When your Yoder smoker behaves irregularly, there might be several causes for these inconveniences.
Some of the problems are easier to fix than others.
A Yoder smoker is built tough and works well under extreme conditions too.
In a situation of your Yoder Smoker not heating up it could be due to pellets, electrical issues with the igniter, thermostat problems, and setup issues too.
These are all solvable with easy steps that anyone can perform.
As your Yoder smoker experiences low or fluctuating temperatures it is wise to take account of the following possible causes.
Ensure that you consult a professional to fix any wiring problems before trying to fix them personally.
Yoder Smoker Not Heating Up? – Causes
Here are some proven reasons for your Yoder smoker not heating up situation.
Thermostat
If the thermostat is faulty the grill will not reach optimal levels.
On the other hand, temperatures might soar to dangerous levels.
This will cause overcooked or non-cooked food ultimately.
If the thermostat is performing erratically, it might be old and need recalibrating or other fixes.
A faulty thermostat is the cause of malfunctioning wiring or loose wire connections.
Essentially, the thermostat is reading the heat incorrectly or it is not controlling the heat as it should.
Thermocouple issues
These can misread temperatures within the smoker and the results can be infuriating.
Essentially, if the thermocouple misreads temperatures, the smoker will continue to heat up or indeed, reduce temperature levels.
This leads to uncooked or unevenly cooked meals and of course, overcooked food too.
Observe if the smoker has startup issues, or it fails to respond to changing temperatures.
These are signs of thermocouple problems.
Smoker problems
The smoker per se could be experiencing aging problems or basic malfunctions.
When the smoker’s component known as the ETC is failing, it is harder to control temperatures.
This is the electronic temperature control.
When this part gets faulty it is harder for the smoker to maintain adequate temperatures.
Some of the causes of the ETC becoming faulty include inadequate settings and calibration.
Incidentally, it could simply be a matter of an old smoker that needs replacement.
Auger issues
If the auger becomes faulty you may experience a few symptoms.
It might begin to shake during startup, the unit might be noisier than normal and it could become hard to shut it on and off.
The auger handles moving pellets from the hopper onto the fire pot.
When this component is failing, there will be temperature control issues and you may likely experience no heating at all.
Augers come in different sizes and conditions.
The auger in place should be fitting for your type of grill.
Setting up
All components work in unison to ensure the even distribution of heat and proper cooking of food.
When the smoker is not heating up it could be a result of inadequate setups.
This includes not allowing it to accumulate enough heat before grilling, or letting it cool extra quickly.
At times the temperature gauge or thermostat is placed incorrectly.
Place this tool dead center within the grill chamber and let it sit for a few minutes.
Yoder Smoker Not Heating Up – Fixes
Retest Thermometer
The thermometer needs testing in other areas besides the grill.
This might involve an expert to test its functioning.
The thermometer might be functioning albeit not optimally.
Thus, there is a need for calibration, which experts can handle quickly.
This involves testing in cold water or using boiling water at the right temperatures.
Calibration can solve the non-heating issues while you test the internal temperature of the grill with another thermometer.
Once you calibrate the original thermostat and they both show similar readings, your thermometer is working properly.
Pellets
Use high-quality pellets to ensure quicker burning and of course higher temperatures.
Using low-quality pellets means more time spent trying to reach optimal temperatures.
Also, these pellets should be dry and not damp in any way.
Damp pellets waste your time as you fire up the grill and the auger perform as it should.
However, with time, temperatures fall meaning the grill man has to start all over.
This is easily solvable if you source high-quality pellets from legitimate vendors and keep them dry.
Fix Jams
The auger may get jammed due to non-maintenance which leads to accumulation.
When wet pellets build up within the auger and firepot, they barely get lit up.
If they do light up they will die out quickly too.
Thus, it is important to clean out messes within the auger and prevent jamming and slow startups.
Even as the igniter works optimally, it will not be able to sustain the temperatures needed due to moistness.
Setting up
Ensure that you set up the grill adequately from the get-go.
This means letting it heat up slowly and reach adequate levels before grilling.
Also, if you use a temperature probe allow it to sit dead-center within the grilling chamber.
Preheating the grill means all parts of the grill, which usually work in unison, will work properly.
The lids should also be closed when preheating and thereafter.
All these procedures should be covered inside the Yoder smoker user manual.
Wiring
After checking the wiring related to the thermostat, fix any looseness.
This will ensure that a new and calibrated thermostat will work properly.
This move also reassures the owner and guests that there will be no short-circuiting.
These faults can lead to hazardous circumstances.
Additionally, faulty wiring can lead to a shorter life for the Yoder smoker.
ETC fixes
After fixing thermostat issues, the ETC can be used to raise or lower temperatures.
This is possible by increasing the current flowing to heating elements or lowering it.
These procedures will help to regulate the temperatures within your Yoder smoker and prepare better meals.
How to Reset Yoder Smoker?
You can reset Yoder smoker by two ways:
1.Hard reset
2. soft reset.
Method One: The Hard Reset
It takes about 20 –30 minutes to hard reset Yoder smoker.
Temporarily move food from the smoker to an indoor oven set to the same temperature.
Take out the cooking grates to access your heat diffuser.
Also remove the heat diffuser or two-piece diffuser to access door.
Now empty the ash from the burn grate.
Power down and unplug the grill for 60 seconds. Plug the power cord back in and press the power button.
Fill the pellet hopper with pellets and press and hold the ‘prime’ button until you hear the pellets drop onto the burn grate.
Insert diffuser and grill grate . Press Start to set the desired temperature.
When the set temperature is reached, place the food on the grill.
This is a specific method of restarting grills manufactured before mid-2019 and not upgraded to ACS control.
Turn off the power and unplug the grill for 60 seconds. Plug in the power cord again and turn on the power button.
Method Two: The Soft Reset
The soft reset takes 15-20 minutes to complete.
Make sure the grill is in heat up mode and the fans are running.
Heat-up mode is showed on the control panel by three rising dashes on non-ACS grills and an up arrow next to the set temperature on ACS-controlled grills.
Temporarily move food from your smoker into an indoor oven set at same temperature as your required smoking temperature.
Take out the cooking grates for getting access to heat diffuser.
Remove the heat diffuser or two-piece diffuser to get access of door and empty the ash from the burn grate.
Refill pellets in hopper and put a small handful of wood pellets in the far back of the burn grate.
Ignite the smoker with a grill torch or fire starter.
Once ignited, put back diffuser and cooking grates, and close the door which allow the grill to come back up to operating temperature.
Once the grill is back at operating temperature, put food back on grill and continue cooking.
Bottom Line
Fixing Yoder smoker heating issues revolves mostly around pellet usage and setup management.
When the grill is running as it should, thermostats and thermocouples might be interfering with set temperatures.
Ensure that you read the user manual or contact customer support when things get heated, or they don’t.
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