So yesterday on another forum, some folks were bashing pellet poopers, and I decided to test my Yoder YS480 to see how hot it would get. My Traeger won't even get to 400°F, I don't think, but the Yoder controller goes up to 600°F, so I thought I'd put some probes in various places and see what happened.
Well, first of all... like a dummy, I didn't change or remove my aluminum foil from the drip pan which has been there for 2 or 3 cooks, including a couple of pork butts. Sooooo... about 15 minutes in, I smell smoke and go out to check it and smoke is absolutely ROLLING out of the thing. I mean, damn! And who says pellet poopers don't produce enough smoke???? lol Anyways, yes, it was the crap on the foil covering the drip pan that was smoking up a storm. So I opened the lid and then it catches fire. lol Flames rolling up, singed my arm hair when I went to put the lid back down to smother the flames. Oh well, no biggie, the damn thing is made of heavy steel, right? I ain't worried.
Turns out, I shoulda been worried about my probes on the Fireboard. They are rated to 572°F, but it definitely went above that! Here's a look:
As you can see, the probes topped out VERY quickly, and a couple of them look like they're probably fried - these were the two in the hottest areas, the bottom middle and bottom front right. In addition, 2 other probes in the same positions on the top grate leaked what looks like some red silicone out of them, so I'm assuming that even if they're still good, they probably aren't very water resistant anymore.
So, as you can see, I proved a few things with this little experiment -
Well, first of all... like a dummy, I didn't change or remove my aluminum foil from the drip pan which has been there for 2 or 3 cooks, including a couple of pork butts. Sooooo... about 15 minutes in, I smell smoke and go out to check it and smoke is absolutely ROLLING out of the thing. I mean, damn! And who says pellet poopers don't produce enough smoke???? lol Anyways, yes, it was the crap on the foil covering the drip pan that was smoking up a storm. So I opened the lid and then it catches fire. lol Flames rolling up, singed my arm hair when I went to put the lid back down to smother the flames. Oh well, no biggie, the damn thing is made of heavy steel, right? I ain't worried.
Turns out, I shoulda been worried about my probes on the Fireboard. They are rated to 572°F, but it definitely went above that! Here's a look:
As you can see, the probes topped out VERY quickly, and a couple of them look like they're probably fried - these were the two in the hottest areas, the bottom middle and bottom front right. In addition, 2 other probes in the same positions on the top grate leaked what looks like some red silicone out of them, so I'm assuming that even if they're still good, they probably aren't very water resistant anymore.
So, as you can see, I proved a few things with this little experiment -
- Yoder smokers can indeed reach the 600°F max on the controller
- Fireboard probes will read slightly higher than the rated 572°F
- Fireboard probes shouldn't be asked to read higher than the rated 572°F
- When testing your smoker's limits, make sure to remove old nasty foil - unless you are on good terms with the local Fire Department, as your neighbors may institute an investigation (mine nearly did! lol)
- If you're testing probe limits, make sure to buy extras. lol
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