new to smoking and new masterbuilt 30in electric digitial smoker not producing smoke at low temps

[thanosazlin]

hi all,  i'm new to smokers , so i bought this smoker

https://masterbuilt.com/product/20070910-30-electric-digital-smoker/ 

i am only doing dry-runs right now.  for some reason if i set it around 230 degrees it doesn't seem to burn the chips that much and produce a lot of smoke.  

what i found i have to do it push it above 250 to say 260 or 270 and get the chips going then drop it to 225 or 230. then it continues to smoke fine.

until.... i need to add more wood chips!!! then when i do they typically don't catch and smoke, i end up having to increase temp again to like 260 or 270..

this is not ideal i want to be able to not have to monitor as much, i mean i don't mind checking and putting in new wood chips when it needs it, but when it is at a low temp it doesn't want to burn chips well...

I research online and saw there was an issue with the chip metal tray, but i have checked mine and i have the most recent one as the metal tray that holds the wood chips is the only piece of metal between IT (the wood chip tray) and the heating coil..

Man, any advice folks?? i just want to keep a consistent smoke going that i can "trust" ??

 

[redoctobyr]

I'm new at this as well, but just bought the same model smoker. I followed the common advice here, and bought an AMNPS pellet tray.

The included chip tray relies on the smoker's heater to make the chips hot enough to smoke, as you found. So with a low set temperature, the heater may not run enough to generate much smoke. Run at a higher temp, and you might finish the chips off more quickly. But it's somewhat inconsistent. And from what I've read, you may have to refill the chips about hourly.

The AMNPS pellet tray is different. It uses wood pellets. You light it with a torch, let it burn for 10 minutes, then blow out the flame so it's just smoking. Then you put it in the smoker, to the left of the heater & chip area, in our unit. With the chip loading tube pulled out slightly (for more air flow), mine smoldered well, producing nice smoke for 10 hours (running at 225), without my needing to touch anything. And since the pellets are smoldering from their own heat, it doesn't rely on your setpoint and the heater's activity. It could keep smoking with the heater turned off.

You can get the AMNPS from the manufacturer, or Amazon:


I bought 20 lbs of Lumber Jack pellets for $19 shipped on Amazon. Most of their pellets products are 100% of the woods they list (eg- the Hickory is just Hickory, not a mix with other cheaper stuff), I bought the bag that's a mix of Cherry, Maple, and Hickory. They do make some that only mention one wood (like Apple), but are a blend, and those are called out as such.

The tray apparently holds about 1 lb of pellets, so the pellets bag should last me a long time, since a full tray can burn for 10-11 hours.

You can get cheaper pellets too, or more expensive ones. These sounded like a decent middle ground, to me.

I'm happy with my combo so far, thanks to the great advice here!

 

[johnmeyer]

I too have the Masterbuilt 30" smoker (MES, as it is called in these forums). The heating element does double duty: it heats the enclosure, and it also heats the chips so that they will smoke. However, this means that the lower temperature you set, the less heat that will be applied to the chips, and eventually they barely smolder.

If you are going to do all your smokes at 225 degrees and higher, then the stock MES should work. To help things along, don't ever wet or soak your chips. That does not work when putting them in an electric smoker. Also, do not put water in the pan.

If you want to smoke at lower temperatures, and if you want far more control over the smoke quality and quantity, then you need to add an external smoking attachment. Masterbuilt produces an external smoking attachment ("Cold Smoking Attachment"). It has the advantage of having a constant supply of chips, so you don't have to go out to the smoker every 45 minutes and add more chips. It costs about $70.

You can also get the A-MAZ-N pellet smoker (AMNPS, as it is called in these forums). It is sold by one of the sponsors in this forum. You use pellets in it, which you light. You then place the tray inside the smoker, and it burns for the entire duration of the smoke. Once again, you do not use the MES's chip tray, so the amount and quality of the smoke is completely independent on the temperature that you set inside the box.

Finally, you can go one step further and build a "mailbox mod" which is simply a metal box into which you place the AMNPS. You then connect that box to the smoker, via the chip loader hole. This gives you exactly the same thing as the Masterbuilt cold smoker attachment.

I've never seen a review or comparison of which approach produces better food. That would be quite interesting to read.

You will find hundreds of posts about the AMNPS, and almost as many about the "mailbox mod." The only issue with the AMNPS is that, when placed inside the smoker, some people have problems with it staying lit. However, if you read the posts, you can figure out how to avoid that problem. If you place it in a mailbox mod, there is no downside. That is what I eventually did, and like pretty much everyone who has gone down that path (including some of the senior members in this forum), I am very happy with my decision.

Here is a link to the thread I started which details my mailbox mod (I used a popcorn tin instead of a mailbox):

Mailbox (Popcorn) Mod (with a small twist)

 

[thanosazlin]

great thanks alot, i think i'll look into the AMNPS tray... i went to the A-MAZE-N site and didn't see any sort of user manual.. i mean it doesn't look to difficult but how do i use it :). is there a guide somewhere? do i just light them using small propane torch just igniting them over the top of the pellets then place it in towards the bottom of the MES? or do you have to remove the wood chip loader and place it some how over the heating coil ? which that would leave a big hole where the chip loader was... 

yeah i want to do this right, i was little PO at Masterbuilt now :( , the first  smoker i got worked , but the heating coil was DOA . Amazon replaced it no problem and second one working fine. but now this mess with no smoke at low temps :(...  also i left it on  a dry run in direct sun light and the plastic on top of the digital display started to melt. i called MB and they are sending me another digital display box, but Geeez you can to keep this sucker in shaded area. 

 

[thanosazlin]

i found this post :) it has good details i was looking for

http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/109303/amnps-and-mes-30 

 

[daricksta]

 
hi all,  i'm new to smokers , so i bought this smoker

https://masterbuilt.com/product/20070910-30-electric-digital-smoker/ 

i am only doing dry-runs right now.  for some reason if i set it around 230 degrees it doesn't seem to burn the chips that much and produce a lot of smoke.  

what i found i have to do it push it above 250 to say 260 or 270 and get the chips going then drop it to 225 or 230. then it continues to smoke fine.

until.... i need to add more wood chips!!! then when i do they typically don't catch and smoke, i end up having to increase temp again to like 260 or 270..

this is not ideal i want to be able to not have to monitor as much, i mean i don't mind checking and putting in new wood chips when it needs it, but when it is at a low temp it doesn't want to burn chips well...

I research online and saw there was an issue with the chip metal tray, but i have checked mine and i have the most recent one as the metal tray that holds the wood chips is the only piece of metal between IT (the wood chip tray) and the heating coil..

Man, any advice folks?? i just want to keep a consistent smoke going that i can "trust" ??

I agree that you should get an AMNPS and use wood pellets instead of wood chips. I have the original model of the MES 30. For the first time I smoked a whole beef brisket 14 lbs., (point and flat) and I got about 11 hours of wonderful oak wood smoke. I pulled the flat after about 8 hours but the point took about 18 hours (including overnight). The pellets were long burnt out by then but from previous experience I knew that 11 hours of smoke exposure is more than enough. Now, there are issues with using the AMNPS in a MES 30 for cold smokes because the air circulation is much poorer. I have a lot of problems with pellets snuffing out during cold smokes--especially in colder or damp weather. Quite a few guys here use modifications (mods) to solve that problem. Quite a few guys who prefer to continue using wood chips use the Masterbuilt Cold Smoking Kit.  

 

[redoctobyr]

FWIW, I've used my twice now, both times with it sitting on the deck, in full sun (I think the first use was around 80F or so). My display is admittedly tough to read in bright light, but I haven't noticed any issues with melting. Maybe something else was going wrong, contributing to that? 

You can download manuals from the A-MAZE-N site, yes: 

http://www.amazenproducts.com/Articles.asp?ID=238

 

[daricksta]

 
I'm new at this as well, but just bought the same model smoker. I followed the common advice here, and bought an AMNPS pellet tray.

The included chip tray relies on the smoker's heater to make the chips hot enough to smoke, as you found. So with a low set temperature, the heater may not run enough to generate much smoke. Run at a higher temp, and you might finish the chips off more quickly. But it's somewhat inconsistent. And from what I've read, you may have to refill the chips about hourly.

The AMNPS pellet tray is different. It uses wood pellets. You light it with a torch, let it burn for 10 minutes, then blow out the flame so it's just smoking. Then you put it in the smoker, to the left of the heater & chip area, in our unit. With the chip loading tube pulled out slightly (for more air flow), mine smoldered well, producing nice smoke for 10 hours (running at 225), without my needing to touch anything. And since the pellets are smoldering from their own heat, it doesn't rely on your setpoint and the heater's activity. It could keep smoking with the heater turned off.

You can get the AMNPS from the manufacturer, or Amazon:


I bought 20 lbs of Lumber Jack pellets for $19 shipped on Amazon. Most of their pellets products are 100% of the woods they list (eg- the Hickory is just Hickory, not a mix with other cheaper stuff), I bought the bag that's a mix of Cherry, Maple, and Hickory. They do make some that only mention one wood (like Apple), but are a blend, and those are called out as such.

The tray apparently holds about 1 lb of pellets, so the pellets bag should last me a long time, since a full tray can burn for 10-11 hours.

You can get cheaper pellets too, or more expensive ones. These sounded like a decent middle ground, to me.

I'm happy with my combo so far, thanks to the great advice here!

Have you used the cherry wood pellets yet? I don't have those but I've been told the wood is so hard that it's hard to keep them lit unless you combine them with an easier-burning wood pellet like the hickory you bought. The pellet mix you bought is what Todd Johnson/A-MAZE-N also sells as Pitmaster's Choice. It's a really good combo.

 

[daricksta]

 
FWIW, I've used my twice now, both times with it sitting on the deck, in full sun (I think the first use was around 80F or so). My display is admittedly tough to read in bright light, but I haven't noticed any issues with melting. Maybe something else was going wrong, contributing to that? 

You can download manuals from the A-MAZE-N site, yes: 

http://www.amazenproducts.com/Articles.asp?ID=238

I've been using my MES 30 for over 5 years now, and I still have to cup my hand over the controller display to read it since I set up my smoker either in my front or back yards.

 
great thanks alot, i think i'll look into the AMNPS tray... i went to the A-MAZE-N site and didn't see any sort of user manual.. i mean it doesn't look to difficult but how do i use it :). is there a guide somewhere? do i just light them using small propane torch just igniting them over the top of the pellets then place it in towards the bottom of the MES? or do you have to remove the wood chip loader and place it some how over the heating coil ? which that would leave a big hole where the chip loader was... 

yeah i want to do this right, i was little PO at Masterbuilt now :( , the first  smoker i got worked , but the heating coil was DOA . Amazon replaced it no problem and second one working fine. but now this mess with no smoke at low temps :(...  also i left it on  a dry run in direct sun light and the plastic on top of the digital display started to melt. i called MB and they are sending me another digital display box, but Geeez you can to keep this sucker in shaded area. 

I light my AMNPS through the hole in front but I also place my propane torch under the tray to get the underside of the pellets. Once I get a fire going I set the tray down on the ground to let it burn away for about 20 minutes (which gives you time to apply dry rub or whatever to the meat you're about to smoke. I also have the MES warming up during this period. This way, both the smoker and the AMNPS are ready to go when I bring out what I'm going to smoke.

As I wrote in another reply, I always use my MES 30 Gen 1 outside so I'm always cupping a hand over the display screen. It doesn't bother me because I mainly use the temp and time remaining display as a reference. For an accurate temp display, I always use my Maverick ET-733. I own two of them. I just smoked a whole brisket on two separate racks. For that I used both ET-733s and the temp displays were either the same or within 2-7 degrees of each other. But you're going to have interior temp differences within the MES anyway.

And my experience has been that Masterbuilt offers great customer service. The only major problem I've had with mine is the controller dying after about 4 years of use. Yeah, I had to buy a new one but my MES has performed flawlessly for the 5+ years I've owned it.

 

[redoctobyr]

 
Have you used the cherry wood pellets yet? I don't have those but I've been told the wood is so hard that it's hard to keep them lit unless you combine them with an easier-burning wood pellet like the hickory you bought. The pellet mix you bought is what Todd Johnson/A-MAZE-N also sells as Pitmaster's Choice. It's a really good combo.

Sorry, I should have worded that better.

The Maple-Hickory-Cherry pellets that I bought are pre-mixed into a blend of the 3. It's not a bag of Cherry, a bag of Maple, etc. I was hoping it would be a decent choice for general-use pellets, since I'm not planning on buying a bunch of different individual types at the moment. 

 

[thanosazlin]

here are 2 pics, it crazy i did 2 other dry runs once in the shade the other direct sun. and this 3rd run was direct sun on another day. it was in Ga and the weather was nice 83 degrees no humidity. very strange.

image1.jpeg

• thanosazlin
• Aug 1, 2017

image2.jpeg

• thanosazlin
• Aug 1, 2017

 

[thanosazlin]

thanks :).. i really want to not mess with the pellets, the masterbuilt cold smoker attachment sounds nice and easy, i think i might go with it.. i'm not picky, i just wanted something that i can just start up and put wood chips in. for me i think that option is best. the AMPNS or whatever :) sounds nice but if something goes wrong i don't want to be opening up the smoker door if i don't have to.

 

[daricksta]

 
here are 2 pics, it crazy i did 2 other dry runs once in the shade the other direct sun. and this 3rd run was direct sun on another day. it was in Ga and the weather was nice 83 degrees no humidity. very strange.

image1.jpeg

• thanosazlin
• Aug 1, 2017

image2.jpeg

• thanosazlin
• Aug 1, 2017

Wow, it can get up to the '90s and even around 100° here in Western Washington and my controller has never melted like that. But my smoker is a MES 30 Gen 1 and I think MB used harder, thicker plastic back then. I noticed the newer smokers have thinner walls and it seems like less expensive components. That's just my personal opinion. 

 

[daricksta]

 
Sorry, I should have worded that better.

The Maple-Hickory-Cherry pellets that I bought are pre-mixed into a blend of the 3. It's not a bag of Cherry, a bag of Maple, etc. I was hoping it would be a decent choice for general-use pellets, since I'm not planning on buying a bunch of different individual types at the moment. 

I should have rewritten my response because when I read your post again I saw it was a mix. I'm posting on three different sites and it got away from me. I thought that this mix was proprietary for A-MAZE-N but I guess it's a fairly common one sold by different wood pellet retailers. 

 

[thanosazlin]

yeah i told masterbuilt the same thing, it's saving them money but making a cheapass product :).. either use hard plastic or metal. heck they shipping me another one to attach, i mean i wonder how many others they have to send out, then in the end it not saving them money at all :). 

 

[tallbm]

 
Have you used the cherry wood pellets yet? I don't have those but I've been told the wood is so hard that it's hard to keep them lit unless you combine them with an easier-burning wood pellet like the hickory you bought. The pellet mix you bought is what Todd Johnson/A-MAZE-N also sells as Pitmaster's Choice. It's a really good combo.

I've used the Lumberjack 100% Cherry and they did take a little babying to light up.

However, I am now microwaving my pellets for 1 minute, wait 3 minutes and microwave for another 1 minute and I have no problems with them lighting and staying lit.  

The microwave job seems to remove any humidity in the pellets and they just burn away w/out going out on me :)

thanosazlin here are some pics of the AMNPS in use to give you a better idea of how it works.  I feel it is really a superior option to the MES cold smoker attachment which may only burn up to 6 hours and is another electrical thing of theirs that may break or be poorly assembled.  The AMNPS can go up to 9-12 hours :)

This is the AMNPS lit and then placed in the MES 30.  You just light the wood pellets through the little hole in the tray visible there on the left hand side of the image

MES302.jpg

• tallbm
• Aug 1, 2017

Here is my AMNPS and mailbox mod, the AMNPS pellets are doing the 10 min burn before being blown out and put into the black mailbox

33fbwvn.jpg

• tallbm
• Jan 8, 2017

 

[daricksta]

 
I've used the Lumberjack 100% Cherry and they did take a little babying to light up.

However, I am now microwaving my pellets for 1 minute, wait 3 minutes and microwave for another 1 minute and I have no problems with them lighting and staying lit.  

The microwave job seems to remove any humidity in the pellets and they just burn away w/out going out on me :)

thanosazlin here are some pics of the AMNPS in use to give you a better idea of how it works.  I feel it is really a superior option to the MES cold smoker attachment which may only burn up to 6 hours and is another electrical thing of theirs that may break or be poorly assembled.  The AMNPS can go up to 9-12 hours :)

This is the AMNPS lit and then placed in the MES 30.  You just light the wood pellets through the little hole in the tray visible there on the left hand side of the image

MES302.jpg

• tallbm
• Aug 1, 2017

Here is my AMNPS and mailbox mod, the AMNPS pellets are doing the 10 min burn before being blown out and put into the black mailbox

33fbwvn.jpg

• tallbm
• Jan 8, 2017

I'm glad the Lumberjack wood pellets work great for you. I don't see that brand here in the Pacific Northwest. But I only buy from Todd Johnson/A-MAZE-N because he's taken really good care of me as a customer over the years. I'm loyal to him for that. Besides, the pellets he sells are top quality. I've never microwaved any pellets in the 5 years I've been smoking. I have noticed that wood pellets do better in dry, warm to hot weather than in cold, damp weather (of course). But what I'm saying is that the pellets that I've had for a few years burn well in any climate. Mine have never seemed to absorb moisture from the air in my garage. The biggest factor that causes pellets to snuff themselves out is lack of adequate air circulation inside a smaller, electric smoker, like my MES 30 Gen 1. I was considering building a mailbox mod this year, although I'm not that handy with projects like those even though for the most part I have the necessary tools. But your mailbox mod looks awesome. 

But this past week I smoked a whole brisket (using oak pellets) and tonight I'm cold smoking cheeses (using hickory Dust) and I've had no problem keeping my AMNPS lit. The smokes have been the easiest I've had in a while. But then we're in a heat wave out here. 

 

[daricksta]

 
yeah i told masterbuilt the same thing, it's saving them money but making a cheapass product :).. either use hard plastic or metal. heck they shipping me another one to attach, i mean i wonder how many others they have to send out, then in the end it not saving them money at all :). 

I feel bad for you.I understand why you're not happy. The MES 30 Gen 1 I bought in April 2012 is built very well for an electric digital smoker that cost me less than $200.When my controller died they sent me the same exact type I originally had. That was over a year ago and it's still doing fine.