Power Stays On

[cruiser rod]

I have a 30" MB electric smoker. This problem came out of nowhere now my smoker doesn't seem to have any temp control. It will even continue to heat up and stay on even when the digital control unit is turned off. I don't have it pluged in when I'm not using it but now I noticed after I finish my smoke as like smoking chicken for an hour. When I was done smoking the chicken I hit the off button on the smoker control unit. Later I came back to clean up and put away the smoker and it was still on. I have no idea how hot is was but it was very hot. The wood chips were almost completely gone as being burnt up, that takes some heat. I summited an emailed to MB and they said to unplug the control unit for 30-40 seconds and plug it back in. They said this will reset the control unit. They didn't say to this whith the power on or not. I replied and asked them but never got an answer. Has anyone experienced this and is this fixable?

 

[chopsaw]

I've reset mine before for different reasons . Just unplug it wait a minute or 2 , then plug it back in and see what it does .
Sounds to me like you have something internal that's shorted or melted and not breaking the connection when told to . Relay or thermostat . Be a good time to do the rewire and add an Auber controller . That will bypass all the internals .

Try the unplug reset , but even if it works I would be worried about a future fire .

 

[cruiser rod]

I've reset mine before for different reasons . Just unplug it wait a minute or 2 , then plug it back in and see what it does .
Sounds to me like you have something internal that's shorted or melted and not breaking the connection when told to . Relay or thermostat . Be a good time to do the rewire and add an Auber controller . That will bypass all the internals .

Try the unplug reset , but even if it works I would be worried about a future fire .

Should I do this while the unit has power going to it? When you say unplug it, you mean the control unit, right?

 

[chopsaw]

When you say unplug it, you mean the control unit, right?

Unplug the power source . From the receptacle .

 

[mosparky]

For safety's sake keep the smoker well away from the house or anything else that could catch fire just in case things go sideways.

Not sure what you mean by "while it has power to it". If it is continuing to heat it has power to it. Whether it is actually turned on will make no difference in the reset.
Curious... was it controlling temps when this happened ? I'm guessing it was in a runaway situation and the overheat safety was doing it's job and holding temps at 300-ish. In which case I'm guessing the contacts on the relay are possibly stuck or some other component failure is keeping the relay energized. If this is the case, it's not a fix for the average guy except to bite the bullet and switch to a PID as Chopsaw mentioned and have the best dang electric smoker you can ever hope for at even 3 times the price.

 

[normanaj]

Sounds like a good time to inspect everything and then do the simple rewire and add an Auber PID!

 

[chopsaw]

Not sure what you mean by "while it has power to it".

He was thinking unplug the control on the smoker , not completely unplugging it .

 

[cruiser rod]

Okay, I unpluged the control unit and nothing changed. I purchased a new control unit and it did the same thing. I also cleaned off both temp sensors in the smoker and still as soon I this unit is pluged in the heating element heats up without turning on the unit. I have to believe this is an electrical problem. BTW MB is useless with their customer support. I feel like all responses were generated by AI. Is this possibly a bad ground?

 

[Steve H]

My guess is the contacts on the relay welded closed.

 

[chopsaw]

this possibly a bad ground?

If it starts heating when you plug it in ( without you setting a temp ) you have a stuck relay or something is by passing the controller and going straight to the element .

It should have an access panel on the bottom . Unplug the unit , and look in the bottom and see if there is any thing that looks burnt / melted .

 

[tallbm]

Okay, I unpluged the control unit and nothing changed. I purchased a new control unit and it did the same thing. I also cleaned off both temp sensors in the smoker and still as soon I this unit is pluged in the heating element heats up without turning on the unit. I have to believe this is an electrical problem. BTW MB is useless with their customer support. I feel like all responses were generated by AI. Is this possibly a bad ground?

I agree with Steve H . Sounds like the relay on the lower circuit board is simply stuck/sticking in the on position. Its a switch that goes on/off and if it is stuck in "on" then that explains it :)

Solution if this is the exact problem, is to get a new lower circuit board (almost impossible these days), or rewire and use a PID controller or maybe a rheostat controller but it's less precise than a PID.

I hope this info helps :)

 

[cruiser rod]

If it is a relay, wouldn't that be in the controler? I examined the old controler and with even the new controler the problem is still the same. The circuit board in the old controler looked fine. I even removed it and cleaned it with electrical contact cleaner.

 

[Steve H]

If it is a relay, wouldn't that be in the controler? I examined the old controler and with even the new controler the problem is still the same. The circuit board in the old controler looked fine. I even removed it and cleaned it with electrical contact cleaner.

If I remember right. The relay for the element is on a different board.

 

[tallbm]

If it is a relay, wouldn't that be in the controler? I examined the old controler and with even the new controler the problem is still the same. The circuit board in the old controler looked fine. I even removed it and cleaned it with electrical contact cleaner.

Unfortunately no. The relay is not in the controller.
There is a compartment on the UNDERside of the MES. In that compartment is usually a black plastic box that contains the lower circuit board and the relay is on that circuit board.

Sounds like it is the lower circuit board relay as the issue and not the otp controller :(

The good news is that the solution to keep your MES running turns it into a complete beast of a smoker vs what it ever was brand new. Like 25x better than anything MES makes brand new.

The best solution is to do the simple rewire (cut the ends off 4 wires and wire nut some ends together to make 2 whole wires) and then slap on a PID controller!

The rewire makes it where the MES cord feeds power straight to the heating element with no control at all.
You use the PID controller to cut power on/off to the MES power cord so that the PID controller hits and holds the temp you set on it. The PID has a temp probe you drop down the MES vent and clip to the bottom of the lowest smoker rack.

This setup will hold dead on or within 1-2 degrees of your set temp!!!! No more temp swings or inaccurate temps!!!

Your MES will go from being a Golf cart to being a Ferrari, for way less than a brand new smoker!!!

Let us know if you have any questions about it :)

 

[JC in GB]

Why Masterbuilt uses relays to control power instead of SSRs makes zero sense to me.

I also agree with tallbm get rid of that bang bang controller and upgrade to a PID.

Easy enough to build your own or there are some good commercial options out there as well.



JC

 

[cruiser rod]

Let us know if you have any questions about it :)

Where can I get some instruction? Like a video would be great.

 

[Steve H]

Where can I get some instruction? Like a video would be great.

Search for PID. There are quite a few threads on making them. As well as bypassing the OEM controls.

 

[tallbm]

Where can I get some instruction? Like a video would be great.

Here is a detailed step by step rewire post that has pictures in it.

Ask any/all questions you may have and we'll get you sorted out :)

MES Rewire Simple Guide - No Back Removal Needed!!!

Lately I've seen a number of posts about guys wanting to rewire their MES. I had wanted to post a quick and simple guide for those out there that are curious or those that simply need to rewire but need a little assistance. Well here goes. Disclaimer: When messing with electrical equipment...

www.smokingmeatforums.com

 

[JC in GB]

PID Controller Tutorial and Build Information

Good day all. It was suggested that I start up a PID controller tutorial thread. Sounded like a good idea to me so, here I am. What is a PID in the first place? P - Proportional I - Integral D - Derivative These parameters describe gain formulas. Gain determines how fast and how hard your...

www.smokingmeatforums.com

This may help.

JC