Any reason I should NOT get a Stoker?

GuinnessGuy

I've had my Egg for almost a year now. I've wanted some kind of electronic temp controller from the beginning since the most common thing I do is pork butts for 10+ hours, but many on here told me to master normal fire control first. I obeyed The biggest issue is that in terms of timing a meal I always end up starting the cook the night before which virtually guarantees I won't get any reasonable sleep (even if there are no problems, which there usually aren't, my OCD still has my snapping out of sleep to check temps every hour).

Anyway, after another such incident last night I'm finally ready to take the plunge. Originally I was thinking Digi-Q since those seem to be the most talked about units. But being a computer programmer and all around nerd, I just can't get past wanting to be able to monitor/control my cook remotely. Currently I feel like I can't even leave the house during a 7-hour rib cook. If I do I hand the wireless temp monitor to my daughter and say "if this beeps, you have call me immediately!!". Usually I get home to find it sitting in the kitchen and she's upstairs on the phone :evil: Did I mention the OCD?

Sorry, back on track... seem like several months back I read a wave of posts about problems getting in touch with Rock's BBQ. People were placing orders and not getting responses and things like that. But now I am seeing people commenting about great service in just the past week. So overall, is the Stoker a solid product and Rock's a solid company? Like the post subject says, any reason to NOT get one?

Thanks!
Jeff

Frank from Houma

I was geauxing to say a Digi Q is simpler ... but since you are a self confessed puter nerd .... :laugh:

I did like you - went native for about a year and then took the plunge on a Digi Q - glad I did. I only use it for wibs, butts, and briskets - you will like the sleep part of using a Stoker.

Geaux for it and good luck with it.

Metalhead

if you got OCD....r u gonna leave the house even with the stoker in use?

I say....trust the egg.....set the temp, trust ur fire and learn to leave occasionally while doing a long cook. Set the alarm to get up every 3 hours and once u r able to do that with a good conscience, then take the plunge. It seems to me that no matter what...u will be near and worrying......my mind in that case is to not but until that worry has subsided somewhat.
Just my .02 cents

Village Idiot

I love my stoker ! I don't use it that often because I really only use it on briskets. I used and offset smoker for years, and didn't get much sleep during the typical 18 hour brisket cook. Now, I sleep like a baby and have confidence that the Stoker will keep the temperature to within a couple of degrees.

Rolling Egg

I have the Digi Q and love it. I put long cooks on all the time and leave the house. It's nice. On my over nighters I've gotten to where I get up once now to check on the temp about four hours in. I don't think you will go wrong with either unit. I've looked at the Stoker several times and thought about getting one. I'm not a nerd but I like the mobile control ability as well. Just buy it. You'll love it.

thegrillster

I have had super support from stoker. Not a problem getting in touch with them.

A short time ago they were slammed due to the pitmaster show and I think this is what has caused the confusion with some due to waiting for the product.

I love it and think you will to.

Real peace of mind when the stoker is running.

And you know, the only difference between men and boys is the price of their toys.

4Runner

Stoker works great. It is easy to setup on your network (wireless or wired). Also, b/c it is web based it is computer independent (Mac or PC). Another thing, just forward port 80 to the appropriate IP on your router and you can control/monitor your cook while away from your house. I did this earlier this year with a Boston Butt. No worries.

It is not water proof or even water resistant as I proved Sunday so you will want to setup some sort of Tupperware container to help protect it on rainy days. I lost my lcd display over the weekend due to moisture but it still works great. Design enhancement would add a seal to make it "splash" proof. Oh well.

Big'un

I absolutely love mine. We use ours 4-5 times a week. John has great customer service and stands behind his stoker. I really enjoy not having to tredge up and down the stairs during a cook;I just monitor cooks from my computer. Great tool!

GuinnessGuy

Thanks for all the replies! Sounds like the stoker is the way to go for me.

ebrooker007

I'm the same way even though my fire was doing good all night I would be up checking it. Then I would lay down and think about it. The next day I would be tired during the party. Now I have a stoker, bought on one of my sleepless nights, and I do not regret my decision.

EggMii

As everyone else has already pointed out, the Stoker is a great device. What hasn't been pointed out yet is the look of total awe and envy on your friends' and co-workers faces when your grill text messages you updates, or they can check your grill's twitter feed.

Isolated01

I love my stoker it works great within my network, Unfortunately after MUCH research I found out that Cox Cable does not allow port forwarding so I cannot control it outside my network. Bummer.

Canugghead

Jeff, go for it like others have said. Guess I was qualified to get my Stoker few months ago, after learning how to do lo-n-slo without one for almost two years

However, be prepared to get 'criticised' by some purist(s) when you post a Stoker cook. Interestingly, Guru cooks don't get picked as often or ever? :P

Gary

GuinnessGuy

Cox only blocks certain ports, but they DO block port 80 inbound. You need a router that supports port forwarding where you can map the port as well as the IP. Some routers will let you forward a given port to an IP on your LAN, but you can't change the port. Others allow you to change the port as well. You need the latter. So if your cable modem IP is 1.2.3.4 and your stoker is 192.168.0.5, then you tell the router to map 1.2.3.4:8080 to 192.168.0.5:80 and all is well.

Isolated01

If you can tell me what I need I will get it. I currently have a linksys WRT54GS and dont mind upgrading. I really would like to go down the street and have a beer while still monitoring my Egg.

Carolina Q

isolated, I just found this link - two full pages of it! The guy has the same problem you have; stoker + cox cable + blocked port 80. Two pages later, apparently he was able to get it to work. I read through it and it might as well have been written in Latin!! Maybe it'll help you though.

http://tvwbb.com/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/9270072103/m/5930091885/p/1

Or did GuinnessGuy just say all that (also in Latin) in two sentences?

Grandpas Grub

 
Interesting responses...

It is always interesting to hear from folks on how good/bad one unit is when they have never user or owned that unit.

This is long but it will give a prospective buyer some actual use comparisons of both the DiqiQ (q2) and the Stoker.

On the surface it seems like the q2 is easier to use than the stoker, however, that is a bit misleading. The following is from someone who has and uses both the Stoker and DigiQII.

I have had to have support from both the guru folks and John. The q2 needed unit replacement and the stoker needed a pit probe replacement.

The guru folks were great with communication and went above and beyond with replacement. Stoker, in my experience, has gone above and beyond with the repair and communication was good when I used the phone.

The statements of 'don't use a powered vent system' (PVS) until you learn how to control the egg and learn how to do an overnight cook IMO is dumb. That's like saying don't buy a car with automatic transmission, power locks or power windows until you know how to use the manual methods first. A PVS can't be used on every single cook and a person will learn how to adjust vents in the course of using the egg.

Ease of use - the q2 and stoker are different and both are simple to use.

Q2 has a smaller physical foot print and I do like that feature over the stoker.

If a problem occurs with a probe on the q2 the user has to use a alternate method or go back to manual control (or use of one probe with the q2).

If one has a probe problem with the stoker, and has purchased additional probes, just assign a second probe to do the function of the problem probe and keep using the stoker.

Monitor multiple cuts of meat in the egg - q2 can't do that at all - stoker has no limit as to the number of probes it can monitor.

Control several eggs when cooking - q2 can't do that and is limited to 2 eggs if using the cyberq.

Staged cooking such as when making summer sausage. On the q2 one has to physically go to the egg and manually adjust the temp. change. On the Stoker just go to the computer or phone and make the change.

The q2 blowers have a shutter to restrict air flow. When the fan is off 'free air' will pass through the q2 blower and there can be temperature overshoot. This phenomenon can be eliminated by learning how far open the shutter needs to be for your cook. The stoker blower had a gravity damper that closes when the fan stops.

I like the braiding on the q2 probes rather than the 'pvc' coating on the stoker probes - however, I haven't had problems with the probe wires on either unit.

Doing it all over again and if I were getting 1 PVS I would buy the Stoker. The Stoker can do everything the q2 can do but the qu can't do everything the stoker can do. The stoker really shines when hooked up to a computer.

However, if I were going to control only one egg and monitor only 1 piece of meat during those cooks I would lean towards the q2.

GG

GuinnessGuy

Yeah, there are several threads over at that forum that go into getting around this... in a nutshell, it will probably be a two-step process for you. First, you "upgrade" your Linksys router with the freeware DD-WRT firmware which gives you more features/control over your router. Then you configure the router to map not only the IP but the port like I was describing (and that screenshot here shows):

http://tvwbb.com/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/9270072103/m/5930091885?r=1650033885#1650033885

As you can see it allows you to fill in the destination IP and port. I have also read a few threads about how the stoker has a problem getting the default gateway figured out when you aren't using DHCP. With no default gateway your LAN communications will be fine, but nothing from the outside will work. Unfortunately, with DHCP your IP may change from time to time so that conflicts with the goal of setting up your port forwarding to a static local IP. There is a workaround where you telnet into the stoker and set the gateway by hand. I wasn't 100% clear but it sounded like the latest stoker firmware may fix this bug (it was also impacting the ability to send tweets).

Seeing as I don't have a stoker yet I can't speak to any of this first-hand, but from everything I've read I'm 100% convinced that this is all possible with Cox (which I have too).

GuinnessGuy

Great response, GG. Thanks for all the info!

Grandpas Grub

 
That is a great router and you should be able to handle the changes without buying a different router.

At worse case you only need to update the firmware to DD-WRT which will allow you do do most anything with your router including increasing the transmission power if needed.

The update seems a bit intimidating and it took me a long time to finally 'get the courage' to update the firmware. When I finally did make the change it ended up being very simple and realities quick to accomplish. 10 to 20 minutes which included my reading the 'how to's'.

Google DD-WRT and your router model number. You can also go the the DDWRT website.

You need to down load the proper firmware change then go into the router menu and click on update firmware. The re-burn of the firmware takes only minutes. Make sure and double check you have the correct firmware and make sure you don't interrupt the burn. If the burn is interrupted or done wrong the router may become a 'brick' (useless).

You will see a lot of warnings about 'bricking' the router but the update is very simple and I had no problems at all. It was well worth doing and it is free.

GG

Grandpas Grub

 
You will love the stoker I would suggest getting some extra food probes. It is also interesting to watch the difference between grid temperature and dome thermometer temperature - I can monitor both on the stoker by using extra probes.



I didn't buy extra blowers for my other eggs. I put the stoker on the large and use food probes as needed and then I put the q2 on the medium. I then take a food probe and monitor meat and grate temperature on the medium with the stoker. Should there be a problem with the medium I do need to physically go to the q2 and make the changes but I do monitor both eggs and the q2 with on the computer.

I hooked up a second router (Linksys with DD-WRT installed) so the Stoker is wireless to my LAN.

Lights, bells and whistles - the more the better.

While you are waiting for your Stoker download AMIR's software. A link is on the Stoker site.

GG

Isolated01

Carolina Q.
I have tried some of that. I dont know about updating my firmware I would just rather buy new and improved rather then give myself the headache. I know it will end up messing something else up on my home network.

Unknown

Isolated01 wrote:

Carolina Q.
I have tried some of that. I dont know about updating my firmware I would just rather buy new and improved rather then give myself the headache. I know it will end up messing something else up on my home network.

Updating firmware on a router is about 4 mouse clicks. It's super easy. There is pretty much nothing that can go wrong.

For your router, start here:
http://homesupport.cisco.com/en-us/wireless/lbc/WRT54G?referrer=www.linksysbycisco.com

They even have live chat and walk through. If you can spatchcock a chicken, you can do this - I'd actually say this is easier.

thailandjohn

The Stoker is the "Bomb"

Between me and my two sons, we have three XL Eggs and three Stokers.

When we do a large BBQ party, they can load their Eggs and I load mine and I can follow all the Stokers on my computer, iPhone or iPad.

Showing the Stoker status on the iPad or my phone really impresses your friends.

I even called some friends in Thailand and had them view my Stoker in action.

The only problem doing this is you can only give the IP address to someone you trust, because they could change your temp setting remotely

What you might not know is the Stoker can show the Stoker status on either a PC or Mac but the Stoker log, which is really cool, is only for a PC.

The Stoker log will graph the entire cook showing the pit temp and the meat temps

Here is my website for starting the Egg...start a very small fire in the center on top and turn the Stoker on and when a few pieces of charcoal catch fire, put in plate setter, close lid and set your temps on the computer and wait until the temp has settled to your cooking temp. Mine takes normally around 30 minutes

http://www.imagesbyjohnvance.com/Barbeque/Starting-Fire-for-the-EGG/10355415_qx6b3#716595218_oRCNv

Your going to love the Stoker

Isolated01

Tweev-tip--- , I will give it a shot. Worse case I get a NEW router. :laugh:

Unknown

Isolated01 wrote:

Tweev-tip--- , I will give it a shot. Worse case I get a NEW router. :laugh:

Right - what's to lose?

Seriously, it should take 5 minutes or so - let me know how it works out.

Grandpas Grub

 
I was in the same place you are now.

Don't be afraid to update the firmware. It is simple and works well. It took me several months to give it a try and after completing the update I was mad I didn't do it sooner.

GG

ChargerGuy

:blink: :blink: :blink: :S :blink: :blink: I love my DigiQ :laugh:

BigGreenDon

One wonderful side effect that I have noticed with long cooks since I started using the Stoker is that it no longer seems necessary to use a diddle-stick to clean out the holes in the grate during long cooks.

It would seem that the positive pressure provided by the stoker blows past any ash that may be blocking the holes.

One thing I do not like to do is let the Stoker bring my egg up to initial temp. It seems that it *always* overshoots quite a bit. Too much of the lump becomes "involved" at the start of the cook. The system seems to be too aggressive at getting things up to temp at the start. I could be experiencing this because the larger fan is recommended for the XL, but may be on the verge of being too large for that volume of grill. I just accept this as a known limitation of my setup, however, and things work just fine once I get things started.

I think you will really enjoy the stoker.

Don

Grandpas Grub

 
How does it work when you want to change the temperatures via cell phone or if you want to monitor 2 or 3 cuts of meat?

GG

Grandpas Grub

 
One word of caution, lighting in one single spot is that even using a powered vent system the egg can have a vertical burn which may result in the lump going out before the cook ends.

This happened to me with my DigiQ. Since then for overnight cooks I always light the lump in 2 or 3 places.

Just a different way of doing things...

GG