Pit Boss 820D PID controller upgrade

[cronocide]

Hey yall,

I had been looking for a better control of temperatures on my PB820D that is a few years old. I didn't want any modification and preferred plug and play. I happened to notice that Pit Boss themselves have and upgraded controller for the older models which is:
1. A PID controller
2. Has bluetooth and wifi connectivity along with it being controllable from their app

and

3. Has built in meat probes connections.

I pulled the plug about 4 days ago and it delivered today. It took less than 30 mins to install. I ran a test with it set to 180* and it stayed within 8* of that set point. You can also set a control temperature to one of the meat probes and once the internal temp of that probe meets the set temperature it automatically sets the smoker to 180* to keep the food warm. Connection to their app was easy and you can control temperature as well as power to the grill from the app. I wanted to make this post for those that may be looking for a PID with better control with an older model pit boss as I haven't seen any posts about this controller. If you got to Pit Bosses website is is SKU 80036 for the vertical controller.

 

[cronocide]

Hey yall,

I had been looking for a better control of temperatures on my PB820D that is a few years old. I didn't want any modification and preferred plug and play. I happened to notice that Pit Boss themselves have and upgraded controller for the older models which is:
1. A PID controller
2. Has bluetooth and wifi connectivity along with it being controllable from their app

and

3. Has built in meat probes connections.

I pulled the plug about 4 days ago and it delivered today. It took less than 30 mins to install. I ran a test with it set to 180* and it stayed within 8* of that set point. You can also set a control temperature to one of the meat probes and once the internal temp of that probe meets the set temperature it automatically sets the smoker to 180* to keep the food warm. Connection to their app was easy and you can control temperature as well as power to the grill from the app. I wanted to make this post for those that may be looking for a PID with better control with an older model pit boss as I haven't seen any posts about this controller. If you got to Pit Bosses website is is SKU 80036 for the vertical controller.
View attachment 665067

For reference, I am smoking burgers at 180* and here is the grill readout vs. Chamber temp using a Maverick XR-50 therm.

 

[normanaj]

Once you go PID it's very hard to go back!

 

[cronocide]

Once you go PID it's very hard to go back!

I wish I would have known about this controller sooner, would have installed it 2 years ago lol.

 

[JC in GB]

Hey yall,

I had been looking for a better control of temperatures on my PB820D that is a few years old. I didn't want any modification and preferred plug and play. I happened to notice that Pit Boss themselves have and upgraded controller for the older models which is:
1. A PID controller
2. Has bluetooth and wifi connectivity along with it being controllable from their app

and

3. Has built in meat probes connections.

I pulled the plug about 4 days ago and it delivered today. It took less than 30 mins to install. I ran a test with it set to 180* and it stayed within 8* of that set point. You can also set a control temperature to one of the meat probes and once the internal temp of that probe meets the set temperature it automatically sets the smoker to 180* to keep the food warm. Connection to their app was easy and you can control temperature as well as power to the grill from the app. I wanted to make this post for those that may be looking for a PID with better control with an older model pit boss as I haven't seen any posts about this controller. If you got to Pit Bosses website is is SKU 80036 for the vertical controller.
View attachment 665067

Very nice. Glad to hear that this worked out for you so well. I would much rather upgrade than replace if possible.

JC

 

[mike243]

I got a message in to them about a wifi controller for my Austin lx, hoping its a 5 degree settings instead of skipping a lot of temps, $150 plus shipping probably but cheaper than a new smoker,