Help with Temp Control

[Mike Kopat]

PLEASE HELP... Well, I too am having temp issues. I have the same smoker, Series 4 version 2, all black pellet smoker. Its been cold outside for sure but there the smoker will not go above 300 degrees or so. I turn on the smoker, push the button to take it to 350 just like the manual says and maybe it get to 300. It takes a good hour or two to get there. Then I turn the smoker down to 225 to cook and the temp goes down and keeps going down. Once it hits around 200 i have to put the temp back to 350 to get it to go up. WTF. Its brand new. Primer or Auger? I dont hit any primer. SHould I be doing that? What button should I be pushing?Also, P setting? There is no P setting that I see. The board is on the side. What am I doing wrong? Isnt the point of a automatic pellet smoker to just turn it to the hear you want to cook at and it stays there? Do I just return the darn thing and get something else? help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

 

[MikeC]

My smoker goes straight to top temp intermittently. I don’t know what to do. My fan never stops an long as it’s plugged in. Is this normal?

 

[RCAlan]

PLEASE HELP... Well, I too am having temp issues. I have the same smoker, Series 4 version 2, all black pellet smoker. Its been cold outside for sure but there the smoker will not go above 300 degrees or so. I turn on the smoker, push the button to take it to 350 just like the manual says and maybe it get to 300. It takes a good hour or two to get there. Then I turn the smoker down to 225 to cook and the temp goes down and keeps going down. Once it hits around 200 i have to put the temp back to 350 to get it to go up. WTF. Its brand new. Primer or Auger? I dont hit any primer. SHould I be doing that? What button should I be pushing?Also, P setting? There is no P setting that I see. The board is on the side. What am I doing wrong? Isnt the point of a automatic pellet smoker to just turn it to the hear you want to cook at and it stays there? Do I just return the darn thing and get something else? help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

Let me start this off by saying, I’m not trying bash you... Just want to understand what’s happening. Does the Owners Manual actually tell you to plug the power cord into a outlet, push the power button on and set the temp to 300*-350* degrees?? From my experience with Pit Boss pellet grills, there are actual steps and procedures to follow each and every time you turn on your smoker. Or does your Owners Manual actually say to power your Smoker on and set the Temp to Smoke to allow the Pellets to properly ignite? Remember, these are Wood Pellet burning Smokers and not Electric Gas Ovens... They have procedures to follow as per the owners manual, which will eliminate most temp issues if followed correctly. When bbqing in cold weather, it’ll take longer for Pellet Smokers to warm up and for the Controller to settle in. Never take shortcuts in starting and operating your smoker, if you do, your Smoker will never operate correctly. I searched online, but there’s no posting of your Smoker owners manual, even on Pit Bosses website, there’s no actual link to a owners manual. Now if your owners manual says to just plug your Smoker in and set the temp to 300*-350* degrees.... “without any proper warm up steps at all”... and you’re good to go... Then I Stand Corrected and those instructions are crazy. Again, I’m not trying to bash you... A lot of people will post about problems, but many never follow the exact Owners Manual instructions to begin with and they’ll leave out a step or two... Follow the start-up procedures as per the owners manual and see if that solves the problem, if that doesn’t work, then reach out to PB Customer Service for additional help. Good luck

Pellet Pro Austin XL and a few more mods... In SoCal and Always... Semper Fi

 

[Sparky]

Let me start this off by saying, I’m not trying bash you... Just want to understand what’s happening. Does the Owners Manual actually tell you to plug the power cord into a outlet, push the power button on and set the temp to 300*-350* degrees?? From my experience with Pit Boss pellet grills, there are actual steps and procedures to follow each and every time you turn on your smoker. Or does your Owners Manual actually say to power your Smoker on and set the Temp to Smoke to allow the Pellets to properly ignite? Remember, these are Wood Pellet burning Smokers and not Electric Gas Ovens... They have procedures to follow as per the owners manual, which will eliminate most temp issues if followed correctly. When bbqing in cold weather, it’ll take longer for Pellet Smokers to warm up and for the Controller to settle in. Never take shortcuts in starting and operating your smoker, if you do, your Smoker will never operate correctly. I searched online, but there’s no posting of your Smoker owners manual, even on Pit Bosses website, there’s no actual link to a owners manual. Now if your owners manual says to just plug your Smoker in and set the temp to 300*-350* degrees.... “without any proper warm up steps at all”... and you’re good to go... Then I Stand Corrected and those instructions are crazy. Again, I’m not trying to bash you... A lot of people will post about problems, but many never follow the exact Owners Manual instructions to begin with and they’ll leave out a step or two... Follow the start-up procedures as per the owners manual and see if that solves the problem, if that doesn’t work, then reach out to PB Customer Service for additional help. Good luck

Pellet Pro Austin XL and a few more mods... In SoCal and Always... Semper Fi

That’s the 1st thing i did before I purchased my KC Combo. I downloaded the manual and read it front to back to see if it would be a good fit, and it is. Only problem I have had was not checking the hopper and had a void going to the auger.

 

[RCAlan]

That’s the 1st thing i did before I purchased my KC Combo. I downloaded the manual and read it front to back to see if it would be a good fit, and it is. Only problem I have had was not checking the hopper and had a void going to the auger.

Sparky, do you have the link to the owners manual for the PB Series 4 version 2 vertical pellet grill smoker? This is the one the Original Poster is asking about and I can’t find the link on Pit Bosses website.

Thanks..

Pellet Pro Austin XL and a few more mods... In SoCal and Always... Semper Fi

 

[DaveXDm9]

It looks like they are behind on updating the product manuals online. It will eventually get there unless they stopped posting the user guides online.

https://pitboss-grills.com/support/grill-manuals

 

[GeekChef]

Mike.....if you see any of my posts, you can tell I have been trying to work through all the weird kinks with this unit. Having said that, I noticed something on Sunday during a short smoke of Chicken Leg Quarters.

The issue is a software problem.....and there is no fix, except a firmware update, which they have not committed to do yet. The RTD IS working correctly....and I believe the unit is reading the correct temperature....BUT....it is not showing the correct temperature. Let me explain.... I put in three separate RTD's....one right next to the smoker RTD. I was running at 150 degs....to give maximum smoke....and it held there and pumped out the smoke....worked amazing...! As a test, after an hour....I turned the temperature to 200....and the internal probe leveled off at 200 degs exactly in about 10 mins(see my graph below), BUT...the smoker RTD was only showing 181 degs. The smoker knew it was at 200 because it leveled off and held perfectly at 200 according to my sensor, but it took another 45 mins to go from showing 181 to 197.....AND.....the internal sensor I put in stayed within 2 degs of 200 the entire time.

In other words....the controller knew it was at 200....and it showed it at 200 and it stayed at 200, but the display had a HUGE lag from 181 to 197....took 45 more mins...and it never showed 200...never got there....even though it was actually there the whole time.

I believe their issue is their controller measurement has some sort of averaging laggy filter for the display.....to make it not oscillate.....and looks like it is holding better than it actually does...and in fact in this case....I believe they have an error in their code that isn't showing the actual temperature. The same thing happened when I went to 300 degrees....it gets there internally and stops the control....but the display temp only showed 260....and took another hour to show 296. I am going to call them, but not sure who is smart enough to understand, except the controller programmers.

 

[InkyLeChat]

Mike.....if you see any of my posts, you can tell I have been trying to work through all the weird kinks with this unit. Having said that, I noticed something on Sunday during a short smoke of Chicken Leg Quarters.

The issue is a software problem.....and there is no fix, except a firmware update, which they have not committed to do yet. The RTD IS working correctly....and I believe the unit is reading the correct temperature....BUT....it is not showing the correct temperature. Let me explain.... I put in three separate RTD's....one right next to the smoker RTD. I was running at 150 degs....to give maximum smoke....and it held there and pumped out the smoke....worked amazing...! As a test, after an hour....I turned the temperature to 200....and the internal probe leveled off at 200 degs exactly in about 10 mins(see my graph below), BUT...the smoker RTD was only showing 181 degs. The smoker knew it was at 200 because it leveled off and held perfectly at 200 according to my sensor, but it took another 45 mins to go from showing 181 to 197.....AND.....the internal sensor I put in stayed within 2 degs of 200 the entire time.

In other words....the controller knew it was at 200....and it showed it at 200 and it stayed at 200, but the display had a HUGE lag from 181 to 197....took 45 more mins...and it never showed 200...never got there....even though it was actually there the whole time.

View attachment 805

I believe their issue is their controller measurement has some sort of averaging laggy filter for the display.....to make it not oscillate.....and looks like it is holding better than it actually does...and in fact in this case....I believe they have an error in their code that isn't showing the actual temperature. The same thing happened when I went to 300 degrees....it gets there internally and stops the control....but the display temp only showed 260....and took another hour to show 296. I am going to call them, but not sure who is smart enough to understand, except the controller programmers.

Mike.....if you see any of my posts, you can tell I have been trying to work through all the weird kinks with this unit. Having said that, I noticed something on Sunday during a short smoke of Chicken Leg Quarters.

The issue is a software problem.....and there is no fix, except a firmware update, which they have not committed to do yet. The RTD IS working correctly....and I believe the unit is reading the correct temperature....BUT....it is not showing the correct temperature. Let me explain.... I put in three separate RTD's....one right next to the smoker RTD. I was running at 150 degs....to give maximum smoke....and it held there and pumped out the smoke....worked amazing...! As a test, after an hour....I turned the temperature to 200....and the internal probe leveled off at 200 degs exactly in about 10 mins(see my graph below), BUT...the smoker RTD was only showing 181 degs. The smoker knew it was at 200 because it leveled off and held perfectly at 200 according to my sensor, but it took another 45 mins to go from showing 181 to 197.....AND.....the internal sensor I put in stayed within 2 degs of 200 the entire time.

In other words....the controller knew it was at 200....and it showed it at 200 and it stayed at 200, but the display had a HUGE lag from 181 to 197....took 45 more mins...and it never showed 200...never got there....even though it was actually there the whole time.

View attachment 805

I believe their issue is their controller measurement has some sort of averaging laggy filter for the display.....to make it not oscillate.....and looks like it is holding better than it actually does...and in fact in this case....I believe they have an error in their code that isn't showing the actual temperature. The same thing happened when I went to 300 degrees....it gets there internally and stops the control....but the display temp only showed 260....and took another hour to show 296. I am going to call them, but not sure who is smart enough to understand, except the controller programmers.

Ik

Mike.....if you see any of my posts, you can tell I have been trying to work through all the weird kinks with this unit. Having said that, I noticed something on Sunday during a short smoke of Chicken Leg Quarters.

The issue is a software problem.....and there is no fix, except a firmware update, which they have not committed to do yet. The RTD IS working correctly....and I believe the unit is reading the correct temperature....BUT....it is not showing the correct temperature. Let me explain.... I put in three separate RTD's....one right next to the smoker RTD. I was running at 150 degs....to give maximum smoke....and it held there and pumped out the smoke....worked amazing...! As a test, after an hour....I turned the temperature to 200....and the internal probe leveled off at 200 degs exactly in about 10 mins(see my graph below), BUT...the smoker RTD was only showing 181 degs. The smoker knew it was at 200 because it leveled off and held perfectly at 200 according to my sensor, but it took another 45 mins to go from showing 181 to 197.....AND.....the internal sensor I put in stayed within 2 degs of 200 the entire time.

In other words....the controller knew it was at 200....and it showed it at 200 and it stayed at 200, but the display had a HUGE lag from 181 to 197....took 45 more mins...and it never showed 200...never got there....even though it was actually there the whole time.

View attachment 805

I believe their issue is their controller measurement has some sort of averaging laggy filter for the display.....to make it not oscillate.....and looks like it is holding better than it actually does...and in fact in this case....I believe they have an error in their code that isn't showing the actual temperature. The same thing happened when I went to 300 degrees....it gets there internally and stops the control....but the display temp only showed 260....and took another hour to show 296. I am going to call them, but not sure who is smart enough to understand, except the controller programmers.

GeekChef, What temp tools/logger, etc are you using to generate your graphs? I’m planning to build a simple ESP8266 one with a few probes. Maybe it would be simpler to use your solution. Your logging results look great.

 

[GeekChef]

Did you know that the Pit Boss Series 4 V2 uses an ESP32 for communications? Crazy stuff.

The one I have is 3 years old....and I actually melted it against the side of the smoker...so I am getting a new one. This old one does not post actual data....it is just a phone pic. Also...when you close the app the data disappears....not recommended.

OLD ONE....Don't get this one.!

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B077821Z4C/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I am currently looking at Inkbird or ThermoPro. I missed the 50% off of InkBird promo....so I am going to be investigating one that integrates with both local and cloud-based data capture.

Here is the one I was looking at....but at $100.... but I am waiting to do some research on the best unit for the best price.

Amazon.com: Inkbird WiFi Grill Meat Thermometer IBBQ-4T with 4 Colored Probes, Wireless Barbecue Meat Thermometer with Calibration, Timer, High and Low Temperature Alarm for Smoker, Oven, Kitchen, Drum: Home & Kitchen

Online Shopping for Kitchen Utensils & Gadgets from a great selection at everyday low prices. Free 2-day Shipping with Amazon Prime.

www.amazon.com

I use to have an Akorn Kamado Egg style grill that I used a Huzzah Feather for PID control that I coded in Arduino C style. I 3D printed the servo damper/fan assembly. I used a quad K thermocouple board. It's very Similar to using the ESP8266. I had that thing tuned perfectly....but my wife liked the lighter smoke flavor of the pellet grill....so here we are..!

 

[InkyLeChat]

Did you know that the Pit Boss Series 4 V2 uses an ESP32 for communications? Crazy stuff.

The one I have is 3 years old....and I actually melted it against the side of the smoker...so I am getting a new one. This old one does not post actual data....it is just a phone pic. Also...when you close the app the data disappears....not recommended.

OLD ONE....Don't get this one.!

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B077821Z4C/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I am currently looking at Inkbird or ThermoPro. I missed the 50% off of InkBird promo....so I am going to be investigating one that integrates with both local and cloud-based data capture.

Here is the one I was looking at....but at $100.... but I am waiting to do some research on the best unit for the best price.

Amazon.com: Inkbird WiFi Grill Meat Thermometer IBBQ-4T with 4 Colored Probes, Wireless Barbecue Meat Thermometer with Calibration, Timer, High and Low Temperature Alarm for Smoker, Oven, Kitchen, Drum: Home & Kitchen

Online Shopping for Kitchen Utensils & Gadgets from a great selection at everyday low prices. Free 2-day Shipping with Amazon Prime.

www.amazon.com

I use to have an Akorn Kamado Egg style grill that I used a Huzzah Feather for PID control that I coded in Arduino C style. I 3D printed the servo damper/fan assembly. I used a quad K thermocouple board. It's very Similar to using the ESP8266. I had that thing tuned perfectly....but my wife liked the lighter smoke flavor of the pellet grill....so here we are..!

View attachment 807

View attachment 808

Looks like I’ll continue on my plan for a frugal 4 sensor logger. I have some thermistor probes that I can figure out the parameters for. Those, the ESP32, and some parts from my spares boxes should give me something serviceable that I can log to a CSV and plot from there. I’ve been doing C code since 1979 so it shouldn’t be too tough.