Thinking of selling my MES 30

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The dust puts off a cooler smoke as compared to the pellets.  This becomes more and more important if your AMNPS is pretty close to the product you are smoking.    So yes for cold smoking I try to use dust.
 
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Any reason for not using pellets for low-temp smokes?
Like Craig said---Dust runs a bit cooler, but it also starts easier & keeps going easier, and I still have a bunch of Dust leftover from 6 years ago, from before there even was an AMNPS for pellets.  I also have some Cherry Dust I saved from my Sliding Compound Miter Saw.

I use my old AMNS when I burn Dust.

Bear
 
Bear,

You just reminded me about the old AMNS back in the good ole dust days.   I forgot to mention that I use my old cage when I use dust. I've never used dust in either of my AMNPS's, but rumor has it that the dust works just fine.
 
 
Bear,

You just reminded me about the old AMNS back in the good ole dust days.   I forgot to mention that I use my old cage when I use dust. I've never used dust in either of my AMNPS's, but rumor has it that the dust works just fine.
The two times I've used dust, it works fine, although quite a bit initially falls out the bottom, until a little bit of a "mat" forms to keep the rest of the dust from falling through. I just put a tray underneath when filling it, and then pour the excess back into the bag.

OK, so "burns cooler" is the reason for using it for cold smokes. I would imagine it makes zero difference once the smoker is into the 140-160 degree range.
 
 
Bear,

You just reminded me about the old AMNS back in the good ole dust days.   I forgot to mention that I use my old cage when I use dust. I've never used dust in either of my AMNPS's, but rumor has it that the dust works just fine.
Yup----That's what they say, but I have never put Dust in my AMNPS either.

So When I tell people Dust works in an AMNPS, I usually tell them I'm going by Hearsay.

Bear
 
Dust works in the AMNPS for sure. I do it from time to time but usually use the dust tray.
 
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Since I restore video, film, slides, 78 rpm records -- and all other forms of media -- for a living, I can definitely take some video of the smoke and post it. I actually may have some from a video I created, but never posted, showing my method for lighting the AMNPS using only the heat gun. The process not only lights the pellets, but the process of using that much hot air also does a great job of preheating all the nearby pellets. The thing is ready to go in no time.

As for the other questions, I don't think I've ever gotten excessive smoke with the AMNPS using pellets. I've only used the sawdust once, and the smoke from that was extremely light.

Finally, I don't think I will ever cold-smoke in this again, unless I do the mailbox mod. Looking back on everything I've done over the past 3-4 months, the worst tasting smoke happened when trying to put smoke through a cold cabinet. So, what I'm going to do the next time I want to cold smoke is to use my Weber BBQ, using the "trick" I posted in my thread about using the AMNPS, placed in the drip tray of my Weber Genesis gas grill. I originally did this to smoke a rotisserie chicken, but it should work even with the grill turned off. I'll probably need to light both ends of the AMNPS because the Weber isn't really set up to contain smoke.
You're a heavy-duty tech guy. You must be good if you're making a living off it.

I hate cold smoking. Can't stand it. But the cheese comes out tasting so good when I get it right that I have to keep doing it but no more than once or twice during the year.

I heat up my MES 30 to the set point or a little beyond either before or after I light the AMNPS. That way they're both ready to go in about 20-30 minutes. I never place a lit AMNPS inside a cold smoker.
 
 
I totally agree: I'd rather eat food thinking, "I wish there was a little more smoke" than eat food where I wished I could somehow remove some smoke. The former is still really tasty, but it is almost impossible to make over-smoked food taste good because smoke seems to trump almost every other spice or flavor, so you can't counteract it or cover it up.

If I do sell the MES, I'll be looking at all other alternatives, so I appreciate that recommendation.

Yes, that vent interfaces to the outside, and on especially on cold days, the condensation, and subsequent buildup in that area is unbelievable. Even after just one smoke, the vent often gets stuck after it cools down and the smoke particles cool.

I did find as I was cleaning yesterday that isopropyl alcohol does an amazing job at cleaning the stainless steel vent. While it doesn't cut through the black on the rack holders or the sensor, because those are baked on, it almost instantly dissolves the gunk near that cooler section in and around the vent because it hasn't been baked on.
Wonder how well isopropyl alcohol works on baked-in gunk inside the top vent that's built up over 4 years due to ignorance? I'll have to try it when I wheel my smoker out in the Spring.
 
 
Can I answer "yes" to all three questions? I've had all three experiences, although never #1 when using the AMNPS as the smoke source. Most of the time, the answer is #2 and, sometimes, #3.

The thick smoke (#1) happens when I sometimes have had to open the door not long after adding chips (when I'm not using the AMNPS). As you know, the MES method for heating chips tends to produce smoke in bursts, with the smoke intensifying during the heating cycle, and then diminishing (although not disappearing altogether) during the time the electric element is off.

Question back to you: do you ever use the MES chip tray, or do you always use the AMNPS as the sole source of smoke? If you do sometimes still use the MES chip tray, on what smokes do you use it?

Based on all the feedback I've gotten, and now that I've scrubbed off most of the heavy gunk (creosote??), and then let it run at top temperature for several hours until no residual smoke came out of the vent, I'm going to try a few more basic smokes before I give up, starting with tri-tip and then chicken. I still have some Costco almonds, and may do a small load of almonds after that, since they seems to provide the best test of smoke bitterness and numbing. I've been doing those using the MES chip tray with standard hickory chips. This time I'll do it with the AMNPS.
I cooked a tri-tip roast Santa Maria CA-style over mesquite wood pellets in my MES. It was incredible. It continues to amaze me: the high quality, deelish Q that emerges from that little electric smoker.
 
I cooked a tri-tip roast Santa Maria CA-style over mesquite wood pellets in my MES. It was incredible. It continues to amaze me: the high quality, deelish Q that emerges from that little electric smoker.
You posts are definitely encouraging me to keep this. No matter what, based on all the feedback I've gotten, I'm going to keep trying for awhile.
 
 
You posts are definitely encouraging me to keep this. No matter what, based on all the feedback I've gotten, I'm going to keep trying for awhile.
Thanks. How old is yours again? If at the end of it all you're still not happy it would make sense to put it up for sale and buy something else. However, for a decent electric smoker that you might be happier with you'll pay a lot more. Check the prices for Smokin-It and Cookshack smokers. S-I are Chinese made but CS are made here. With those you might be able to find a great deal on a scratch-and-dent model. But my MES 30 has been just what I wanted for me.
 
It's a little over three months old. It was a gift to me. I would not mind paying a little more (or a lot more) to get something I'd be happier with. However, as I've said, I'm going to try a few more things with this before I send it over to Craigslist.
 
johnmeyer - Taking your time is the wise thing to do.  A new smoker is going to cost more money and if you can to the point where your current smoker starts behaving itself and doing what it was built to do without having to outfit it with every gadget known to man you are good to go. Nothing wrong with an extra smoke generator like the AMNPS; they generate little heat which makes them ideal for a lot of low temp smokes. Call it a sometimes needed accessory. Good luck - Dave
 
Give propane a try....
If you have room for just one smoker and if you want to smoke low temp items such as fish and high temp stuff like poultry, I'd stay with what you have.   I would only go propane if you do not smoke fish.  That being said, I have a gasser which is dedicated for beef, poultry, pork for I don't want those smells on my Salmon.  The gasser is used as my cold smoker for butter and cheese with the gas not connected.
 
I bought a Chargriller Outlaw many years ago and did mod after mod and at the end of the day, it did not help all that much.  It could be very frustrating at times. So when I decided to get an electric smoker, I did a lot of research. The Cookshack was more than I wanted to spend. I ended up getting a Spoken-it #2 and NEVER looked back. No mods required! The only add on I bought was the cold smoking plate because it was on sale. I cold smoke salt, cheese, fish, homemade sausages, and so on. I have had it for 5 years and have genuinely tried to wear it out but to no avail.

If you can, consider the Cookshack, Smoking Tex, or my favorite, the Smoking-it #2.

Mark
 
 
I bought a Chargriller Outlaw many years ago and did mod after mod and at the end of the day, it did not help all that much.  It could be very frustrating at times. So when I decided to get an electric smoker, I did a lot of research. The Cookshack was more than I wanted to spend. I ended up getting a Spoken-it #2 and NEVER looked back. No mods required! The only add on I bought was the cold smoking plate because it was on sale. I cold smoke salt, cheese, fish, homemade sausages, and so on. I have had it for 5 years and have genuinely tried to wear it out but to no avail.

If you can, consider the Cookshack, Smoking Tex, or my favorite, the Smoking-it #2.

Mark
Exact same results I got from my MES. No Mods needed, perfect for 6 years.

Bear
 
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