Author Topic: Temp trouble with MAK 1  (Read 2031 times)

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Offline Preich

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Temp trouble with MAK 1
« Reply #-1 on: June 27, 2017, 08:13:36 PM »
Hi all, I'm trying my MAK with a spatchcocked chicken tonight and set the grill at 350, first time I have tried cooking higher than 230. Temp of grill climbed quickly to 300, the stalled out and dropped back some, now it is at 275. Grill has been on for about 40 minutes. Just tried MAK but I guess I just missed them. Anybody see this before and have an idea? Frustrating. I started with wifi, switching that off didn't help. And the set point number is not flashing !


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Offline MAK Daddy

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Re: Temp trouble with MAK 1
« on: June 27, 2017, 08:27:30 PM »
Make sure your thermocouple is clean, it builds up grease and smoke. I use the green scotchbrite I tore off a sponge.
Then give it some time to stabilize, the food takes the heat out of the cooker for a while.
Try not to get frustrated over temps, let it ride and the MAK will take care of you :)

Offline Preich

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Temp trouble with MAK 1
« Reply #1 on: June 27, 2017, 09:27:29 PM »
Make sure your thermocouple is clean, it builds up grease and smoke. I use the green scotchbrite I tore off a sponge.
Then give it some time to stabilize, the food takes the heat out of the cooker for a while.
Try not to get frustrated over temps, let it ride and the MAK will take care of you :)
I will have to check the thermocouple tomorrow, I wouldn't have thought it would get that dirty this quickly, I've only made four or five cooks on it. Grill was running close to an hour with the food in it, never got above 295, though set for 355


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Offline Pappymn

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Temp trouble with MAK 1
« Reply #2 on: June 27, 2017, 09:56:18 PM »
Make sure your thermocouple is clean, it builds up grease and smoke. I use the green scotchbrite I tore off a sponge.
Then give it some time to stabilize, the food takes the heat out of the cooker for a while.
Try not to get frustrated over temps, let it ride and the MAK will take care of you :)
I will have to check the thermocouple tomorrow, I wouldn't have thought it would get that dirty this quickly, I've only made four or five cooks on it. Grill was running close to an hour with the food in it, never got above 295, though set for 355


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I would give Mak a call tomorrow. They will take care of you. Doesn't sound like you've used it enough where the thermocouple is the issue.


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Offline TentHunteR

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Re: Temp trouble with MAK 1
« Reply #3 on: June 28, 2017, 10:48:57 AM »
Make sure your thermocouple is clean, it builds up grease and smoke. I use the green scotchbrite I tore off a sponge.


Yep, whenever I've had an issue with the temp holding properly, like you are experiencing, it's was because the thermocouple needed to be cleaned.


Quote from: Priech
I wouldn't have thought it would get that dirty this quickly,

You be surprised; it just depends on what you cooked, how long it ran in smoke mode, etc.  That's why I am now in the habit of cleaning it after every 3 - 4 cooks.


I use a small strip of moistened ScotchBrite pad and a drop or two of dish detergent, or a small piece of Brillo pad (gently), then wipe it clean with a dry paper towel. 

Keeping it clean after every few cooks is a LOT easier than trying to scrub off a heavy buildup.   Don't ask me how I know!  ::)
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Offline mrbbq

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Re: Temp trouble with MAK 1
« Reply #4 on: June 28, 2017, 01:36:53 PM »
It could be the type of pellets you are using. Just heard from a grill owner in NC who was having temp issues. He switched back to BBQ'rs Delight and the grill came up to temp. So if your thermocouple is clean and the vents aren't blocked, then more likely its the pellets. We've seen this so many times over the years. Once pellets get manufactured and bagged, how they are stored either at the producer, distributor, retailer or consumer, if they are exposed to the elements and moisture, it WILL have an impact on how hot they burn.

And, what MAK Daddy said about your meat acting as a heat-sink. That is true as well. Just a natural by-product of thermodynamics and science.
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Offline Preich

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Temp trouble with MAK 1
« Reply #5 on: June 28, 2017, 01:56:51 PM »
It could be the type of pellets you are using. Just heard from a grill owner in NC who was having temp issues. He switched back to BBQ'rs Delight and the grill came up to temp. So if your thermocouple is clean and the vents aren't blocked, then more likely its the pellets. We've seen this so many times over the years. Once pellets get manufactured and bagged, how they are stored either at the producer, distributor, retailer or consumer, if they are exposed to the elements and moisture, it WILL have an impact on how hot they burn.

And, what MAK Daddy said about your meat acting as a heat-sink. That is true as well. Just a natural by-product of thermodynamics and science.
Thanks, at this point I have used only BBQr delight and the vents aren't blocked. Also, I put the meat on while grill was at 200, and the temp climbed rapidly to 300 before dropping back and stalling. So I guess it is the thermocouple, haven't had chance to check yet.


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Offline Preich

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Temp trouble with MAK 1
« Reply #6 on: June 28, 2017, 01:58:48 PM »
Make sure your thermocouple is clean, it builds up grease and smoke. I use the green scotchbrite I tore off a sponge.


Yep, whenever I've had an issue with the temp holding properly, like you are experiencing, it's was because the thermocouple needed to be cleaned.


Quote from: Priech
I wouldn't have thought it would get that dirty this quickly,

You be surprised; it just depends on what you cooked, how long it ran in smoke mode, etc.  That's why I am now in the habit of cleaning it after every 3 - 4 cooks.


I use a small strip of moistened ScotchBrite pad and a drop or two of dish detergent, or a small piece of Brillo pad (gently), then wipe it clean with a dry paper towel. 

Keeping it clean after every few cooks is a LOT easier than trying to scrub off a heavy buildup.   Don't ask me how I know!  ::)
Got it, I have done two overnight briskets and a pork shoulder with ribs and a couple of short cooks, so I guess it could be thermocouple.


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Offline teesquare

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Re: Temp trouble with MAK 1
« Reply #7 on: June 29, 2017, 08:35:11 AM »
It could be the type of pellets you are using. Just heard from a grill owner in NC who was having temp issues. He switched back to BBQ'rs Delight and the grill came up to temp. So if your thermocouple is clean and the vents aren't blocked, then more likely its the pellets. We've seen this so many times over the years. Once pellets get manufactured and bagged, how they are stored either at the producer, distributor, retailer or consumer, if they are exposed to the elements and moisture, it WILL have an impact on how hot they burn.

And, what MAK Daddy said about your meat acting as a heat-sink. That is true as well. Just a natural by-product of thermodynamics and science.
Thanks, at this point I have used only BBQr delight and the vents aren't blocked. Also, I put the meat on while grill was at 200, and the temp climbed rapidly to 300 before dropping back and stalling. So I guess it is the thermocouple, haven't had chance to check yet.


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One phenomena that we experience - this applies to ALL kinds of cookers BTW.... Is when we put a load of cold meat into a hot ( these are relative terms - cold and hot ) we can see temps drop int he cooking vessel. Why? The cooker - and its fuel are trying to overcome and offset the impact of the cold mass that you have place in it.
If you want to see a more "smoother" temp. climb, try putting your meat in - THEN turning on the grill. Yes, it will take longer of the grill to come up to temp initially - because of the extra heating BTUs required to overcome the cold meat. And, you will still experience the "stall"...for different reason. But, you will see the impact of this effect as the opposite of what would happen should you put a pot of very hot water into a cold - but empty freezer. The temp would rise in the freezer -until the freezer could overcome that "load" and chill the pot of water back down.
I hope that makes sense to you. Still on my first cup of high octane brain stimulant...(coffee.... ;D )
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Offline Preich

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Temp trouble with MAK 1
« Reply #8 on: June 29, 2017, 10:56:50 AM »
It could be the type of pellets you are using. Just heard from a grill owner in NC who was having temp issues. He switched back to BBQ'rs Delight and the grill came up to temp. So if your thermocouple is clean and the vents aren't blocked, then more likely its the pellets. We've seen this so many times over the years. Once pellets get manufactured and bagged, how they are stored either at the producer, distributor, retailer or consumer, if they are exposed to the elements and moisture, it WILL have an impact on how hot they burn.

And, what MAK Daddy said about your meat acting as a heat-sink. That is true as well. Just a natural by-product of thermodynamics and science.
Thanks, at this point I have used only BBQr delight and the vents aren't blocked. Also, I put the meat on while grill was at 200, and the temp climbed rapidly to 300 before dropping back and stalling. So I guess it is the thermocouple, haven't had chance to check yet.


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One phenomena that we experience - this applies to ALL kinds of cookers BTW.... Is when we put a load of cold meat into a hot ( these are relative terms - cold and hot ) we can see temps drop int he cooking vessel. Why? The cooker - and its fuel are trying to overcome and offset the impact of the cold mass that you have place in it.
If you want to see a more "smoother" temp. climb, try putting your meat in - THEN turning on the grill. Yes, it will take longer of the grill to come up to temp initially - because of the extra heating BTUs required to overcome the cold meat. And, you will still experience the "stall"...for different reason. But, you will see the impact of this effect as the opposite of what would happen should you put a pot of very hot water into a cold - but empty freezer. The temp would rise in the freezer -until the freezer could overcome that "load" and chill the pot of water back down.
I hope that makes sense to you. Still on my first cup of high octane brain stimulant...(coffee.... ;D )
I hear that, but it continued to climb from 200 to 300 quickly after putting meat in. Then it stalled, doesn't make sense the stall would happen after all that momentum. Plus it was almost an hour in before I gave up, hard to believe one medium chicken would delay a smoker coming to temp for that long

Offline teesquare

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Re: Temp trouble with MAK 1
« Reply #9 on: June 29, 2017, 11:24:07 AM »
Just guessing here....
But - when you open the cooker - the temp drops. You add the meat so the controller sends that and tries to compensate. Sometimes - there is even some "overshoot" of the target temp. So the controller "relaxes"....and then the cold from the meat is radiating ( heat and cold energy are all the same...just our humans range of "comfort sensation" that is considering the difference in HOT or COLD...) and then the controller decides it needs to kick back on...but now - it is having to figure out how much to speed up the feed of pellets to balance agains the "load", so there can be a lag time in the controller /thermocouple/oven temp. relationship.

OR... you could just have a bad part. Whether that is a thermocouple, or controller issue is something that MAK will help you determine. This is a very rare thing, but we do live in an imperfect world.
BBQ is neither verb or noun. It is an experience.
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Beer, Butter and Bacon make everything better.
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Offline smoker pete

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Re: Temp trouble with MAK 1
« Reply #10 on: June 29, 2017, 02:39:51 PM »
I'm thinking/guessing more along the lines of an issue with the thermocouple and/or the controller. Notice below (graph from when I just smoked a 14 lb turkey) that there is barely a glitch in the pit temp, if any, when I inserted the turkey and when I would open the lid for pictures ... I have never (knock on wood) had any temp issues with my MAK 2 Star which I believe uses the same thermocouple and controller as the MAK 1 Star.

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Offline Preich

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Temp trouble with MAK 1
« Reply #11 on: June 29, 2017, 02:48:25 PM »
Yeah, work has been heavy so i haven't had a chance to check the grill, but I am thinking (hoping) it is a dirty thermocouple. Although why would it allow it to get to 300 before stalling? Once I corrected for my operator error on day one, I was able to get it up to 450 no problem for the initial burn in


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Offline Preich

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Temp trouble with MAK 1
« Reply #12 on: June 30, 2017, 09:38:09 AM »
So: I finally got to the grill this morning, checked the probe and it was greets over with some soot. I cleaned it off with some steel wool, and did a dry run, smoker got up to 385 in about 20 minutes and to 450 in another ten, so I figure that was it.  Thanks to Dennis for reaching out to me from MAK the last few days. Of course I will know for 100% sure when I cook food, but it looks good.


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Offline TentHunteR

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Re: Temp trouble with MAK 1
« Reply #13 on: June 30, 2017, 12:53:44 PM »
So: I finally got to the grill this morning, checked the probe and it was greets over with some soot. I cleaned it off with some steel wool, and did a dry run, smoker got up to 385 in about 20 minutes and to 450 in another ten, so I figure that was it.  Thanks to Dennis for reaching out to me from MAK the last few days. Of course I will know for 100% sure when I cook food, but it looks good.



Good deal!  :thumbup:
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