Author Topic: Temperature sensor  (Read 1382 times)

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Offline Harriska2

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Temperature sensor
« Reply #-1 on: January 22, 2018, 10:14:57 PM »
We’ve been cooking A LOT on our MAK 2 Star since we purchased in December.  I’ve never had a problem till now.  I cleaned the fire pot. Scotched brighted the thermo thing.  Used the same Bear Mt Mesquite as last cook. They were dry.  The grill claimed it was 400. Pizzas were not getting done at all.  I’ve made pizza about 8 or so times and never a problem. This time our 20 minute pizza is taking 1 hour.  The real temp is about 75 degrees off as I finally put a oven gauge in near the sensor.  Any ideas?

Offline teesquare

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Re: Temperature sensor
« on: January 22, 2018, 10:34:38 PM »
Call Bruce @ MAK.  It is possible that you have a faulty probe. Based on your description - it sounds feasible that you have a bad one.
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Offline Pappymn

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Temperature sensor
« Reply #1 on: January 22, 2018, 11:00:47 PM »
Bruce will fix you up. Guaranteed


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Offline smokeasaurus

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Re: Temperature sensor
« Reply #2 on: January 23, 2018, 09:21:25 AM »
sometimes ya got to be careful cleaning the probes.

I try to wipe down with a paper towel after every cook......if I remember.
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Offline TentHunteR

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Re: Temperature sensor
« Reply #3 on: January 23, 2018, 11:06:31 AM »
Agreed; definitely give MAK a call.


Based on what you posted, a few other things come to mind:

1) What was the ambient temperature, and how often were you opening the lid to check the pizza?  Every time you open the lid you are dumping heat out.   That can add a lot of time to your cook, especially if it's cold. 

When we cook pizzas on our MAK we go about 375° for about 20 minutes.  If we have two pizzas, one on the top rack and one on the bottom, we quickly swap them about half way through and add another minute or two to the cook time.  Otherwise we leave the lid closed.

2) Bear Mt. pellets are alder-based.  Try using one of the oak-based brands and see if they perform better for you (higher BTU rating).


3) On cleaning the thermocouple: The MAK thermocouples are stainless steel and pretty stout.  We've cleaned ours (on three different MAK's) with either a damp soapy Scoth-Brite, or a small piece of damp S.O.S./Brillo pad, followed by a wipe down with a paper towel, with no problems.  MAK actually says to use a Scotch-Brite or similar pad on the MAK thermocouple to keep it clean and shiny.






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Offline smokeasaurus

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Re: Temperature sensor
« Reply #4 on: January 23, 2018, 01:00:50 PM »
I use Lumberjack oak pellets in the dead of winter. They burn good and hot.
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Offline Harriska2

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Re: Temperature sensor
« Reply #5 on: January 23, 2018, 02:36:59 PM »
It was 49 outside and I just opened the mesquite bag a few days ago and already cooked with it without issue.  Yes, I used a soapy (not sloppy, it was squeezed out) green scotch bright pad.  I do this about every 2 cooks.  I think the BBQ may have stopped at some point as it started smoking even though it said 400.  Hubby claims if the sensor is full of smoke, it acts as insulator and should go to a higher temp, not lower.

I do 2 pizzas and 1/2 way through switch the top and bottom and add a couple minutes. This took 1 full hour with me moving it from 400 to 450 as this was never going to finish.  When I open the door, it never goes down more than 10-20 degrees, but then it shows that on the electronic temperature gauge. 

Offline Harriska2

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Re: Temperature sensor
« Reply #6 on: January 23, 2018, 02:53:54 PM »
Foil. I use foil. Will test without and ensure none of the louvers are covered so airflow is there and heat isn’t trapped to the bottom.

OK, it looks like I didn’t put the heat shield/tray back correctly.  It was placed too far forward. The perils of cleaning in bad light/the dark.  I think this may have messed up the convection as, apparently, the controller has an algorithm that does averages based on proper circulation.  I’ll test in the next day or 2.  The oven gauge still showed that it is off 70 or so degrees but there is more circulation. I definitely felt the heat at 215 as hotter when I opened the lid today than when it claimed 400 yesterday.
« Last Edit: January 23, 2018, 03:13:04 PM by Harriska2 »

Offline mrbbq

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Re: Temperature sensor
« Reply #7 on: January 23, 2018, 03:41:51 PM »
Harriska2----please call DENNIS OGG, the service person @ MAK. He can help you out. His phone # is 503-623-1234. He's available 8AM-5PM Pacific Time.
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Offline mikeharold

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Re: Temperature sensor
« Reply #8 on: January 25, 2018, 12:13:25 AM »
Harriska2----please call DENNIS OGG, the service person @ MAK. He can help you out. His phone # is 503-623-1234. He's available 8AM-5PM Pacific Time.

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Offline Harriska2

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Re: Temperature sensor
« Reply #9 on: February 04, 2018, 12:24:14 AM »
I did call and was told foil can cover vents and cause the invection to not work.  So I went back in to look at the foil.  The cover was not placed in correctly when I had cleaned i lastt.  So I cleaned and put the cover back and the temp definitely was way higher for the next cook as the pizza took only about 18 minutes.