Temperature Parameters?

[DustyJoe84]

What do you guys like to set your alert parameters to on your wireless units? I'm cooking at 250° today and have mine set to alert at 300° on the top end and 225° on the low end. Just wondering what you all look for when it comes to temps.

 

[SecondHandSmoker]

What do you guys like to set your alert parameters to on your wireless units? I'm cooking at 250° today and have mine set to alert at 300° on the top end and 225° on the low end. Just wondering what you all look for when it comes to temps.

Why 300* for your high limit?
Does your smoker occaisionally spike that high when your set point is 250*?

 

[DustyJoe84]

Why 300* for your high limit?
Does your smoker occaisionally spike that high when your set point is 250*?

I wouldn't say it spikes... But when I put a new split on I usually overshoot my target temp a little then it settles back down. I'm still learning my pit. I guess for me it's just a broader safety net than maybe most would do. I'm pretty confident in keeping my temps within 10 degrees of where I want to be.

 

[SecondHandSmoker]

I wouldn't say it spikes... But when I put a new split on I usually overshoot my target temp a little then it settles back down. I'm still learning my pit. I guess for me it's just a broader safety net than maybe most would do. I'm pretty confident in keeping my temps within 10 degrees of where I want to be.

Okay. That sounds very reasonable.
No point in chasing false alarms.

 

[weedeater]

Those numbers sound reasonable to me. Sounds like you are running a stick burner of some kind. My experience with my reverse flow is that I prefer more room on the bottom end of the range. I am more in contact with the high end because I just put another split on because the temp had started to drop some. If I was cooking at 250 degrees I would want to put a split on at about 225 to 230 which would raise the temp back up to the 250 range. If I set my limit at 225 on the low side I am going to be hearing alarms all day. Whereas if I set it at say 215 I would have more peace and less false alarms. On the top end I might move it down from 300 to 280 or 285 since I am not as likely on my unit to overshoot that much.

Weedeater

 

[Winterrider]

I set them way low and way high of set temps only to notify me of fire or power outage.

 

[Bearcarver]

I never set those things.
All I want is to be able to see both the Smoker Temp & the Meat Temp on the screen.
I keep it close by, so I can glance at it now & then to make sure it's cycling like it should be.

I never go away, or go to bed while my Smoker is Smoking. It's only an electric Smoker, but it sits on a Wood Front Porch, next to an all wood Log Wall, under a wood ceiling, of an All Wood Log House.

Bear

 

[seenred]

I never go away, or go to bed while my Smoker is Smoking. It's only an electric Smoker, but it sits on a Wood Front Porch, next to an all wood Log Wall, under a wood ceiling, of an All Wood Log House.

Bear

Me neither Bear. Always makes me shake my head when someone fires up their pit, goes to bed and sleeps through the night, then wakes up to find a cold smoker and a raw piece of meat that never made it out of the danger zone...or maybe a temp spike in the nigh turned their expensive brisket into charcoal.

Maybe I’m too OCD, but I’ve never been comfortable leaving any smoker unattended for hours. Certainly no offense meant to the guys who do this without ever having a problem...Maybe it’s me being overly cautious, but it only takes one malfunction or screwy temp spike that could lead to a disaster much worse than ruining a hunk of meat.

Red

 

[DustyJoe84]

I want to clarify that I'm not setting my alerts so I can forget about my smoker. I run a stick burner and a Chargriller at that. Lol That's not happening.

It's really just so I can get some other stuff done around the house and not have to go out outside constantly to check temps. I can clip my reciever onto my pocket or waistband and do what I need to do and give my pit attention as needed when I'm alerted.

 

[seenred]

I want to clarify that I'm not setting my alerts so I can forget about my smoker. I run a stick burner and a Chargriller at that. Lol That's not happening.

It's really just so I can get some other stuff done around the house and not have to go out outside constantly to check temps. I can clip my reciever onto my pocket or waistband and do what I need to do and give my pit attention as needed when I'm alerted.

Gotcha DJ...I hope you don’t think I was pointing a finger at you. And sorry for kinda hijacking your thread with my little sermon...I kinda went down the rabbit hole.

Red

 

[DustyJoe84]

Gotcha DJ...I hope you don’t think I was pointing a finger at you. And sorry for kinda hijacking your thread with my little sermon...I kinda went down the rabbit hole.

Red

No worries and no offense taken! I didn't take it that way at all!

 

[SmokinAl]

On my stick burner I have 3 Tel-Tru therms at both grate levels. I can see them from across the yard & I'm OK with the temps running between 225 & 275. Really doesn't seem to matter on the outcome, only the cook time. I know that I will have to add a split every 45 minutes or so. So when I'm using it I stay around pretty close. It's a good opportunity to drink a few beers & get a little yard work done. When I want to do an all night smoke I use my WSM/Guru setup, and put an alarm next to my bed for the pit & the meat. I'm more concerned about the low temp on the pit, cause that would mean I'm out of charcoal or wood. So I usually set the low at 210 & the high at 275, in case the Guru malfunctions. However, in the 7 or 8 years that I have had it, it's been rock solid within a couple of degrees of the set temp for as long as 22 hours without adding any charcoal or wood.
Al

 

[Bearcarver]

I want to clarify that I'm not setting my alerts so I can forget about my smoker. I run a stick burner and a Chargriller at that. Lol That's not happening.

It's really just so I can get some other stuff done around the house and not have to go out outside constantly to check temps. I can clip my reciever onto my pocket or waistband and do what I need to do and give my pit attention as needed when I'm alerted.

Like Red, I wasn't pointing the finger at you or anyone else in particular.
I like to mention that now & then just to keep people awake to the dangerous possibilities.
The ones I'm really aiming at are the Newbies who don't know the possibilities, and the guys who think an electric smoker can't light up & burn a house down.
Don't want to scare anybody, but don't want to read about a disaster happening either.

Bear

 

[HalfSmoked]

Agree with Bear and Red sh__ happens so one can't be over cautious. I set min low for the start because of the cold temp of the meat and not over 20 degrees over IT that I want when finished. Alarms can be turned of until they get into the cooking zones. I have a Thermoworks Smoke.

Warren

 

[dr k]

I set them way low and way high of set temps only to notify me of fire or power outage.

Me to. 145* and 295* in case I have to open the smoker it doesn't go off and to make sure I don't exceed the limit of the Mes insulation. My internal alarm keeps me from sleeping during over night smokes but in case I dose off for a half hour it's nice to have a safety range alarm set.