# AMNPS Oopsie



## jgruberman (Jul 19, 2016)

So...  First time using the maze AMNPS and I think that I either placed it incorrectly or lit it incorrectly.  Pretty sure when I lit it, I may have caught the second row of the maze but not sure. ALSO when I placed it in the MES40, I put it right next to the heating element...  Also bad idea? 

I went through a full made of pellets in about 4 hours. You can tell by the burn pattern of the maze that something was done wrong. 

Two questions:
1. The obvious, where did I go wrong? AND
2. If I accidentally smoked the whole 12 hours of pellets in 4, does that mean I just don't put anymore in and the smoke will be equivalent to a 12 hour smoke? 

I lit the end that is in the closer left side of the picture, so you can see something went wonky. 








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## pc farmer (Jul 19, 2016)

I have a mes 30 and place it in the same spot.

You may have over filled it.   I leave the pellets down about 1/4 inch from the top of the tray.   To full and the fire can jump rows.


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## jgruberman (Jul 19, 2016)

c farmer said:


> I have a mes 30 and place it in the same spot.
> 
> 
> 
> You may have over filled it.   I leave the pellets down about 1/4 inch from the top of the tray.   To full and the fire can jump rows.



Okay fair enough.  However, it looks like the whole last row closest to the element caught and smoked all at once(and first). Any possible correlation to where the heating element is and it possibly hit the last row with too much heat? 

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## pc farmer (Jul 19, 2016)

It could have got the pellets to hot and they caught fire.  

I hardly ever use mine to smoke over 180 degrees so I never ran into that problem.


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## jgruberman (Jul 19, 2016)

c farmer said:


> It could have got the pellets to hot and they caught fire.
> 
> 
> 
> I hardly ever use mine to smoke over 180 degrees so I never ran into that problem.



Makes sense if that's the case. If so, does that mean I've used my entire 12 hours of smoke up and the pork will have 12 hours of smoke worth? Or..  Should I put some more in for consistent smoke? 

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## rexster314 (Jul 19, 2016)

Too close to the MES burner. I put mine (tube smoker) on the bottom tray and it works great


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## jgruberman (Jul 19, 2016)

rexster314 said:


> Too close to the MES burner. I put mine (tube smoker) on the bottom tray and it works great



The bottom drip tray? Which side? 

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## daveomak (Jul 19, 2016)

Move it away from the heat....  I generally add smoke below 140 then turn the heat up to cook the meat or move it to the oven....


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## jgruberman (Jul 19, 2016)

Also...  More importantly...  Do I need to add more pellets and continue smoking? Or since I used the entire maze up already, that's all the smoke the pork shoulder needs? 

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## hillbilly jim (Jul 19, 2016)

There is what looks like a hot spot in the middle of the near end. did you apply a torch flame to that?













19e6e6dbff01f48d7ee26c888de3a393.jpg



__ hillbilly jim
__ Jul 19, 2016


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## dr k (Jul 19, 2016)

jgruberman said:


> So... First time using the maze AMNPS and I think that I either placed it incorrectly or lit it incorrectly. Pretty sure when I lit it, I may have caught the second row of the maze but not sure. ALSO when I placed it in the MES40, I put it right next to the heating element... Also bad idea?
> 
> I went through a full made of pellets in about 4 hours. You can tell by the burn pattern of the maze that something was done wrong.
> 
> ...


This pic looks like the row closest to the element is burned up the most and may have caught fire due to the blackening on the housing above the last row.  The middle and farthest row are turned to charcoal in the middle whereby the ignited row jumped to at least the middle row and maybe the farthest row, since there's so may charred pellets without ash .  If you lit the farthest row from the element it didn't make it to the first corner.  This is why I did the mailbox mod. You can have a proximity burn up like this or drippings on the pellets igniting.  I prefer to have combustibles outside the product chamber for smoke quality and safety.  If you want to keep the Amnps in the product chamber, then side it to the left on the rails 1/4" from the left wall or put it on the bottom rack by itself on the left 2/3rds of the rack.  I put my empty water pan on the second from the bottom level (it fits on any level.)  It's another obstacle to diffuse smoke/heat more evenly and drippings don't vaporize as quickly in the empty water pan to create greasy smoke.

-Kurt


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## dr k (Jul 19, 2016)

jgruberman said:


> Also... More importantly... Do I need to add more pellets and continue smoking? Or since I used the entire maze up already, that's all the smoke the pork shoulder needs?
> 
> Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G935A using Tapatalk


I would see how it is without more smoke.  Less is better.

-Kurt


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## jgruberman (Jul 19, 2016)

Dr K said:


> jgruberman said:
> 
> 
> > So... First time using the maze AMNPS and I think that I either placed it incorrectly or lit it incorrectly. Pretty sure when I lit it, I may have caught the second row of the maze but not sure. ALSO when I placed it in the MES40, I put it right next to the heating element... Also bad idea?
> ...



I think it didn't make it to the first corner rightfully so. This was at 4 hours, so I think the left(in the pic) side just hadn't gotten to the back yet. Whereas I may have lit a little of the middle row on accident so they worked themselves back at the same time...  And the side near the element just burned up due to the heat I'm guessing 

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## ndwildbill (Jul 20, 2016)

It does look like it was lit in the middle row as well as the first row...also, having it that close to the heating element didn't help any.  Do you think some fat may have melted off the butt you were smoking, dripped on the AMNPS and caught fire?  I had that happen once...lots of white smoke, not so much tbs!  I've got a foil cover over the AMNPS now, so don't have that problem again.  I cut and bent a foil drip pan from my weber gas burner.  Still get good smoke distribution, but no longer worry about drips on the hot pellets. Won't have time to get any pics of that today, but I know Bearcarver has several pics posted in the forums of how he has done something similar.  Good luck, and keep smokin'.


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## daveomak (Jul 20, 2016)

When foil tenting the AMNPS, be aware that air flow to it "may" be restricted and it could go out...   just saying.....


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## ndwildbill (Jul 21, 2016)

DaveOmak said:


> When foil tenting the AMNPS, be aware that air flow to it "may" be restricted and it could go out...   just saying.....


You are right Dave...it did take a bit of experimenting to get the tent to block the drips, but still keep good air flow.


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## jgruberman (Jul 22, 2016)

Hillbilly Jim said:


> There is what looks like a hot spot in the middle of the near end. did you apply a torch flame to that?
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Nope, I only torched through the hole in the closest leftmost spot. 

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## rpmrn (Jul 23, 2016)

Hello,

I have actually done this a few times. After a time or two I realized that when I was lighting off the maze I would torch, and blow on it enough, maybe too much and get the 1st and 2nd row started. I would come back after letting it burn with two rows smoking thinking I only lit 1 row. The first time this happened I didn't notice and a few hours later and there was no more smoke out of the smoker and a maze that looked similar to yours. Now I wait to load additional rows till after I light the 1st row. I use the same setup as yours for reference. Just a thought for next time. The 3rd row probably burned quicker because it was closet to the draft.

As far as smoke on the meat...color would probably be your best indicator as more or less smoke. I wouldn't think that meat could not absorb that much tbs in such a short time. Brown acrid smoke would absorb a bit different though.


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## parrot-head (Jul 25, 2016)

That's happened to me before too...sometimes both channels get lit somehow.  Maybe the pellets were piled too high and jumped across or the other channel was lit when you were lighting

in the beginning.


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## schlotz (Jul 25, 2016)

From what I see, placement should be on the far left but not right against the wall.  You want air flow.  Next, pull the chip tray out an inch and pull the side delivery tube out enough (approx3") to allow a bit more air it. Lastly, as others have mentioned, take care to only ignite the first row with a blow torch. Once lit, watch it for 5 min or so before placing in the MES.


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## jgruberman (Jul 19, 2016)

So...  First time using the maze AMNPS and I think that I either placed it incorrectly or lit it incorrectly.  Pretty sure when I lit it, I may have caught the second row of the maze but not sure. ALSO when I placed it in the MES40, I put it right next to the heating element...  Also bad idea? 

I went through a full made of pellets in about 4 hours. You can tell by the burn pattern of the maze that something was done wrong. 

Two questions:
1. The obvious, where did I go wrong? AND
2. If I accidentally smoked the whole 12 hours of pellets in 4, does that mean I just don't put anymore in and the smoke will be equivalent to a 12 hour smoke? 

I lit the end that is in the closer left side of the picture, so you can see something went wonky. 








Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G935A using Tapatalk


----------



## pc farmer (Jul 19, 2016)

I have a mes 30 and place it in the same spot.

You may have over filled it.   I leave the pellets down about 1/4 inch from the top of the tray.   To full and the fire can jump rows.


----------



## jgruberman (Jul 19, 2016)

c farmer said:


> I have a mes 30 and place it in the same spot.
> 
> 
> 
> You may have over filled it.   I leave the pellets down about 1/4 inch from the top of the tray.   To full and the fire can jump rows.



Okay fair enough.  However, it looks like the whole last row closest to the element caught and smoked all at once(and first). Any possible correlation to where the heating element is and it possibly hit the last row with too much heat? 

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G935A using Tapatalk


----------



## pc farmer (Jul 19, 2016)

It could have got the pellets to hot and they caught fire.  

I hardly ever use mine to smoke over 180 degrees so I never ran into that problem.


----------



## jgruberman (Jul 19, 2016)

c farmer said:


> It could have got the pellets to hot and they caught fire.
> 
> 
> 
> I hardly ever use mine to smoke over 180 degrees so I never ran into that problem.



Makes sense if that's the case. If so, does that mean I've used my entire 12 hours of smoke up and the pork will have 12 hours of smoke worth? Or..  Should I put some more in for consistent smoke? 

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G935A using Tapatalk


----------



## rexster314 (Jul 19, 2016)

Too close to the MES burner. I put mine (tube smoker) on the bottom tray and it works great


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## jgruberman (Jul 19, 2016)

rexster314 said:


> Too close to the MES burner. I put mine (tube smoker) on the bottom tray and it works great



The bottom drip tray? Which side? 

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G935A using Tapatalk


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## daveomak (Jul 19, 2016)

Move it away from the heat....  I generally add smoke below 140 then turn the heat up to cook the meat or move it to the oven....


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## jgruberman (Jul 19, 2016)

Also...  More importantly...  Do I need to add more pellets and continue smoking? Or since I used the entire maze up already, that's all the smoke the pork shoulder needs? 

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G935A using Tapatalk


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## hillbilly jim (Jul 19, 2016)

There is what looks like a hot spot in the middle of the near end. did you apply a torch flame to that?













19e6e6dbff01f48d7ee26c888de3a393.jpg



__ hillbilly jim
__ Jul 19, 2016


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## dr k (Jul 19, 2016)

jgruberman said:


> So... First time using the maze AMNPS and I think that I either placed it incorrectly or lit it incorrectly. Pretty sure when I lit it, I may have caught the second row of the maze but not sure. ALSO when I placed it in the MES40, I put it right next to the heating element... Also bad idea?
> 
> I went through a full made of pellets in about 4 hours. You can tell by the burn pattern of the maze that something was done wrong.
> 
> ...


This pic looks like the row closest to the element is burned up the most and may have caught fire due to the blackening on the housing above the last row.  The middle and farthest row are turned to charcoal in the middle whereby the ignited row jumped to at least the middle row and maybe the farthest row, since there's so may charred pellets without ash .  If you lit the farthest row from the element it didn't make it to the first corner.  This is why I did the mailbox mod. You can have a proximity burn up like this or drippings on the pellets igniting.  I prefer to have combustibles outside the product chamber for smoke quality and safety.  If you want to keep the Amnps in the product chamber, then side it to the left on the rails 1/4" from the left wall or put it on the bottom rack by itself on the left 2/3rds of the rack.  I put my empty water pan on the second from the bottom level (it fits on any level.)  It's another obstacle to diffuse smoke/heat more evenly and drippings don't vaporize as quickly in the empty water pan to create greasy smoke.

-Kurt


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## dr k (Jul 19, 2016)

jgruberman said:


> Also... More importantly... Do I need to add more pellets and continue smoking? Or since I used the entire maze up already, that's all the smoke the pork shoulder needs?
> 
> Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G935A using Tapatalk


I would see how it is without more smoke.  Less is better.

-Kurt


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## jgruberman (Jul 19, 2016)

Dr K said:


> jgruberman said:
> 
> 
> > So... First time using the maze AMNPS and I think that I either placed it incorrectly or lit it incorrectly. Pretty sure when I lit it, I may have caught the second row of the maze but not sure. ALSO when I placed it in the MES40, I put it right next to the heating element... Also bad idea?
> ...



I think it didn't make it to the first corner rightfully so. This was at 4 hours, so I think the left(in the pic) side just hadn't gotten to the back yet. Whereas I may have lit a little of the middle row on accident so they worked themselves back at the same time...  And the side near the element just burned up due to the heat I'm guessing 

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G935A using Tapatalk


----------



## ndwildbill (Jul 20, 2016)

It does look like it was lit in the middle row as well as the first row...also, having it that close to the heating element didn't help any.  Do you think some fat may have melted off the butt you were smoking, dripped on the AMNPS and caught fire?  I had that happen once...lots of white smoke, not so much tbs!  I've got a foil cover over the AMNPS now, so don't have that problem again.  I cut and bent a foil drip pan from my weber gas burner.  Still get good smoke distribution, but no longer worry about drips on the hot pellets. Won't have time to get any pics of that today, but I know Bearcarver has several pics posted in the forums of how he has done something similar.  Good luck, and keep smokin'.


----------



## daveomak (Jul 20, 2016)

When foil tenting the AMNPS, be aware that air flow to it "may" be restricted and it could go out...   just saying.....


----------



## ndwildbill (Jul 21, 2016)

DaveOmak said:


> When foil tenting the AMNPS, be aware that air flow to it "may" be restricted and it could go out...   just saying.....


You are right Dave...it did take a bit of experimenting to get the tent to block the drips, but still keep good air flow.


----------



## jgruberman (Jul 22, 2016)

Hillbilly Jim said:


> There is what looks like a hot spot in the middle of the near end. did you apply a torch flame to that?
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Nope, I only torched through the hole in the closest leftmost spot. 

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G935A using Tapatalk


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## rpmrn (Jul 23, 2016)

Hello,

I have actually done this a few times. After a time or two I realized that when I was lighting off the maze I would torch, and blow on it enough, maybe too much and get the 1st and 2nd row started. I would come back after letting it burn with two rows smoking thinking I only lit 1 row. The first time this happened I didn't notice and a few hours later and there was no more smoke out of the smoker and a maze that looked similar to yours. Now I wait to load additional rows till after I light the 1st row. I use the same setup as yours for reference. Just a thought for next time. The 3rd row probably burned quicker because it was closet to the draft.

As far as smoke on the meat...color would probably be your best indicator as more or less smoke. I wouldn't think that meat could not absorb that much tbs in such a short time. Brown acrid smoke would absorb a bit different though.


----------



## parrot-head (Jul 25, 2016)

That's happened to me before too...sometimes both channels get lit somehow.  Maybe the pellets were piled too high and jumped across or the other channel was lit when you were lighting

in the beginning.


----------



## schlotz (Jul 25, 2016)

From what I see, placement should be on the far left but not right against the wall.  You want air flow.  Next, pull the chip tray out an inch and pull the side delivery tube out enough (approx3") to allow a bit more air it. Lastly, as others have mentioned, take care to only ignite the first row with a blow torch. Once lit, watch it for 5 min or so before placing in the MES.


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