Warning re: fuse issues

gingerbandito

New member
Messages
2
Grill(s) owned
  1. RT-1250
Hi all,

Just a warning that I had a fuse issue on my <5 month old 1250 that turned into an igniter issue that turned into a fan motor issue that turned into a computer issue. Took almost two months to get the grill back up-and-running. I don’t know if the computer issue could have been diagnosed sooner, but it was a ridiculous and infuriating back-and-forth with RT customer service, not to mention multiple Saturday mornings troubleshooting.

RT reps were perfectly nice but not the “wowzers we’ll make this right” kind of experience I had heard about and expected.

Anyway, just a forewarning that if you’re having what you think is a fuse issue you may want to insist that they walk through other potential issues.
 
Sorry to hear of your issues. Also glad you were able to get it/them sorted. Generally, fuses (when properly sized) only pop for a few reasons. One could be a dead short or ground in the wiring (chafing, embrittlement and cracks in insulation/breakouts are a particularly troublesome issue) often caused by poor assembly (pinched), rodent insulation consumption (the brainiac that thought using soy based insulation for wire covers/sleeves should be beaten) and similar conditions often resulting in circuit to ground plane contact (intermittent or otherwise). Another is due to excessive current draw due to an auger putting an undesirable/unanticipated load on the circuit, a CCA (circuit card assembly) with an intermittent short or improper grounding, a fan under stress/load to the point that it draws excess current, or other power consumption/load related issues. You should also test for properly a/c voltage (117-124VAC for most homes) because low voltage can be as disruptive as high voltage when a load is applied. I stay way from cheap or underrated extension cords as they could create downstream problems also. The latter may seem normal until thermal cycling occurs (i.e., moving parts heat up and subsequently tolerances diminish causing additional current draw). For troubleshooting purposes, an induction current meter, amp-meter, VOM, or other test equipment can be used to identify or detect each condition if the impacted circuits can be isolated. However, I don’t know if RT has probe ports or allows DIT-MCO (pin to pin and pin to point) testing on the controller for self diagnosis. Do you have a scenario that you could share that resulted in your failure mode(s)? It may be helpful should any of your readers have similar problems. Just my neophyte rantings but I am curious. Happy grilling!!!
 
Ha! Sounds like I'd need an Electrician to diagnose! Anyway, here's a more chrono description of how it all went down:

- At the tail end of a rel short 2 hour cook, I was about to shut down and I heard a fizz-pop sort of noise and power went out...thought it might just be the breaker, but that wasn't it

- Contacted RT support, they told me it was prob the fuse and said they could send me one or I could easily go out and find at local HW store, so I did that

- Replaced the fuse 1x, blew out again, pretty much immediately...so I called RT support again. This time they suggested I replace the igniter rod. They sent one out to me, took about a week to get to me since I'm in CA

- Replaced the igniter rod, and that seemed to work (i.e., the fuse didn't blow and the igniter was getting hot), BUT at this point the fan was acting really funny...wasn't turning on, so the firebox wouldn't catch

- Called RT again and this time they suggested I replace the whole fan motor assembly; sent one out to me, again took about a week to get here

- Replaced the fan assembly but this time everything worked but the fan just ran continuously, as well as the auger...not in an intermittent fashion as you'd expect.

- Called RT support, at this point had lost my patience, they said they would send out a full computer replacement. I asked them to overnight it because it had been close to 2 months of back-and-forth and I just bought the gd thing in March, 5 months ago. Anyway, they didn't overnight it, so it came a week later.

- Installed the new computer and now it seems to be working fine. Just cooked an amazing brisket this weekend, so I guess all's well that ends well, but it was a pretty maddening experience and again, RT customer support was fine but not the "OMG these guys are amazing" you always hear about.
 
Glad you were able to get it sorted out. I agree it took way too long for a fix. As you were disassembling your cooker did you notice any pinched wires or missing insulation? I am sure the controller could have a short to ground and cause you symptoms due to bad assembly techniques, which would be good from your perspective. You could look at the old controller and see if there are any scorch or burn marks on the component side then flip it over and see if there are any witness marks on solder side. Keep us in the loop if you find out anything new.
 

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