AmeriQue cold smking, electronics durability

If I were you, I would contact Cookshack's customer service dept. at 1-800-423-0698. The are open from 8am - 4:30pm CST.

Bought one anyway, and it arrived today.
The shipper was gentle - even the foam bottom pad showed no signs of shock.

Four items:
* Did not receive the expected cover, which we understood to be part of a package deal.

* The caster locks are very, very stiff.
>> update: loosening axle nuts cured this

* The probe jack has been moved from the front to the side of the panel;
probably a good move for reducing smoke contamination,
but exposes the plug handle to mishaps.
A right angle phone plug is in order..

* The manual warns to be sure the wood box touches the rear wall,
but of course it cannot owing to overhang of the cover.
As an archived post noted, the box could be inserted with cover hinge left or right,
but the box is far from symmetric, with smoke holes towards one end,
so one orientation most be incorrect..?
>> update: other archived posts describe the running change
>> to block off the back of the wood box, keeping wood chunks close to the door.

This forum has nothing to do with CookShack customer service. You should call them in the morning.

For the issue you mention, please call CS direct. They like to give that personal touch and customer service doesn't routinely monitor the forum, nor respond in the forum.

They'll help you out.

> They'll help you out.

Oh, I fully expect that they will; good reports here
played a large part in my recommendation to the cook.
This is pay-forward for other potential (anal) AmeriQue customers naive about smokers.

We followed the instructions on page 5 of the manual to season with 3 chunks at 200F for 4 hours.
Although the scent was that of the sweetest wood fire, there was barely any smoke.
After 4.5 hours, the inside of the door had only a ghost of tan,
and the hickory chunks looked barely scorched. Outside temperatures were in the 40s;
the cook saw probe temperatures displayed as high as 216F; I saw mostly 195-197.

Fired the 066 up again for 6 hours at 220F,
after which those chunks had been reduced to very fine light white ash
(note to self: use a vacuum to remove ashes next time)
and the smoker inside surfaces were nicely toasted.
Doh! Should have made the template for bottom-covering foils before breaking-in..

Loaded a pork butt this morning; wish I'd thought to order an ET-73 sooner.
We're making plenty of trips to check smoker panel readouts (and enjoy aromas).

It would be neat to integrate Maverick transmitter with the 066 probes.

"Smoker" seems almost a misnomer; we're seeing less smoke than when grilling ribs.

We'll be using ours about once every other week on average;
have folks tried using a germicidal UV lamp inside a smoker when not in use,
to combat molds and bacteria?

Our 066 came with 3 dorky labels on the door; reminds me of Russian generals.
Has anyone tried peeling labels off and transplanting to the back?
>> update: removing a label destroyed it

I have an AmeriQue and love it. Have never used anything on the inside and have never had any mold. I use my AQ fairly often, but it has also sat a few weeks and has never been a problem. Just use your smoker and enjoy.

Keep in mind, you don't have to "see" smoke for there to be smoke. You won't get a lot of visible smoke from a few chunks. If you're seeing lots of smoke, it's a function of the wood burning inefficiently and burning off creosote, etc. The best is a lite, almost invisible blue smoke.

Best think is how does it taste? You taste buds are the best source of the actual results.

> you don't have to "see" smoke for there to be smoke.

Smoke is visible and (I trust) sufficient,
based on interior panels toasted-ness after break-in.
The cook reported quite visible smoke shortly after
starting, but still less that we experience when grilling.

I forgot to explain that my original concern had been that we would need to operate the smoker further from our house than the location
where we grill: a concrete pad, protected from most weather by the
deck of a screen porch 10 ft above.

Back to the original subject concerns: the electronics enclosure
gets warmer from sunshine than from smoker heating element.
With the probe jack relocated to the side, the main power
switch seems the only likely point of entry for smoke
to eventually contaminate electronics.

If I can find a simple and durable fixture with ballast,
a 4 Watt G4T5 germicidal fluorescent lamp should help avoid mold
(to which my family is highly allergic).

Seven hours on, the aroma from our pork butt is quite like bacon..

There will be no mold problem. If you clean your smoker completely after each use, it will not do what it is designed to do, put out great Q. A black light is overkill and not necessary. After several years of keeping my Smokette seasoned very well, it has never seen any mold or mildew growth inside or outside.

I am also allergic to molds and mildews and several other allergens and have taken weekly immunotherapy injections for longer than I have had my Smokette. I ain't allergic to smoke, thank God !!!

Relax, have fun !!!

> Best think is how does it taste?
> You taste buds are the best source of the actual results.

Pretty much like ham, close to the bark,
and more like turkey further in.

The second butt was wrapped in cheesecloth and smoked
fat-side down. This yielded essentially the same flavor
but slightly more tender with appreciably less meat sacrificed.

No luck finding a useful G4T5 fixture yet,
but we did find an appropriate storage amoire for racks and other accessories not in use:
Home Depot sells a "Stronghold Metal Front 3 Drawer Cabinet"
.. which is all plastic except for the drawer handles and trim.
The bottom drawer is deep enough for Cookshack wood chunk boxes.
It does not come with casters, but that is easily corrected.

We ordered a Maverick ET-73 from ikitchen.com on Dec 17;
no yet indication if/when it will be shipped.
As an alternative, I'm considering a security camera focussed
on the AmeriQue LCD; a monochrome camera with claimed 400-line resolution and 80ft cable can be had for $30 or so..

Ordered a right angle Switchcraft 238 stereo phone plug to replace
the straight Neutrik provided,
which seems to me far too vulnerable sticking out the side of the cabinet.

Bleken....I mean this in the most honorable way, 'you're crazy!' I like you!!

I think it's terrific you're reinventing the wheel, so to speak, and I think nothing but good can come from it, at least for all the rest of us. If you discover alternative, and better locations for controls, mold defensive diodes, direct links to previously passed gods of smoke, etc. all the better. I mean it, I like you!

Just don't be offended if "I," as well as perhaps most of us just chuck our culinary experiments in the old smoke hatch and wait till it's done! And as for me, I have yet to figure out why ANYONE would even clean their smoker????!?! Much less try to disenfect it. I gave up on that a LONG time ago! :0)

Good to have you among us!

Right about now I am thinking this is all a big joke !

quote:

And as for me, I have yet to figure out why ANYONE would even clean their smoker????!?! Much less try to disenfect it. I gave up on that a LONG time ago! :0)

I have maintained gas grills for more than 30 years, so appreciate the need for seasoning.
For the record, I am interested in low-power germicidal UV >>as an alternative to cleaning<<.
Our AmeriQue smells great and I would like to keep it that way;
I have experience with grease and smoke in gas grills collecting dust and going bad..
Grease splattering and smoke seem less with our AmeriQue than with grills,
and replacing foil on the floor and wood box cover for each batch
should minimize (but not preclude) mold and spoilage.

I want to cover the AmeriQue to reduce dust accumulation,
but a cover will mostly block air circulation, so UV-C seems prudent.
G4T5 should more than suffice, but 5 watt PLS fixtures may be easier to source.

I have had my AmeriQue for 9 months now, have done about 50 cooks on it, keep it covered with a Cookshack AmeriQue cover have done nothing but wipe out the inside with paper towels and we ain't dead yet!!!!!!
Just use the thing and enjoy it!

Throw away the foil and wipe out the interior with paper towels after each cook. Put the grills and racks and even the woodbox in the dishwasher on high heat pots and pans.

To each his own, but like I said before, the UV lamp is overkill. With my allergies, I would know if you need one.

quote:

Throw away the foil and wipe out the interior with paper towels after each cook. Put the grills and racks and even the woodbox in the dishwasher on high heat pots and pans.

We are doing all but the last and are generally pleased with how clean grills and racks came out,
but it had not occurred to me that the wood box with its lid open would fit in the dishwasher; thanks for the tip!

Clean what?

I remove old foil, wipe down the inside sometimes, clean my racks by hand and I'm done. I keep my smoker in my garage on my cart, covered with a small towel. The vent hole has a nut/bolt that coveres it to keep out crawly critters.....haven't hane any problems...

As far as gas grills, fire them up to max 600º and you'll kill any mold......or use them more often.

dan

quote:

I ain't allergic to smoke, thank God !!!

It turns out that I am somewhat allergic, at least to hickory smoke..
We did our first wings, more or less following the cookshack recipe.
(Skins were no more rubbery than some commercial wings,
although quite different from wings that we deep fry.)
Meanwhile, back at smoke: although they were nicely cooked,
only one of the two recommended chunks had been mostly converted to ash.
The other was merely charred, and a lot of smoke was released when we opened the door.
The morale here is that, since stainless is a relatively poor conductor,
for quick items such as wings, chunks should be carefully placed directly above the burner element.

Sauce captured most of the smoky flavor;
we will try smoking without sauce next time, adding sauce after..

I have read on the Cookshack forum about people finding mold in there smokers I have not had this problem but in a damp enough climate it might.

Uh...this IS the CookShack forum, right?

I think the mold and mildew threads are about wood, or maybe a smoker that wasn't used for several months with dampness inside.

quote:

Back to the original subject concerns: the electronics enclosure
gets warmer from sunshine than from smoker heating element.
With the probe jack relocated to the side, the main power
switch seems the only likely point of entry for smoke
to eventually contaminate electronics

I don't think you will ever find a problem with contaminated electronics. I've had my 008 for about 3+ years now and my 066 for over a year. Both well used. There is no real way smoke and grease can get into the electronics from the inside.. that I can see. And heat rises.. carrying the moist air up up and away form the smoker. I don't even get any plating of grease on the top of my smoker.. so, can't see a way for it to get into the controls. These smokers are pretty dern bullet proof.

As others have said.. no problems with mold in the insides.. in fact, I have had mold grow inside my Weber kettle.. but never inside either of my CS smokers.. can't answer why.

I think the longer you use the smokers the less anal you will become about problems. I asked a heck of a lot of questions in the beginning cuz I wanted to do it "right". Heck, there doesn't seem to really be a wrong way. I've experimented a number of different ways.. and it's all goooooood.