The Texas BBQ Forum

On its way

You the man and I sure will

OldUsedParts wrote:On its way

Got it yesterday ,can't wait to try it out

You can put a bottle torch to the end (or ends) where the larger hole (holes) is located. I always kept it on my cooking rack but some say to put it at the bottom below the drip shield. More than likely you'll end up trying several ways and picking what works best for your needs.

Good Luck and Enjoy

Hello all. New here to this forum and a recent Pitt Boss owner .This post is exactly what I needed. I’ve had wild temp swings. So if I understand correctly, leave on the smoke setting and dial in temp by adjusting the “P” setting up or down? I want to smoke ribs at 225 but when on the 225 setting I’d get as high as 330

Was your P Setting at 4 with the 225 setting

OldUsedParts wrote:Was your P Setting at 4 with the 225 setting

Truth be told I wasn’t even following the proper startup procedure, and clearly that needs to be done. That being said, I’m just gonna start fresh and see what temp I can maintain. I need to clean it tonight so I’ll do a test run at the same time. My wife, god bless her, couldn’t figure out how to move the slider to get a hot burn for burgers. So she just scraped up and slip the foil on the diffuser to the sides creating big mess.

To answer though, I did have it at 225 and p5. Then when it was swinging temps I started getting impatient and tried various things to fix it. I did higher temp with higher p, lower temp with lower p. I basically got the system confused probably.

So I’ll do the proper startup today, open lid for 10 minutes then just see where it settles on the smoke mode. I’d like to maintain 225, and 250 for different cooks. I’ll report back tonight.

Good Deal and Good Luck with it - - - - if you don't have the success you want, we have a Member, Papa Tom, that is very knowledgeable on these cookers and problems so maybe he'll drop in and give us some good advice.

FWIW, I take the shop vac to my auger and fire pot after every cook and I also cover my drip pan in foil before every cook.

I'm also going to put a small rack of Baby Backs on my Pit Boss tomorrow.

Jimmy-Jack, I’m looking forward to finding out how your retry with the correct start up procedures works out for You this time... Which Pit Boss grill did You purchase? Remember, preheat your grill for at least 30 mins at 350* degrees. Set your P setting at P4 as a base starting point. It’s the factory default setting. If it’s cold weather in your area, I would use P-setting P2-P3 as a starting point... Understanding of the P settings is a must read and will help you dial in your Pellet Grill. You’ll see your temps go up while it’s preheating, that’s normal.. Your Grill will settle down with stable temps once the preheating procedures are completed.. If You see your temps go up 25* degrees and back down, that’s normal as well, it’s just cycling, the Fire Pot is being fed more pellets.. There’s a learning curve with all Pellet Grills. Remember, Pellet Grills are not started like the ovens in our kitchens and never just “Set it and Forget it”. And always keep the Fire Pot in your grill clean after ever cook... Once understood, your Pit Boss Grill can produce some awesome bbq and be very reliable.. I’m sure You’ll have a much better experience once the correct start up procedure steps are followed.. Good Luck and let us know how everything turned out..

Jimmy_Jack one last tip... Make sure the flame broiler slider is in the correct position during the preheating and during your cooks... During preheating, if You set the temp at 350* degrees and you see it go past 400* degrees, don’t worry, it’ll settle down to 350* once the preheating is complete. The temps will climb up and then settle back down... 30 mins. on the preheating... Once the preheating is completed, then You can set grill to whatever temp you want... To help with clean ups, I would use aluminum foil on the flame broiler and the slider too.. Oh and remember, your owners manual has a lot of valuable information...

RCAlan wrote:Jimmy_Jack one last tip... Make sure the flame broiler slider is in the correct position during the preheating and during your cooks... During preheating, if You set the temp at 350* degrees and you see it go past 400* degrees, don’t worry, it’ll settle down to 350* once the preheating is complete. The temps will climb up and then settle back down... 30 mins. on the preheating... Once the preheating is completed, then You can set grill to whatever temp you want... To help with clean ups, I would use aluminum foil on the flame broiler and the slider too.. Oh and remember, your owners manual has a lot of valuable information...

What’s the correct position? I have it covering the center, donor spreads the heat.

The center is the correct position for the slider.. Some people will have it to the right or in an open position and wonder why the temps are so high... Which Pit Boss Grill do You have?

?Slider? I guess my 340 doesn't have one

RCAlan wrote:The center is the correct position for the slider.. Some people will have it to the right or in an open position and wonder why the temps are so high... Which Pit Boss Grill do You have?

I have the 820 from Lowe’s. I’ve had the center piece slid over for direct heat on burgers, but always in the center for smoking.

It was cold last night, gonna be even colder tonight. I’ll try the correct startup and warm up this weekend when I smoke a butt or 2.

My plan is this...startup with lid up for ten minutes. Lid down, warm up on 350 for 20 minutes. Then dial back down to 250 and wait until is settled in that range. Then meat on.

Is that about right?

Step 1. Turn your PB grill on and set the temp dial to smoke. If it’s still cold outside, set the P-setting to P3.. If it’s warm outside, set it at P4, factory default. This is very important... The main reason the lid is open during initial startup/preheating is to confirm that the pellets have ignited... You don’t want a flame out during the preheating steps because the lid was closed to soon. 2. You’re going to see a lot of smoke while the lid is open, this is normal. 5-10 mins. 3. Once the pellets have ignited, “the smoke will clear out” and you’ll hear a torchy roar sound and feel heat being produced. 4. Once this is confirmed, “then close the lid” and set the temp dial to 350* degrees for 30 mins... 5. You may see the temp go way past 350* degrees initially... This is normal, it will settle down, stabilize. 6. Once these steps are completed, the actual temp reading on your grill should be at 350* degrees and holding steady. The preheating is now completed and You can now set your grill to whatever temp you desire to bbq. Good luck this weekend and be sure to post some pics of this coming weekends cook..