Stampede Problems reaching Temp

[Chrisg]

I don’t remember what temp it was outside. If I had to guess it was probably 50 something... but I’d call Rec Tec if I was you. I would assume, based on my experience, that taking 35 min to get to 375 is not normal.

Yep . I'm having the same issue with my 680. Rtd has been replaced, fan, wifi controller, hot rod... only thing that hasn't been changed is the augers. Spoke to rec tec today, and gonna give one more try then I'll ask for a replacement auger..

Chris

 

[Kim]

Am I the only one that finds it odd that a brand new smoker would need a larger auger and motor?

Still need to test mine.

 

[bfletcher]

Am I the only one that finds it odd that a brand new smoker would need a larger auger and motor?

A new purchase should not require upgrades! I'm trying to recall how I reached certain conclusions before Al Gore invented the Internet. I remember being a frequent visitor of the local library but, beyond that, it's fuzzy, lol.

 

[TxTechSmoker]

I completely agree that a brand new grill/smoker should not require upgrades, or for that matter replacement parts to work as advertised. However, the issues experience by myself and a few others do not seem to be the norm in anyway, shape, or form. If they were it’d be hard to imagine Rec Tec would still be in business. Given that, I applaud Rec Tec for the leaps and bounds they take to correct any malfunctions or performance issues with their products.

A new purchase should not require upgrades! I'm trying to recall how I reached certain conclusions before Al Gore invented the Internet. I remember being a frequent visitor of the local library but, beyond that, it's fuzzy, lol.

 

[jpking78]

So, I am having a similar issue,I think. Would love to get the opinion of some of the guys in here that have owned a RT-700 a little longer than me (1 month). When I first got my bull I did think it took a little long to reach temperature, (I have had it take anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour to hit 350. I live in South Carolina and that is in outside temps of 50 to 74 degrees yesterday). I contacted Rec TEC yesterday and sent them some screen shots of heat up times from 3 of my cooks. Showing the long times. They told me after looking at them it looked to be normal. Then last night while cooking I was set at 425, had not opened the grill, the temp jumped to 461 and kept rising (of course I have the alarm issue so I didn’t see it and burned my kids dogs to a crisp). So I guess my question is does anyone else have this inconsistency as well? It’s really frustrating to spend that much money on a grill and it not work the way I was expecting. Or were my expectations off and this is just how a pellet grill works. Thanks.

 

[TxTechSmoker]

So, I am having a similar issue,I think. Would love to get the opinion of some of the guys in here that have owned a RT-700 a little longer than me (1 month). When I first got my bull I did think it took a little long to reach temperature, (I have had it take anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour to hit 350. I live in South Carolina and that is in outside temps of 50 to 74 degrees yesterday). I contacted Rec TEC yesterday and sent them some screen shots of heat up times from 3 of my cooks. Showing the long times. They told me after looking at them it looked to be normal. Then last night while cooking I was set at 425, had not opened the grill, the temp jumped to 461 and kept rising (of course I have the alarm issue so I didn’t see it and burned my kids dogs to a crisp). So I guess my question is does anyone else have this inconsistency as well? It’s really frustrating to spend that much money on a grill and it not work the way I was expecting. Or were my expectations off and this is just how a pellet grill works. Thanks.

I don’t have a Bull And I’m far from an expert, but in my experience and dealings with my stampede, I’d argue that what your experience is not “normal.” It shouldn’t take 30 minutes to reach 350*, and you definitely shouldn’t have that wide of temperature ranges or flares.

 

[jpking78]

I don’t have a Bull And I’m far from an expert, but in my experience and dealings with my stampede, I’d argue that what your experience is not “normal.” It shouldn’t take 30 minutes to reach 350*, and you definitely shouldn’t have that wide of temperature ranges or flares.

Thanks. I have talked with tech support and they are having me turn my auger rate down to 30 to try and help control the flares. I haven’t had a chance to try it out yet to see if it helps with either issue but I will update when I try it.

 

[dirtyknuckles]

My grill is taking well over an hour and half to reach 400 degrees. Today, with outside temps right around 50, it took over an hour to reach 300 and never got above 330. Grill was set on “full”. Using rec tec pellets.
Is this par for the course? It’s incredibly frustrating...

This is somewhat of a side note but after 4+ years I can say without a doubt when problems arise CALL for service. Unlike the regular made in china junk with junk promises RECTEC service is above and away better than you'll experience.

 

[dirtyknuckles]

Am I the only one that finds it odd that a brand new smoker would need a larger auger and motor?

Still need to test mine.

Odd? it is possible that the supplier may have given RECTEC the wrong part and some made it into the assembly line. You find it odd that there is a problem, try building something to perfection then talk about odd. I have had problems from time to time in the 4 years I have had my 680 and they have fixed every one ant NO COST to me! That is ODD! Try that with GM or Ford or Trager for that matter.

 

[Stile 88]

excellent news RECTEC no matter what always comes through glad everything is fixed up for you now

 

[SmokeyJoe]

UPDATE: I got the new motor and controller installed a few days ago. Both were fairly simple to replace btw.. my grill now reaches 550* in about 20 minutes and it has maintained around 500* when opening the lid a few times flipping steaks.
despite the larger motor, it also held around 180* when on the extreme smoke setting.
I think my grill is finally what I was hoping it would be out of the box. It was a bit of a pain to get it there, but Rec Tec’s customer service was first class in helping me get it fixed, in addition to throwing in some bonuses for my inconvenience.

Hey @TxTechSmoker, they did the same thing for me and sent me the larger auger motor. The grill gets so much hotter now, but I can’t seem to keep lower temps. I’ve tried feed rates from 5-25 with now luck. It’ll overshoot, creep down a few degrees passed the set point and then fire back up. Are you having issues like this at all?

 

[Cirhere]

I'm having issues to started grill yesterday max temp 467 cleaned grill started today went to 550 in about an hour turned down to 260 after hour it was 350

 

[sweetride95]

I'm having issues to started grill yesterday max temp 467 cleaned grill started today went to 550 in about an hour turned down to 260 after hour it was 350

You get these grills hot, they take forever to cool down. That thermal mass that holds temps well when opening the lid, also slows the cooling process. Auger settings and summer temps also play into it.

 

[adampk17]

Hey guys, I was having a similar issue with my RecTec Stampede (590). I called RecTec and a nice guy named Thomas walked me through checking settings and running a couple 2 hour tests. My grill was having issues if I set it to 500 or full. It would get up to a certain temperature, usually between 435 and 460 and then begin to cool. It would lose up 30-50 degrees before stabilizing and slowly climbing again and never approached 500.

Thomas had me change my auger feed rate from the default of 6.5 down to 3.0. He theorized that my grill was getting too much fuel and the fire was being smothered.

So far it seems he was correct. My grill got up to 500 today and stayed steady at that temp. It hadn't done that in months.

In addition, regarding the 'Max' setting; Thomas told me that the max setting is a little 'weird' and doesn't work the way most people think. It attempts to burn as hot as it can as efficiently as it can. The thermostat is not involved in the grill's logic when set to max. He said that last bit causes variability and sometimes you'll get 550 and sometimes you'll get 450.

He told me that if I wanted temps north of 500 he'd recommend setting to the grill to 500, letting it get to 500, and then setting it to max. I haven't tried that yet myself but I thought I'd pass the info along.

Cheers!

 

[charlesrshell]

I am getting ready to order a Stampede next week. Has anyone else had these heat issues?

 

[JTornow]

Yep . I'm having the same issue with my 680. Rtd has been replaced, fan, wifi controller, hot rod... only thing that hasn't been changed is the augers. Spoke to rec tec today, and gonna give one more try then I'll ask for a replacement auger..

Chris

I have an RT-680 also and in 2 1/2 years have never gotten it above 150. For 2 years I smoked meat for a few hours and then foiled it and finished in the oven. Who ever heard of a reputable brand smoker not working as designed right out of the box. I finally called Rec Tec to see if they’d buy this POS back and save me the trouble of selling it. Well, the dude went through the menu, hit extreme smoke, now the power button, then the up button, etc... he said “we’ll send you a new fan”. The new fan came, I installed it, called Rec Tec and once again, it reached a high temp of 147 and dropped back down to 110. The guy said “Oh, the pellets you’re using are too long, you can’t use 1” long pellets, the have to be 1/4” long.” So... I tossed bags of pellets. Has anybody else run into this pellet problem? Which pellet brands or sizes do you burn?

 

[Greg Jones]

The guy said “Oh, the pellets you’re using are too long, you can’t use 1” long pellets, the have to be 1/4” long.” So... I tossed bags of pellets. Has anybody else run into this pellet problem?

Yes, I experienced this with Lumber Jack Char Hickory pellets and have discussed it in detail here. The long pellets bridge over the feed ramp into the auger, blocking pellets from dropping into the auger. I had some of these pellets as long as 2-½”. I think the recteq guy misspoke on the ¼” requirement, they told me no longer than 1” should be fine. Dropping a bag of long pellets on the pavement 2-3 times will help break them up.

 

[Tom504]

I have a 590 coming in today but I am confused by how long it takes to get to 375-400. On my el cheapo pellet grill I could fire it up and get to 375 in about 15 mins. I had an independent probe to monitor temp as well. I plan to also use high temp and will be testing 500+ pretty quickly.

 

[Cordelia25]

UPDATE: I got the new motor and controller installed a few days ago. Both were fairly simple to replace btw.. my grill now reaches 550* in about 20 minutes and it has maintained around 500* when opening the lid a few times flipping steaks.
despite the larger motor, it also held around 180* when on the extreme smoke setting.
I think my grill is finally what I was hoping it would be out of the box. It was a bit of a pain to get it there, but Rec Tec’s customer service was first class in helping me get it fixed, in addition to throwing in some bonuses for my inconvenience.

I’m gonna have to give them a call. I got a Rt700 about a month ago and it takes forever to hit 450 if it even gets there

 

[adampk17]

Yeah, I still have issues trying to push past 430 or so. Occasionally it does great, meaning that it can approach 500 but most of the time it will start cooling down at some point and take forever to recover.