Another Masterbuilt Problem

[dons2346]

Picked up a used Masterbuilt and got one smoke out of it. Next time I got no power indication on the control. I sprayed contact cleaner on both sides of the board and now I have power. I set the temp to 180 and it went crazy with temp headed to 300!. Shut it down, let it cool and then tried at 150. Temp climbed to 250 + and then the power to element terminated. Unit cooled down to 150 and power was restored to the element. I kept watching the temp what is supposed to be pit temp and at all times it said that the temp was 150. I monitored with my Inkbird and it tracked what was being shown.

Tearing things apart, I found, on the lower control board, a red braid, blue braid,white smooth, black smooth, and two smaller white braids. At the element, I found red braid, and black braid.

Looking at the board again, I buzzed the black smooth to the element and the power plug. The red braid went to the element however they are of different size wire. The white smooth went to the power plug. I have no idea where the blue braid goes but thinking about it, it is possible it goes to the cutout switch?

I know the answer is to dump the original and go with the Auber and That is what I'm going to do tomorrow. So, the question is which one? It appears everyone is going with the WS1510ELPM which is a 15 amp unit or what about the possibility of the WSD1200GPH which is a 12 amp? The Tim the Toolman in me says go with the 15 amp version.

 

[jaxgatorz]

Lots of MB folks here to help.. I think it's tallbm who knows the PID stuff inside and out..

 

[DougE]

tallbm is definitely the guy to see when it comes to these MB units. If your problem is the roll out switch rather than the control board, you're still going to have to deal with that by either replacing or eliminating it, I believe.

 

[tallbm]

Picked up a used Masterbuilt and got one smoke out of it. Next time I got no power indication on the control. I sprayed contact cleaner on both sides of the board and now I have power. I set the temp to 180 and it went crazy with temp headed to 300!. Shut it down, let it cool and then tried at 150. Temp climbed to 250 + and then the power to element terminated. Unit cooled down to 150 and power was restored to the element. I kept watching the temp what is supposed to be pit temp and at all times it said that the temp was 150. I monitored with my Inkbird and it tracked what was being shown.

Tearing things apart, I found, on the lower control board, a red braid, blue braid,white smooth, black smooth, and two smaller white braids. At the element, I found red braid, and black braid.

Looking at the board again, I buzzed the black smooth to the element and the power plug. The red braid went to the element however they are of different size wire. The white smooth went to the power plug. I have no idea where the blue braid goes but thinking about it, it is possible it goes to the cutout switch?

I know the answer is to dump the original and go with the Auber and That is what I'm going to do tomorrow. So, the question is which one? It appears everyone is going with the WS1510ELPM which is a 15 amp unit or what about the possibility of the WSD1200GPH which is a 12 amp? The Tim the Toolman in me says go with the 15 amp version.
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You've done some good investigation there.

Yep, the Blue Braided runs to the Safety Rollout Limit Switch. Then from your switch they are running a Black Braided wire to the heating element.
Your hunch is correct and feel free to double check it.
If you have a panel to the safety rollout limit switch then open it up and you will see.
If no panel I suggest you cut one because those switches are crappy plastic ones and will melt down once the connectors to it start to corrode.

The Masterbuilt connectors are cheap crap too and its worth replacing the ones at the safety rollout limit switch and heating element with hi temp ones like these:

https://www.amazon.com/Supco-T1111-Disconnect-Temperature-Female/dp/B0071NC5NO/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2P31HJALB8PDM&keywords=supco+t1111&qid=1668744410&sprefix=supco+t1111%2Caps%2C197&sr=8-1

I always recommend going with the Auber WS1510ELPM because it is beefy enough to support the MES40 1200w element with no overheating or issues. The other just isn't beefy enough IMO.
So the Auber WS1510ELPM unit can easily support an MES40 or an MES30 smoker.

Once you see the performance of a rewired and PID operated MES the lightbulb goes off indicating "hey I can upgrade from an MES30 to an MES40 by getting a used one or malfunctioning one for free or cheap!". So it's best to have the Auber unit that will work no matter what :)

To do the simple rewire you will connect Red Braided to Smooth White and Blue Braided to Smooth Black and the rewire is done!

I hope this info helps and let us know when you are up and running. It's so amazing to see people learn how their rewired and PID operated MES is a completely different animal from the stock one :)

 

[cmayna]

Yes for WS1510ELPM. You'll never look back.

 

[dons2346]

Went to the Auber site to order a PID and in nosing around found two controllers that might be similar. There is a WS1500EPM that is discontinued with the replacement being the WS1510ELPM
For the WS1500EPM model they say call for price so maybe there are a few left n inventory at a cheaper price.
I didn't go on their website until they were closed so, the question is: Does anyone know the difference between the two?

 

[tallbm]

Went to the Auber site to order a PID and in nosing around found two controllers that might be similar. There is a WS1500EPM that is discontinued with the replacement being the WS1510ELPM
For the WS1500EPM model they say call for price so maybe there are a few left n inventory at a cheaper price.
I didn't go on their website until they were closed so, the question is: Does anyone know the difference between the two?

I did a quick check on the PDF manuals for both and the 1500EPM is 13A so only supports 1600W where the 1510ELPM is 15A so it supports 1800W. The 1510ELPM is simply beefier so it won't overheat and/or burn up on you.

Both should be fine for MES40 and MES30 Digital units. Personally I like the beefier but if the price is right on the 1500EPM then the price is right :D

I wouldn't run the 1500EPM on the 1500W Masterbuilt Analog model. I would move up to an even stronger model for the 1800W MES analog units but that presents more issues since that is exactly at 15Amps and a house breaker may need to be 20A and wired to a dedicated outlet at this point lol.

 

[maplenut]

Here is a link to the thread that I made on my upgrade to me MES 40, well worth the effort and cost. That controller will do way more than I ever will need.

MES 40 Upgarde

 

[dons2346]

After I posted asking about the differences between the units, I did some searching and found the differences. The unit used by maplenut looks interesting also so a little more study.

 

[tallbm]

After I posted asking about the differences between the units, I did some searching and found the differences. The unit used by maplenut looks interesting also so a little more study.

Oh there are definitely more models that will do the job. They start going up in price and add more features. Features like dual probe, wifi, etc.

Bare minimum is the 1510ELPM. Anything with equal or higher power support and features is icing on the cake :D

 

[dons2346]

I wrote to Auber over the weekend and received a reply early Monday morning. Seems that if they have an out of stock item, they post a "call for price" because the site can't be corrected. Anyway the much toted WS1510ELPM is the upgraded unit.

So......I ordered it last nite and it was shipped today. It should be here in a couple of days so I better start practicing standing on my head to understand the directions.

 

[DougE]

I haven't personally read those instructions, but from what I've read here, they leave something to be desired .........

 

[Brokenhandle]

I wrote to Auber over the weekend and received a reply early Monday morning. Seems that if they have an out of stock item, they post a "call for price" because the site can't be corrected. Anyway the much toted WS1510ELPM is the upgraded unit.

So......I ordered it last nite and it was shipped today. It should be here in a couple of days so I better start practicing standing on my head to understand the directions.

You have to be able to drink a beer while standing on your head, reading the directions...but it's ok, if I can do it you can too! Lol! It's not so bad

Ryan

 

[DougE]

You have to be able to drink a beer while standing on your head, reading the directions...

Ok, I've drank beer in every position. Standing, sitting, probably lying down, but I don't know that I could do it while standing on my head, even if I could stand on my head lol.

 

[tallbm]

I wrote to Auber over the weekend and received a reply early Monday morning. Seems that if they have an out of stock item, they post a "call for price" because the site can't be corrected. Anyway the much toted WS1510ELPM is the upgraded unit.

So......I ordered it last nite and it was shipped today. It should be here in a couple of days so I better start practicing standing on my head to understand the directions.

We'll get you through it. Once you have the PID values in the steps for setting time and temp are pretty simple once they are clearly explained :)

 

[Brokenhandle]

I haven't used mine for awhile so don't remember my settings but I think I set them where tallbm suggested and it held within 2 degrees. That's all it took for me...never did an autotune.

Ryan