MES 40 digital Smoker will not turn on

[Doodaaman]

I have a Masterbuilt, MB20074719, 40 Inch smoker. I was getting ready to smoke last weekend and the Smoker came up to temp, 275 doing some chicken wings. I was letting everything heat up and the Smoker turned off. I thought maybe I tripped a breaker so unplugged and checked breaker. No issues, so plugged back in. The Smoker beeped but the controller lights did not come on. I presses the power button but nothing happened. I unplugged and tried again, still nothing. I let the smoker cool down then tried again, now it does not even beep when I plug in. Any ideas?

 

[02ebz06]

Simplest troubleshooting would be to try another outlet.
Other than that, I got nothing as I don't have one of those smokers.

 

[Doodaaman]

Simplest troubleshooting would be to try another outlet.
Other than that, I got nothing as I don't have one of those smokers.

Brought in another smoker to get stuff cooked. So definitely not the outlet

 

[tallbm]

I have a Masterbuilt, MB20074719, 40 Inch smoker. I was getting ready to smoke last weekend and the Smoker came up to temp, 275 doing some chicken wings. I was letting everything heat up and the Smoker turned off. I thought maybe I tripped a breaker so unplugged and checked breaker. No issues, so plugged back in. The Smoker beeped but the controller lights did not come on. I presses the power button but nothing happened. I unplugged and tried again, still nothing. I let the smoker cool down then tried again, now it does not even beep when I plug in. Any ideas?

Hi there and welcome!

1st things to check are if the outlet you are using is powering anything else like a fan or a drill or anything. If you confirm the outlet is good then the MES is definitely having problems.

If you are using a good outlet then the problem is likely that your MES circuit board is shot and there is not a lot stock repair options for you, but you are not dead in the water. The best MES you can ever have is one that has the simple rewire done to it and is using a PID controller to hit and hold the temp in the smoker. This makes your MES easily 10x better than any new MES you could ever buy!!!! It is really a whole new smoker that stomps a stock MES.

The circuit board is located on the UNDERside of the smoker in one of the two panels/compartments down there.
In the lower compartment the circuit board will likely be in a black plastic box and once you take the top off that box you will see the circuit board similar to this:

My guess is you will see some type of burn marks or bloated busted components. It seems that since the pandemic it is almost impossible to get a replacement circuit board for an MES so the rewire and PID route is usually the way to go.

If you see no issues with the circuit board then the top controller is likely the problem, but I feel that since it is getting no power then the circuit board may be the culprit.
You can sometimes find replacement top controllers for an MES but often you cannot so again the rewire and PID works around this.

Don't fret, you do have the ability to not only get your MES going but to turn that golf cart of an MES into a Ferrari!

Let me know if this is making some sense and ask any questions you have. We've been where you are and help people with these issues all the time :)

 

[Doodaaman]

Hi there and welcome!

1st things to check are if the outlet you are using is powering anything else like a fan or a drill or anything. If you confirm the outlet is good then the MES is definitely having problems.

If you are using a good outlet then the problem is likely that your MES circuit board is shot and there is not a lot stock repair options for you, but you are not dead in the water. The best MES you can ever have is one that has the simple rewire done to it and is using a PID controller to hit and hold the temp in the smoker. This makes your MES easily 10x better than any new MES you could ever buy!!!! It is really a whole new smoker that stomps a stock MES.

The circuit board is located on the UNDERside of the smoker in one of the two panels/compartments down there.
In the lower compartment the circuit board will likely be in a black plastic box and once you take the top off that box you will see the circuit board similar to this:
View attachment 666960

My guess is you will see some type of burn marks or bloated busted components. It seems that since the pandemic it is almost impossible to get a replacement circuit board for an MES so the rewire and PID route is usually the way to go.

If you see no issues with the circuit board then the top controller is likely the problem, but I feel that since it is getting no power then the circuit board may be the culprit.
You can sometimes find replacement top controllers for an MES but often you cannot so again the rewire and PID works around this.

Don't fret, you do have the ability to not only get your MES going but to turn that golf cart of an MES into a Ferrari!

Let me know if this is making some sense and ask any questions you have. We've been where you are and help people with these issues all the time :)

Thanks for the response! So I took off a back side access panel, from the manual that seemed where the board was located but your post showed me the bottom was the place.

It is the circuit board based on this picture.

I looked at your post on what seems how to bypass the board, but if I do this will the control panel still work? I would think that is low voltage and the transformers on the board would provide that power.

 

[tallbm]

Thanks for the response! So I took off a back side access panel, from the manual that seemed where the board was located but your post showed me the bottom was the place.

It is the circuit board based on this picture.

I looked at your post on what seems how to bypass the board, but if I do this will the control panel still work? I would think that is low voltage and the transformers on the board would provide that power.
View attachment 666962

Looks like your board is shot there.

If you do the rewire, the top control panel will not work with the rewire.
That circuit board takes in the power steps down the voltage to then power and run the controller. The circuit board also allows the top controller to stop/start power from the cord to the heating element.

So with that board being shot nothing is going to work unless you replace that exact board with one that works for your model... doesn't seem likely at all to find the part these days.


With the rewire you basically make the MES cord feed power to the heating element in a "dumb" uncontrolled fashion. This bypasses the circuit board which in turn bypasses the stock MES controller.

With the rewire you need another controller to take power from your wall and feed it to the rewired MES/heating element and to measure temp inside of the MES to know when to cut the power on/off to the MES so it hits and holds the temp you enter into the new controller.

A PID controller does this job super well!

This is how it all goes once the MES is rewired and a PID controller is used:

• Wall outlet to PID Controller
• Rewired MES cord to PID Controller
• PID Controller temp probe clipped to bottom rack of MES so it measures temp inside the MES smoker
• Enter desired set temp into PID Controller
• PID Controller pulls power from the wall outlet and sends it to the rewired MES heating element to hit and hold the temp inside the smoker
• PID controller will steadily hold temp dead on or within about 2 degrees of your set temp. No more temp peaks and valleys!

Let me know if this all makes sense, and keep the questions coming! :D

 

[Doodaaman]

Masterbuilt site allowed me to order a replacement board, but I have not gotten anything as to when I will get the board.

Where do I get a PID to control the smoker?

 

[tanglefoot]

I took Tallbm's advice 3 years ago and rewired my MES30. Turned it into an absolutely, totally FLAWLESS smoking tool. You can pick up an Auber PID for around $150. You'll also need a smoke generator, like A-MAZE-N 5X8 TRAY or something similar. Once you get a few smokes under your belt with these valuable tools, it really seems easy and flawless. Just remember...YOU NEVER STOP LEARNING!! Every smoke is a teaching/learning opportunity!! MY $0.02.

 

[cmayna]

Sorry that you are having issues with your MES40. If you decide to go with a PID, nothing better than a Auber WS1510-ELPM. I bypassed all of my smoker's circuitry by connecting a power cord directly to the heating element. Then plugged this new power cord into the Auber. Never looked back.

 

[normanaj]

I too rewired and did the Auber PID several months back.Complete game changer for the MES.

 

[tallbm]

Masterbuilt site allowed me to order a replacement board, but I have not gotten anything as to when I will get the board.

Where do I get a PID to control the smoker?

The guys have good info on PID controllers for you. Also JC in GB offers up his services and expertise should anyone be interested in having one built.
Don't be shocked at a $150 price on a PID controller. Yep its a chunk of change BUT it's less than any new smoker you can get AND it really turns an MES into a better smoker than anything you will find up to $1,000 or so. To me the best MES you can have is a busted one you find or a used $40-50 one, and rewire it and slap a PID controller on it :)

I hope Masterbuilt comes through. I could be wrong here but if I remember correctly, they may take orders for parts and then that order goes into a black hole. I believe the best way to get customer service from them is to hit them up on Facebook and/or Twitter.

Let us know how it goes and one way or another.

 

[Winterrider]

The guys got you lined up with a top notch smoker with the PID
Did that a few yrs ago and followed tallbm and dr k advise and am 100% satisfied.

 

[dave_a]

My 20 year old MES "dorm refrigerator" smoker just died...for good - I think.
Years ago, I had already, cleaned and replaced the corroded spade connectors on the element. While troubleshooting, I cleaned and replaced wire ends as needed. Still no power to the top timer/temp control unit on the top. Just a "beep" when plugged in. No LED illumination, no heat. No obvious burn marks on the lower circuit board. Continuity from the cord +&- tp the board.
So while this old smoker; size wise & bells and whistles suits me just fine, I'm not sure its worth fixing.
I've read about PIDs, don't even know what it means or how to wire it in. SO fellow smokers...what do I do? Any old posts that "step by step" it?
PS.1 - its in the trash bin, have till Monday to rescue
PS.2 - I have a brisket flat and a rack of ribs in the freezer.
Thank you
Dave_a