Vertical Smoker Recommendation (NOT PITT-BOSS)

[Jesse Butler]

I'm hoping to get a good recommendation for a vertical pellet smoker.

I had purchased the Pitt Boss 7 Series Smoker and I love the size of it! It can handle a lot of ribs! I also like the option of doing lots of jerky with wild game, so the more rack space the better! The Pitt Boss never worked. I'm hoping for something that has simpler electronic that aren't going to provide constant error codes. Basically, I'd like a smoker that I can set to 250 and know that I can walk away from for 5 hours while it holds close to 250 and smokes the entire time.

I'd love to hear your recommendations!

Thanks!

 

[Winterrider]

This one looks very interesting. Camp Chef stuff is usually good quality stuff. No reviews here, but may have on other sites .

Camp Chef XXL WiFi Vertical Pellet Smoker - PGVXXLC : BBQGuys

The Camp Chef XXL WiFi Pellet Smoker combines the convenience of a pellet grill with the versatility of a Smoke Vault. With the WiFi Controller and Camp Chef Connect app you can now monitor and set your smoke setting from your phone. Enjoy a wide array of cooking options with a temperature range...

www.bbqguys.com

 

[kilo charlie]

Personally, I find out why the Pit Boss isn't hold the desired temp. Is it a faulty temp probe? Is it user misunderstanding? Are you using a temp probe or oven thermometer inside to verify the actual temps or just going off the digital readings? Are you using the water pan? Do you have the smoke stack rain cap raised all the way up?

 

[Fueling Around]

Welcome to the forum.

Stay with the customer service if you are in the warranty period.
If you don't have the ability to self repair, demand a replacement unit.

Son-in-law has a Cabelas re branded Pitt Boss horizontal. Worked great for a few months.
Been a steady failure for a few months.
3 controllers, 1 auger motor, and 2 auger connector bolts.
Finally reliable again.

 

[Jesse Butler]

Personally, I find out why the Pit Boss isn't hold the desired temp. Is it a faulty temp probe? Is it user misunderstanding? Are you using a temp probe or oven thermometer inside to verify the actual temps or just going off the digital readings? Are you using the water pan? Do you have the smoke stack rain cap raised all the way up?

It's not that the Pitt boss doesn't hold temperature. It's that it doesn't work at all. After purchasing it new and having it shipped to my door (Northern British Columbia), it only turned on for 20 minutes. I received an ErL code. Unplug and try again. After 15 minutes, ErL code. I looked it up and it refers to a jammed auger. The auger isn't jammed. I remove all pellets anyway and retry. ErL code. Repeat four or five more times before it doesn't work anymore. I wanted to send the smoker back and was told I couldn't because it had been used. It had only been used for a few minutes to attempt the initial burn-off that the manual recommended. I was then told I would receive a new controller in three weeks. That was over a month ago. I've now been told that they're back ordered and Pitt Boss won't have any for 4-6 weeks. I'm not going to wait for months for a simple part. Winter is about to set in and my first year of a 5 year warranty will be gone, LOL. I've struggled with customer service through the entire process and never get a call back! It's at the point where I'm so frustrated with Pitt Boss, they'll never see another dime from me. A shame, because I love the size of that smoker. That's why I'm looking for a different brand as I continue to argue with Pitt Boss over making it right.

 

[MartyBauer]

ErL is most often the temp sensor. It’s a $15 part you can get on Amazon. I had a PB series 4 from Lowes and had seen that problem in my research. Immediately ordered a spare and had to use it on my 3rd cook. Then ordered another spare to keep on hand.

 

[kilo charlie]

May I ask how low you have the rain cap screwed down? Perhaps take a photo of it?

 

[kilo charlie]

Actually.. I will just post a picture of how high I run mine to get the proper airflow to avoid any errors.

I suggest unscrewing it until you're almost out of threads and trying it again .

 

[Jesse Butler]

May I ask how low you have the rain cap screwed down? Perhaps take a photo of it?

That's a good question. I think it was probably farther down. I believe it was screwed all the way down and then backed off a full rotation. I don't recall now. I've been doing lots of reading and some places say that ErL is an auger jam, other places say it's a temp probe. But it also says Er1 is a temp to low error. The control panel is stuck on ErL the second it's plugged in and won't allow me to do anything. The frustrating this is that this make me nervous with this smoker. I don't know what point I'll be able to trust it even if I replace the control board. The last thing I want is to put a brisket on at midnight and wake up to a smoker that hasn't been running for the last 6 hours. That's the main reason I'm looking for a similar size vertical smoker that maybe doesn't have such technical electronics.

 

[kilo charlie]

The only way to get rid of electronics is to go to a straight stick burner or something without pellets.

If it's giving you that error as soon as it's powered up then it's likely the board is bad. It sounds like you haven't ran it long enough for the internal temp probe to be dirty. (It's something that should be wiped off after every long smoke).

I'm not personally aware of any other pellet smokers this size by other companies. They're all going to have electronics and all electronics are subject to failure. Hopefully Pit Boss customer service gets their head out of their butts and helps you resolve this problem.

If/when you replace the board, unscrew that rain cap all the way up like in my photo. This allows for the proper airflow and keeps from getting the internal temp probe all screwy.

Best of luck!

 

[Jesse Butler]

The only way to get rid of electronics is to go to a straight stick burner or something without pellets.

If it's giving you that error as soon as it's powered up then it's likely the board is bad. It sounds like you haven't ran it long enough for the internal temp probe to be dirty. (It's something that should be wiped off after every long smoke).

I'm not personally aware of any other pellet smokers this size by other companies. They're all going to have electronics and all electronics are subject to failure. Hopefully Pit Boss customer service gets their head out of their butts and helps you resolve this problem.

If/when you replace the board, unscrew that rain cap all the way up like in my photo. This allows for the proper airflow and keeps from getting the internal temp probe all screwy.

Best of luck!

Thanks for your help and insight!

 

[MartyBauer]

The cap height will help regulate temps in the cabinet. Down for high heat, up for low, but it won’t help with the ErL code. I had the same behavior in my series 4. Replaced the temp sensor and it was still going strong another 20 cooks later when I sold it.

 

[Kevin Braker]

This one looks very interesting. Camp Chef stuff is usually good quality stuff. No reviews here, but may have on other sites .

Camp Chef XXL WiFi Vertical Pellet Smoker - PGVXXLC : BBQGuys

The Camp Chef XXL WiFi Pellet Smoker combines the convenience of a pellet grill with the versatility of a Smoke Vault. With the WiFi Controller and Camp Chef Connect app you can now monitor and set your smoke setting from your phone. Enjoy a wide array of cooking options with a temperature range...

www.bbqguys.com

I have the non WIFI version of this. Its been great the 3 months I've had it. Hold a lot of meat and hold the temp at a constant. The company seems to have great Customer Service, I will be buying a pellet grill come spring.