WiFi BBQ Controllers Question - remote control

eightyfive

I have been reading and reading but maybe I am missing something - are there any that allow you to make adjustments from a different location? In other words - could I set it up and then bump temp, etc from across town with an app or something?

eightyfive

And ii goes without saying ...ideally without me having to ask an Engineer to set it up?

The Cen-Tex Smoker

YES- all the wifi units will allow you to control from anywhere on your phone or other device

chuckytheegghead

Yes. Go and get the flameboss 

HeavyG

Yes. Lot of good options available these days and more are coming.

eightyfive

So which one to get?

Photo Egg

eightyfive said:

So which one to get?

Flame Boss 300.
Stupid easy to use and will allow you control from where ever you have smart phone service.

The Cen-Tex Smoker

The flame boss units seem to be all the rage these days. I have the bbq guru cyberQ wifi. Never had an issue with it. Used it 10 times  and probably adjusted temps remotely once or twice over 3 years. I don't low and slow in the egg anymore so it sits idle 99% of the time. @20stone has the flame boss wifi and it seems really cool. His egg was offsite for a few years a few blocks away at his dad and step mom's house. He could go set it up and then run the whole cook remotely from his house. IF you are going to use it, it's really cool to have. Unless your egg is offsite, I'm guessing you won't use that feature as often as you think. 

The Cen-Tex Smoker

All that said, If I were going to get one, I wouldn't buy one without that feature at this stage in the game. It's not like we are going backwards on this internet situation. 

Bayou_Buzzard

Flame boss 300 is great. And their customer service is second to none. 

eightyfive

Sounds like the FB 300 is the one

caliking

Another vote for FlameBoss.

I have the 200 and  use the remote control feature fairly often. If I've got a cook going , but have to go to work for some time, I  can lower or raise temps as necessary depending on when I think I will get home. 

Very easy to set up. Excellent customer service. 

CanDid

I'm new to the game, but have been reading up on these as well for low and slow. There's a new model I think came out at the beginning of this year by Auber Instruments (SYL-2615) that looks comparable to the Flame Boss 300, but the only review I can find on it is from amazingribs.

@nakedwhiz did a review of the FlameBoss 300 wifi and calls out what I feel is a major flaw with the blower not having a damper. This can prevent the Egg from maintaining a low pit temp as it can allow a draft in thru the fan when the blower is off.

The Auber blower not only has a built-in damper, but it is automatic; controlled by gravity (fully closed when the blower is off, opened by the force of the blower). To top it off, the Auber kit is more than $70 less than the 300. It would be intriguing for the Whiz to review the new Auber controller and see how it truly matches up to the 300.

caliking

The absence of a damper on the FB fan doesn't cause any issues in my experience. The top vent is closed down keeping only a sliver open. The temp is not going to run up significantly unless the fan is running (because it needs to keep the temp up).

chuckytheegghead

CanDid said:

I'm new to the game, but have been reading up on these as well for low and slow. There's a new model I think came out at the beginning of this year by Auber Instruments (SYL-2615) that looks comparable to the Flame Boss 300, but the only review I can find on it is from amazingribs.

@nakedwhiz did a review of the FlameBoss 300 wifi and calls out what I feel is a major flaw with the blower not having a damper. This can prevent the Egg from maintaining a low pit temp as it can allow a draft in thru the fan when the blower is off.

The Auber blower not only has a built-in damper, but it is automatic; controlled by gravity (fully closed when the blower is off, opened by the force of the blower). To top it off, the Auber kit is more than $70 less than the 300. It would be intriguing for the Whiz to review the new Auber controller and see how it truly matches up to the 300.

Never had that problem with my flameboss 

Spaceman

Flameboss 

stlcharcoal

CanDid said: 

I'm new to the game, but have been reading up on these as well for low and slow. There's a new model I think came out at the beginning of this year by Auber Instruments (SYL-2615) that looks comparable to the Flame Boss 300, but the only review I can find on it is from amazingribs.

@nakedwhiz did a review of the FlameBoss 300 wifi and calls out what I feel is a major flaw with the blower not having a damper. This can prevent the Egg from maintaining a low pit temp as it can allow a draft in thru the fan when the blower is off.

The Auber blower not only has a built-in damper, but it is automatic; controlled by gravity (fully closed when the blower is off, opened by the force of the blower). To top it off, the Auber kit is more than $70 less than the 300. It would be intriguing for the Whiz to review the new Auber controller and see how it truly matches up to the 300.

As much as I love the Whiz, he had it wrong on that.  He was running it the old school way of leaving the Daisy wheel open so that the fire was set as if you didn't have a temp controller (then it would kick on if needed.)  You don't do that now that there's a variable speed fan and much smarter temp controllers.  You close the Daisy wheel and make the fan push the air through.  So you're starving the fire for air, then the fan kicks on for a second, and it does that constantly to maintain the precise temp.

On the old controllers, it wasn't a variable speed fan.  It was a big fan, one speed, and you'd damper it down so it wasn't blasting the egg like a leaf blower.  It wasn't a learning program so you had to let the Egg do it's thing, then just had the unit as a backup.

Flameboss used to have the flapper door you described......it confused the unit.  They also experimented with the damper door.....it confused the unit (and the user).  It has a fan that runs at 10%, which will not lift the door, plus the logic has no idea where the damper is set.  You don't need either.

The solution, close the Daisy wheel.  You can not have air "leak" into the egg if it has no where to go.  Think about stuffing something in the exhaust pipe of your car or using an exhaust brake on a big truck........doesn't matter how much throttle you give it, it's not going anywhere because it cannot exhaust.  Same thing here.  The damper and flapper door are unnecessary with the smarter logic, the fact that it learns as it goes, and the variable speed fan.

eightyfive

This is why I love this community… Great answers right away good feedback. What is most cool now is when the owner of a company whose product you actually use takes the time to email you off the clock to give you some help/advice.  @stlcharcoal
 Could not have been nicer or more  responsive. Just ordered one from him and look forward to using it. Thanks man -  you have another fan!

SSQUAL612

I have the Flame Boss 300 and I'm pleased with the performance.  Adjustable fan and interface are what sold me.   Customer service has been quick to answer any questions as well. 

Yno

While I don't  often adjust the temperature using the Flame Boss 300, I use it for pretty much every cook I do. On a rainy day or a scorchingly hot day it is nice to be able to monitor everything from inside, or if I have to run to the store. I do love my FB!

CanDid

@stlcharcoal, Your response to the questionable shortcoming of the FlameBoss blower is definitely one worth pointing out. If FlameBoss R&D has done this analysis on whether to have or not have a damper on the blower I would think it beneficial for them to mention their findings/reasoning on their website. I may be in camp FlameBoss fairly soon.

The Cen-Tex Smoker

I'll just throw this out there- all the controllers are made to choke the fire down then keep it barely smoldering by providing puffs of air to a dying fire. This provides perfect temp control but at the cost of dirty, sooty smoke. Think of blowing out a candle. That smoke is nasty but when the flame is burning hot, you don't smell any smoke at all. Same applies here. The egg in general chokes down a fire to cook low n slow but at least a tiny part is burning hot and clean when you don't use a controller. That will give you better smoke than constantly choking and stoking a dying fire. 

If your end end goal is temp management and sleeping at night, these controllers are a perfect solution. If your goal is great quality food (in this case clean smoke), i would argue that they are not.

Certainly saying not to get one. I have one and it's come in very handy several times. Just saying that You are giving up quality for
convenience when you use them. I now
only use mine to finish butts and briskets after if have smoked them in the kbq and wrapped them. If I know I'm going to be out out for the afternoon, I'll smoke it in the kbq as long as I can then I'll wrap and throw in the egg with a controller.  it is very cool to be able watch and control the cook remotely and not having to manage a live fire every 30
min. 

stlcharcoal

CanDid said:

@stlcharcoal, Your response to the questionable shortcoming of the FlameBoss blower is definitely one worth pointing out. If FlameBoss R&D has done this analysis on whether to have or not have a damper on the blower I would think it beneficial for them to mention their findings/reasoning on their website. I may be in camp FlameBoss fairly soon.

Why should they have to explain that?  The damper is not the "standard".  FlameBoss has set the NEW standard and maybe the other guys should explain why they still have a 1-speed fan and a damper.  The point of this unit is to make things super easy--from the set up, to the wifi, to the use.  Adding a mechanical setting to an otherwise completely automated system would make things more difficult for the logic and user.  Why complicate things when the technology allows to eliminate it??

I have been a dealer for all of the controllers over the last 10 yrs, and Flame Boss is hands down the best out there when it comes to the unit, software, and customer/dealer support.  They are always pushing new firmware to the unit for FREE where other companies charge for it.......costs me $300 if I want the newest software a $400 Valentine1 radar detector.

stlcharcoal

The Cen-Tex Smoker said:

I'll just throw this out there- all the controllers are made to choke the fire down then keep it barely smoldering by providing puffs of air to a dying fire. This provides perfect temp control but at the cost of dirty, sooty smoke. Think of blowing out a candle. That smoke is nasty but when the flame is burning hot, you don't smell any smoke at all. Same applies here. The egg in general chokes down a fire to cook low n slow but at least a tiny part is burning hot and clean when you don't use a controller. That will give you better smoke than constantly choking and stoking a dying fire. 

Black smoke comes from hydrocarbons which should be nowhere near or in your egg.

I would disagree with that "black smoke / soot" because it's charcoal (or 95% carbon at that point), not wax/paraffin and wick.  If I remember my chemistry, paraffin is a hydrocarbon and comes from petroleum.  And just like running rich in a diesel truck or kerosene in a heater, that's where you get the black smoke/soot.  That's a fuel/air mixture issue.

Back to my point, you shouldn't be getting ANY soot / black smoke from any charcoal unless you dumped lighter fluid on it.  The white smoke comes from tars and liquors, but those should be pretty much absent if the charcoal is kilned to the proper temps (carbonized). 

blind99

Ideal setup for me on a long low and slow is that the egg will draft enough air to keep the fire lit and the temp 10-15 degrees below the target. If something fails with the controller the egg doesn't snuff out. I just want the controller lightly stoking the flame and the flame not going almost totally out, as centex alludes to. 

A flap is definitely not needed for the FB

As far as remote control outside of your home network- if you don't like techie stuff avoid a controller that would require port forwarding 

I've got the fb200 and have been very happy with it. Really nicely made unit and easy to use. 

The Cen-Tex Smoker

stlcharcoal said:

The Cen-Tex Smoker said:

I'll just throw this out there- all the controllers are made to choke the fire down then keep it barely smoldering by providing puffs of air to a dying fire. This provides perfect temp control but at the cost of dirty, sooty smoke. Think of blowing out a candle. That smoke is nasty but when the flame is burning hot, you don't smell any smoke at all. Same applies here. The egg in general chokes down a fire to cook low n slow but at least a tiny part is burning hot and clean when you don't use a controller. That will give you better smoke than constantly choking and stoking a dying fire. 

Black smoke comes from hydrocarbons which should be nowhere near or in your egg.

I would disagree with that "black smoke / soot" because it's charcoal (or 95% carbon at that point), not wax/paraffin and wick.  If I remember my chemistry, paraffin is a hydrocarbon and comes from petroleum.  And just like running rich in a diesel truck or kerosene in a heater, that's where you get the black smoke/soot.  That's a fuel/air mixture issue.

Back to my point, you shouldn't be getting ANY soot / black smoke from any charcoal unless you dumped lighter fluid on it.  The white smoke comes from tars and liquors, but those should be pretty much absent if the charcoal is kilned to the proper temps (carbonized). 

Good call out- I was talking about smoke from wood chunks. 

CanDid

stlcharcoal said:

Why should they have to explain that?

For consumers like me that are in the market for a +/-$300 controller and are spending time researching the advantages of one controller over the other. It is a question that was easily answered by you twice in a forum, and not anywhere else that I've found, that other consumers may also be looking for. You're an expert on the controller and its features, so it may seem elementary to you. For somebody like me that is looking to get one, it is not.

HeavyG

FlameBoss is not the only controller that uses a variable speed fan. The Heatermeter (which is an open source project dating back a few years now) can use either a variable speed fan or some folks have made a servo controlled damper to work with a single speed fan or a variable speed setup.

The Heatermeter project has had a variable speed option for maybe 2 years(?). Not sure

The FireBoard folks have released info for their upcoming fan controlling option and they are planning on a variable speed fan.

I can see pros and cons for either setup.

SmokingPiney

The Cen-Tex Smoker said:

I'll just throw this out there- all the controllers are made to choke the fire down then keep it barely smoldering by providing puffs of air to a dying fire. This provides perfect temp control but at the cost of dirty, sooty smoke.  

That has not been my experience with the Flame Boss. Once the the grey smoke clears from the initial light-off, my FB keeps the Egg burning thin and blue, clean as a whistle. 

NPHuskerFL

FB isn't the only controller out there with a damper either. Nor are they expandable to multiple vessels. My understanding is most people with a FB are happy with them for their application. 
I have a Rock's BBQ Stoker II and am extremely happy with it. It has a gravity damper and this definitely helps especially if you are in windy conditions. Connect and control have been simple for me through PC, mobile or mobile APP. I normally just use the APP. 

The Cen-Tex Smoker

SmokingPiney said:

The Cen-Tex Smoker said:

I'll just throw this out there- all the controllers are made to choke the fire down then keep it barely smoldering by providing puffs of air to a dying fire. This provides perfect temp control but at the cost of dirty, sooty smoke.  

That has not been my experience with the Flame Boss. Once the the grey smoke clears from the initial light-off, my FB keeps the Egg burning thin and blue, clean as a whistle. 

I respectfully disagree. I'm a BGE homer but I don't use it for low and slow anymore- with a controller or without. You can make great bbq in a BGE and with a controller but there is no comparison to a live, unrestricted clean burning wood fire when doing low and slow.