Bullseye Startup Issues

sck77

Active member
Messages
35
Grill(s) owned
  1. Bull
Bought a bullseye in summer but it continues to be a problem starting up. Hit and miss on good starts. Always fails when family is counting on it. Tonight it crawled up to 160 after 30 minutes then dropped down for a while then eventually back to 168 then back down to 140 range. Using Riot mode. Cleaned out bottom one cook prior (which also took forever). Perhaps just the ignition rod is intermittent. I’ll call RC tomorrow.
Lots of smoke though but no fire. Last run got it up around 600 for steak then lowered to 250 for a good bit before shutting down. Hoping that’d help. It didn’t.

Anyone having issues with this thing not getting to temp quick at all? My Bull is quicker and more dependable at this point. Outside temp in 70’s just same as in 40’s here. Takes like 30-40 minutes if not longer to get to at least 350. Using Cookin’ Pellets, Bear Mtn, or rectec. Same unexpected result.

Some times it’s okay but most of the time it’s a dud. I don’t know. Frustrating... can’t rely on it. Just cancelled another grill night after 40 minutes not getting above 160. and ran burgers on stove top as result.
 
Mine does a similar thing. Have to crank to riot mode to get it going and then it won't come done in temp. My trailblazer heats up in ten minutes.
it also seems to struggle to ho!d a constant temp.
 
Mine is like that sometimes. It seems to take forever if I set to a specific temperature. Say, 350 degrees. If I start it in RIOT mode it only takes about 5 minutes to get it to the 350 degree mark. Then I change the setting from riot to 350 degrees. I'm thinking that they are attempting to not overshoot the final temp. Maybe it takes a little bit to get the pellets into the auger?
 
What is frustrating is that you don't have to do that on the other grills they make. It took 9 minutes to get up to 225 in 36 degree temps for my trailblazer. At 30 minutes the bullseye was stuck at 160 trying to get to 250.

I am going to try different pellets and change the auger rate.
 
So far I have been lucky to not have the problems described above. Here is what I do: I start the grill with the lid open, it doesn't make a difference at what temp I decide to start with. I let it run for 5 minuets then close the lid and let it come up to temp, most temps are up to temp in 15 min or less. I have only used Pit Boss Competition Blend, only because 40lbs was given to me as a gift. I have 80 lbs of a selection of Bear Mountain but have yet to use them. I have not yet become good enough to try different pellets for the different food groups. Also my outdoor cooking temp has been between 80 and 100 degrees, I did notice that at 90 degrees plus it is harder to hold set point but I cook by food temp not time. Hope this helps someone who gives this a try.
 
So far I have been lucky to not have the problems described above. Here is what I do: I start the grill with the lid open, it doesn't make a difference at what temp I decide to start with. I let it run for 5 minuets then close the lid and let it come up to temp, most temps are up to temp in 15 min or less. I have only used Pit Boss Competition Blend, only because 40lbs was given to me as a gift. I have 80 lbs of a selection of Bear Mountain but have yet to use them. I have not yet become good enough to try different pellets for the different food groups. Also my outdoor cooking temp has been between 80 and 100 degrees, I did notice that at 90 degrees plus it is harder to hold set point but I cook by food temp not time. Hope this helps someone who gives this a try.
Thanks for sharing aztracker. I’m willing to try anything. Of course my outdoor right now is 35 F and rainy. Will try tomorrow. Was unable to connect with RT support today. Hoping I’ll get a chance tomorrow.
 
Maybe the fan is intermittent. My new Bullseye, out of the box, stalled around 90 degrees. Found the fan was catching on the access plate. Removed the access plate (it's not needed) and the unit worked perfectly. I did reinstall the plate and then bent it slightly outward so it wouldn't connect with the fan.
 
Status can you show a photo of the access plate you are referring to? I have noticed on mine if I have a full pellet Hopper it won't heat up very fast and stalls.
 
Finally had a chance to call RT today. They suggested double priming the fire pot. Either add a few pellets by hand to the pot or turn on for 30 seconds, turn off and turn back on. It makes some sense, since I finish most cooks at a high temp it probably burns up more pellets at shut down leaving less in the pot at start up. I usually am starting at 225 to get some smoke flavor. If I start at a high temp it seems to be OK.
 
I have had the Bullseye a few weeks and have used it 3 times. the first time for the burn in. Had problems with it igniting. It started and went out. Called Recteq.

Tried again and it started to heat up but very slowly and then died. Primed it and turned the heat to a higher temp.

The 3rd time it was 39 F outside. Turned it on for 350. Sat at 52 F for a long time And then dropped in temp. Took of the grates and started up. The fire pot wasnt getting hot. Put more pellets on top of the igniter. It finally started but took over 30 minutes to get to 350 F

my wife isn‘t happy about the purchase. Says it is more trouble than it is worth.
 
Mine worked flawlessly for 1.5 years. It then developed an issue with the auger turning correctly. It wouldn't start turning unless I kept turning the knob off and on. It then wouldn't keep temps properly. RTQ sent a new board that took care of the issue. I love the Bullseye.
 
TLDR: if you can’t easily get the Bullseye over 150*, check that your pellets are no longer than 1” in length.

The last few days with my Bullseye have been frustrating for me as well, however the story ends well. Yesterday I was planning on reverse searing 2-inch thick beef tenderloins by starting them on the Bull and finishing them in Riot mode on the Bullseye. Early in the day I fired up the Bullseye, just to clean off the grill grates so it would be ready for last night.

I couldn’t get it past 130*, where it would hold for awhile and then drop back to under 100*. I let it cool, then I vacuumed the fire pot and cleaned the vents. Fired it up again and it wouldn’t get over 125*, and finally shut off with an El2 error code, cannot get to target temp. I called recteq, support told me to also clean the rim of the lid and the base and try again. It got to 130* and dropped down again. I told my wife we had a change in dinner plans, would try again today.

So as soon as recteq support was open today, I called them again, spoke to a different rep. He had me run the diagnostics test and everything was fine. He then asked me about my pellets, were any of them longer than 1” as long pellets will bridge in the auger. I checked and sure enough there were, some over 2-½” long. He suggested I empty the hopper, and put in a bag of Kingsford pellets. He said that since the pandemic, everyone’s pellet quality other than Kingsford had dropped (which might also explain somewhat why recteq is getting out of the pellet business). He also suggested if I had unopened bags of pellets that I could see were too long, dropping them a couple of times on pavement can help break them up.

So, I emptied the hopper and the auger, vacuumed the fire pot, filled the hopper with a bag of Kingsford 100% Hickory, and primed the auger. I put In the deflector, grate, and grill grates, and set the Bullseye to Riot mode. In just a little over 17 minutes if was at 500*. I let it run a little longer to get the grill grates to 700* measured with the heat gun.

46856A5F-FA01-46CC-B9F6-CF781444E060.jpeg
 
Good info @Greg Jones. What do you mean long pellets will bridge in the auger?
The auger flute is apparently 1“, so pellets longer than that have problems being carried into the auger tube. This bridging blocks the smaller pellets, so that little, if anything, gets fed to the fire pot. The fire pot is starved for fuel, and may even flame out. If you have ever seen a dam spillway jam with large logs and tree limbs after a large storm, it’s a similar concept.
 
The auger flute is apparently 1“, so pellets longer than that have problems being carried into the auger tube. This bridging blocks the smaller pellets, so that little, if anything, gets fed to the fire pot. The fire pot is starved for fuel, and may even flame out. If you have ever seen a dam spillway jam with large logs and tree limbs after a large storm, it’s a similar concept.
Thanks @Greg Jones
 
Status can you show a photo of the access plate you are referring to? I have noticed on mine if I have a full pellet Hopper it won't heat up very fast and stalls.
The access panel is the one on the bottom with all the slots. Its purpose is to keep critters from getting into the wires. The fan blades are right behind the horizontal opening at the top. You can see the white blades in the picture. When the fan is turning you can hear it. You can also hear a grinding noise if it is hitting the access panel. In my case, the panel prevented the fan from turning at all. By bending the center of the panel out, I was able to free the fan.
IMG_1092.jpg
 
Bought a bullseye in summer but it continues to be a problem starting up. Hit and miss on good starts. Always fails when family is counting on it. Tonight it crawled up to 160 after 30 minutes then dropped down for a while then eventually back to 168 then back down to 140 range. Using Riot mode. Cleaned out bottom one cook prior (which also took forever). Perhaps just the ignition rod is intermittent. I’ll call RC tomorrow.
Lots of smoke though but no fire. Last run got it up around 600 for steak then lowered to 250 for a good bit before shutting down. Hoping that’d help. It didn’t.

Anyone having issues with this thing not getting to temp quick at all? My Bull is quicker and more dependable at this point. Outside temp in 70’s just same as in 40’s here. Takes like 30-40 minutes if not longer to get to at least 350. Using Cookin’ Pellets, Bear Mtn, or rectec. Same unexpected result.

Some times it’s okay but most of the time it’s a dud. I don’t know. Frustrating... can’t rely on it. Just cancelled another grill night after 40 minutes not getting above 160. and ran burgers on stove top as result.
Check to see if your igniter rod is even with the tube it sits in. Mine was about 1/4” inside and having issues igniting. Pulled it flush with the opening and can be at 400 in a few minutes now.
 
Greg

What brand pellets were those, I want to avoid them.
 

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