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Smobot Owners

CornfedMA
CornfedMA Posts: 491
in EggHead Forum
Looking for a little feedback here. I’m in the middle of my 4th or 5th cook with my Smobot and for whatever reason, this thing just isn’t holding temps like I’ve seen during the first 3-4 cooks. It’s kind of been all over the place, including spending a fair amount of time 8-10 degrees below the pit set point. And as the worst example, it’s currently almost 20 degrees too low. Do you guys have any experience with these types of swings? Could it just be the fact that it’s a cold rainy day and the fire is a little all over the place? Or is it time to get the guys at Smobot involved? 

For the record, the point of this post isn’t to raise any red flags on the Smobot or their service. It’s a great device with an even better crew backing it up. In fact, their support is almost too good, if there is such a thing. The last time I needed support, I sent an inquiry in on a Saturday morning and had a response and resolution in less than 15 mins. So in this case, I’d hate to have someone there have to respond to me on a Sunday morning for something that is a one-off due to weather, lump, etc. 


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Comments

  • Cire69
    Cire69 Posts: 12
    How open is yr bottom vent?  I usually have it 1/3-1/2 open...   With the top damper open 63%, I’d suggest giving it more air from below.   Also it looks like the pit temp probe is a bit noisy...could be a bad thermocouple.  I had my original replaced because of that...the wire was not reinforced at the plug end and was working it’s way loose, resulting in a noisy signal. 
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  • DoubleEgger
    DoubleEgger Posts: 19,376
    Since you said the customer service is “too good”, that would be where I’d start. 
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  • alaskanassasin
    alaskanassasin Posts: 9,113
    Try to unplug the pit probe and wipe off the plug see if that eliminates some of the static
    South of Columbus, Ohio.


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  • Ozzie_Isaac
    Ozzie_Isaac Posts: 21,988
    Your damper is at 63% so it is trying to bring your temp up.

    You may have a lot of ash build up im the egg, some of the firebox holes clogged, or grate holes blocked.  You may also not have enough lump in the egg or your bottom vent opened enough.

    Only thing you can do at this point is open the bottom vent more. After that let it ride.  Those swings will not hurt the quality.  Then after make sure everything is cleaned and the firebox is aligned at the bottom.

    I would rather light a candle than curse your darkness.

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  • CornfedMA
    CornfedMA Posts: 491
    Cire69 said:
    How open is yr bottom vent?  I usually have it 1/3-1/2 open...   With the top damper open 63%, I’d suggest giving it more air from below.   Also it looks like the pit temp probe is a bit noisy...could be a bad thermocouple.  I had my original replaced because of that...the wire was not reinforced at the plug end and was working it’s way loose, resulting in a noisy signal. 
    Vent is open almost 1/2 way, so I’m good there. Interesting point on the pit thermocouple. 
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  • CornfedMA
    CornfedMA Posts: 491
    Ozzie_Isaac said:
    Your damper is at 63% so it is trying to bring your temp up.

    You may have a lot of ash build up im the egg, some of the firebox holes clogged, or grate holes blocked.  You may also not have enough lump in the egg or your bottom vent opened enough.

    Only thing you can do at this point is open the bottom vent more. After that let it ride.  Those swings will not hurt the quality.  Then after make sure everything is cleaned and the firebox is aligned at the bottom.
    I was thinking the same. I actually did a full clean out prior to this cook, so I’m good there. Vent is about 1/2 open. 
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  • Ozzie_Isaac
    Ozzie_Isaac Posts: 21,988
    CornfedMA said:
    Ozzie_Isaac said:
    Your damper is at 63% so it is trying to bring your temp up.

    You may have a lot of ash build up im the egg, some of the firebox holes clogged, or grate holes blocked.  You may also not have enough lump in the egg or your bottom vent opened enough.

    Only thing you can do at this point is open the bottom vent more. After that let it ride.  Those swings will not hurt the quality.  Then after make sure everything is cleaned and the firebox is aligned at the bottom.
    I was thinking the same. I actually did a full clean out prior to this cook, so I’m good there. Vent is about 1/2 open. 
    Hmmmm, are your bottom vents (firebox and base) lined up? On my medium a slight misalignment will do that to me.

    I would rather light a candle than curse your darkness.

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  • CornfedMA
    CornfedMA Posts: 491
    edited May 2019
    Ozzie_Isaac said:
    CornfedMA said:
    Ozzie_Isaac said:
    Your damper is at 63% so it is trying to bring your temp up.

    You may have a lot of ash build up im the egg, some of the firebox holes clogged, or grate holes blocked.  You may also not have enough lump in the egg or your bottom vent opened enough.

    Only thing you can do at this point is open the bottom vent more. After that let it ride.  Those swings will not hurt the quality.  Then after make sure everything is cleaned and the firebox is aligned at the bottom.
    I was thinking the same. I actually did a full clean out prior to this cook, so I’m good there. Vent is about 1/2 open. 
    Hmmmm, are your bottom vents (firebox and base) lined up? On my medium a slight misalignment will do that to me.
    Yup. As Mona Lisa Vito would say...


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  • alaskanassasin
    alaskanassasin Posts: 9,113
    Looks like some static is normalc is
    South of Columbus, Ohio.


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  • CornfedMA
    CornfedMA Posts: 491
    Ya. I’ll fuss with it after this cook. When it’s not 38 degrees and raining. It made it back to temp and seems to be holding fine for the last 1-1.5 hrs. 
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  • Carolina Q
    Carolina Q Posts: 14,831
    You didn't just put in a cold piece of meat did you? That'll cause the pit temp to drop temporarily. But then, you probably already new that. =)

    I hate it when I go to the kitchen for food and all I find are ingredients!                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

    Michael 
    Central Connecticut 

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  • Ozzie_Isaac
    Ozzie_Isaac Posts: 21,988
    CornfedMA said:
    Ozzie_Isaac said:
    CornfedMA said:
    Ozzie_Isaac said:
    Your damper is at 63% so it is trying to bring your temp up.

    You may have a lot of ash build up im the egg, some of the firebox holes clogged, or grate holes blocked.  You may also not have enough lump in the egg or your bottom vent opened enough.

    Only thing you can do at this point is open the bottom vent more. After that let it ride.  Those swings will not hurt the quality.  Then after make sure everything is cleaned and the firebox is aligned at the bottom.
    I was thinking the same. I actually did a full clean out prior to this cook, so I’m good there. Vent is about 1/2 open. 
    Hmmmm, are your bottom vents (firebox and base) lined up? On my medium a slight misalignment will do that to me.
    Yup. As Mona Lisa Vito would say...


    welp, you have exhausted the various ways I have screwed up cooks.

    I would rather light a candle than curse your darkness.

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  • CornfedMA
    CornfedMA Posts: 491
    Carolina Q said:
    You didn't just put in a cold piece of meat did you? That'll cause the pit temp to drop temporarily. But then, you probably already new that. =)
    Nope. This was 4 or so hrs into the cook. 
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  • StillH2OEgger
    StillH2OEgger Posts: 3,917
    I haven't experienced anything like that. Your process and set up seems normal, so my guess would be an issue with the pit probe.
    Stillwater, MN
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  • Smokin_Trout
    Smokin_Trout Posts: 506
    How close was the pit probe to the meat?
    Were you using a water pan?
    Putting the probe close to either will cause issues. 
    Like pointed out before, open your bottom vent to reduce how much the top is opened. 
    If it was raining, the rain will absolutely cause some fluctuations, but the Smobot should keep it within the 20 degrees. 
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