Stampede Issues/Disappointment with RT-590 and ReqTeq

[Wslayer]

For shits and giggles i suggest putting a thermometer in your oven. Let it heat up to temp and open a few times as if checking food. You'll think RT temp swings are minor in comparison.
Sounds to me its going to be a thorn to you regardless what happens. Craigslist likely best option. A bad experience = grudge !

 

[C. Keeper]

Hi Everybody,

This post has been a long time coming and I’m covering several different things, some of which I’ve found in common with other owners via posts on this forum. Here is the abbreviated version:

I purchased RecTeq at a premium with the expectation of superior quality and customer service. I have experienced issues with temp spikes, the drip pan, and workmanship that I will describe further below. In addition I have found that unfavorable reviews of their products are disregarded, which I find to be deceptive and unbecoming the brand. I hate the idea of having to overinvest my time to troubleshoot what I expected to be a Cadillac, not a fixer-upper.​

To begin, I was in the market for a new unit as my gasser was on it’s last legs. A couple of friends highly recommended RecTeq and so I started on my journey down the reviews and YouTube rabbit hole to research my options. While RecTeq was higher in price than competing models I considered, I justified this given the all-stainless drum, superior PID, reputation for service, that it would serve as an all-in-one (sold my electric smoker to offset cost), and of course because they look really cool. I was able to negotiate a slight discount beyond what was already published to the site, and I was on my way.

When my unit arrived last October, I assembled and had my first test runs. Even at low temps, the first couple of runs saw slight spikes over the set point. I’m talking… set at 225 or 250, it would jump 5-10 above, then settle-in after 5-10 minutes. Not a huge deal, and I attributed this to the computer learning and it would probably self-resolve.

When I did my burn-in cook a day or two later, sticking to the guidance of chicken thighs, things got worse. I set a temperature of 425 degrees, and let them go. The grill jumped to at least 477, and coupled with my drip pan issue (described later), created a grease fire. Now I made it through this cook, then continued testing the grill at higher temps without any food. The spikes continued but were not as dramatic, ranging anywhere from 10-20 degrees above set point, all eventually settling back.

I contacted ReqTeq with this information, spent a few days emailing results from the app, etc… with what eventually resulted in the Tech attributing all of this to remnant grease. Probably burnt through a good 20 lbs pellets on tests in the process. While remnant grease may have been somewhat logical, I felt it was a cop out, that they were only interested in identifying something quick and easy to make me go away. As I continue to have the issue, I think my gut was correct.

I’m now ~ 5 months in and continue to experience similar results whenever cooking at higher temps (400 and above). The situation would be more manageable if not for the fact that when tending to the food mid-cook, I need to lift the lid. This results of course in some temp loss, and when it tries to re-establish the set-point, I get another spike. Rinse and repeat.

Moving on to the drip pan issues… I have my RT-590 placed on a level surface, an outside deck. The tilt of the drip pan I assumed would be enough to carry any grease into the disposal without further assistance but this has not been the case for me. Per above, I’ve had issues with grease fires, resulting from the grease simply not making it off of the pan (in combination with temp spikes). I started off lining with foil, and ensured it was as flat and smooth as possible on the pan. I later moved on to elevating the hopper-side of the grill to ensure sufficient tilt. I also tried the overpriced RecTeq custom drip pan liner, which failed after the 1st cook, due to another grease fire. The curious thing to me, is the portion of the pan directly above the pot gets so hot, that at times there is a visible outline in the foil. I’ve even had the foil crumble and disintegrate in a ring shape (matching the shape of the pot) after one use. The damn thing gets so hot that any grease which makes contact, it seems like it just collects there and either sticks creating a mess, or eventually catches fire.

A couple more issues… I noticed on initial assembly one of the screws that fastens the drum to the legs was poorly installed (angled, not flush), leaving a slight air gap from the drum to the exterior. Some heat escapes and has created an anodized look on the stainless portion of the front of my grill. Not huge, but another detractor. Also, the orange-red high temp sealant which was applied across the seams of the drum has all but crumbled away and burnt off. Don’t know if this is something I should be concerned with?

Yet another frustration regarding performance is that I expected the smoke to be significantly more at the low setting, similar to my electric smoker. I have been able to compensate for the most part using a smoke tube, but that was another learning curve.

Regarding the product reviews… I left a deserved 2-star review for the custom drip pan liner over 2 weeks ago. Immediately after I received the automated email reply, stating the contribution would be reviewed. Well… seems like pooey to me. There has been no follow-up, and I am of the impression it will be ignored. Shame on you RecTeq.

Other information… I have used various reputable pellets and am currently running Bear Mountain. Different pellets have made no difference. I regularly remove ash after every 3rd/4th cook. I have not adjusted the feed rate to this point, but appears this may be a logical next step.

So, to summarize:

• Purchased for superior quality despite higher cost point.
• Over-temp issues combined with drip-pan issues = grease fires.
• Unsure if issue with the screw and sealant are of concern.
• My otherwise beautiful looking grill has to sit on ugly lifters to allow grease to flow, and I am only comfortable using at temps below 400.
• Believe that RecTeq ignores unfavorable reviews.

In fairness, I have not yet invested the necessary time to register my issues with RecTeq Customer Service, as have been languishing the idea of weeks of back and forth as has been reported in other threads. As mentioned above, I was not happy the first time around with Service and don’t want to go through it again. Probably no other choice unless the forum saves me.

I know I’m throwing a lot of complaints here. I really do want this thing to work, but I’m already soured on the experience thus far. It’s frustrating to think it is going to require extensive effort on my part, which is NOT what I expected.

I guess what I’m looking for are any suggestions, consolations, whatever you got. I do not plan on cooking much as I’m currently in the middle of an Ohio winter, about 23 degrees right now. So I appreciate any help but may be a little slow to try suggestions that involve, sending pics, etc.

Thanks gang!

Send it back and call it a day.

 

[edmoiler13]

I have had one major flare up due to grease on mine in the 6 months I have had it. I will agree with the OP that I don't seem to get much coming off the drip pan into the bucket, but I always line mine with heavy duty foil. I think it's natural for the temp to spike in colder temps when you open and close the lid. I have gotten used to this, mainly on shorter cooks. I'm sorry you're having issues, but over time I hope you can find a happy medium and that they step up and maybe replace your controller.

 

[bts316]

The experience is starting to remind me of my golf game... had a great pork belly cook this morning, the equivalent of that one great shot that keeps you coming back.

 

[Motodad1776]

O-H... and thanks. Chili sounds great, what time we eating?

I-O.......that chili sure hit the spots!! If you are located anywhere near me, I would be happy to take a gander at your grill to at least compare with mine and perhaps make some tweeks?

 

[Motodad1776]

No foil for me, and have never had a flare up while higher temps or KABOOM on start up. Being on a level surface makes a huge difference, that grease needs to easily make it's way to the bucket or it's gonna build up, personally I think foil makes it worse in that regard. My drip pan has an even "patina" all over it and I simply use a small plastic ice scraper to keep it clean along with high temp burn offs.

I did have a minor issue yesterday on start up, had an auger feed issue with a slight build up near the hopper of wood pellet bits, but a quick clean and auger speed adjustment and pellet prime had me up and running in no time.

 

[RipJones]

Sorry to hear that you are having issues with your 590. I bought a Bulls-Eye first, to dip my toe into the pellet grill arena, and truly enjoy it. A 590 is on my horizon next. Of all of the YT channels I review, I only remember one guy, having a major grease fire, and that was on a Bulls-Eye. I enjoy the fact that I am only six miles from RT-HQ. As others have said, go ahead and give RT-CS a call, and get them at least in the mix. A buddy of mine has a 590 and I have not heard of him having any of the problems you are. My Bulls-Eye always overshoots the set point at startup, then settles down is about five minutes or so. Good Luck, and keep us posted.

 

[ken g]

Claiming it and doing it are two different animals. Your experience with temp fluctuation is spot on normal behavior for RT units. I had I 590 and upgraded to a 700. Somewhere in there I ditched the app and began using my Fireboard for both pit and food temps.. The pit temp fluctuations became very noticeable with the highly accurate Fireboard. 20-40 degree swings is normal operation and RT hides it with their system somehow. I use my 700 for low and slow cooking only and charcoal for my grilling. IMO, pellets cannot match charcoal for heat output, speed to cooking temp and flavor when grilling.

 

[RolandS]

Hi Everybody,

This post has been a long time coming and I’m covering several different things, some of which I’ve found in common with other owners via posts on this forum. Here is the abbreviated version:

I purchased RecTeq at a premium with the expectation of superior quality and customer service. I have experienced issues with temp spikes, the drip pan, and workmanship that I will describe further below. In addition I have found that unfavorable reviews of their products are disregarded, which I find to be deceptive and unbecoming the brand. I hate the idea of having to overinvest my time to troubleshoot what I expected to be a Cadillac, not a fixer-upper.​

To begin, I was in the market for a new unit as my gasser was on it’s last legs. A couple of friends highly recommended RecTeq and so I started on my journey down the reviews and YouTube rabbit hole to research my options. While RecTeq was higher in price than competing models I considered, I justified this given the all-stainless drum, superior PID, reputation for service, that it would serve as an all-in-one (sold my electric smoker to offset cost), and of course because they look really cool. I was able to negotiate a slight discount beyond what was already published to the site, and I was on my way.

When my unit arrived last October, I assembled and had my first test runs. Even at low temps, the first couple of runs saw slight spikes over the set point. I’m talking… set at 225 or 250, it would jump 5-10 above, then settle-in after 5-10 minutes. Not a huge deal, and I attributed this to the computer learning and it would probably self-resolve.

When I did my burn-in cook a day or two later, sticking to the guidance of chicken thighs, things got worse. I set a temperature of 425 degrees, and let them go. The grill jumped to at least 477, and coupled with my drip pan issue (described later), created a grease fire. Now I made it through this cook, then continued testing the grill at higher temps without any food. The spikes continued but were not as dramatic, ranging anywhere from 10-20 degrees above set point, all eventually settling back.

I contacted ReqTeq with this information, spent a few days emailing results from the app, etc… with what eventually resulted in the Tech attributing all of this to remnant grease. Probably burnt through a good 20 lbs pellets on tests in the process. While remnant grease may have been somewhat logical, I felt it was a cop out, that they were only interested in identifying something quick and easy to make me go away. As I continue to have the issue, I think my gut was correct.

I’m now ~ 5 months in and continue to experience similar results whenever cooking at higher temps (400 and above). The situation would be more manageable if not for the fact that when tending to the food mid-cook, I need to lift the lid. This results of course in some temp loss, and when it tries to re-establish the set-point, I get another spike. Rinse and repeat.

Moving on to the drip pan issues… I have my RT-590 placed on a level surface, an outside deck. The tilt of the drip pan I assumed would be enough to carry any grease into the disposal without further assistance but this has not been the case for me. Per above, I’ve had issues with grease fires, resulting from the grease simply not making it off of the pan (in combination with temp spikes). I started off lining with foil, and ensured it was as flat and smooth as possible on the pan. I later moved on to elevating the hopper-side of the grill to ensure sufficient tilt. I also tried the overpriced RecTeq custom drip pan liner, which failed after the 1st cook, due to another grease fire. The curious thing to me, is the portion of the pan directly above the pot gets so hot, that at times there is a visible outline in the foil. I’ve even had the foil crumble and disintegrate in a ring shape (matching the shape of the pot) after one use. The damn thing gets so hot that any grease which makes contact, it seems like it just collects there and either sticks creating a mess, or eventually catches fire.

A couple more issues… I noticed on initial assembly one of the screws that fastens the drum to the legs was poorly installed (angled, not flush), leaving a slight air gap from the drum to the exterior. Some heat escapes and has created an anodized look on the stainless portion of the front of my grill. Not huge, but another detractor. Also, the orange-red high temp sealant which was applied across the seams of the drum has all but crumbled away and burnt off. Don’t know if this is something I should be concerned with?

Yet another frustration regarding performance is that I expected the smoke to be significantly more at the low setting, similar to my electric smoker. I have been able to compensate for the most part using a smoke tube, but that was another learning curve.

Regarding the product reviews… I left a deserved 2-star review for the custom drip pan liner over 2 weeks ago. Immediately after I received the automated email reply, stating the contribution would be reviewed. Well… seems like pooey to me. There has been no follow-up, and I am of the impression it will be ignored. Shame on you RecTeq.

Other information… I have used various reputable pellets and am currently running Bear Mountain. Different pellets have made no difference. I regularly remove ash after every 3rd/4th cook. I have not adjusted the feed rate to this point, but appears this may be a logical next step.

So, to summarize:

• Purchased for superior quality despite higher cost point.
• Over-temp issues combined with drip-pan issues = grease fires.
• Unsure if issue with the screw and sealant are of concern.
• My otherwise beautiful looking grill has to sit on ugly lifters to allow grease to flow, and I am only comfortable using at temps below 400.
• Believe that RecTeq ignores unfavorable reviews.

In fairness, I have not yet invested the necessary time to register my issues with RecTeq Customer Service, as have been languishing the idea of weeks of back and forth as has been reported in other threads. As mentioned above, I was not happy the first time around with Service and don’t want to go through it again. Probably no other choice unless the forum saves me.

I know I’m throwing a lot of complaints here. I really do want this thing to work, but I’m already soured on the experience thus far. It’s frustrating to think it is going to require extensive effort on my part, which is NOT what I expected.

I guess what I’m looking for are any suggestions, consolations, whatever you got. I do not plan on cooking much as I’m currently in the middle of an Ohio winter, about 23 degrees right now. So I appreciate any help but may be a little slow to try suggestions that involve, sending pics, etc.

Thanks gang!

Hi from a fellow Ohioan (near Cleveland).
Sorry to hear about your troubles.

I have had an RT-700 for a couple years now with no issues as you describe.

Per your thoughts the feed rate sounds like the probable cause. I hope that fixes the heat spike issue. Drip pan issue most likely is the degree of angle. Poor engineering?

 

[Gonefishin]

Just a guess, but from what I clean up, most of the drippings from my 340 burn up or solidify on the drip pan, not a lot gets to the bucket. I have no experience with pellet Smokers other then RT so they may or may not be similar.

 

[PRC]

Per your thoughts the feed rate sounds like the probable cause. I hope that fixes the heat spike issue.

The feed rate will not solve his temperature spikes. The feed rate only sets the lowest temperature that grill will maintain. If the feed rate is set to low, you will have burnouts. As you set the feed rate higher it will raise the lowest temperature your grill will operate at because it will feed more pellets each time the PID see the temperature dropping below your desired temperature. As it gets colder out you may need to raise the feed rate to prevent burnouts but on my 1250 I have never had to change my feed rate setting in the winters here in Connecticut. The feed rate also has no effect on the max temperature the smoker will get too.

 

[Luke Warm]

I joined up to say that thus far my RT experience has been a bust too. I am a new RT700 owner. I own four other grills presently, and many more in the past-- never complained about a grill before.

Any mass produced and sold product is going to have some "bad eggs" so to speak, and a product like a gill will have pros/cons related to its characteristics and design. If you look at the RT reviews on the RT website-- supposedly thousands of people have reviewed the grills, but how many 3 star reviews are there for the 590 and 700? Zero-- out of 4000 reviews. I can't see how this happens without someone curating the reviews. 4000 people can't agree on anything. You could give out free bars of gold to 100 people, and someone would 3 star it for being heavy, and not as good as the platinum bar their friend got.

You're not the only one who has struggled with this company's grill. Turns out there are two of us, maybe one day there will be a third....

 

[Zonian Pyg]

I have to agree with you on the grease fires when trying to do a sear after a low setting smoke on a fatty steak! Happens quite often so now I use a pan for my smoking then take it out and sear to my hearts content. Think maybe you heat deflector is missing or not on properly. I for one just don't pay much attention to all those temperature charts and stuff. I'm grillin chillin and enjoying a beer!

 

[DesertRat]

I've had my 590 a bit over two years. It has been nearly flawless. I recall contacting Bobby at customer service once, don't recall much for, but the problem was easily resolved. I grilled a few steaks on it, but decided I bought a smoker, not a grill. So I went out and purchased a nice two burner propane grill that works just fine for the two of us. As for quality, I think we have the Cadillac of the Chevys.

 

[Motodad1776]

Consensus is........the 590 is the most sorted out and reliable of the models.

 

[Gonefishin]

Just to throw this out there. RT was bought by an equity firm 2 years ago, thats when it was announced anyway. I have no first hand experience with the new owners or the grills built since then, but from the couple equity firm takeovers I’ve had experience with, the change of hands usually has an effect on the original product and original employees.

I’ve seen more then a couple excellent restaurants change hands and go straight down the toilet while still having all the great old reviews for folks to read and act on.

 

[bts316]

I-O.......that chili sure hit the spots!! If you are located anywhere near me, I would be happy to take a gander at your grill to at least compare with mine and perhaps make some tweeks?

That's a great offer, thanks. I'm in Galena, your neighbor to the north. May take you up on it, but let me piddle with it some more.

 

[bts316]

I've had my 590 a bit over two years. It has been nearly flawless. I recall contacting Bobby at customer service once, don't recall much for, but the problem was easily resolved. I grilled a few steaks on it, but decided I bought a smoker, not a grill. So I went out and purchased a nice two burner propane grill that works just fine for the two of us. As for quality, I think we have the Cadillac of the Chevys.

Yep, I with the feedback here I plan to give it a few more test drives when the weather is a bit more friendly, document my findings so I have everything ready to go for my customer service interactions. Caddy of the Chevy's... I like it.

 

[bts316]

I joined up to say that thus far my RT experience has been a bust too. I am a new RT700 owner. I own four other grills presently, and many more in the past-- never complained about a grill before.

Any mass produced and sold product is going to have some "bad eggs" so to speak, and a product like a gill will have pros/cons related to its characteristics and design. If you look at the RT reviews on the RT website-- supposedly thousands of people have reviewed the grills, but how many 3 star reviews are there for the 590 and 700? Zero-- out of 4000 reviews. I can't see how this happens without someone curating the reviews. 4000 people can't agree on anything. You could give out free bars of gold to 100 people, and someone would 3 star it for being heavy, and not as good as the platinum bar their friend got.

You're not the only one who has struggled with this company's grill. Turns out there are two of us, maybe one day there will be a third....

Sorry to hear you are also having some issues. It sucks eggs to get the 'bad eggs'. The lack of transparency to the unfavorable reviews is really bothersome to me. I know everybody fudges their reviews these days, but that doesn't make it right. I at least expected them to send me a note and ask about the experience... but nada.

 

[bts316]

I have to agree with you on the grease fires when trying to do a sear after a low setting smoke on a fatty steak! Happens quite often so now I use a pan for my smoking then take it out and sear to my hearts content. Think maybe you heat deflector is missing or not on properly. I for one just don't pay much attention to all those temperature charts and stuff. I'm grillin chillin and enjoying a beer!

Appreciate the reply. Does me some good to hear that a few others have had issues. While I feel bad for you, misery loves company and sounds like you've found a workable solution. Apologies I am too lazy at the moment to take and post a photo of the deflector, but I am certain it is positioned properly. It's sort of fool-proof as it fits into the footers in the drum.