# What would cause AMNPS to burn entirely in 3 hours?



## mrsmoklestein (Dec 25, 2018)

Im using my amnps for the first time tonight, filled it with apple pellets 1/4” from the top, lit one end, started end with torch for 45 seconds, let flame burn for 10 minutes and blew it out then loaded in smoker. 

My entire tray of pellets burned to ash in 3 1/2 hours....is it my brand of pellets?!


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## AP514 (Dec 25, 2018)

hum...All 3 rows ?  what temp were you cooking at ? Also 1/4 from top does not seem like you put a lot in the rows.
I fill mine with Apple and top the row up....1 row gives me 3.5-4 hours of smoke. So, I would say yup it is most likely the brand..I get my pellets from A-maze-N..(buy direct)...100% wood NO Fillers.....


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## indaswamp (Dec 25, 2018)

grease drip on the pellets, and a whole lot of air flow.....


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## mrsmoklestein (Dec 25, 2018)

Yeah is burned all three rows in a mere 3 1/2 hours....smoking BBB at 150F. The tray was blocked from any grease with a piece of foil on the rack above it, and the airflow is four 1/4” holes on the bottom of the unit, and the wind wasn’t cranking up or anything.

Luhr Jensen brand applewood pellets for little chief smokers.


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## daveomak (Dec 25, 2018)

Did you have most of the entire rack covered with foil ???   What happened is, the pellets were in a very hot zone due to lack of air movement and heat build up from the element...


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## mrsmoklestein (Dec 25, 2018)

daveomak said:


> Did you have most of the entire rack covered with foil ???   What happened is, the pellets were in a very hot zone due to lack of air movement and heat build up from the element...



I just had a piece of foil slightly larger than the actual 5x8 amnps to keep drippings out. I didn’t cover the whole rack for fear of tripping out the thermostat on the burner.


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## daveomak (Dec 25, 2018)

After you lit the pellets, did you blow the flame out ???  maybe it re-lit....


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## mrsmoklestein (Dec 25, 2018)

daveomak said:


> After you lit the pellets, did you blow the flame out ???  maybe it re-lit....


It was blown out when it went in, it did reignite when I opened the door once but I blew it out again. It was pouring smoke but it was not flaming as I can see it through the damper vent. Stayed smoldering the entire time otherwise.

The only thing I can think of is that maybe these specific pellets are designed to burn quickly because the little chief smokers don’t run very hot?

I am completely baffled....


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## daveomak (Dec 25, 2018)

Take a picture of how you had it set up...  and what smoker are you using...


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## mrsmoklestein (Dec 25, 2018)

This is the actual tray that burned so quickly, took the pic before the smoke



https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/threads/analog-masterbuilt-mes35b-mods-for-amnps.282589/

This is the smoker


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## daveomak (Dec 26, 2018)

I'm thinking it has to do with proximity to the heating element, air flow etc....



daveomak said:


> Take a picture of how you had it set up..(*Inside the smoker*).. and what smoker are you using...



Are you using an electric or gas...  What brand and model.... 
Others may have this problem and I'm just trying to get to the root of it...
Would you please help me with that ????

...


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## TomKnollRFV (Dec 26, 2018)

I've had mesquite pellets go crazy before.

Also had pitboss do this, specifically the competition blend by pitboss. Within an half hour of putting the pellets in, all three rows had ignited when using pitboss..


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## mrsmoklestein (Dec 26, 2018)

This is how it would’ve been set up, hard to see but it’s still 3-4 inches from the burner, and unit was set to run under 150




daveomak said:


> I'm thinking it has to do with proximity to the heating element, air flow etc....
> 
> 
> 
> ...


It’s a Masterbuilt mes35b analog


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## mrsmoklestein (Dec 26, 2018)

TomKnollRFV said:


> I've had mesquite pellets go crazy before.
> 
> Also had pitboss do this, specifically the competition blend by pitboss. Within an half hour of putting the pellets in, all three rows had ignited when using pitboss..



Well reading the bag tells me that Luhr Jensen adds some alder to the applewood but that’s it. I’m inclined to believe it’s the actual p i’m inclined to believe it’s the actual pellets but certainly could be the closeness to the burner but that’s why im here ha


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## TomKnollRFV (Dec 26, 2018)

Some times you just get those random occurence where things don't go as planned either.


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## gmc2003 (Dec 26, 2018)

From the picture it looks like your tray is sitting directly over your heating element w/o any type of diffuser/deflector.

Chris


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## Braz (Dec 26, 2018)

mrsmoklestein said:


> and unit was set to run under 150


But keep in mind that when the element is on it is fully on. The temp controller turns it off and on to maintain the set temp. I think your pellet tray is too close to the burner.


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## daveomak (Dec 26, 2018)

I'm thinking it's the proximity to the burner...  When the smoker calls for heat, the burner comes on at HIGH heat...
Will the AMNPS fit below the burner on the left somewhere...  if so, give that a try as an experiment...

Great minds think alike....


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## mrsmoklestein (Dec 26, 2018)

It wont fit under the burner so the only other options would be to use a flat rack in the next position above the burner rack height....Which isn’t ideal because then I’m bringing the tray closer to the food which means more creosote but if that’s what it takes that’s what it takes. which isn’t ideal because then I’m bringing the tray closer to the food which means more creosote but if that’s what it takes that’s what it takes 

I’ll do another test run tonight


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## indaswamp (Dec 26, 2018)

mail box mod.???


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## daveomak (Dec 26, 2018)

indaswamp said:


> mail box mod.???



I would....


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## Bearcarver (Dec 26, 2018)

Yes, it could be too close to the heating element.
I would put it on the rack above where you had it---Where the Foil protector is in the Pic.

Also if you fill the AMNPS too full, it could jump rows & burn up quick. Notice how the higher up the interior walls you go, the closer the rows are to each other.

Also if you put foil too close above the AMNPS, it can hold heat enough to cause it to get too hot.

Bear


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## johnmeyer (Dec 27, 2018)

I would have said the same thing as Bear, but the picture you posted shows your tray filled pretty low, so it would be tough for it to jump rows. My experience, using the AMNPS both inside my MES and in my external smoking mod, is that the following things influence the speed of the burn:

1. The type of wood in the chip. I tried to find out something about your brand of pellets, but couldn't get anything useful. If this has happened before, then I'd try a different brand. The obvious thing to do would be to buy a small bag of alder directly from Todd, in order to eliminate this as a possible cause.

2. Too much air or too much heat. Fire (or smoke) requires fuel, air, and heat. Others have speculated that you might be getting too much heat from the proximity to the heating element. You can easily test that by moving the AMNPS up one rack, or putting an insulator under the AMNPS (you may need to elevate it a little if your insulator doesn't permit airflow into the underside). As for air, you say you only have a few holes providing air to the smoker, but if the door gasket is loose, you might be getting air from a small gap in the door. I couldn't tell what brand of smoker you are using, but on my MES, the latch has a tightness adjustment, and from the factory, mine was too loose and I had to tighten it.

3. Packing density. This is mostly a function of the chip size and length. I posted earlier this year about having the opposite experience to yours, where my AMNPS kept going out, after never having gone out for several years. This happened because I used the chips from the bottom of a large bag that were full of dust from all the other pellets. What I found is that if you combine dust and chips, that ends up plugging up the air between the chips and you don't get enough air into the mixture to sustain combustion. Your picture looks just the opposite, where the long length of your chips leaves a lot of air between them. So, my last suggestion would be to fill the AMNPS a little closer to the top; shake it a bit; and then press down a little (don't get carried away) to try to reduce the gaps between the chips.


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