Got a 1600 pro elite 2 weeks ago and need convincing to keep

[taessi]

Hello,

I recently purchased a 1600 pro elite 2 weeks ago. The first weekend I did a brisket and beef ribs. However both times the temp probes wouldnt report right, both probes froze at 185 and 190. I had to pull out my manual meat thermometer for the brisket and for the ribs I bough a new set of wireless probes. Last weekend I decided to just do 2 beef roasts. The same thing happened, but dumb me didnt pull out my other probes untill too late. Both roasts got extremely dried out on the outside (they were wrapped in foil around 160). I have also been using a large roasting pan full of water to keep some moisture in the unit. To compound all 3 cooks, they were done over night and I was forced to go get multiple towels and blankets to get the smoker to stay above 200f when set at 225, the panel said it was 225, would go 220 - 230. but thermometer placed inside would read as low as 150f. I bought a welding blanket for this weekend and I will use the other blankets I got. But it wasnt even cold, or windy, plus I surrounded it by my other grill, house, and a concrete piller on the other side. The coldest the night temp got to was 48 outside.

During last weekends cook, about 2 hours in, I was looking at the smoker app watching the temp and stuff while watching some shows. The wifi on the app just up and quit. I couldnt get the smoker to connect. I restarted smoker, unplugged it for 30 mins to try to let it reset, I deleted my smoker, then when that wouldnt work I uninstalled the app and reinstalled, nothing would work. I could connect bluetooth but not wifi.

After a few hours searching the internet I found a lot of issue with the control board is very common on the smokers. So I called pit boss, and after 25 minutes of arguing that wifi and the internet are not the same thing, they even saying they wouldnt do anything until I called my isp, I finally convinced them to send out a new control boad.

What is the point in having tech support if they dont even know the difference from wifi and isp? Plus to sit there and tell the customer that all his troubleshooting means nothing, then blame it on some other company because they dont want to bother.

I am not happy right now to say the least.

So I am tossing it to you guys, do I keep this smoker or just return it and go to traeger? Costco usually has good deals on traeger, they are smaller though. However if anything breaks costco has no problem exchanging them.

Thanks,
Tae

 

[Cowboy1955]

Welcome from Texas to the group!
hopefully the new controller will do the trick

 

[taessi]

Welcome from Texas to the group!
hopefully the new controller will do the trick

Thank you

 

[Sparky]

Welcome to the club

 

[taessi]

Welcome to the club

Thanks.

 

[taessi]

Trying to cook a brisket on this thing is crazy stupid. Tennis range from 155 to 300 when set at 215. I turn the temp just 5 degrees and it does a 50 degree change in either direction, randomly. I'm using a separate thermometer, and instant read thermometer. I'm happening to change the temp every 40 minutes or so because right at the 30 minute mark the temp decides it's running away and just heats non-stop, I got my alarm on my separate thermometer set to 255, and like I said I get the temp stable at what I want, sometimes the settings is at 170 sometimes it's at 270, but on thermometer I got it at 225 stable for 30 minutes. Then right at 30 minutes in from previous adjustment and temp is just going up non-stop. My alarm goes off at 255, and by the time I make it downstairs to the smoker it's at 280 still climbing.

How can someone make a smoker that claims to have control but can't control anything?

My wife decided for me and the smoker goes back to Lowes on Sunday and we are getting a traeger.

 

[PitBossAce]

Trying to cook a brisket on this thing is crazy stupid. Tennis range from 155 to 300 when set at 215. I turn the temp just 5 degrees and it does a 50 degree change in either direction, randomly. I'm using a separate thermometer, and instant read thermometer. I'm happening to change the temp every 40 minutes or so because right at the 30 minute mark the temp decides it's running away and just heats non-stop, I got my alarm on my separate thermometer set to 255, and like I said I get the temp stable at what I want, sometimes the settings is at 170 sometimes it's at 270, but on thermometer I got it at 225 stable for 30 minutes. Then right at 30 minutes in from previous adjustment and temp is just going up non-stop. My alarm goes off at 255, and by the time I make it downstairs to the smoker it's at 280 still climbing.

How can someone make a smoker that claims to have control but can't control anything?

My wife decided for me and the smoker goes back to Lowes on Sunday and we are getting a traeger.

Welcome @taessi ! I am new to Pit Boss, having bought a Pit Boss 1600 Pro Elite PSE on Oct 24th but just getting to cook my first smoke on it until last weekend of baby back ribs, as noted on here in another post. Sad to hear that you're having issues! My 1600PSE is smoking just fine, having just done a second smoke last night of a 17# brisket. Only had about a 20 degree difference between what the controller was saying, and what my 4-probe ThermoProbe TP-25 was saying, during the entire low and slow cook! I cooked from 7pm Friday evening to 7am today, wrapped and continued for another few hours and just pulled to rest until we are ready to eat for a family gathering here in about 90 minutes or so. Great bark, great mahogany color and a great smoke, all in all !!!

Have you reached out to PB Customer Service? Sounds like it could be a Controller issue or ??? I'm new to this Pit Boss pellet smoker but not new to smoking. And an FYI....I returned a Traeger Ironwood XL Wi-Fi Pellet Smoker and Grill to Home Depot after 9 days because of the extreme inability for it to not hold temps across it's box!!! And it cost $600 more than my PB 1600 PSE !!! And their Customer Service was... well...not there for me.
I am very happy with my PB 1600PSE and with PB Customer Service so far. I've had 3 hiccups and they are taking care of them... or have taken care of them already. I had to do a "Critical Software Update" when I first fired up my 1600PSE. So I don't know if you had that issue or not. But I wouldn't give up on a what I have found so far, to be a good smoker... with good results smoking! But you have to do what's right for you....as I did for us, in returning my Traeger to Home Depot! Have a great weekend!

PS... I just saw your initial post. I see you have a new Controller coming. Hopefully you can wait for your new controller. But you also need to do what you need to do for you...

​

 

[hollrusl]

Hopefully the Traeger works better for you. I hated them with a passion. They were nothing but problems. Pit Boss has been so much better to me. I know done have issues with them, but I never. Have through multiple units. Including my current, also a pro series. Temps fluctuate a little, but you’ll have that with any smoker.

 

[Burnster]

Hello,

I recently purchased a 1600 pro elite 2 weeks ago. The first weekend I did a brisket and beef ribs. However both times the temp probes wouldnt report right, both probes froze at 185 and 190. I had to pull out my manual meat thermometer for the brisket and for the ribs I bough a new set of wireless probes. Last weekend I decided to just do 2 beef roasts. The same thing happened, but dumb me didnt pull out my other probes untill too late. Both roasts got extremely dried out on the outside (they were wrapped in foil around 160). I have also been using a large roasting pan full of water to keep some moisture in the unit. To compound all 3 cooks, they were done over night and I was forced to go get multiple towels and blankets to get the smoker to stay above 200f when set at 225, the panel said it was 225, would go 220 - 230. but thermometer placed inside would read as low as 150f. I bought a welding blanket for this weekend and I will use the other blankets I got. But it wasnt even cold, or windy, plus I surrounded it by my other grill, house, and a concrete piller on the other side. The coldest the night temp got to was 48 outside.

During last weekends cook, about 2 hours in, I was looking at the smoker app watching the temp and stuff while watching some shows. The wifi on the app just up and quit. I couldnt get the smoker to connect. I restarted smoker, unplugged it for 30 mins to try to let it reset, I deleted my smoker, then when that wouldnt work I uninstalled the app and reinstalled, nothing would work. I could connect bluetooth but not wifi.

After a few hours searching the internet I found a lot of issue with the control board is very common on the smokers. So I called pit boss, and after 25 minutes of arguing that wifi and the internet are not the same thing, they even saying they wouldnt do anything until I called my isp, I finally convinced them to send out a new control boad.

What is the point in having tech support if they dont even know the difference from wifi and isp? Plus to sit there and tell the customer that all his troubleshooting means nothing, then blame it on some other company because they dont want to bother.

I am not happy right now to say the least.

So I am tossing it to you guys, do I keep this smoker or just return it and go to traeger? Costco usually has good deals on traeger, they are smaller though. However if anything breaks costco has no problem exchanging them.

Thanks,
Tae

All customer service does is make you feel that it's your fault that their crappy grills don't work as they should

 

[Cowboy1955]

All customer service does is make you feel that it's your fault that their crappy grills don't work as they should

Your totally wrong and off base

 

[PitBossAce]

All customer service does is make you feel that it's your fault that their crappy grills don't work as they should

@Burnster You are absolutely totally wrong and off base with these comments.... Pit Boss Customer Service is top notch, in my dealings with them! But I treat them with respect as I do anyone....

 

[Burnster]

@Burnster You are absolutely totally wrong and off base with these comments.... Pit Boss Customer Service is top notch, in my dealings with them! But I treat them with respect as I do anyone....

Mayby I,m wrong according to you, but by actually reading the different posts a whole lot of people would agree with me. They are defensive right from the start and shift blame for their product on the customer or as in the case of taessi a part that PB outsourced.

 

[Smokeyholler]

Taessi, it's too bad you ended up with a problem child. It seems in today's world the market is the test environment and I doubt it will change.

Before I got my PB I asked a large group of guys what I should look at. This question was asked in a subforum of a very large forum that has nothing to do with smokers, just guys that love to cook. For nearly each "i love my ......." there was a negative one for the same brand. As a technical guy it seems all the issues come down to the PID controller, no matter who's it is. With the hardware, firmware code running on it, app coding and the coms there are a lot of places for bugs. I based my buy on physical build and rolled the dice if I got one that ran out of the box.

I was lucky I did. And left it like that, why update something that works and risk new bugs.

I started by looking at the Pro series but backed away since its a Lowes exclusive. Store exclusive stuff is done on price point and profit margin, not a "better" unit. Another example of this is the John Deere mowers out front of lowes isn't the same build quality you get from a Deere dealer.

I hope however whichever direction you go it works for you, cooking is relaxing and shouldn't be a problem.

 

[robl3577]

Trying to cook a brisket on this thing is crazy stupid. Tennis range from 155 to 300 when set at 215. I turn the temp just 5 degrees and it does a 50 degree change in either direction, randomly. I'm using a separate thermometer, and instant read thermometer. I'm happening to change the temp every 40 minutes or so because right at the 30 minute mark the temp decides it's running away and just heats non-stop, I got my alarm on my separate thermometer set to 255, and like I said I get the temp stable at what I want, sometimes the settings is at 170 sometimes it's at 270, but on thermometer I got it at 225 stable for 30 minutes. Then right at 30 minutes in from previous adjustment and temp is just going up non-stop. My alarm goes off at 255, and by the time I make it downstairs to the smoker it's at 280 still climbing.

How can someone make a smoker that claims to have control but can't control anything?

My wife decided for me and the smoker goes back to Lowes on Sunday and we are getting a traeger.

I've had mine about 2 weeks and doing my first cook right now. Smoking chicken at 225. About an hour and a half in. I have my old meat thermometer in there because I wanted to verify temps and it has stayed within about 5 degrees the whole time.
Didn't you say they are sending you a new control board? Read up on Traeger. I did. They have their issues as well. Why not just put the new control board in it instead of wasting all that time.

 

[Cowboy1955]

I've had mine about 2 weeks and doing my first cook right now. Smoking chicken at 225. About an hour and a half in. I have my old meat thermometer in there because I wanted to verify temps and it has stayed within about 5 degrees the whole time.
Didn't you say they are sending you a new control board? Read up on Traeger. I did. They have their issues as well. Why not just put the new control board in it instead of wasting all that time.

Welcome from Texas to the group and your input