chudzikb: First welcome to the group, and congratulations on the new 045. I have had one for 4 years or so, and before that a 009. run your temp. probes through the vent hole on top of the unit. I used to run my probes through the door, and had to replace the probes about 3 or 4 times a year. Once I started running them through the top vent, I haven't replaced a probe. There were a couple of things about the 045 that bit me in the rear, or were just different about these units. The first is the preset start up temp. These units run on high for the first 30 minutes, and then go the temp. you set. If you turn the smoker off, or loose power, and then turn it back on, it will go into start up mode again. There is a small tube on the back inside wall of your unit. This is part of the smoker thermostat. When you are loading your smoker keep what ever product you are loading away from this probe. Don't ask me how I know this, but if that tube gets stuck into a brisket, it reads the temp. of the meat, and not the smoker. Do a search for "big bang" on this site. They can happen with these units, and they can be real exciting the first time they happen to you.