Masterbuilt Propane PID and Convection Fan Modification

[OldSmoke]

Twiddling valves, although satisfying, was cutting into my bourbon time. Being the lazy ass that is me, I knew there had to be a better way.

There is. After my conversion, my little smoker is maintaining temp within one degree. The convection fan keeps the cabinet an equal temp except for the very lowest rack.

Here is how I did it:



These are the guts of the plumbing. The key to these solenoid valves is they want to be VERTICAL. Solenoid pointing to the sky. And, my bench testing proves it. Finicky buzzards they are.



Here you can see the electrical stuff. The backside of the PID and the SSR along with some terminal blocks.



The air pump is on the left side. It squirts air through an eductor Venturi for my home-brew smoke generator.







This is the convection fan. I got it from an old oven. I added a speed control. I don’t want to cause a hurricane, just enough air movement to equalize the temps and stir the smoke around. I bet this is going to be the cats meow for jerky.



Yea, I got fancy and added labels. I’m old enough, that even if I built it, I’ll forget how to run it by tomorrow morning.



Hard at work! Currently at 140 degrees, at 160 we will have inaugural sausages for the Oregon vs. Utah football game. It has not interrupted my bourbon even once! It is running very well on auto-tune mode.



Cheers, and have a great weekend!

 

[912smoker]

Now that's a slick setup OS !
I parked my propane unit due to the same issues as you buy looks like an engineering marvel !

 

[DRKsmoking]

Wow, OldSmoke that is amazing. I have done a few mods on mine . With your help.
But this is beyond what I can do, in my carpenter shop, lol

That is just fantastic, and you had me at your smoking generator that you made and installed on the side
color me very impressed

David

 

[SmokinAl]

Nicely done!!
Al

 

[JLeonard]

Wowsa! Now that is a slick setup.
Jim

 

[daveomak]

Morning OS... Your gas valves.... do they modulate ??? You have a parts list with #'s of your AWESOME build.... Dave

 

[OldSmoke]

Morning OS... Your gas valves.... do they modulate ??? You have a parts list with #'s of your AWESOME build.... Dave

No the valve is just a solenoid valve. I looked pretty hard for a proportional valve. They are very expensive. If you know of one, I’d like to hear about it. Actually, the solenoid valve is doing a great job. For the sausage dogs, it held within one degree.

I need more time smoking with it, but I am getting the impression from watching it work, that the cabinet airflow design is going to play a big role in maintaining a steady temp.

I will post a list of the major parts soon. Thanks for the compliment and like!

 

[kilo charlie]

Interested in all the details when you get to it!