🔥 Heat Deflector Mod now available on Amazon. Check it out HERE ➡ amzn.to/456wwWA 🔥 Flame Tamer Style Diffuser ALSO now available on Amazon. ➡ amzn.to/45SFZRx
I tried this. Then put thermometers throughout the grill. It ran 60° hotter than the temp read out said. Then I pulled the end cap mod and the temps averaged what was on the read out. It seems the engineers did account for this.
Your video helped tremendously!! I’m a fabricator. Took a piece of 20 gauge stainless and made my own rolled ledge for the flame broiler to set on. Also remember to use stainless steel for that little piece of C channel that you put over the broiler. Some steel is cooked with chemicals and may get end up in your food. Thanks 🤘🏻🤘🏻
Shout out to Mad Backyard for sharing these potential fixes! I've been frustrated with temperature issues since the 1150 came out. I'm ordering the deflector and tamer as soon as possible! Hopefully, Pit Boss will have enough sense to incorporate these two modifications into there production line so that new sales customers won't suffer our fate, and pay you a consulting fee as well.
I really appreciate your taking the time to give assistance for these Pit Boss Smokers. I am still new to the game of smokers. I bought a Pit Boss 1150 at my local Lowes back in Summer of 2022. It took me three or four smokes before I realized that the very important piece of metal that should have been at the end of the heat deflector was missing and causing my cooks to take entirely too long because of the false temperature. I did the mods and it helped a little, but I have found that my Pit Boss to be an epic failure. It is less than two years old and it struggled last year to get to 350 and stay there. I probably got a lemon. I have a friend who has the Pit Boss 850 and she doesn't have half the problems. I am going to spend the extra money and get a Traeger Ironwood XL. It is a lot of money, but I have had some really frustrating smokes with this Pit Boss. What is most annoying about the Pit Boss 1150 is that they are still making them without the heat deflector mod.
I agree with you on the temperature issues you mentioned. I've had my 1150 since the summer it came out and I've been through 3 control boards including the original one, an augur motor and a fan. Luckily the control boards were replaced under warranty (pretty good customer service in the 1st year, but still a pain). The rest out of pocket but not expensive. I just replaced the inner temperature probe before seeing this video, in hopes of getting more accurate temps. Shout out to Mad Backyard for sharing these potential fixes!
I finally did my homework and came across this video. I purchased the two mods for the curved air gap and a diffuser over the firebox for my PB1100 Pro Pellet and Gas split. I was never able to keep my large low and slow cuts on the pellet grill long enough and therefore they were never as tender as I hoped. The center of the grill would run 20-40 deg over the firepot and therefore it cooked too quickly. Roasted a 5.5 lb pork butt yesterday and it pulled away from the bone with ease and I could tell it was going to shred nicely. Very happy with these changes and now I have hope for tender brisket the next time I smoke. Thanks very much for this info.
I just got this combo too and I think I'm having temp regulation issues too. Set to 270 fluctuates between 270 to 285. Can you link me the stuff you bought?
Ordered both for my Austin XL and Laredo 1000. I have to say they made a major difference in my temp fluctuations. I would, definitely, recommend the diffuser and air gap mod to anyone having temperature issues.
The air gap on my pro series 850 is rounded on the left side already. I bought the flame tamer a few years ago and it works wonderfully! It was well worth the money. Thanks so much for this video. Keep up the good work.
@@madbackyard I just bought the navigator 850g. Haven't used it yet. Maybe that flame tamer would work on mine. Or just cut a piece "C" Channel and use it
Pit Boss seems to have addressed the issue of heat going to the temp probe themselves. Just checked and my Nav 850 has a rounded off the area that the broiler sits on. So it's nice they tried to fix that issue.
Didn’t feel like spending $80 on them since the reason I went with the pit boss is because it was cheaper then all the others. Instead I went to Lowe’s and bought 26 gauge sheet metal for $9 and made took some measurements and cut them my self with my harbor freight shears.
GREAT video. I have a Camp Chef and it seems that all the pellet brands have their own unique problems. One thing I didn't hear you say how important it is to keep that temp. probe CLEAN. Once the probe gets caked up, the grill temp can vary quite a bit so CLEAN THAT TEMP PROBE! !! !!!
I just bought a Pro850 from Lowe's and they've already fixed the gap issue by the probe. I did buy the diverter for over the firebox. Thanks for the tip
Thanks for the video . I just looked at my pit boss and yeah my thermometer is coated with a lot of grease and chard food . I have to clean now after watching this .
I am new to pellet smoking and have a Lockhart Platinum which has put a lot of ash in the box and I was on the phone with Pit Boss this morning and I mentioned I had just ordered the diffuser and the lady told me that ANY 3rd party accessory would void the warranty.... having read many here that have already installed these two items, I think it is the right path to a fix for many....
Thank you for this. I've been having crazy temp differences between what it was reporting and what it actually was. I just ordered this it should be here today fingers crossed because it's been driving my bunkers trying to figure out!
Pit Boss 1150 temp Run-A-Way I purchased my Pit Boss last November when Lowe’s had their $500 off sale. I used it twice without any problem. The cooking temp was rock solid. Yesterday, Feb 14th I put some chicken leg quarters and hamburger meat on the Pit Boss. I had the temp set at 270 deg F. I have been watching the You Tube videos on cooking chicken leg quarters at 270 deg F. for about 3-4 hours. I was outside watching things when in about 2 hours my temperature went from 270 deg to 310 deg F. I hadn’t changed anything. I called Pit Boss and talked to Mr. Jo. He hadn’t had a clue. He ask what kind of pellets I was using and I told him Oak Kingsford pellets. He said he never heard the name Kingsford pellets or charcoal bricks. The pellets were new and dry so I don’t know what was going on. I always clean out all the pellets when I cook. This includes all the pellets in the auger tube. Anyone have this problem?
AM USING BOTH THESE MODIFICATIONS ON MY PIT BOSS GRILL. THEY WORK VERY WELL. THE QUESTION I HAVE IS WHERE TO GET THE GASKET MATERIAL THAT FITS AROUND THE FIX BOX HOLE ON THE UNDERNEAT SIDE OF THE GRILL. MINE IS GETTING IN REALLY BAD SHAPE ON THE LEFT SIDE. COULD NOT FIND REPLACEMENT ON PIT BOSS OFFICIAL WEB SITE SO ANY ADVICE WILL BE APPRECIATED.
Месяц назад
I have a PB Pro Series with the smoker on the left side and grill on right. I like it, but seem to be experiencing an unexpected temperature increase on last several smokes where I have it at 250 and look at it later and it is rising to 500 or more. I have had one flame out (probably because I didn’t notice the unacceptable temperature increase in time). When I have caught it, it doesn’t help to turn the heat down to 200 or lower. Have to keep the lid open, until it goes down. But doesn’t always stop it from taking off again and blowing past 250 in excess of 350-400. Then it stops and goes back to normal through the rest of the cook. Messes with the meat and not good. I clean the fire pot before each cook. Not sure hat to do. Have you heard of this happening? Love your videos! They really are helpful.
Wrap temp prob loosely with tin foil. I was struggling with temp issues on my copperhead v5 for three years and finally figured it out. Tin foil is your friend brother! Thanks for the tips
Happy 4th of July! This video on dealing with inaccurate temperatures was very helpful. We are new to smoking and the few cooks that we have done to this point did not turn out as well as hoped. We believe a big part of the less than desirable result was due to the huge temperature variations. The ambient temp (measured on the grate), over the burn pot was almost 100 degrees below the set temp of 250. The temp at on the hopper side of the grill was about 20 degrees below the temp at the burn pot, and the temp at the smoke stack end was about 30 degrees less than at the burn pot. We have a PS850PS2, so the curved deflector was already incorporated by Pit Boss. We purchased the massive Flame Tamer referenced in your Amazon link. It evened out the temps very well. Pit Boss should incorporate this into future builds. I have a couple other questions I’m hoping you can help us with. When you select your cooking temp, for example, 250 degrees, do you expect the ambient temp a couple of inches above the grates to be at 250 or do you assume the ambient temp to be 20-30 degrees less than the set temp? We put a Meater in the middle of a pork butt approximately, about 3” above the grates and the temp was around 220. We are unsure whether we should increase the set temp to allow us to reach the 250 at the middle of the butt or leave it at 250. The second question is in regards to the hopper design. We were told by Pit Boss that a 20lb hopper should last around 16 hours when set at 250. We filled the hopper with new pellets. After 6 hours, the hopper was still 3/4 full but there was a tunnel of no pellets exposing the auger. Is there a fix to get the pellets to fall evenly so we don’t have constantly jiggle the grill to make the pellets fall? Thanks in advance !
Hi Laurie! Glad the flame tamer helped with your temp issues. There's nothing wrong with turning the temp up to 270 or so if you find your Pit Boss running a little below your setting. I hadn't found the flame tamer mod yet back when I made this video so my smoker tended to run too hot which is why I kept it back a little at 250 knowing it might be creeping up to 270 in reality. I love using the Meater as well but keep in mind there sometimes will be a cooler "bubble" of air around your meat which is where the Meater is reading, especially during the first half of the cook. This is just from the cooler temp of the meat itself, evaporation, etc. So, its normal for the Meater to read a little lower than the true cooking temp. It will usually come up more to what you expect as the meat cooks and gets hotter. As far as the hopper, I made a video showing how to remove the grate so you can brush and even out the pellets with your hand if you want to. ruclips.net/video/-p3RxgRhx7M/видео.html. If you don't want to do this, you can use a paint stick to jostle the pellets and even them out so you dont have to shake your whole smoker. Hope that answers your questions! Thanks for watching the channel!
i needed this video like a year ago lol. the temps were like 30 to 40 deg off. thinking it was the thermometer they sent me a new one and i had the same issue. got tired of it, so i sold my pit boss.
I gave up on the direct flame option on my Pit Boss. I purchased a Heat defuser from Smoke Daddy which is modified for the pit boss curved sides. Enjoy your videos.
That was an older one, but you can use any good probe thermometer. Make sure they come with the little clips to attach to your grates. I now like this one from Thermopro: amzn.to/3MVAoSB
GREAT video, thank you! I just got my Pit Boss 850 and I thought you'd like to know: they fixed the flat/round heat deflector problem! My heat shield rests on 2 rounded ends, out of the box. I'll be buy that flame tamer soon though :)
I just ordered both items that you use. Look forward to share my experience. I'm retired , 75 years old, Tool & Die Machnist and Master Pattern Maker. But I'll let these people make mine..just saying
@@marilyndoucet3106 I bought mine from smokeslikeaboss.com. There are also Amazon versions available now, keep in mind they are not exactly the same but many have purchased them and reported good results: Heat Deflector Mod ➡ amzn.to/456wwWA 🔥 Flame Tamer Style Diffuser ➡ amzn.to/45SFZRx
Excellent vid! So, theoretically you could wad up some aluminum foil and put it the space by the thermometer?? You could probably make a "cover" for the pot as well...just thinkin here
Yes. I actually tested with a rolled up wad of aluminum foil before ordering the piece itself and it worked the same. Just annoying to have to constantly reposition every time you move the flame broiler. As far as the cover for the fire pot, I'm not sure if you were implying to use foil there too, I would NOT. Unless you really know what you are doing with sheet metal and can fabricate a similar mod, I would just order theirs.
I am in Northern Illinois so in winter i have a welding blanket from a harbor Freight that i use to cover the smoker to help hold in the heat better for those cold winter smokes. I had a vertical smoker from Pit Boss originally and it had a heat diffuser that came with it. I wonder if that would work here if they offer it as a replacement part
This is incredibly helpful. I just bought my first pellet grill (Pit Boss Pro 1600) last week, and have noticed exactly what you just described. Thanks for all of your content!
I went with Pitboss specifically because the sear plate but I wasn’t aware of the issues I’d have. I’m glad I found this, I actually ordered the flame tamer. I didn’t need the air gap mod because my pit has the round plate. We will see how it goes!
Thank you for your site. I am working to be a PIT MASTER, so I purchased this Pit boss. I have used it probably about 4-5 times. I love it and have had good success for a beginner. However, the last time I used it, it was a NIGHTMARE. My grill just kept overheating resulting in out-of-control flames which finally resulted in my beautiful brisket catching fire. The grill just kept overheating and flaming. What am I doing wrong? I would appreciate any feedback.
Oh no! That’s horrible! Make sure you are emptying your ash pot after each cook and that you don’t have grease pooling anywhere. Not sure if what you’re describing was possibly a grease fire from collected grease from the previous cooks
Ha, no commission or affiliation with them. But the parts worked for me. In the meantime try putting your ribs on upper rack with an aluminum water pan below to block and disperse some of the direct heat from the fire pot.
You can also ball up some foil into a tube and shove it on the shelf where the heat deflector will eventually go to block the hot air from hitting your thermostat. Somebody else commented with that idea and it’s a good one.
Great info here, thanks. I've suspected the temp readings on my Pitboss 700fb weren't accurate. Was excited to see this fix. I checked the website you mentioned, and they don't list the 700fb. Hmm. Might be time to disassemble it, clean it, and have a look. My first pellet smoker. My son found them on sale over the winter, and he talked me into buying one, too. I'm glad I did. It's much easier to use than my WSM. Consequently, I use it more often.
I love my WSM. First smoker I ever bought. Everything I have made in It has tasted Amazing. But yes, it can be an ordeal to setup and cleanup for a just a simple meal.
Got a pit boss pro 850 about 3 months ago. The ledge for the heat-shield is curved to match so seems like that feature has been fixed as standard. The extra shield for the firepot sounds nifty though.
For whatever reason the 850 never had this problem. But on most other models they made a straight edge. I will have to look at some new floor models this spring to see if they ever changed it on the larger versions.
Did you have better temps with the heat deflector or flame tamer? Do you use both at the same time for better temps? I have the same smoker but the V3. I just want more details before I order! Thank you!
I use both at the same time unless I'm going to sear my food at the end, like a prime rib roast or something in which case I take the flame tamer out before I start cooking and then try not to position the food RIGHT over the burn pot. Which one(s) you get just depends on which temp issues you are having on your Pit Boss as they each solve a different problem.
I have a ZGRILLS smoker, got it back in 2019, before prices went crazy. I love it, never had a bit of trouble with it, only complaint is that it didn't have casters on the hopper side legs, but, nothing a welder and some casters ordered from Amazon didn't take of.
Yes mine has performed well too. I only wish the lid and frame were a little more heavy duty but temperature control has been great. Thankfully they must have switched to adding 4 casters since then!
Hi - I am interested in Pit Boss smoker/grills and I am just curious if this is considered a "set and go" grill where I can set it in the evening and smoke overnight without worrying about it either fluctuating temps or have it burn my deck down?
It is mostly set and go. However I don’t feel comfortable letting it run all night on my deck without checking on it. Maybe if it was on a concrete patio 50 feet from the house I’d be more ok with it. People do it but it’s up to you at the end of the day. Still an active fire running all night. I might be more comfortable with an electric smoker where there is no active combustion running all night on my deck because once you are done smoldering wood chips it is just an electric oven. Thanks for watching!!
Hello. Just got the PB850 ps2 and it has the rounded lip on both sides. Doesn’t have the fire pot cover. Good to see them making corrections! Maybe they saw your video!
Hey Michael- thanks for watching! I believe I heard that they never changed the rounded lip on the 850 for some reason. A couple other people have told me their 850s don’t have this issue. All the other recent models, as of right now at least, do though. The smokes like a boss guys have the full list on their website. Thankfully you don’t have to deal with it!
I own a Louisiana smoker that looks a lot like the Pit Boss. I am having the opposite problem. To get the grill to as low as 200 - 220 I have to set the computer to 170, and that is low as the computer goes. Any though on how to solve the problem? Thanks, and this is an excellent video.
Thanks for the kind words! I haven’t used a Louisiana pellet smoker personally but a couple thoughts come to mind. Make sure the temperature probe is very clean. You can use some isopropyl alcohol on a paper towel to wipe off any accumulated grease that may be blocking heat from getting to it thus giving you a lower temperature reading. Secondly, it’s HOT everywhere in the country right now. It’s really hard to keep temps down in any smoker under 200 on a hot day especially in direct sunlight. Try moving the smoker to the shade and also opening your exhaust vent all the way on hot days to get that airflow moving through a little faster. Hope that helps!
Hi, would this still be needed for Pit Boss 1230CS1 wood pellet and gas combo. It doesn’t specify my model anywhere and I absolutely have the heat not being even. Thanks
Neat. I watched a video on their website and it appears that not all pitbosses have this issue. Maybe just the older ones??? I got to go pull the cover on ours and check now. We've only done the bake off and cooked in it once so wasn't really paying attention to that. We have the slider for searing etc but I do believe ill be making one from a sheet of stainless myself now that I know what it looks like. Now that I know this is an issue for a hot spot in the middle It does explain some of the oddities we experienced in cooking. I will order that side cover tho for the probe if ours doesnt have it.
I have only used the original version personally and noticed the temperature became much more even across my grates using it with the openings facing side to side vs back to front. The left is still a little higher so that might be where the three window would work well. Maybe someone else can comment on their direct experience with the other versions. Thanks for watching!
I have a Pitt boss, it was great for just over a year now it keeps catching fire. I took it apart and cleaned it out, vacuumed it out as well. Any suggestions on another grill? It got so hot the paint came off of it. Luckily I caught it in time.
Thanks for the video and sharing your knowledge. I just got the heat defuser. Do you think I need both the heat defuser and the flame blocker? I have the 1150 plus Pit boss. Thank you again for sharing
Heat diffuser will help with your overall temperature accuracy issues (what display says vs what temp the pit is actually at). But you will still have a hot spot over the firepot without the flame tamer. Just try cooking for a couple weeks and see if it bothers you you can always order it then. Another option is to put a pan of water in the center and cook food on the top rack. But this can be kind of a pain to do every time. Let us know how it goes, thanks for watching!
@@madbackyard Thanks for the advice I see a big improvement on my temps with just the defuser. I’m doing a chuck roast. I’ll go ahead and order the flame blocker and then the temps should be really close
Just got a Pit Boss Sportsman 1000 for Father's Day. Wife and kids surprised me. Doing steaks on it today. Looks like I'll go out to the shop and fab these 2 parts before I put food in it.
What a great present, thanks for watching! Hope you enjoy the new smoker. Make sure to check out our other pellet grill videos and all our Pit Boss recipes at madbackyard.com.
Great video! Have you run into any problems with the Pit Boss temperature being too high (e.g. higher than what you set the control to)? Ours is always too hot. Pit Boss sent us a new temperature probe, but that didn't fix the issue.
Thank you! Make sure to also kelp the temp probe very clean with isopropyl alcohol so it’s reading the true temp. I think the flame tamer might help as well if the issue is mostly in the center. If it’s the entire pit boss and WAY off, by like more than 50-100 degrees, as I’ve heard some people say, you may need a new control board and it’d be better just to contact pit boss about getting a new model.
Hi Chris - I haven’t used that brand specifically so just theorizing here…but I imagine it has something to do with your igniter rod. Check that the ash in your fire pot is cleaned out well first, and then that the ignitor rod is working consistently. If it’s not coming on consistently or making contact with the pellets the auger will keep feeding more to the pot and then when they do eventually ignite you get a temperature spike. Many people have talked about replacing their control panels and thermometers with no change to this particular problem on pit bosses, which leads me to believe its more of a heat source issue than a measurement issue.
Thanks for the info. I have a PB850PS2 Pro Series. With the smaller cooking area, it can be tricky moving large cuts of meat around and not getting it over searer. The 4-window Flame Tamer is the mod i have been looking for. I just ordered it, and Subscribed, Thank you.😎
I just used foil on the plate today and had some odd results. Seemed like my cook took an extra hr - 1.5 hrs. I think the foil caused even further temp issues.
@madbackyard I have a Pitboss Lexington 540 and while the auger is working, the fan motor is not. I went for my first cook of the year and didn’t hear the familiar roar at turn on. How do I fix this???
I haven’t used that model before. Maybe someone else who has can chime in. The smokes like a boss website also tells you which models they fit on. Link is in the description. Thanks!
i watch all your r vids,always meessing with gillls, do you think by adding aluminumfoil to a pitboss heat difuser wold reflect the heat downward and not up to the plate, i have the pb150 tabletop model
Thanks for watching our channel!! Someone on here mentioned balling up some aluminum foil to go in the spot where the heat deflector plate would go near the temperature probe to accomplish the same goal of blocking the hot air. I think it’s a great idea to try out before you buy the deflector to make sure it works for you. I think that’s how I’m understanding your question. As far as the flame tamer, I would not use any aluminum foil near the fire pot as it’s just going to burn up and adhere to stuff and make a mess. It just gets too hot in that area.
Thanks VERY MUCH for this info!!.My PitBoss Pro Series 850 was getting as much a 30-40 degree difference from display Temp to ACTUAL temp.Was going to buy a replacement Temp probe until seeing this video. Kudos to you!!
Very helpful! I have a pit boss 1100 sportsman and find the variance in temp from left to right can often be over 100 degrees. Any suggestions for this issue?
I would think the heat deflector would help solve this problem because you’ll have less hot air getting sucked up and to the left out that gap. If not you could also try one of the 3-window flame tamers they offer and point the window to the right side. That’s what I would try. Thanks for watching!
Thanks you for your video. I went to their site and it appears they don't support the 820S model I have and couldn't find another company who makes one. Wish I could upgrade to a newer model but am retired now and not in my budget.
Just really depends on which problem you are trying to solve. One will take care of middle hot spot and the other will take care of temp probe inaccuracy. You could start with one and see it works for you. Thanks for watching!
Hey Gary- I thought I remembered them saying that model didn’t have the gap like our 1150 does. Their site lists all the models it’s compatible with. I might just send them a quick email to confirm. Thanks!
I noticed my temperature fluctuations were happening because of smoke residue/grease building up on the wired connection prongs for the probe. The prongs for me were located on the backside of the pellet hopper behind a metal guard that can be unscrewed. There are wires with metal prongs at the end that connect into each other. Its the probe connecting into the controller board. After removing the guard, the prongs have a rubber guard around them. I found residue all around the outside and the inside of the rubber. I cleaned them with 90% isopropyl alcohol with q-tips and it helped immensley. I do keep the actual probe clean too but it doesnt help near the amount as keeping the connector pieces free of residue. My original problem was the grill kept overheating and shutting off after 6 months of decent use. Tried a few different things but that was the culprit, and it also helpes with temperature fluctuations and keeping the correct temperature that is read on the sceen. I regularly clean once per month or 2 now and haven't had any issues at all with overheating or incorrect temperatures.
@Mad Backyard ya its on a pitboss 580 square inch. I bought an Austin xl onyx and noticed it didn't have those prongs on the outside of the smoker any where. So it's probably just specific to that models or models that run the connection on the outside
Thanks so much for the video! Just ordered the mods. They see you have after market grates. Do you like those? And if so, where did you get them? TIA!!
Hi Matt- No they are not aftermarket. These are the type of grates Pit Boss used to include until recently they switched to straight style grates. The ones I have look cool but can be a pain to clean so I’m guessing that’s why they made the switch.
You can use those if you want to. Smokes like a boss provides them on theirs. I never bothered to screw mine in. The little tabs going through the slots mostly hold it in place under the flame broiler.
Great video. I recently got a PB 850 Pro Series from Lowes. I've done some good cooking on it and got some good results, but I've been seeing some comments around about inaccurate temperatures and I stumbled up on your video. Happy to report that the first fix you had (the deflector thing) is actually included in my Pitboss so they must have watched your video :P. My PB isn't the same as yours, so I don't have that big flat plate that's level with my burn pot like yours. I think I'll go get some steel and just make a simple defelctor that will rest on the bottom of my grill and work like that deflector, kinda wondering if there's some way I can add a lever similar to the searing plate lever that slides the deflector out of the way... don't know that I want to hack up my grill that much though so I think I'll just do it the hard way and remove the burner plate every time. Thanks for all of the tips!
Thanks for the kind words! Yes, the 850 has always had a curved lip from what I understand. Not sure why it's different on just that model, but at least you dont need that mod. I took out the big flat plate you mention because other people claimed it did nothing and was throwing off their temperatures. I'm not sure if it helped but it definitely hasn't hurt anything. And I saw Pit Boss stopped including it on newer models as well so they must have found the same thing. The flame tamer still sits on top of the burn pot even without it. In fact I pull on it a little and squeeze it around the screw heads so it actually sits very snug and doesn't move around at all once it pinches down on them. If I want to knock it off to sear I open the sear plate and knock it out of the way with a slotted screwdriver and I don't have to take the flame broiler off while cooking. Hope that helps!
I have a new Pit Boss Pro model PB1100PSC3 dual grill, pellet grill on the left and gas(LP) grill on the right. I watched your RUclips video about removing the Safety Grid on the Hopper. I had an older Pit Boss grill and was able to remove the grid on that but on this one I was only able to remove3 of the screws, the others were very tight and would not budge, I tried WD 40 to loosen them up with no luck. I have up because I didn’t want to strip the Phillips head grooves on the screws. Do you have any tips for me? Thank you.
We tried exactly that in this video. Check it out! SEARED Steakhouse Quality Steaks on a Pellet Grill! | How to Sear Steaks on ANY Pellet Grill ruclips.net/video/74bDNqNBF2Y/видео.html
Damn!!! I'm home. I just barely found this so bare with me. What about the Cabinet Type Pitboss Pellet Smoker? It is an older one now and I had similar heating issues with it but found I could do tons of wings at once on it until it flaked out. I always thought maybe contamination got into the probe ports and made it flake out. since they are positioned right under the door. I've held on to it hoping one day I might be able to resurrect it.
Hi Hank- keep the chimney cap in the lowest position when smoking low and slow and opened up more when cooking at hotter temperatures. We will address this more specifically in the video we have coming out this week on how to get more smoke from your pellet grill, so stay tuned. Thanks for watching!
Hi Kurt - I'm not sure about that specifically. They have a list on their website of which models they work on. You could also email the smokes like a boss guys and ask just to be sure. Thanks!
Them are some nice gadgets that will be getting soon.. I have a question on smoke coming out from the ash management lid underneath smoker… is a new smoker and lid seems to leak a lot smoke? Was wondering about yours?
Hmm...I'm not 100% sure what lid exactly you're referring to. I've never had smoke coming out from around the ashpot release on the bottom of the Pit Boss if that's what you're saying. Check that its slid in place all the way to the left when you put it back in and latched before you start the grill up. Check out our video on how to empty a Pit Boss hopper and auger to see exactly how we do it. Hope that helps, thanks!
@@madbackyard I check the video and after reviewing my smoker the ash management lid doesn’t sit flush.. it’s flushed on one side but not the other! Wonder if that’s the way it is or some is different
Hmm….yeah you want to make sure it’s sliding all the way in correctly because that can mess up the pellets getting delivered to the fire pot if it’s not
I have heard from some 850 owners that the lip the flame broiler sits on is already curved on that model so they don't need the heat diffuser. Make sure to check yours. The one I'm demonstrating on is the 1150/ The flame tamer should fit over the fire pot and work just fine. Thanks for watching!
As I was watching this I was thinking that my Pit Boss wasn't flat on the left side that I remember so I checked, and sure enough mine is rounded on both ends. I have a PB820PS1 which is about four years old, so maybe the newer models are flat. The only issue I have had with it is that priming doesn't work anymore, otherwise it has been a great unit!
Yes, some of the previous models were rounded. I’m not sure why they made the change on the 1150 and other newer series. That stinks about priming. So the auger still turns normally, just not when you hold the prime button?
I cooked some burgers on direct flame on out boss came out great. Only thing is pellets ran out really fast. Possibly because it keeps trying to reach the temperature 350 I set it to but it will never reach it bc I grilled with the lid open. So the cpu throws them pellets in heavy. So I’m thinking. Just set it to maybe 200 or so to slow it down but keep that direct flame?
I was going to make the same mod for my Pit Boss in regard to the flame box, I had a Traeger for a wile and noticed this while cleaning and thought, Traeger doesn't offer a direct flame probably because they couldn't control the fire pot temp as well, great minds think alike, since I can fabricate a little as I have a welder I'm thinking of making this on a push rod as well. One thing I didn't think about was the curve of the drip pan sending heat straight at the temp probe, Great stuff, do you have any thoughts on wind management ? Cheers for Canada!
Thanks! Not really other than to maybe think about placing on a side of your house or closer to a wall of your house to try and block some direct wind. You could also create some sort of baffle to place near, not right against, the air intake vent on your grill if your finding a lot of wind is blowing into that area and messing with your firepot. But I would just try repositioning it.
🔥 Heat Deflector Mod now available on Amazon. Check it out HERE ➡ amzn.to/456wwWA
🔥 Flame Tamer Style Diffuser ALSO now available on Amazon. ➡ amzn.to/45SFZRx
That diffuser is twice as expensive as smokeslikeaboss but the heat deflector is half as much
A Better brand of a pellet grill is available everwhere
Will the heat deflector work on a Pit Boss 700FB1?
I wish someone just made a flat version of the broiler shield without the option to sear. Would solve both of these problems.
The diffuser in your link is much larger than the one in your video. Most of the reviews on amazon say it is too big for their pellet grill.
Thanks for being so kind to share these Useful tips for the Pitt Boss grills.
Thanks for watching!
You should not have to modify a $700 pellet smoker. Pit Boss needs to fix this.
In my opinion it should’ve been fixed during their testing phase. These seem like common sense fixes.
I tried this. Then put thermometers throughout the grill. It ran 60° hotter than the temp read out said. Then I pulled the end cap mod and the temps averaged what was on the read out. It seems the engineers did account for this.
Believe it or not, it's been hard for me to find helpful videos with my pit boss, but this video was great. GOD bless you!
Good to hear! Thanks!
Your video helped tremendously!! I’m a fabricator. Took a piece of 20 gauge stainless and made my own rolled ledge for the flame broiler to set on.
Also remember to use stainless steel for that little piece of C channel that you put over the broiler. Some steel is cooked with chemicals and may get end up in your food.
Thanks 🤘🏻🤘🏻
Nice!👍
Shout out to Mad Backyard for sharing these potential fixes! I've been frustrated with temperature issues since the 1150 came out. I'm ordering the deflector and tamer as soon as possible! Hopefully, Pit Boss will have enough sense to incorporate these two modifications into there production line so that new sales customers won't suffer our fate, and pay you a consulting fee as well.
Ha, I won't hold my breath, but thank you for the kind words!
I really appreciate your taking the time to give assistance for these Pit Boss Smokers. I am still new to the game of smokers. I bought a Pit Boss 1150 at my local Lowes back in Summer of 2022. It took me three or four smokes before I realized that the very important piece of metal that should have been at the end of the heat deflector was missing and causing my cooks to take entirely too long because of the false temperature. I did the mods and it helped a little, but I have found that my Pit Boss to be an epic failure. It is less than two years old and it struggled last year to get to 350 and stay there. I probably got a lemon. I have a friend who has the Pit Boss 850 and she doesn't have half the problems. I am going to spend the extra money and get a Traeger Ironwood XL. It is a lot of money, but I have had some really frustrating smokes with this Pit Boss. What is most annoying about the Pit Boss 1150 is that they are still making them without the heat deflector mod.
I agree with you on the temperature issues you mentioned. I've had my 1150 since the summer it came out and I've been through 3 control boards including the original one, an augur motor and a fan. Luckily the control boards were replaced under warranty (pretty good customer service in the 1st year, but still a pain). The rest out of pocket but not expensive. I just replaced the inner temperature probe before seeing this video, in hopes of getting more accurate temps. Shout out to Mad Backyard for sharing these potential fixes!
If I am not too late, look at the Camp Chef Woodwind series. GREAT pellet smokers, MUCH better than Traeger.
I finally did my homework and came across this video. I purchased the two mods for the curved air gap and a diffuser over the firebox for my PB1100 Pro Pellet and Gas split. I was never able to keep my large low and slow cuts on the pellet grill long enough and therefore they were never as tender as I hoped. The center of the grill would run 20-40 deg over the firepot and therefore it cooked too quickly.
Roasted a 5.5 lb pork butt yesterday and it pulled away from the bone with ease and I could tell it was going to shred nicely. Very happy with these changes and now I have hope for tender brisket the next time I smoke. Thanks very much for this info.
I just got this combo too and I think I'm having temp regulation issues too. Set to 270 fluctuates between 270 to 285. Can you link me the stuff you bought?
Ordered both for my Austin XL and Laredo 1000. I have to say they made a major difference in my temp fluctuations. I would, definitely, recommend the diffuser and air gap mod to anyone having temperature issues.
Awesome, thanks for the feedback, it's always good to hear that products I recommend are working for other people besides just myself! 🤪
I just got a pit boss last weak and was struggling with the temps. Thank you for the tips. Awesome video.
Glad it helped, thanks!🙏
The air gap on my pro series 850 is rounded on the left side already. I bought the flame tamer a few years ago and it works wonderfully! It was well worth the money. Thanks so much for this video. Keep up the good work.
Thanks so much!!
@@madbackyard I just bought the navigator 850g. Haven't used it yet. Maybe that flame tamer would work on mine. Or just cut a piece "C" Channel and use it
Thanks for this ! I just bought a Pit Boss 1250 Competition Series and made my own for free with scrap laying around the garage.
That is awesome!
Pit Boss seems to have addressed the issue of heat going to the temp probe themselves. Just checked and my Nav 850 has a rounded off the area that the broiler sits on. So it's nice they tried to fix that issue.
850s have always been rounded for some unknown reason…
Just bought a Pitboss sportsman 820 and had the heat issue because of the center being hotter. So glad i came across your page🙏.
Glad it was helpful, thanks for watching!
Didn’t feel like spending $80 on them since the reason I went with the pit boss is because it was cheaper then all the others. Instead I went to Lowe’s and bought 26 gauge sheet metal for $9 and made took some measurements and cut them my self with my harbor freight shears.
That’s great!!
@@madbackyard I hope the sheet metal wasn't galvanized.
@@ericskelton8109probably not i hope . If your trying to save money why would you buy the galvanized stuff lol
Make me one, please. 😊
@@ericskelton8109A36 steel isn’t usually galvanized.
Omg! Thank you! I upgraded my panel to wifi/bluetooth and got these….nailin the temps now
Glad it helped!
GREAT video. I have a Camp Chef and it seems that all the pellet brands have their own unique problems. One thing I didn't hear you say how important it is to keep that temp. probe CLEAN. Once the probe gets caked up, the grill temp can vary quite a bit so CLEAN THAT TEMP PROBE! !! !!!
Thanks! Yes, you are absolutely correct, thanks for pointing that out!
I've been having so many problems with mine and it's so disappointing. Gonna try this and see if it helps
I just bought a Pro850 from Lowe's and they've already fixed the gap issue by the probe. I did buy the diverter for over the firebox. Thanks for the tip
I bought the same grill a couple months ago and I noticed the curved bit was already fixed
Thanks for the video . I just looked at my pit boss and yeah my thermometer is coated with a lot of grease and chard food . I have to clean now after watching this .
Glad it helped!
I have that problem right now with my pit bbq thanks for the tip I’ll buying as soon i can
I am new to pellet smoking and have a Lockhart Platinum which has put a lot of ash in the box and I was on the phone with Pit Boss this morning and I mentioned I had just ordered the diffuser and the lady told me that ANY 3rd party accessory would void the warranty.... having read many here that have already installed these two items, I think it is the right path to a fix for many....
You can use the diffuser without screwing it in. It just slips right into the slots on the flame broiler and the weight will hold it in place.
Thank you. I kept saying there was a crazy hot spot in the center. I'm new to this so I was so happy to hear I was right! I'll order the part!
I've got a smaller pitboss and the firepot is directly underneath the temp probe, so simplly opening the lid you get swings like a damn acrobat.
Awesome video can I ask ya right now if you were gonna buy a pellet smoker for under 500 bucks what would ya buy?
I know I'm late to all this, but you guys at Mad Backyard are awesome! Thanks so much for your videos!
Welcome aboard! Thank you!🙏
Thank you for this. I've been having crazy temp differences between what it was reporting and what it actually was. I just ordered this it should be here today fingers crossed because it's been driving my bunkers trying to figure out!
Glad it helped, thanks for watching!
Pit Boss 1150 temp Run-A-Way
I purchased my Pit Boss last November when Lowe’s had their $500 off sale.
I used it twice without any problem. The cooking temp was rock solid.
Yesterday, Feb 14th I put some chicken leg quarters and hamburger meat on the
Pit Boss. I had the temp set at 270 deg F. I have been watching the You Tube videos on
cooking chicken leg quarters at 270 deg F. for about 3-4 hours.
I was outside watching things when in about 2 hours my temperature went from 270 deg
to 310 deg F. I hadn’t changed anything. I called Pit Boss and talked to Mr. Jo. He hadn’t
had a clue. He ask what kind of pellets I was using and I told him Oak Kingsford pellets.
He said he never heard the name Kingsford pellets or charcoal bricks.
The pellets were new and dry so I don’t know what was going on. I always clean out all
the pellets when I cook. This includes all the pellets in the auger tube.
Anyone have this problem?
AM USING BOTH THESE MODIFICATIONS ON MY PIT BOSS GRILL. THEY WORK VERY WELL. THE QUESTION I HAVE IS WHERE TO GET THE GASKET MATERIAL THAT FITS AROUND THE FIX BOX HOLE ON THE UNDERNEAT SIDE OF THE GRILL. MINE IS GETTING IN REALLY BAD SHAPE ON THE LEFT SIDE. COULD NOT FIND REPLACEMENT ON PIT BOSS OFFICIAL WEB SITE SO ANY ADVICE WILL BE APPRECIATED.
I have a PB Pro Series with the smoker on the left side and grill on right. I like it, but seem to be experiencing an unexpected temperature increase on last several smokes where I have it at 250 and look at it later and it is rising to 500 or more. I have had one flame out (probably because I didn’t notice the unacceptable temperature increase in time). When I have caught it, it doesn’t help to turn the heat down to 200 or lower. Have to keep the lid open, until it goes down. But doesn’t always stop it from taking off again and blowing past 250 in excess of 350-400. Then it stops and goes back to normal through the rest of the cook. Messes with the meat and not good. I clean the fire pot before each cook. Not sure hat to do. Have you heard of this happening? Love your videos! They really are helpful.
which heat deflecter would i need for the Pit Boss Wood Pellet Pro Series 850-Sq in Hammertone Pellet Grill with Smart Compatibility
I would check the smokes like a boss website. They have a running list of compatible models.
Wrap temp prob loosely with tin foil. I was struggling with temp issues on my copperhead v5 for three years and finally figured it out. Tin foil is your friend brother! Thanks for the tips
Interesting...thanks for sharing! What's the rationale behind doing this? Just to keep it clean or to lower the perceived temperature?
Happy 4th of July! This video on dealing with inaccurate temperatures was very helpful. We are new to smoking and the few cooks that we have done to this point did not turn out as well as hoped. We believe a big part of the less than desirable result was due to the huge temperature variations. The ambient temp (measured on the grate), over the burn pot was almost 100 degrees below the set temp of 250. The temp at on the hopper side of the grill was about 20 degrees below the temp at the burn pot, and the temp at the smoke stack end was about 30 degrees less than at the burn pot. We have a PS850PS2, so the curved deflector was already incorporated by Pit Boss. We purchased the massive Flame Tamer referenced in your Amazon link. It evened out the temps very well. Pit Boss should incorporate this into future builds. I have a couple other questions I’m hoping you can help us with. When you select your cooking temp, for example, 250 degrees, do you expect the ambient temp a couple of inches above the grates to be at 250 or do you assume the ambient temp to be 20-30 degrees less than the set temp? We put a Meater in the middle of a pork butt approximately, about 3” above the grates and the temp was around 220. We are unsure whether we should increase the set temp to allow us to reach the 250 at the middle of the butt or leave it at 250. The second question is in regards to the hopper design. We were told by Pit Boss that a 20lb hopper should last around 16 hours when set at 250. We filled the hopper with new pellets. After 6 hours, the hopper was still 3/4 full but there was a tunnel of no pellets exposing the auger. Is there a fix to get the pellets to fall evenly so we don’t have constantly jiggle the grill to make the pellets fall? Thanks in advance !
Hi Laurie! Glad the flame tamer helped with your temp issues. There's nothing wrong with turning the temp up to 270 or so if you find your Pit Boss running a little below your setting. I hadn't found the flame tamer mod yet back when I made this video so my smoker tended to run too hot which is why I kept it back a little at 250 knowing it might be creeping up to 270 in reality. I love using the Meater as well but keep in mind there sometimes will be a cooler "bubble" of air around your meat which is where the Meater is reading, especially during the first half of the cook. This is just from the cooler temp of the meat itself, evaporation, etc. So, its normal for the Meater to read a little lower than the true cooking temp. It will usually come up more to what you expect as the meat cooks and gets hotter.
As far as the hopper, I made a video showing how to remove the grate so you can brush and even out the pellets with your hand if you want to. ruclips.net/video/-p3RxgRhx7M/видео.html. If you don't want to do this, you can use a paint stick to jostle the pellets and even them out so you dont have to shake your whole smoker. Hope that answers your questions! Thanks for watching the channel!
Where did you get the bottom plate that sits over the burn pot and auger tube?
This came on older models. I do not use it anymore and pit boss does not include it anymore.
i needed this video like a year ago lol. the temps were like 30 to 40 deg off. thinking it was the thermometer they sent me a new one and i had the same issue. got tired of it, so i sold my pit boss.
Haha. Well thanks for watching!
My Pit Boss has given me an overheat error from day 1. A new control panel didn't fix it but THAT metal side piece will this afternoon. Thank you!
Hopefully does the trick, thanks for watching!
I gave up on the direct flame option on my Pit Boss. I purchased a Heat defuser from Smoke Daddy which is modified for the pit boss curved sides. Enjoy your videos.
Thanks for that info! What’s the brand of thermometer you’re using?
That was an older one, but you can use any good probe thermometer. Make sure they come with the little clips to attach to your grates. I now like this one from Thermopro: amzn.to/3MVAoSB
GREAT video, thank you! I just got my Pit Boss 850 and I thought you'd like to know: they fixed the flat/round heat deflector problem! My heat shield rests on 2 rounded ends, out of the box. I'll be buy that flame tamer soon though :)
I just ordered both items that you use. Look forward to share my experience. I'm retired , 75 years old, Tool & Die Machnist and Master Pattern Maker. But I'll let these people make mine..just saying
Haha, well thanks for watching. Sometimes it’s just easier that way isn’t it!
Did the flame tamer that went over the fire pot work to even out the temperature in the pit?
I made this from thick sheet metal, works great, thank you
I am building a refrigerator smoker, and I'm stuck with airflow, temp control, and mitigating dirty smoke. Any advice would be appreciated.
This was a really helpful video. I ordered both today. Excited to see the difference
Glad it helped Shane! Thanks for watching!!
Where can I order these items? 2:27
@@marilyndoucet3106 I bought mine from smokeslikeaboss.com. There are also Amazon versions available now, keep in mind they are not exactly the same but many have purchased them and reported good results: Heat Deflector Mod ➡ amzn.to/456wwWA
🔥 Flame Tamer Style Diffuser ➡ amzn.to/45SFZRx
Excellent vid! So, theoretically you could wad up some aluminum foil and put it the space by the thermometer?? You could probably make a "cover" for the pot as well...just thinkin here
Yes. I actually tested with a rolled up wad of aluminum foil before ordering the piece itself and it worked the same. Just annoying to have to constantly reposition every time you move the flame broiler. As far as the cover for the fire pot, I'm not sure if you were implying to use foil there too, I would NOT. Unless you really know what you are doing with sheet metal and can fabricate a similar mod, I would just order theirs.
I am in Northern Illinois so in winter i have a welding blanket from a harbor Freight that i use to cover the smoker to help hold in the heat better for those cold winter smokes. I had a vertical smoker from Pit Boss originally and it had a heat diffuser that came with it. I wonder if that would work here if they offer it as a replacement part
Great tip!
This is incredibly helpful. I just bought my first pellet grill (Pit Boss Pro 1600) last week, and have noticed exactly what you just described. Thanks for all of your content!
Glad it helped! Thanks!
I went with Pitboss specifically because the sear plate but I wasn’t aware of the issues I’d have. I’m glad I found this, I actually ordered the flame tamer. I didn’t need the air gap mod because my pit has the round plate. We will see how it goes!
Same for me with the 1150...good luck to us both now i have to some how wait patiently for the mods to ship lol
@@Jaykav99 let me know how it works for you. As soon as I get it I’m doing a Boston butt!
Is it the same size for the 1150 and 1600. I just got a 1600 proseries today.
Thank you for your site. I am working to be a PIT MASTER, so I purchased this Pit boss. I have used it probably about 4-5 times. I love it and have had good success for a beginner. However, the last time I used it, it was a NIGHTMARE. My grill just kept overheating resulting in out-of-control flames which finally resulted in my beautiful brisket catching fire. The grill just kept overheating and flaming. What am I doing wrong? I would appreciate any feedback.
Oh no! That’s horrible! Make sure you are emptying your ash pot after each cook and that you don’t have grease pooling anywhere. Not sure if what you’re describing was possibly a grease fire from collected grease from the previous cooks
I'm frustrated right now trying to cook ribs. Just ordered suggested mods, I hope they give you a commission. Thanks for making this video!
Ha, no commission or affiliation with them. But the parts worked for me. In the meantime try putting your ribs on upper rack with an aluminum water pan below to block and disperse some of the direct heat from the fire pot.
You can also ball up some foil into a tube and shove it on the shelf where the heat deflector will eventually go to block the hot air from hitting your thermostat. Somebody else commented with that idea and it’s a good one.
Very good info! New Pit Boss owner here. Keep ‘em coming! 👍
Thanks!! Make sure to also check out our website madbackyard.com!
Great info here, thanks. I've suspected the temp readings on my Pitboss 700fb weren't accurate. Was excited to see this fix. I checked the website you mentioned, and they don't list the 700fb. Hmm. Might be time to disassemble it, clean it, and have a look. My first pellet smoker. My son found them on sale over the winter, and he talked me into buying one, too. I'm glad I did. It's much easier to use than my WSM. Consequently, I use it more often.
I love my WSM. First smoker I ever bought. Everything I have made in It has tasted Amazing. But yes, it can be an ordeal to setup and cleanup for a just a simple meal.
That's the first thing most notice once buying a pellet grill. You cook way more outside than you ever did. I love mine for baking.
Thank you for this video. I made these modifications, and it was a great improvement.
Great to hear! Thanks!
Got a pit boss pro 850 about 3 months ago. The ledge for the heat-shield is curved to match so seems like that feature has been fixed as standard. The extra shield for the firepot sounds nifty though.
For whatever reason the 850 never had this problem. But on most other models they made a straight edge. I will have to look at some new floor models this spring to see if they ever changed it on the larger versions.
Did you have better temps with the heat deflector or flame tamer? Do you use both at the same time for better temps? I have the same smoker but the V3. I just want more details before I order! Thank you!
I use both at the same time unless I'm going to sear my food at the end, like a prime rib roast or something in which case I take the flame tamer out before I start cooking and then try not to position the food RIGHT over the burn pot. Which one(s) you get just depends on which temp issues you are having on your Pit Boss as they each solve a different problem.
Will this work for the pit boss Austin xl?
I believe yes but you can check the smokes like a boss website they list all the compatible models.
I have a ZGRILLS smoker, got it back in 2019, before prices went crazy. I love it, never had a bit of trouble with it, only complaint is that it didn't have casters on the hopper side legs, but, nothing a welder and some casters ordered from Amazon didn't take of.
Yes mine has performed well too. I only wish the lid and frame were a little more heavy duty but temperature control has been great. Thankfully they must have switched to adding 4 casters since then!
Hi - I am interested in Pit Boss smoker/grills and I am just curious if this is considered a "set and go" grill where I can set it in the evening and smoke overnight without worrying about it either fluctuating temps or have it burn my deck down?
It is mostly set and go. However I don’t feel comfortable letting it run all night on my deck without checking on it. Maybe if it was on a concrete patio 50 feet from the house I’d be more ok with it. People do it but it’s up to you at the end of the day. Still an active fire running all night. I might be more comfortable with an electric smoker where there is no active combustion running all night on my deck because once you are done smoldering wood chips it is just an electric oven. Thanks for watching!!
Hello. Just got the PB850 ps2 and it has the rounded lip on both sides. Doesn’t have the fire pot cover. Good to see them making corrections! Maybe they saw your video!
Hey Michael- thanks for watching! I believe I heard that they never changed the rounded lip on the 850 for some reason. A couple other people have told me their 850s don’t have this issue. All the other recent models, as of right now at least, do though. The smokes like a boss guys have the full list on their website. Thankfully you don’t have to deal with it!
I have have the same Pit Boss, PB850PS2 and just checked their list and looks like Heat deflector isn’t available for my model.
I own a Louisiana smoker that looks a lot like the Pit Boss. I am having the opposite problem. To get the grill to as low as 200 - 220 I have to set the computer to 170, and that is low as the computer goes. Any though on how to solve the problem? Thanks, and this is an excellent video.
Thanks for the kind words! I haven’t used a Louisiana pellet smoker personally but a couple thoughts come to mind. Make sure the temperature probe is very clean. You can use some isopropyl alcohol on a paper towel to wipe off any accumulated grease that may be blocking heat from getting to it thus giving you a lower temperature reading. Secondly, it’s HOT everywhere in the country right now. It’s really hard to keep temps down in any smoker under 200 on a hot day especially in direct sunlight. Try moving the smoker to the shade and also opening your exhaust vent all the way on hot days to get that airflow moving through a little faster. Hope that helps!
Hi, would this still be needed for Pit Boss 1230CS1 wood pellet and gas combo. It doesn’t specify my model anywhere and I absolutely have the heat not being even. Thanks
I’m not sure about that model. I would contact smokes like a boss and see what their thoughts are. Thanks for watching!
Neat. I watched a video on their website and it appears that not all pitbosses have this issue. Maybe just the older ones??? I got to go pull the cover on ours and check now. We've only done the bake off and cooked in it once so wasn't really paying attention to that. We have the slider for searing etc but I do believe ill be making one from a sheet of stainless myself now that I know what it looks like. Now that I know this is an issue for a hot spot in the middle It does explain some of the oddities we experienced in cooking. I will order that side cover tho for the probe if ours doesnt have it.
Which version of the flame tamer is better, the original, 3 or 4 window style ?
I have only used the original version personally and noticed the temperature became much more even across my grates using it with the openings facing side to side vs back to front. The left is still a little higher so that might be where the three window would work well. Maybe someone else can comment on their direct experience with the other versions. Thanks for watching!
Awesome Thks just got into smoking and noticed the temp flux
I have a Pitt boss, it was great for just over a year now it keeps catching fire. I took it apart and cleaned it out, vacuumed it out as well. Any suggestions on another grill? It got so hot the paint came off of it. Luckily I caught it in time.
Thanks for the video and sharing your knowledge. I just got the heat defuser. Do you think I need both the heat defuser and the flame blocker? I have the 1150 plus Pit boss.
Thank you again for sharing
Heat diffuser will help with your overall temperature accuracy issues (what display says vs what temp the pit is actually at). But you will still have a hot spot over the firepot without the flame tamer. Just try cooking for a couple weeks and see if it bothers you you can always order it then. Another option is to put a pan of water in the center and cook food on the top rack. But this can be kind of a pain to do every time. Let us know how it goes, thanks for watching!
@@madbackyard
Thanks for the advice I see a big improvement on my temps with just the defuser. I’m doing a chuck roast. I’ll go ahead and order the flame blocker and then the temps should be really close
Awesome, good luck with the chuck roast!!
Just got a Pit Boss Sportsman 1000 for Father's Day. Wife and kids surprised me. Doing steaks on it today. Looks like I'll go out to the shop and fab these 2 parts before I put food in it.
What a great present, thanks for watching! Hope you enjoy the new smoker. Make sure to check out our other pellet grill videos and all our Pit Boss recipes at madbackyard.com.
Great video! Have you run into any problems with the Pit Boss temperature being too high (e.g. higher than what you set the control to)? Ours is always too hot. Pit Boss sent us a new temperature probe, but that didn't fix the issue.
Thank you! Make sure to also kelp the temp probe very clean with isopropyl alcohol so it’s reading the true temp. I think the flame tamer might help as well if the issue is mostly in the center. If it’s the entire pit boss and WAY off, by like more than 50-100 degrees, as I’ve heard some people say, you may need a new control board and it’d be better just to contact pit boss about getting a new model.
Hello. I have. A Louisiana smoker. Grill heats up to 350. I adjust it down to 225. Stays there for awhile. Then climbs back up again. Is there a fix ?
Hi Chris - I haven’t used that brand specifically so just theorizing here…but I imagine it has something to do with your igniter rod. Check that the ash in your fire pot is cleaned out well first, and then that the ignitor rod is working consistently. If it’s not coming on consistently or making contact with the pellets the auger will keep feeding more to the pot and then when they do eventually ignite you get a temperature spike. Many people have talked about replacing their control panels and thermometers with no change to this particular problem on pit bosses, which leads me to believe its more of a heat source issue than a measurement issue.
Thanks for the info. I have a PB850PS2 Pro Series. With the smaller cooking area, it can be tricky moving large cuts of meat around and not getting it over searer. The 4-window Flame Tamer is the mod i have been looking for. I just ordered it, and Subscribed, Thank you.😎
Glad it helped, thanks for watching and subscribing!
To prevent the heat from coming up the grate, I put heavy duty foil over the entire curved dome. It also keeps the grease off of it.
I just used foil on the plate today and had some odd results. Seemed like my cook took an extra hr - 1.5 hrs. I think the foil caused even further temp issues.
@madbackyard I have a Pitboss Lexington 540 and while the auger is working, the fan motor is not. I went for my first cook of the year and didn’t hear the familiar roar at turn on. How do I fix this???
Will this work on a kc combo platinum??
I haven’t used that model before. Maybe someone else who has can chime in. The smokes like a boss website also tells you which models they fit on. Link is in the description. Thanks!
The pro 850 has the curved seat already thankfully, but I did just order the piece for over the burn pot. Thanks for the info. Good vids. Smoke On
Cool, thanks for watching!
Glad I found your channel. I made my own cover for the fire box but never thought about the gap by the thermometer. Thanks for the video.
Right on Johnny, thanks for watching!
i watch all your r vids,always meessing with gillls, do you think by adding aluminumfoil to a pitboss heat difuser wold reflect the heat downward and not up to the plate, i have the pb150 tabletop model
Thanks for watching our channel!! Someone on here mentioned balling up some aluminum foil to go in the spot where the heat deflector plate would go near the temperature probe to accomplish the same goal of blocking the hot air. I think it’s a great idea to try out before you buy the deflector to make sure it works for you. I think that’s how I’m understanding your question. As far as the flame tamer, I would not use any aluminum foil near the fire pot as it’s just going to burn up and adhere to stuff and make a mess. It just gets too hot in that area.
@@madbackyard k,thanks
Thanks VERY MUCH for this info!!.My PitBoss Pro Series 850 was getting as much a 30-40 degree difference from display Temp to ACTUAL temp.Was going to buy a replacement Temp probe until seeing this video. Kudos to you!!
Glad it was helpful, thanks for watching!
Very helpful! I have a pit boss 1100 sportsman and find the variance in temp from left to right can often be over 100 degrees. Any suggestions for this issue?
I would think the heat deflector would help solve this problem because you’ll have less hot air getting sucked up and to the left out that gap. If not you could also try one of the 3-window flame tamers they offer and point the window to the right side. That’s what I would try. Thanks for watching!
...Did you not watch the video?
Thanks you for your video. I went to their site and it appears they don't support the 820S model I have and couldn't find another company who makes one. Wish I could upgrade to a newer model but am retired now and not in my budget.
Concise and very helpful- Thank you!
Glad it helped!
You left the diffuser over the auger and fire pot on and the use the fire pot cover ?
Do you need both mods or would the deflector suffice??
Just really depends on which problem you are trying to solve. One will take care of middle hot spot and the other will take care of temp probe inaccuracy. You could start with one and see it works for you. Thanks for watching!
I own a Pit boss 820D3. Will the heat deflector/air gap mod fit my grill?
Hey Gary- I thought I remembered them saying that model didn’t have the gap like our 1150 does. Their site lists all the models it’s compatible with. I might just send them a quick email to confirm. Thanks!
No air gap deflector needed on 820 series
Does this fit the 850?
I got a flame tamer and left side is still hotter than the right.. any suggestions? I have a pro series 850
I noticed my temperature fluctuations were happening because of smoke residue/grease building up on the wired connection prongs for the probe. The prongs for me were located on the backside of the pellet hopper behind a metal guard that can be unscrewed. There are wires with metal prongs at the end that connect into each other. Its the probe connecting into the controller board. After removing the guard, the prongs have a rubber guard around them. I found residue all around the outside and the inside of the rubber. I cleaned them with 90% isopropyl alcohol with q-tips and it helped immensley. I do keep the actual probe clean too but it doesnt help near the amount as keeping the connector pieces free of residue. My original problem was the grill kept overheating and shutting off after 6 months of decent use. Tried a few different things but that was the culprit, and it also helpes with temperature fluctuations and keeping the correct temperature that is read on the sceen. I regularly clean once per month or 2 now and haven't had any issues at all with overheating or incorrect temperatures.
Thanks for sharing that tip! It’s not an area I would think to check on the grill for grease buildup but I guess it can happen!
@Mad Backyard ya its on a pitboss 580 square inch. I bought an Austin xl onyx and noticed it didn't have those prongs on the outside of the smoker any where. So it's probably just specific to that models or models that run the connection on the outside
Cool, thanks for sharing!
Thanks so much for the video! Just ordered the mods. They see you have after market grates. Do you like those? And if so, where did you get them? TIA!!
Hi Matt- No they are not aftermarket. These are the type of grates Pit Boss used to include until recently they switched to straight style grates. The ones I have look cool but can be a pain to clean so I’m guessing that’s why they made the switch.
Matt can you please tell me what the dimensions are on the flame tamer, I think I can just make one .
What did you use to stabilize the heat defuser with, Small self taping screws?
You can use those if you want to. Smokes like a boss provides them on theirs. I never bothered to screw mine in. The little tabs going through the slots mostly hold it in place under the flame broiler.
@@madbackyard thanks
Great video. I recently got a PB 850 Pro Series from Lowes. I've done some good cooking on it and got some good results, but I've been seeing some comments around about inaccurate temperatures and I stumbled up on your video. Happy to report that the first fix you had (the deflector thing) is actually included in my Pitboss so they must have watched your video :P. My PB isn't the same as yours, so I don't have that big flat plate that's level with my burn pot like yours. I think I'll go get some steel and just make a simple defelctor that will rest on the bottom of my grill and work like that deflector, kinda wondering if there's some way I can add a lever similar to the searing plate lever that slides the deflector out of the way... don't know that I want to hack up my grill that much though so I think I'll just do it the hard way and remove the burner plate every time. Thanks for all of the tips!
Thanks for the kind words! Yes, the 850 has always had a curved lip from what I understand. Not sure why it's different on just that model, but at least you dont need that mod. I took out the big flat plate you mention because other people claimed it did nothing and was throwing off their temperatures. I'm not sure if it helped but it definitely hasn't hurt anything. And I saw Pit Boss stopped including it on newer models as well so they must have found the same thing. The flame tamer still sits on top of the burn pot even without it. In fact I pull on it a little and squeeze it around the screw heads so it actually sits very snug and doesn't move around at all once it pinches down on them. If I want to knock it off to sear I open the sear plate and knock it out of the way with a slotted screwdriver and I don't have to take the flame broiler off while cooking. Hope that helps!
Thanks for this very informative and helpful video!
I have a new Pit Boss Pro model PB1100PSC3 dual grill, pellet grill on the left and gas(LP) grill on the right.
I watched your RUclips video about removing the Safety Grid on the Hopper.
I had an older Pit Boss grill and was able to remove the grid on that but on this one I was only able to remove3 of the screws, the others were very tight and would not budge, I tried WD 40 to loosen them up with no luck. I have up because I didn’t want to strip the Phillips head grooves on the screws.
Do you have any tips for me?
Thank you.
If you take diffuser off of the z grill can you then sear?
We tried exactly that in this video. Check it out! SEARED Steakhouse Quality Steaks on a Pellet Grill! | How to Sear Steaks on ANY Pellet Grill
ruclips.net/video/74bDNqNBF2Y/видео.html
Damn!!! I'm home. I just barely found this so bare with me. What about the Cabinet Type Pitboss Pellet Smoker? It is an older one now and I had similar heating issues with it but found I could do tons of wings at once on it until it flaked out. I always thought maybe contamination got into the probe ports and made it flake out. since they are positioned right under the door. I've held on to it hoping one day I might be able to resurrect it.
What do you mean by "flaked out"? Try cleaning the temp probe with some isopropyl alcohol to see if you get a more accurate reading.
Also, how should the chimney cap be adjusted?
Hi Hank- keep the chimney cap in the lowest position when smoking low and slow and opened up more when cooking at hotter temperatures. We will address this more specifically in the video we have coming out this week on how to get more smoke from your pellet grill, so stay tuned. Thanks for watching!
Does this heat shield mod nearest the temp probe that you used work on an Pit Boss PB820CS1?
Hi Kurt - I'm not sure about that specifically. They have a list on their website of which models they work on. You could also email the smokes like a boss guys and ask just to be sure. Thanks!
Not compatible with 820
Them are some nice gadgets that will be getting soon..
I have a question on smoke coming out from the ash management lid underneath smoker… is a new smoker and lid seems to leak a lot smoke? Was wondering about yours?
Hmm...I'm not 100% sure what lid exactly you're referring to. I've never had smoke coming out from around the ashpot release on the bottom of the Pit Boss if that's what you're saying. Check that its slid in place all the way to the left when you put it back in and latched before you start the grill up. Check out our video on how to empty a Pit Boss hopper and auger to see exactly how we do it. Hope that helps, thanks!
@@madbackyard thank you for your help I’ll check the video
@@madbackyard I check the video and after reviewing my smoker the ash management lid doesn’t sit flush.. it’s flushed on one side but not the other!
Wonder if that’s the way it is or some is different
Hmm….yeah you want to make sure it’s sliding all the way in correctly because that can mess up the pellets getting delivered to the fire pot if it’s not
Do the mods in the links fit the 850 pro series?
I have heard from some 850 owners that the lip the flame broiler sits on is already curved on that model so they don't need the heat diffuser. Make sure to check yours. The one I'm demonstrating on is the 1150/ The flame tamer should fit over the fire pot and work just fine. Thanks for watching!
Will these mods work for the 1600 Pro? Which flame tamer would be the best for this large of a grill?
Says on their website it will work on the 1600. You could email them to confirm. smokeslikeaboss.com/products/flame-diffuser-flame-tamer
Thanks a lot, does also PB 1600pro wifi need those mods? I am thinking about buying it... or wait one more year (I am from EU) for new PB Titan...
You can always check smokeslikeaboss.com. They have a running list of which models each mod works on.
As I was watching this I was thinking that my Pit Boss wasn't flat on the left side that I remember so I checked, and sure enough mine is rounded on both ends. I have a PB820PS1 which is about four years old, so maybe the newer models are flat. The only issue I have had with it is that priming doesn't work anymore, otherwise it has been a great unit!
Yes, some of the previous models were rounded. I’m not sure why they made the change on the 1150 and other newer series. That stinks about priming. So the auger still turns normally, just not when you hold the prime button?
Did all these mods years ago where where ya at lol. I did thermal images via my fluke got my temp deffs to 8 degrees across my whole top
Awesome!
I cooked some burgers on direct flame on out boss came out great. Only thing is pellets ran out really fast. Possibly because it keeps trying to reach the temperature 350 I set it to but it will never reach it bc I grilled with the lid open. So the cpu throws them pellets in heavy. So I’m thinking. Just set it to maybe 200 or so to slow it down but keep that direct flame?
I was going to make the same mod for my Pit Boss in regard to the flame box, I had a Traeger for a wile and noticed this while cleaning and thought, Traeger doesn't offer a direct flame probably because they couldn't control the fire pot temp as well, great minds think alike, since I can fabricate a little as I have a welder I'm thinking of making this on a push rod as well. One thing I didn't think about was the curve of the drip pan sending heat straight at the temp probe, Great stuff, do you have any thoughts on wind management ? Cheers for Canada!
Thanks! Not really other than to maybe think about placing on a side of your house or closer to a wall of your house to try and block some direct wind. You could also create some sort of baffle to place near, not right against, the air intake vent on your grill if your finding a lot of wind is blowing into that area and messing with your firepot. But I would just try repositioning it.