I am using the stoker for the first time. my problem is the blower will not shut down. target temp-230, high alarm-240 & low alarm-210. I have tried unplugging the blower & temp sensors. Also turned off the unit & turned back on. Same problem. The blower will not shut off.

See this thread for a workaround.

Thanks Tom, I read the thread.turned off the unit, Switched the jacks around plus reset my target temp to 240. turned the unit back on. I let the stoker run until my pit temp hit 290. had to disconnect the fan.

Sorry it isn't working Nick. I know this bug exists but I haven't seen it (yet... knocking wood!) Check your firmware version. It might be worth a call to Rock's to ask about any other fixes/resets/updates for this bug. Maybe Amir can chime in if there is any update to this issue.

I really like the idea of having my smoker on auto pilot. however, when the auto pilot does not shut down the blower i will end up with a over cooked pork shoulder. Bad for my family,friends & myself.

I will call rock's and talk with him later. right now it's only 8:30 am in California.

Nick, if you look for some of my posts in the ATC section you'll see where this is a reported defect with some of Rocks units. I was the lucky recipient of one too. Send it back and he'll gladly replace it for you. Kind of like being the kid who opens the box of Cracker Jacks but doesn't get a prize huh? I was bummed to but Rocks took good care of me and I've been Rocking and Rolling ever since.

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Larry I think you are right about me getting a bum unit. called over to rock's about two hours ago & waiting for him to call me back. in the mean time, i disconnected the stoker & set up my ET-73.

Sorry so late in my reply Nick. I would recommend that you keep calling him until you can speak with him personally. He is not very good at returning calls or email (many postings here reflect this unfortunate trait.) I have found if you call and speak with him he is very helpful but you might have to chase him down with several calls. In my experience, the best time to catch him is during their opening hour.

I am thinking since none of the workarounds fixed it, Larry is probably right and John should be happy to replace the bum unit.

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Originally posted by Nick Tabor:
I am using the stoker for the first time. my problem is the blower will not shut down. target temp-230, high alarm-240 & low alarm-210. I have tried unplugging the blower & temp sensors. Also turned off the unit & turned back on. Same problem. The blower will not shut off.

Nick I had the exact same thing happen with me the first time I used mine. Several powering cycles on and off and plugging/unplugging the probes and fans later, it suddenly began working perfectly (fan cycled on and off and smoker temp stayed within 5F of target). Not feeling sure I was out of the woods for future use, I called John and described the scenario to him. He told me the unit tends to grossly overshoot/undershoot selected temp on the first few cycles of the initial use, but with each successive cycle of overshoot/undershoot it brackets the selected temp closer and closer until you get a pretty steady selected target temp. When he asked me what temp I had selected and I told him 230F, he said it wouldn't be unusual to see 280-290F on the first overshoot. So, maybe you could try a cook minus meat and just let the Stoker run to see if it eventually captures the selected temp. Then try it once more with a cold smoker and see if the big ovrshoot occurs again. If it doesn't happen, then maybe John's description was right. If you get another big overshoot then it's time to send it back in. Hope this helps.

My Stoker worked fine for a couple months, then had the same fault. It is common, John said send it back, I did. That was 3 weeks ago and I haven't seen it yet, still waiting. Using a Cyber Q in the meantime.

Add me to the list of people having this fault. Stoker worked fine for three months, and then I plugged in a new blower and now it won't shut off. Tried going back to my old blower but that doesn't solve the problem. The blower just keeps on running. Since I don't have a backup I had to (gasp) use the vents to control temp manually. Started calling John today.......