MES30 with mailbox mod flames up.

[Drevnick]

Trying to smoke a shoulder today and my Maze keeps flaming up. Thinking I might be getting too much air flow? I have 4, 1/2 inch holes in the door. I went through a full maze in about 8hrs.



Thanks for any help!

 

[Winterrider]

Tape a couple up and see how she operates for ya.

 

[Winterrider]

If you have issues with them not burning then, maybe add stack for better air draw. It helped mine quite a bit.

 

[Drevnick]

I have put a piece of wood in front of the door. It’s a little on the breeze side today, seems to have fixed the problem for now. I might tape up 2 holes and see how that works tomorrow. Going to smoke some stuffed jalapeños.

 

[smokerjim]

plug a hole or two up with tinfoil and see what happens

 

[chef jimmyj]

8 hours on a full load is a bit fast but not out of the ordinary. 9 to 10 hours is typical with a full 12 hours being the best I've ever gotten. I concur with the crew, plug a couple of holes and see what you get. The heavy breeze most likely was today's problem...JJ

 

[Bearcarver]

That often happens when you have the AMNPS filled too full, because the closer to the top the pellets get, the closer they are from row to row. Then they can jump rows. That's why the interior walls are designed the way they are.
Also if it's too close to the heat, but that wouldn't be in a Mailbox Mod.

Bear

 

[sm0kin]

I averaged 8 hours over the last 12 cooks with the pellets I use. I don’t think you are far off of normal imo.

 

[Drevnick]

Thanks for all the fast reply’s. I’m going to plug up a couple holes and see how that works out tomorrow.

 

[mneeley490]

I have a 1" hole on each side, near the front end. I ended up taping over half of one of the holes to get the airflow right. I live in a windy area, also.

 

[chopsaw]

I’m going to plug up a couple holes and see how that works out tomorrow.

Fridge magnets work good for testing air flow . Easy to put on take off .

 

[patinlouisiana]

How hot does the "mailbox" get? Can you burn yourself by touching it while the pellets are smoldering?

 

[daveomak]

Try adding a 1" hole in the top of the MB door.. That should slow down the air through the other holes... You need all the air flow you can get to get great smoke....
My MB mod...

 

[tallbm]

How hot does the "mailbox" get? Can you burn yourself by touching it while the pellets are smoldering?

With the full size mailbox it shouldn't burn you unless it has flamed up. You can always use an oven mitt if needed to deal with it. When I am doing an overnight smoke and should it get windy (in TX we get plenty of wind except when it is 100 degrees out lol) I sometimes get a flame up situation so I have the oven mit ready to go just in case. My high temp alarms wake up me in this case and it is a simple situation with the oven mitt and some tongs to get it back under control.

Oh never put fresh pellets on red hot pellets that have flamed over, they will just ignite again after a little bit of time lol.

 

[patinlouisiana]

Thanks!