# Arrrgh! My MES 40 burst aflame...



## wbrian (Mar 8, 2015)

So yesterday I was making ribs. At the 2-1/2 hour mark I went out to foil them. My A MAZ N was out so I was relighting it. While doing so (outside the smoker!), I heard an electrical buzz and the flame appeared in the back left bottom corner of the smoker! Glad I was there when it happened, as I saved the ribs from the burning rubber smell. I immediately Unplugged it and closed all the vents, etc to choke out the fire. Any ideas what might have caused this? Could it be fixable?  
I miss my smoker already!!!

Thanks!
Brian


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## foamheart (Mar 9, 2015)

Personally I would call Masterbuilt's 800  number and talk to tech support. Very first thing.

They are pretty good at what they do. Try 'em first.


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## BandCollector (Mar 9, 2015)

Regardless as to what caused the problem this is a safety issue that Masterbuilt should be made aware of immediately.

Foamheart and I are on the same page with this one!

Good luck,  John


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## wbrian (Mar 9, 2015)

Will do. I'll call them today and post back what I hear...  
Thanks! 
B.


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## daveomak (Mar 9, 2015)

Did you have anything in the smoker that blocked the heat from rising and out the exhaust vent...   like a foil pan that covered the full rack, or a glazing tile to move heat, or a pan of lit briquettes to add smoke for a smoke ring in the bottom of the smoker....  

All of the above will concentrate heat in the bottom of the smoker....   In the lower left bottom, there is an assortment of electronic controls to operate the smoker functions.....   They have just been fried.....


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## mdboatbum (Mar 9, 2015)

And here's another one. Hope people take notice, I see a lot of people leaving these things for hours and hours in garages and on porches. This is the 4th or 5th fireball MES I've seen.


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## BandCollector (Mar 9, 2015)

Mdboatbum said:


> And here's another one. Hope people take notice, I see a lot of people leaving these things for hours and hours in garages and on porches. This is the 4th or 5th fireball MES I've seen.


Are you referring to leaving a running MES unattended for hours and hours?


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## Bearcarver (Mar 9, 2015)

This is why a Smart Bear will never do an all nighter & sleep with his smoker on the front porch!!

No Way !!!

I've said this a number of times, since I heard of an MES door flaming up.

It Aint Worth Losing Your House!!!

Bear


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## daricksta (Mar 9, 2015)

I personally haven't read many stories about a MES flaming up but I wonder how common an occurrence it is not only with the MES but with any electric smoker--especially those made in China? Just wondering.


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## daricksta (Mar 9, 2015)

wbrian said:


> So yesterday I was making ribs. At the 2-1/2 hour mark I went out to foil them. My A MAZ N was out so I was relighting it. While doing so (outside the smoker!), I heard an electrical buzz and the flame appeared in the back left bottom corner of the smoker! Glad I was there when it happened, as I saved the ribs from the burning rubber smell. I immediately Unplugged it and closed all the vents, etc to choke out the fire. Any ideas what might have caused this? Could it be fixable?
> I miss my smoker already!!!
> 
> Thanks!
> Brian


First, what generation is your MES 40?

Second, it's not like the the AMNPS (if that's what you have) to go out after only 2 1/2 hours especially if you had filled the rows. Something's going on with your smoker as the fire attested to.

Did you call MB customer service yet?


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## bmaddox (Mar 9, 2015)

Bearcarver said:


> This is why a Smart Bear will never do an all nighter & sleep with his smoker on the front porch!!
> 
> No Way !!!
> 
> ...


Yep. I use mine in my garage and always smoke on days that I am home (and awake).


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## tjwheels (Mar 9, 2015)

Mdboatbum said:


> And here's another one. Hope people take notice, I see a lot of people leaving these things for hours and hours in garages and on porches. This is the 4th or 5th fireball MES I've seen.


This should be a wakeup call to anyone who uses their smoker close to combustible material. As a somewhat newbie (2nd year) and brand new to electric smokers I'm guilty of this myself, I do use my smoker in the garage. I haven't yet left it unattended for more than an hour due to the fact that I need to add chips every hour and now I never will. Good luck with your outcome.


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## daricksta (Mar 10, 2015)

The primary reason why I never use my smoker in my garage is that I don't want everything inside my garage smelling like wood smoke, including our vehicles. I don't smoke as much as many other guys here because I wait for the good, warmer weather to come around. Since smoking can be an all-day exercise, why not do it on a nice day?

And there's the thing that if my MES 30 burst into flames it's outside and shouldn't set anything else on fire.


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## wbrian (Mar 10, 2015)

Hi All!
Haven't been in touch with Masterbuilt, yet. I will tho. Been busy. 
To answer somebof the questions, nothing in it to disturb air flow. I smoke right on the racks. No stones/tiles, etc... the unit is almost four years old. Fairly lightly used, overall. I keep it outside on my deck covered with a patio chair cover and a LG plastic bag under that. I did notice that there was a tear on the cover when I took it off. That may have had something to do with it, but that'd be weird 2.5 hours into the smoke, no? I only smoke when I'll be able to be home with it the whole time (or else someone else might drink my beers and smoke my cigars!!!).

Might just be "one of those things"- you've heard of Murphy's Law? I'm the Murphy they wrote it for!


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## wbrian (Mar 10, 2015)

daRicksta said:


> First, what generation is your MES 40?
> Second, it's not like the the AMNPS (if that's what you have) to go out after only 2 1/2 hours especially if you had filled the rows. Something's going on with your smoker as the fire attested to.
> 
> Did you call MB customer service yet?



I'll be calling MN in the next couple days...
I'd only under half filled my AMAZN, and lit both ends, so it was working right.

Don't remember if it's a first or second generation mes40. I think it's 2nd... but I'll check before I call them, obviously...
Thanks for all the input!
B.


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## wbrian (Mar 10, 2015)

MB not MN... dopey autocorrect!


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## wbrian (Mar 10, 2015)

Oh, don't know why I wrote back left corner. It was the back right corner. (Same side as the door hinges are on...)


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## smoky mike blu (Mar 10, 2015)

Wow! This is a wake up call for me. I left my MES on Saturday on my deck for two hours alone. Kind of scary now when you think of it. I guess we all need to be more careful with these. I was thinking of doing some all nighters during the week, but Bears right, it's just not worth it. 
What sides the best side to place the AMAZN? On the left back side or the right back side? I thought the left back corner was the better place to place it?
Sorry about this Wbrian
Mike


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## Bearcarver (Mar 10, 2015)

wbrian said:


> Oh, don't know why I wrote back left corner. It was the back right corner. (Same side as the door hinges are on...)


If your door hinges are on the right side, it is a Gen #1 MES.

Bear


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## Bearcarver (Mar 10, 2015)

Smoky Mike Blu said:


> Wow! This is a wake up call for me. I left my MES on Saturday on my deck for two hours alone. Kind of scary now when you think of it. I guess we all need to be more careful with these. I was thinking of doing some all nighters during the week, but Bears right, it's just not worth it.
> What sides the best side to place the AMAZN? On the left back side or the right back side? I thought the left back corner was the better place to place it?
> Sorry about this Wbrian
> Mike


Since yours is a Gen #1 MES, you should put your AMNPS on the little support bars in the bottom, to the left of the chip burner assembly. The AMNPS was designed to fit perfectly there in an MES 30 Gen #1.

Bear


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## daricksta (Mar 10, 2015)

wbrian said:


> Hi All!
> Haven't been in touch with Masterbuilt, yet. I will tho. Been busy.
> To answer somebof the questions, nothing in it to disturb air flow. I smoke right on the racks. No stones/tiles, etc... the unit is almost four years old. Fairly lightly used, overall. I keep it outside on my deck covered with a patio chair cover and a LG plastic bag under that. I did notice that there was a tear on the cover when I took it off. That may have had something to do with it, but that'd be weird 2.5 hours into the smoke, no? I only smoke when I'll be able to be home with it the whole time (or else someone else might drink my beers and smoke my cigars!!!).
> 
> Might just be "one of those things"- you've heard of Murphy's Law? I'm the Murphy they wrote it for!


Might just be "one of those things"- you've heard of Murphy's Law? I'm the Murphy they wrote it for!   But I thought your name was Brian...


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## daricksta (Mar 10, 2015)

wbrian said:


> Hi All!
> Haven't been in touch with Masterbuilt, yet. I will tho. Been busy.
> To answer somebof the questions, nothing in it to disturb air flow. I smoke right on the racks. No stones/tiles, etc... the unit is almost four years old. Fairly lightly used, overall. I keep it outside on my deck covered with a patio chair cover and a LG plastic bag under that. I did notice that there was a tear on the cover when I took it off. That may have had something to do with it, but that'd be weird 2.5 hours into the smoke, no? I only smoke when I'll be able to be home with it the whole time (or else someone else might drink my beers and smoke my cigars!!!).
> 
> Might just be "one of those things"- you've heard of Murphy's Law? I'm the Murphy they wrote it for!


What concerns me is that my MES 30 Gen1 is about 3 years old and relatively lightly used (in comparison to how often members here use their smokers) so it's something I'll be watching out for. Of course no way to know at this point what happened with your particular MES 40.


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## wbrian (Mar 10, 2015)

Bearcarver said:


> Since yours is a Gen #1 MES, you should put your AMNPS on the little support bars in the bottom, to the left of the chip burner assembly. The AMNPS was designed to fit perfectly there in an MES 30 Gen #1.
> 
> 
> Bear



Yup. That's where it sits! Thx!!


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## susieqz (Mar 10, 2015)

i saw those pics of burnt up smokers. i moved my mes 12' from the house n i got the maverick  set to wake me if it bursts into flame.

i do lots of overnight  smokes so i had no choice.

putting it on the deck would be more convenient but too scarey for me.

 i like the mes/amns combo because i can sleep thru the night but   the mes seems to burst into flame sometimes. i never heard of this happening  except with mes n traeger.


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## daveomak (Mar 10, 2015)

I'm now thinking the heating element shorted out...  it's in the back of the smoker....   No big deal....  easy to fix......   

Dave


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## wbrian (Mar 11, 2015)

DaveOmak said:


> I'm now thinking the heating element shorted out...  it's in the back of the smoker....   No big deal....  easy to fix......
> 
> Dave


Hi Dave!
Can that be diagnosed by looking at it? What would I look for?
Thx!
Brian


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## Bearcarver (Mar 11, 2015)

wbrian said:


> Hi Dave!
> Can that be diagnosed by looking at it? What would I look for?
> Thx!
> Brian


The bottom right in the back is where the element wires are connected.

That's where the older models used to corrode & need connector repair.

Depending on your model (year), there may be a little plate you can remove to get to the wires.

Some (older) models need the whole back removed.

Bear


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## daveomak (Mar 11, 2015)

In the back is where the element connects....   Pull the plug first....   pull the cover....  the wires will probably be burned...   Clean the ends of the element with sand paper until bright...   cut the wire ends until clean wire is found...  strip wire and "tin" with solder...  "tin" the element ends....    solder the wires to the element ends....   
You then have eliminated the possibility of corrosion...    Wrap exposed soldering with fiberglass electrical tape available from Home Depot or other big box stores, or online...    

Me wiring in the dimmer switch to control heat output....  I should have soldered it...  Check continuity of the neutral wire to make sure it didn't fail....














MES DimmerSwitchtempwiring.jpg



__ daveomak
__ Mar 11, 2015




















MES heating element.jpg



__ daveomak
__ Mar 11, 2015


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## cman55 (Mar 12, 2015)

I wouldn't be comfortable with a "hard wire" connection to the heating element. I used a spade connector after stripping .25" of old wire/insulation off the lead and using shrink tubing. After crimping, I reconnected the wires and was good to go. I did notice some melting on the original rubber gasket covering the ground plate. Not sure how that happened but I hope it doesn't happen again. Perhaps a function of the old heating element death throes.


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## Bearcarver (Mar 13, 2015)

Cman55 said:


> I wouldn't be comfortable with a "hard wire" connection to the heating element. I used a spade connector after stripping .25" of old wire/insulation off the lead and using shrink tubing. After crimping, I reconnected the wires and was good to go. I did notice some melting on the original rubber gasket covering the ground plate. Not sure how that happened but I hope it doesn't happen again. Perhaps a function of the old heating element death throes.


I know very little about wiring.

However a few years ago there was a model of MES that had that element wiring problem.

It seemed the concensus of the guys in the know back then was that the stock wiring was undersized.

They were replacing with heavier wire & new connectors.

Bear


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## daveomak (Mar 13, 2015)

Cman55 said:


> I wouldn't be comfortable with a "hard wire" connection to the heating element. I used a spade connector after stripping .25" of old wire/insulation off the lead and using shrink tubing. After crimping, I reconnected the wires and was good to go. I did notice some melting on the original rubber gasket covering the ground plate. Not sure how that happened but I hope it doesn't happen again. Perhaps a function of the old heating element death throes.



It is the slide on connectors that fail...  once the connection becomes "loose" from heating and cooling, the loose connections creates more heat and subsequently more amperage draw, which in turn burns the connectors off....  
Soldering is easier and more reliable than a slip on connector...  and should last a lifetime....  it can also be "un done" with a soldering iron....


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## daricksta (Mar 13, 2015)

Bearcarver said:


> I know very little about wiring.
> 
> However a few years ago there was a model of MES that had that element wiring problem.
> 
> ...


Do you remember when and which model this was?


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## Bearcarver (Mar 13, 2015)

daRicksta said:


> Do you remember when and which model this was?


No I don't. All I remember was it seemed like most, if not all of them came from Sams. Mine came from Cabelas, and never had the problem. I believe They were models bought around 2009 and 2010.

That's about all I remember.

Maybe if you do a search on repairing MES wiring, they might mention their model numbers?? 

These were also back in the day that they didn't have the little access door, because the whole back had to be removed to get there.

They had to drill out the rivets, then replace them with self tappers.

Bear


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## daricksta (Mar 13, 2015)

Bearcarver said:


> No I don't. All I remember was it seemed like most, if not all of them came from Sams. Mine came from Cabelas, and never had the problem. I believe They were models bought around 2009 and 2010.
> 
> That's about all I remember.
> 
> ...


I did a quick search and came across consumersaffairs.com which has a whole bunch of people complaining that MES digitals and Butterball Electric Turkey Fryers were popping GCFI circuits after a couple of uses or after a year of use, or during this same period they were bursting into flames. The MES compllaints seemed to center around the 40-inch models (# 20072612 and #20070407 were specified in two reports) bought from Sam's Club. Most of the complainants stated they had bought "high end models" costing over $300. The few photos showed stainless steel models with windows. Some said they had owned previous MES models with no problems but these newer ones were dangerous junk.

All I can say is that with my basic black 3-year-old MES 30 model #20070910, so far so good...


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## bmaddox (Mar 13, 2015)

daRicksta said:


> I did a quick search and came across consumersaffairs.com which has a whole bunch of people complaining that MES digitals and Butterball Electric Turkey Fryers were popping GCFI circuits after a couple of uses or after a year of use, or during this same period they were bursting into flames. The MES compllaints seemed to center around the 40-inch models (# 20072612 and #20070407 were specified in two reports) bought from Sam's Club. Most of the complainants stated they had bought "high end models" costing over $300. The few photos showed stainless steel models with windows. Some said they had owned previous MES models with no problems but these newer ones were dangerous junk.
> 
> All I can say is that with my basic black 3-year-old MES 30 model #20070910, so far so good...


I hadn't given much thought to GFCI outlets until I saw your comment. Making sure you plug into a protected outlet is probably a good fail safe for these units. They will trip a lot sooner than a breaker and could prevent the unit having a serious enough short to catch it on fire.


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## daricksta (Mar 13, 2015)

bmaddox said:


> I hadn't given much thought to GFCI outlets until I saw your comment. Making sure you plug into a protected outlet is probably a good fail safe for these units. They will trip a lot sooner than a breaker and could prevent the unit having a serious enough short to catch it on fire.


I hadn't thought about them either but GFCI outlets are not an option where I plug in my MES. We have to outside electrical outlets that I suppose are directly wired to our circuit breaker box. For one outlet I plug the MES directly into it. For the other I use an extension cord rated to work with the MES. Haven't had any problems so far but I use my smoker far less often than many people here. I bought mine off Amazon and not from a big box store.


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## tropics (Mar 13, 2015)

daRicksta said:


> I hadn't thought about them either but GFCI outlets are not an option where I plug in my MES. We have to outside electrical outlets that I suppose are directly wired to our circuit breaker box. For one outlet I plug the MES directly into it. For the other I use an extension cord rated to work with the MES. Haven't had any problems so far but I use my smoker far less often than many people here. I bought mine off Amazon and not from a big box store.


My outside outlet has a GFCI it makes sense to have it,working with any kind of blower,mower or any power tool.


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## Bearcarver (Mar 13, 2015)

tropics said:


> My outside outlet has a GFCI it makes sense to have it,working with any kind of blower,mower or any power tool.


Around here, you couldn't build, buy, or sell a house without GFCIs where needed.

Bear


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## bmaddox (Mar 16, 2015)

daRicksta said:


> I hadn't thought about them either but GFCI outlets are not an option where I plug in my MES. We have to outside electrical outlets that I suppose are directly wired to our circuit breaker box. For one outlet I plug the MES directly into it. For the other I use an extension cord rated to work with the MES. Haven't had any problems so far but I use my smoker far less often than many people here. I bought mine off Amazon and not from a big box store.


GFI outlets are pretty cheap if you know how to swap one out yourself. It is good protection to have as that style outlet trips when the amp draw starts to vary between the two wires as opposed to a traditional breaker that doesn't trip until you exceed the overall amp draw. I think I will be switching out the outlet that I use prior to my next smoke.


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## daricksta (Mar 16, 2015)

bmaddox said:


> GFI outlets are pretty cheap if you know how to swap one out yourself. It is good protection to have as that style outlet trips when the amp draw starts to vary between the two wires as opposed to a traditional breaker that doesn't trip until you exceed the overall amp draw. I think I will be switching out the outlet that I use prior to my next smoke.


I've swapped out regular outlets inside my house and I've also replaced an interior GFI outlet but I've never swapped a regular outlet for a GFI. If I choose to do this I'd really have to read up on the proper way to wire the new outlet.


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## tropics (Mar 16, 2015)

daRicksta said:


> I've swapped out regular outlets inside my house and I've also replaced an interior GFI outlet but I've never swapped a regular outlet for a GFI. If I choose to do this I'd really have to read up on the proper way to wire the new outlet.


daRicksta They all hook up the same way. the back of the outlet tells what color wire goes were.


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## bmaddox (Mar 16, 2015)

tropics said:


> daRicksta They all hook up the same way. the back of the outlet tells what color wire goes were.


Yep. The only difference is the inner workings of the outlets. The install is the same (so long as it is currently a grounded outlet which most are)


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## daricksta (Mar 16, 2015)

tropics said:


> daRicksta They all hook up the same way. the back of the outlet tells what color wire goes were.


Thanks, Tropics. I can handle that!


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## cman55 (Mar 16, 2015)

Did you upgrade the wire gauge before soldering? Those connector wires are pretty thin. "Stranded" too I think. If and when the next failure happens, I'll splice on a heavier gauge wire and then solder directly to the lugs (if they haven't corroded).


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