# Masterbuilt 20070312



## Smoothjazz (Jul 1, 2021)

Hello all,
   A newbie to this forum. I have been trying to troubleshoot  my Masterbuilt electric smoker.I replaced the heating element because it wouldnt get hot.
  After replacing the element no change.I am now trying to find a control panel( which online I cant find) Any ideas or suggestions? If its the controller,
what usually goes bad in them?

  Thanks,
   Smoothjazz


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## SecondHandSmoker (Jul 1, 2021)

Welcome to SMF.

If it is the control panel, then you should consider a PID controller. 
Use the search function here on the site for PID controller.
You'll discover excellent tutorials by 

 tallbm
 that detail how to go about it.


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## GaryHibbert (Jul 1, 2021)

Yep.   

 tallbm
  .   He solved my MES problems.
Gary


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## tallbm (Jul 1, 2021)

Smoothjazz said:


> Hello all,
> A newbie to this forum. I have been trying to troubleshoot  my Masterbuilt electric smoker.I replaced the heating element because it wouldnt get hot.
> After replacing the element no change.I am now trying to find a control panel( which online I cant find) Any ideas or suggestions? If its the controller,
> what usually goes bad in them?
> ...



Hi there and welcome!

If you look at the back of your MES (Masterbuilt Electric Smoker) and you are lucky... you will have a panel that is about halfway up the back either in the middle of the back or to the right hand side of the back.
Open that panel and remove any box you see under the panel.

There you will see the Safety Rollout Limit Switch. This thing is often a culprit causing what you are explaining. If there is a problem here you will likely notice the connector or the switch itself has burnt up, corroded, disconnected, etc.

*Safety Rollout Limit Switch Replacement (if it's the issue)*
If that is the case you can replace any corroded connectors with these (do this anyways):

If the safety rollout limit switch is burned up or damaged you can simply cut the connectors off the wire right where the connector and wire come together to leave as much wire as possible.
Wire nut the ends of those 2 wires together and wrap with electrical tape.
That will get you going but WARNING there is no extra over temp safety switch in the mix so always be able to monitor your smoker temp.
Get these EXACT replacement switches, do not get another one that looks the same simply click this link to buy the correct ones or you will likely get the wrong ones!!!

Once these come in undo the wire nut and use the Supco Hi Temp connectors to connect back to a new switch THEN install the switch into the MES.


If the safety limit switch isn't the issue then more trouble shooting needed like checking UNDER the MES in a panel to see if the lower controller board shows signs of issues. But one step at a time. 

You will want to check all of this out before we start talking about replacing your controller as these are simpler and much cheaper fixes.

Let me know if this info helps :)


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## Smoothjazz (Jul 2, 2021)

tallbm said:


> Hi there and welcome!
> 
> If you look at the back of your MES (Masterbuilt Electric Smoker) and you are lucky... you will have a panel that is about halfway up the back either in the middle of the back or to the right hand side of the back.
> Open that panel and remove any box you see under the panel.
> ...


Thanks for the info. Will let you know what I find.


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## JLeonard (Jul 2, 2021)

Welcome to the forums from Mississippi! 

Jim


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## Wurstmeister (Jul 2, 2021)

Welcome to the Forum from South Carolina's Thoroughbred Country.  
John


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## MJB05615 (Jul 2, 2021)

Welcome from Ga.  I see you're in good hands with 

 tallbm
 .


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## tallbm (Jul 2, 2021)

Smoothjazz said:


> Thanks for the info. Will let you know what I find.



Also if this panel doesn't exist let us know.
In that case the back of the smoker must come off to get to the switch. It's usually not a big deal and just takes some sheet metal screws to refasten back again. If this is the case you would want to cut a square out to make your own panel to access this switch. I had to do this for my smoker and I've had to replace a number of switches so I consider it a mandatory thing to do lol.

Pictures help as well to show whatever you run into :)
Here is one of an MES and the switch I mention (this one seems to be halfway up back of smoker and on the left) .


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## Smoothjazz (Jul 2, 2021)

tallbm said:


> Also if this panel doesn't exist let us know.
> In that case the back of the smoker must come off to get to the switch. It's usually not a big deal and just takes some sheet metal screws to refasten back again. If this is the case you would want to cut a square out to make your own panel to access this switch. I had to do this for my smoker and I've had to replace a number of switches so I consider it a mandatory thing to do lol.
> 
> Pictures help as well to show whatever you run into :)
> ...


Gotcha.. will take a look sometime this weekend.  By the way, love your Fluke multimeter. Used one in the Navy


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## tallbm (Jul 2, 2021)

Smoothjazz said:


> Gotcha.. will take a look sometime this weekend.  By the way, love your Fluke multimeter. Used one in the Navy



Wish I could claim that was me and my multimeter. I just grabbed an MES rollout switch image from the web as a visual.  I use a cheapo multimeter hahaha.  Glad it brought back good memories for ya though :D


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## Smoothjazz (Jul 3, 2021)

Smoothjazz said:


> Thanks for the info. Will let you know what I find.


Thanks again ,
I will take a look at tomorrow and let you know what I find out. Things have been busy lately and haven’t had the chance to do much troubleshooting.


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## Smoothjazz (Jul 4, 2021)

tallbm said:


> Wish I could claim that was me and my multimeter. I just grabbed an MES rollout switch image from the web as a visual.  I use a cheapo multimeter hahaha.  Glad it brought back good memories for ya though :D


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## Smoothjazz (Jul 5, 2021)

My friend gave this to me. I am cleaning it out inside due to lots of mold inside
Good afternoon
I was able to finally get a chance to look at the MES. I took a picture of the back .Took off the only panel that had screws. I plugged it in and turned on the controller. I then went to the back where the connections are at for the heating element. I tested for ac voltage at the connection points and got zero voltage.I am now guessing that I am going to have find the way to get that sheet panel off to troubleshoot more to see where those wires go to.


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## tallbm (Jul 5, 2021)

Smoothjazz said:


> My friend gave this to me. I am cleaning it out inside due to lots of mold inside
> Good afternoon
> I was able to finally get a chance to look at the MES. I took a picture of the back .Took off the only panel that had screws. I plugged it in and turned on the controller. I then went to the back where the connections are at for the heating element. I tested for ac voltage at the connection points and got zero voltage.I am now guessing that I am going to have find the way to get that sheet panel off to troubleshoot more to see where those wires go to.



Thanks for the pics! 
If the controller isn't turned on and set to so something you won't get any juice to the element.
If you had the controller on like it should have been feeding juice then I bet money your safety rollout limit switch or it's connectors are bad AND you have no panel for it according to the image of the back of your MES

The back will have to come off AND yours is not riveted on so get ready to fight with bending the metal to fit in the groove when potting it back on.  I had one like that I did the best I could but took a bunch of needle knows bending and hammering to get the metal to back into the groove.  You'll see what I mean when you take it off.
I still used a few sheet metal screws to fasten it back

Honestly a better approach is to find the switch from the inside against the back wall, its here or here but I can't really tell.  It looks round and about the size of a quarter:
	

		
			
		

		
	







Measure from the ground up and measure from the side over to figure out where it lies on the back wall. Then without going deep at all cut like an 8inch by 6inch rectangle around that area to make a panel and get to the switch from the back. Again DO NOT cut very deep to avoid any wires. To make a panel just get a sheet of scrap aluminum or something that wont rust and use self tapping sheet metal screws to fasten it over the hole you cut.  Panel built!

To cut you will want to use a dremel like rotary tool or an oscillating cutting tool.

Having pulled a back like yours off before I would totally avoid that due to the pain in the butt it is to put it back. Unless you want to spend an hour and a half hammering metal back into place hahah.

Let me know if this makes sense. :)


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## Smoothjazz (Jul 6, 2021)

tallbm said:


> Thanks for the pics!
> If the controller isn't turned on and set to so something you won't get any juice to the element.
> If you had the controller on like it should have been feeding juice then I bet money your safety rollout limit switch or it's connectors are bad AND you have no panel for it according to the image of the back of your MES
> 
> ...


Good morning 
It totally makes sense. Any chance it might be behind one of those panels that has the pop rivet cover on them? Just curious. I will look inside today when I get a chance to see if I can see it.One last question. Will I see voltage numbers before or after I set the timer on the controller?


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## tallbm (Jul 6, 2021)

Smoothjazz said:


> Good morning
> It totally makes sense. Any chance it might be behind one of those panels that has the pop rivet cover on them? Just curious. I will look inside today when I get a chance to see if I can see it.One last question. Will I see voltage numbers before or after I set the timer on the controller?



You can try dripping those rivets off and seeing if there is something underneath but I think they are just tacked onto the back as labels for whatever they are displaying.  Won't hurt to measure and see if it lines up behind one though hahaha.

If you turn the controller on and set it to get hot then you SHOULD see voltage at the heating element IF the safety rollout limit switch isn't busted and the controller is on and trying.
The other much rarer issue is that there is a break somewhere else in the wiring not allowing you to get voltage to the heating element but again much rarer and if there is a problem at the lower circuit board then chances are usually high that the controller wont even come on.

You will just have to trace where things may be busted and right now the long pole in the tent is that inaccessible rollout safety limit switch.


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## Winterrider (Jul 7, 2021)

I have that same MES as  
S
 Smoothjazz
 , that safety switch is the right arrow in 

 tallbm
  pic. I have been lucky thus far that I haven't had to replace mine yet ( did purchase in case) but also gonna have to do the cut thing when time comes.  Yuk...


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## Smoothjazz (Jul 7, 2021)

Smoothjazz said:


> Good morning
> It totally makes sense. Any chance it might be behind one of those panels that has the pop rivet cover on them? Just curious. I will look inside today when I get a chance to see if I can see it.One last question. Will I see voltage numbers before or after I set the timer on the controller?


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## Smoothjazz (Jul 7, 2021)

tallbm said:


> Hi there and welcome!
> 
> If you look at the back of your MES (Masterbuilt Electric Smoker) and you are lucky... you will have a panel that is about halfway up the back either in the middle of the back or to the right hand side of the back.
> Open that panel and remove any box you see under the panel.
> ...


. 

Good morning 
Well I have pictures to show u. I was able to get the 
back cover off with removing and pulling back the 
sheet metal cover. OMG!! Check out these pictures!  
 The whole area is burnt up!!


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## Winterrider (Jul 7, 2021)

Oh my that looks nasty.

Edit: think I would replace both items as in post #4, should take care of ya.


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## Smoothjazz (Jul 7, 2021)

Winterrider said:


> Oh my that looks nasty.
> 
> Edit: think I would replace both items as in post #4, should take care of ya.



When I finally got the cover off and saw this I just 
shook my head. I have the limit switch on order.


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## tallbm (Jul 8, 2021)

Smoothjazz said:


> When I finally got the cover off and saw this I just
> shook my head. I have the limit switch on order.



Yep what I thought was happening.  Your switch burnt up on you.

You will want to use high temp connectors AND replace the switch. For now you can just clip those wire ends, wire nut them together and electric tape them to ensure it doesnt come loose and any metal is touching bare wire.

Now understand that these switches are super delicate and cheap. If you bend or wiggle the tabs of the connector in ANY way where they fasten to the plastic back of the switch then the switch will fail on you in no time and you will be replacing it again.

Reinstall in this manner to avoid damaging the replacement safety rollout limit switch (it seems counter intuitive but will save you in the future):

Take a new switch and put the connectors on both tabs, no wiring involved yet
Take a small hammer and with hold the switch so that one connector (slid onto the tab) is resting on the ground or a piece of wood.  Take the hammer and tap the top connector (slid on the other tab) and start gently tapping onto it until one or both of the connectors is all the way on the tabs.  Rotate the switch to the other tab and continue tapping until both are on the way they should be.
Now with both connectors all the way on the tabs, put the wires into the connectors and crimp
Now fasten the switch to the MES and cover with your panel.  I think I see they riveted your current switch in place so you may have to buy some screws and nuts to fasten the new one.... lame if they riveted the old one in place.  Never seen it riveted before, in the past they always used screws and nuts.
Again this seems like an odd way to go about this but those switches are seriously so delicate that any wiggle to those tabs will cause a switch to fail fast as hell.... I've replaced at least 5 of those things learning this the hard way hahaha.

The good news is that you now have a panel and spare parts to keep this major failure point going.  Also if it ever fails here while a smoke is going on then simply unplug from the outlet.  Get in there and wirenut the wires together and start up again and you can get through your smoke until you can replace the switch again... if you decide to replace the switch.

My guess is that if you can ever find a ceramic version of the switch it is less likely to melt down on you like this plastic version but who knows.  Any plastic one I've ever used including $15 ones has melted down so someday I'll try a ceramic one when all my plastic ones burn up :)

Good job on the find and good luck with the fix! :)


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## Smoothjazz (Jul 8, 2021)

tallbm said:


> Yep what I thought was happening.  Your switch burnt up on you.
> 
> You will want to use high temp connectors AND replace the switch. For now you can just clip those wire ends, wire nut them together and electric tape them to ensure it doesnt come loose and any metal is touching bare wire.
> 
> ...


 Good morning 
Thanks for the help. I was wondering why when I opened the door I smelled a burnt smell. What usually causes these switches to burn up like that?


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## Smoothjazz (Jul 8, 2021)

tallbm said:


> Yep what I thought was happening.  Your switch burnt up on you.
> 
> You will want to use high temp connectors AND replace the switch. For now you can just clip those wire ends, wire nut them together and electric tape them to ensure it doesnt come loose and any metal is touching bare wire.
> 
> ...



Any thoughts on what I could to replace that burnt
up foam that is stuck on the backside? When I opened the door it smells burnt inside and wondering how long before and if it will disappear


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## tallbm (Jul 8, 2021)

Smoothjazz said:


> Good morning
> Thanks for the help. I was wondering why when I opened the door I smelled a burnt smell. What usually causes these switches to burn up like that?



The fact that they are cheap parts made with cheap materials in China.  Chinese components are inexpensive but man are they made NOT to last haha.  If you can find one made somewhere else and where they are made they use better materials then you have a better chance of these things not melting down and burning up on you.  It's just cheap parts man, nothing more you can do about em, hence buying a 5 pack lol.



Smoothjazz said:


> Any thoughts on what I could to replace that burnt
> up foam that is stuck on the backside? When I opened the door it smells burnt inside and wondering how long before and if it will disappear



Yeah you can get some high temp rated fiber glass and just shove it in there if you have a large gap and just pin it in place with some paper clips or something that won't melt.  I've done that with a unit where I dug up all the wires to figure out how an MES is wired.  I then put fiber glass insulation  in place of the all the foam insulation I dug out and problem solved.  No issues.

You might be able to get this locally at a Home Depot, rated at 2300F so should do the trick no problem. If you can find less and cheaper then go that route but you get the idea:








						UniTherm International 1lb. 13 in. L x 13 in. W x 4 in. H Ceramic Bulk Fiber Box (6-8# Densities, 2300F) - R 2.27 BF-6-8-1 - The Home Depot
					

Ceramic Bulk Fiber (6-8# Densities, 2300F) consists of high quality spun or spun and chopped high temperature fibers made of alumina-silica ceramic, which is naturally chemically inert. Ceramic Bulk Fiber



					www.homedepot.com
				




Once you get it running just do a max temp empty run but burn chips or pellets if you are using an AMNPS.  Do that for like 3 hours and I bet you are good to go.


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## Smoothjazz (Jul 12, 2021)

tallbm said:


> The fact that they are cheap parts made with cheap materials in China.  Chinese components are inexpensive but man are they made NOT to last haha.  If you can find one made somewhere else and where they are made they use better materials then you have a better chance of these things not melting down and burning up on you.  It's just cheap parts man, nothing more you can do about em, hence buying a 5 pack lol.
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Good morning 
I got everything all cleaned up. New connectors at the  wires Hooked up the new switch and set temp 
 for 275 degrees. Unit sat at 105 degrees  for 15 mins and I never saw a rise in temp. Heating element has been replaced. Any suggestions?


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## tallbm (Jul 12, 2021)

Smoothjazz said:


> Good morning
> I got everything all cleaned up. New connectors at the  wires Hooked up the new switch and set temp
> for 275 degrees. Unit sat at 105 degrees  for 15 mins and I never saw a rise in temp. Heating element has been replaced. Any suggestions?



I would check your new switch.  I wouldn't doubt that it melted down already haha.  Especially if it wasn't treated like the most fragile thing alive when you installed it haha.

if you can unhook the connectors from the switch lay against each other and wrap with electrical tape you can test without the switch in the mix and that would tell you if the switch is the problem still. I'm telling you those things are cheap.

if that's not the case then I would guess your controller has gone bad.  If it goes to 115F though that means it got heat and the one major thing to misread the temp is the safety rollout limit switch if it is individually over heating.  This is a common situation for the behavior you describe. Switch is burning up but the smoker is not.  Indicates bad switch or connection at the switch.

I hope this helps :)


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## Smoothjazz (Jul 12, 2021)

tallbm said:


> I would check your new switch.  I wouldn't doubt that it melted down already haha.  Especially if it wasn't treated like the most fragile thing alive when you installed it haha.
> 
> if you can unhook the connectors from the switch lay against each other and wrap with electrical tape you can test without the switch in the mix and that would tell you if the switch is the problem still. I'm telling you those things are cheap.
> 
> ...


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## tallbm (Jul 12, 2021)

Smoothjazz said:


> Hello again
> Did more troubleshooting and found a bad connection. Replaced and now temperature is rising
> as set in controller.Now I have to ensure all connections are 100 percent good once I get the switch mounted.



Glad you found the bad connection.
Yeah leave the panel off the back when you have the switch connected and you are testing
Looks like you are on your way!

Once you get this goin and you pair with an AMNPS tray with pellets. You will be UNSTOPPABLE!! I can't wait until you get the full experience.
It feels so good to go from mediocre and broken to super high performance that can smoke basically anything!


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## Smoothjazz (Jul 18, 2021)

tallbm said:


> Glad you found the bad connection.
> Yeah leave the panel off the back when you have the switch connected and you are testing
> Looks like you are on your way!
> 
> ...


Good morning
So I did a test run today. I set the temp at 225.
The MES started to  heat up. It reached the desired temp but it kept climbing . Ugh. I shut it down. Okay, is this a temp switch issue, or a  controller issue?


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## tallbm (Jul 18, 2021)

Smoothjazz said:


> Good morning
> So I did a test run today. I set the temp at 225.
> The MES started to  heat up. It reached the desired temp but it kept climbing . Ugh. I shut it down. Okay, is this a temp switch issue, or a  controller issue?



This could be general MES behavior.  The MES swings temps high and then low and hopefully you get an average of 225F.

If you set to 225F I wouldnt be surprised if it peaks at 245F and then its a low point of 208F and then does this over and over the entire time you run it.

Did it get close to 300F before you turned it off?

Also note that the INITIAL heat up may have a higher peak then subsequent swings/peaks.  This is because the heating element is on full power for so long to get up to set temp that it takes longer to cool down when the MES determines the set temp is hit.  So it shuts off the heating element but the element is still glowing hot for a bit haha.

Let me know if this makes sense and what it's peak temp behavior was when you tested it.


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## Smoothjazz (Jul 18, 2021)

tallbm said:


> This could be general MES behavior.  The MES swings temps high and then low and hopefully you get an average of 225F.
> 
> If you set to 225F I wouldnt be surprised if it peaks at 245F and then its a low point of 208F and then does this over and over the entire time you run it.
> 
> ...


Hi
I am going out right now and try it again.


tallbm said:


> This could be general MES behavior.  The MES swings temps high and then low and hopefully you get an average of 225F.
> 
> If you set to 225F I wouldnt be surprised if it peaks at 245F and then its a low point of 208F and then does this over and over the entire time you run it.
> 
> ...


Hi
I just fam a test again. I set it for 225.It reached temp, the heating light went off and it stayed around  235 for temp. So, my question is if I set the temp at 225, then I will be seeing 235 as my actual temp when it cooks for 3 hours


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## Smoothjazz (Jul 18, 2021)

Smoothjazz said:


> Hi
> I am going out right now and try it again.
> 
> Hi
> I just fam a test again. I set it for 225.It reached temp, the heating light went off and it stayed around  235 for temp. So, my question is if I set the temp at 225, then I will be seeing 235 as my actual temp when it cooks for 3 hours


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## tallbm (Jul 18, 2021)

Smoothjazz said:


> Hi
> I am going out right now and try it again.
> 
> Hi
> I just fam a test again. I set it for 225.It reached temp, the heating light went off and it stayed around  235 for temp. So, my question is if I set the temp at 225, then I will be seeing 235 as my actual temp when it cooks for 3 hours



No it will peak and valley around 225F.  So it will get hot and cut off the heating element but the temp will still rise up to 235F and hold there for a bit then likely drop to 215F before the element is turned on and it starts rising again.

Are you using an accurate wireless thermometer to verify the temperature inside the smoker? The MES reported temps are ALWAYS off. So all of us MES guy use a dual probe (or more) wireless thermometer to get the real readings inside and then we just adjust temp based on that thermometer.

Even if it were to stay at 235F you would be fine as 99% of the meat you smoke won't have any issues up to 250F.


Pork butts, ribs, beef chucks, and briskets don't care what temp you smoke em at so you would do well to max it out at 275F for those dishes and save hours of cooking.

Chicken skin comes out leathery unless you can get around 315F-325F+ temp smoking which is way higher than 225F.

My MES and many other guys could never get the MES to actually hit the max 275F temp so if yours does or gets hotter then u are lucky my friend.

Keep playing with it and figure out how hit behaves.  This is always step #1 of learning your smoker so you are well on the path now my friend :D


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## Smoothjazz (Jul 18, 2021)

tallbm said:


> No it will peak and valley around 225F.  So it will go up to 235F and turn the element off and then likely drop to 215F before the element is turned off and it starts rising again.
> 
> Are you using an accurate wireless thermometer to verify the temperature inside the smoker? The MES reported temps are ALWAYS off. So all of us MES guy use a dual probe (or more) wireless thermometer to get the real readings inside and then we just adjust temp based on that thermometer.
> 
> ...


Thank you so much. I will button everything back up and keep  playing with the smoker. Like you mentioned I think I am on my way since I got that switch replaced.  Thanks again !!


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## Smoothjazz (Jul 18, 2021)

Smoothjazz said:


> Thank you so much. I will button everything back up and keep  playing with the smoker. Like you mentioned I think I am on my way since I got that switch replaced.  Thanks again !!


One last question.. on my MES, I have to hit the time setup to make the temp start to work. Is there a way I can set temp, then go back and start my actual smoker time? Just curious.


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## tallbm (Jul 18, 2021)

Smoothjazz said:


> One last question.. on my MES, I have to hit the time setup to make the temp start to work. Is there a way I can set temp, then go back and start my actual smoker time? Just curious.



Actually I don't have an answer to that hahaha.  Before I rewired and put on my PID controller I just maxed out the time setting so I didn't have to keep setting it and then every few smokes I would max it out again.

Maybe someone else can chime in and say if you can run the thing without having to enter a time setting.  I never figured out how so I just maxed the time haha :D


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## Smoothjazz (Jul 19, 2021)

tallbm said:


> Actually I don't have an answer to that hahaha.  Before I rewired and put on my PID controller I just maxed out the time setting so I didn't have to keep setting it and then every few smokes I would max it out again.
> 
> Maybe someone else can chime in and say if you can run the thing without having to enter a time setting.  I never figured out how so I just maxed the time haha :D


Tall man,
The outside of the MES could use a paint job. What type paint would u recommend?


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## tallbm (Jul 19, 2021)

Smoothjazz said:


> Tall man,
> The outside of the MES could use a paint job. What type paint would u recommend?



Well take this with a grain of salt as I have never actually done this but I would use a high temp stove pant or something like kbs xtreme temperature coating which is also high temp and put on stuff like automotive manifolds.

I believe both should work with metal you scuff up using a steel pad. Your unit is stainless steel so I would imagine it would need a light scuffing to take.

Be sure and do more research than what I have done I don't want to steer you wrong in this department haha :D


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