have burnt about 20 Lbs of dust with all my smokes  . Thanks Todd!!!! P.S one day I will learn how to post pictures i can barely type