Wow, thanks for the all advice and tips. I think I'll plan on keeping it empty or as empty as possible when not in use. I'll for sure cover it as it'll be exposed out on the deck. Since I got it at Costco, I picked up the Traeger pellets they had. You guys have experience with those? I assume they're decent. I do like the idea of sifting out the sawdust. Can't hurt, only help.
Costco Louisiana Grills Series 7 Pellet Vertical Smoker
- Thread starter Chris_in_SoCal
- Start date
-
Some of the links on this forum allow SMF, at no cost to you, to earn a small commission when you click through and make a purchase. Let me know if you have any questions about this.
SMF is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.
meskc
Meat Mopper
I have not used traeger pellets. I have used Lumberjack and been very happy with them. Been using 100% hickory or a 50/50 blend of hickory and char hickory mix.
Ya definitely spend future money not on trager pellets. Marketing scheme. Not 100% hardwood pellets. Not.worth the $$$
So today I was busy and did not follow my own tips; D'oh! You really need to vacuum the ashes out the burn pot every 1-2 times or about 6-8 hours use. Very simple to do, but I was busy and got lazy today.
So what happened? I was smoking sausages at 150 and when the fire went down and possibly out. The igniter was called into action by the controller but could not ignite the incoming pellets since it was covered by ashes - it was just smoldering. BTW, I could see all of this happening from my kitchen as smoke was billowing out, so I moved the ashes away from the igniter with a poker and the unit continued on. (When I moved the ashes I could see it glowing red under the pile).
After that I turned the temp up to 250 for ribs and it went without a hitch. (I think that the fire is unlikely to go out/reignite anyway at the higher temps).
In the future, I will definitely take the 2 minutes to vacuum out the pot... Lesson learned.
Saw my local Costco had this again when I went in last week. Augh! So tempted! But I think I'd have to get rid of 3 of my other smokers before my wife would let me bring this home. (I have 5 currently, including a GMG Daniel Boone pellet smoker which I like, but certainly could be better, even temp-wise.)
Would anyone with 20+ smokes on this smoker buy it again? I have to play with the dial so much to get my smoker to the right temp that it's as much work as an offset smoker.
Meanwhile my friend's rectec you turn on from your phone and it holds the exact temperature all day long in 20 degree weather.
Meanwhile my friend's rectec you turn on from your phone and it holds the exact temperature all day long in 20 degree weather.
Do you mean the 2 temp probes in the controller? I've never used them. I have a wireless thermometer (https://amzn.com/B01GE77QT0) which has 2 probes. I put one in the meat and clip the other to the same rack I am cooking on. If need be, I adjust the controller that gives the temp I want at the rack.
The nice thing with it is probe 2 has a BBQ monitor function where you can set an alarm for low/high temps. So on a 250F cook I might set an alarm for < 200F and >300F. Lets me know if the fire/pellets are out, or it is burning too hot.
The nice thing with it is probe 2 has a BBQ monitor function where you can set an alarm for low/high temps. So on a 250F cook I might set an alarm for < 200F and >300F. Lets me know if the fire/pellets are out, or it is burning too hot.
I'm going to look into this. I bet I could make a temp sensor that would auto adjust ...
Yeah I have the exact same thing the wireless thermometer. It's the best thing I've bought for bbq. That's how I realized just how off my controller on my smoker was.
I was wondering if you install the rec tec controller, can you replace the probes that are actually in the smoker that connect to the stock controller. Obviously those probes are off because my controller will read actual temperature at 250 and my wireless thermometer will tell me its around 170. It's way off.
meskc
Meat Mopper
mine runn really steady. At 350 my temp range is 352-360. At 225 it runs a little hotter at 232-241. Here are some screen shots showing temp across three racks. I am ok with these Temps and the amount of swing. This is also with an empty smoker and with the water pan.
Attachments
^Mine will initially get to the correct temp dead on. As soon as I open the door to put food in, it will never come back up to the correct temp without me playing with the dial and going up hotter. Usually 350 gets me to 275 but its still not consistent. Will jump 10-20 degrees
Keep in mind the position of the PB RTC sensor. It's at the back under the water pan area. I use a large aluminum pan so maybe that traps heat, giving an erroneous reading. BTW I have never used the OEM pan, maybe I should try it?
Having said that I would be surprised if the top rack temp was the same as the RTC sensor temp.
Also I have read users have bought a new RTC sensor from Amazon and that solved issues for them.
meskc
Meat Mopper
There is going to be a cool down when you open it and put in a large cold piece of meat. It will take a while to recover from that. I don't worry about the cool down. I set my temp and let it do its thing. As long as I am not getting a crazy spike in temp for a long period or one that is to low I don't sweat it.
I've adjusted it to open it up a lot to allow more air. I've closed it up as tight as it goes. Doesn't seem to make a big difference.
SmokingMeatForums.com is reader supported and as an Amazon Associate, we may earn commissions from qualifying purchases.
Similar threads
Hot Threads
-
Our Second piece of Heaven, Little piece on the Atlantic Ocean
- Started by DRKsmoking
- Replies: 48
- General Discussion
-
Getting to the bottom of what happens to cure in smoked sausage
- Started by hog warden
- Replies: 31
- Food Safety
-
Non fat dried milk
- Started by hog warden
- Replies: 31
- Sausage
-
How Do I Get Rid of These Armadillos?!!
- Started by seenred
- Replies: 27
- Blowing Smoke Around the Smoker.
