Man...there is some good info on this forum! After talking with a colleague of mine who owns a PB700D like I just purchased, I'm going to pass on the new controller for right now. I've successfully completed my "burn off" and will try my first smoke tomorrow- baby back ribs.
I do have a question regarding the hopper grate. Has anyone removed this top grate? It seems like it might make it harder to ensure that the pellets are even in the bottom of the hopper once it gets down towards the bottom third. Just curious. Thanks.
Looking forward to your guidance on this John. Don't think I will be putting the stock controller back in but it may help others long term who don't want or can't invest in the PID controller. For me it was a night and day difference and the price can't be beat compared to the Traeger.Hi fellas (and ladies) I am new to the site, I just signed up today when I stumbled across this forum on the PB 820. I purchased a PB 820D this past weekend out here in California. I'm retired military and after my discount at Lowe's my purchase price was $360 so that's pretty much a deal you can't pass up!
Having said that, I have read a lot here about all the problems with controlling temperature and I am seeing how much extra money is being spent on the various controllers and I thought I would throw my two cents in.
Please understand I'm really new to this so I'm not claiming to be a cook of any sort (I mean I burn water!) but I do work in an oil refinery as an electrician / instrument technician (we are what they called dual crafted) and I understand controls, the PID stuff, and all that quite well. I can't do it today at this initial post, but I would very much like to contribute my experiences and my understanding of the basic PB 820 controller and its functionality.
I have been home on vacation this week playing with it pretty extensively and, at this point, I have to say that I am very satisfied with my experiences. I seem to have very good control, although you should understand control will involve some small temperature swings,as I'll explain in a future post, but I'm able to eliminate the temperature excursions and I'm getting significant amounts of smoking in the Smoke setting just using the regular / standard Pit Boss controller. I did pretty extensive research before I bought my unit and continue to read the various posts and reviews etc., that are circulating around the web, so I have seen numerous comments about the issues of how it runs poorly, but at the same time I've also read reviews from people using standard units that just rave about it. I downloaded the tech manual online before I bought the unit, reviewed it, and it's pretty obvious that the P settings and how to use them are very significant. However, the absolutely horrid explanation in the book (combined with the utterly ridiculous Pit Boss helpline in Oregon) have really painted this unit in a bad light. And the above isn't even mentioning the fact the unit only comes with a one-year warranty and the manual has a statement written in it that actually says that the unit should only be expected the last for 2 to 3 years. Strange stuff to be certain!!
If you will give me a few days here I'll write up what I did for my startup procedure, what I saw, what knowledge I've gained. I love using this thing and I would like everybody to very much have the same feelings I have using it, it's sooo frustrating using equipment that does not work, so frustrating!
PS - I dictate my voice and edit as I can but I'm going to tell you ahead of time you'll see a few errors, so my apologies going into it!
Hi Speedj!Looking forward to your guidance on this John. Don't think I will be putting the stock controller back in but it may help others long term who don't want or can't invest in the PID controller. For me it was a night and day difference and the price can't be beat compared to the Traeger.
Have a good day.
I did think about putting some screen door mesh on there to be honest. I assumed this stuff was pretty industrial grade but I agree I like my things to have as long a life as they can for sure.Hi All
A quick post on an idea I was thinking about the other day, separate from the p&id discussion above, and that's filters for the electronic units.
Has anyone has anyone ever given this any thought or has there been any discussions about this?
When you look at the controllers (that's your display unit and all the electronics that go with it inside the feeder housing) and how they're mounted in the Pit Boss the bottom intake area is just some open slots which will take in plenty of dirt, dust, insects and anything else. I don't know how anybody else feels about this, but I know where I work sensitive electronic boards and stuff are typically protected and if there is an opening to the outside of the cabinet or controller housing there's always some sort of air filter. I'm going to guess that for all of us, obviously, our units are probably parked outdoors more or less in the weather.
I'm planning on going to Home Depot to try building some sort of simple filter box that can fit on the bottom. I'll update you accordingly as to how it goes, but in terms of the longevity of my unit, I really think it's a risk to simply have open circuit boards sitting there.
Any thoughts on this?
Hi fellas (and ladies) I am new to the site, I just signed up today when I stumbled across this forum on the PB 820. I purchased a PB 820D this past weekend out here in California. I'm retired military and after my discount at Lowe's my purchase price was $360 so that's pretty much a deal you can't pass up!
Having said that, I have read a lot here about all the problems with controlling temperature and I am seeing how much extra money is being spent on the various controllers and I thought I would throw my two cents in.
Please understand I'm really new to this so I'm not claiming to be a cook of any sort (I mean I burn water!) but I do work in an oil refinery as an electrician / instrument technician (we are what they called dual crafted) and I understand controls, the PID stuff, and all that quite well. I can't do it today at this initial post, but I would very much like to contribute my experiences and my understanding of the basic PB 820 controller and its functionality.
I have been home on vacation this week playing with it pretty extensively and, at this point, I have to say that I am very satisfied with my experiences. I seem to have very good control, although you should understand control will involve some small temperature swings,as I'll explain in a future post, but I'm able to eliminate the temperature excursions and I'm getting significant amounts of smoking in the Smoke setting just using the regular / standard Pit Boss controller. I did pretty extensive research before I bought my unit and continue to read the various posts and reviews etc., that are circulating around the web, so I have seen numerous comments about the issues of how it runs poorly, but at the same time I've also read reviews from people using standard units that just rave about it. I downloaded the tech manual online before I bought the unit, reviewed it, and it's pretty obvious that the P settings and how to use them are very significant. However, the absolutely horrid explanation in the book (combined with the utterly ridiculous Pit Boss helpline in Oregon) have really painted this unit in a bad light. And the above isn't even mentioning the fact the unit only comes with a one-year warranty and the manual has a statement written in it that actually says that the unit should only be expected the last for 2 to 3 years. Strange stuff to be certain!!
If you will give me a few days here I'll write up what I did for my startup procedure, what I saw, what knowledge I've gained. I love using this thing and I would like everybody to very much have the same feelings I have using it, it's sooo frustrating using equipment that does not work, so frustrating!
PS - I dictate my voice and edit as I can but I'm going to tell you ahead of time you'll see a few errors, so my apologies going into it!
Anything new to report on the heat fluctuations? I've been considering a PB 700 but I'm not going to buy something new just to have to replace the controller.John, Thanks for the great information - funny what we can learn when we read the manual. I was thinking about buying a PID controller until I read your post. I went back and read the Pit Boss manual and learned quite a bit in how to properly pre-heat the pellet grill. I had no idea of the process and how important it is for this pellet grill. I will try this in my next few session to see how the pre-heat will affect the temperature fluctuations. Thanks again!
Sorry fellas, don't mean to make you drool :) (P.S. That stall is enough to make a grown man cry)
Anything new to report on the heat fluctuations? I've been considering a PB 700 but I'm not going to buy something new just to have to replace the controller.
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/S...zZ5wrLGc-ca_G-0tbvOfj5U430qQ=w1000-no-tmp.jpg wonder if it works this way ? It's a pair of pork shoulders :)Hey Speed J, would love to see what you cooked up but the pictures are not showing. Based on the stall comment, I'm imagining an awesome brisket!
Nope, still no pics. :(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/S...zZ5wrLGc-ca_G-0tbvOfj5U430qQ=w1000-no-tmp.jpg wonder if it works this way ? It's a pair of pork shoulders :)
J