FEC120 Meat probe routing

I'm not sure how tight the gasket is on the 120,but it works well on all the others.
We've had an assortment of small to large traditional and pellet cookers for well over a decade and have always run the cables thru the gasket.

Comps in FL look like FE trade shows,there are so many and you'll see as many as a half dozen cables run thru a single door.

Call service and ask Tony or Bill, if you are concerned.

Hi Hogback...yes, I too spent many minutes looking for the infamous vent on the top of my FEC120. Not there or any other place for that matter.

As far as probes go, feel free to just shut them int he door. The gasket is not bothered and I run three probes on mine - all double probes so six wires shut in the door hasn't caused any trouble in a year of so.

Enjoy the 120 - it's an awesome cooker!

There are two vents on the top rear of the unit, but the probe I was sent isn't long enough to fit down this vent and then up inside the unit to stick inside meat. I just went through the door and the probe still registered temps.

Problem I have is that the unit doesn't cook at the temp I set in probe mode. The probe temp was set at 190 and the cook temp was set at 224, but after an hour and a half I came back to find the unit temp was at 328! In probe mode, my cook temp is ignored. What to do?

Ordinarily,I'd say that falls into learning your cooker,checking accuracy of probes,and charting the actual temp at the spot you are cooking.Since you've probably done this,call Tony or Bill in service and give them the info.

Yep, turns out there is a bug in the controller that locks the unit in probe mode. They're on it, so just gotta wait for a fix or a new controller.

Just got word back from CS and was told I'll have to wait another 6 months before getting a fix to the probe function issue. Really unhappy about getting a fix to this problem a year after purchase. I'm thinking to fix this myself. Anybody with an FEC120 taken matters into their own hands?

quote:

Originally posted by Baba Kevin:
Just got word back from CS and was told I'll have to wait another 6 months before getting a fix to the probe function issue. Really unhappy about getting a fix to this problem a year after purchase. I'm thinking to fix this myself. Anybody with an FEC120 taken matters into their own hands?

Unless you can rewrite the code on the eprom, I'm not sure what you mean by fixing it.

The problem with changing the code is that any changes in a UL listed unit have to be retested. So it's not just change the code and send it out. Many of these units are in restaurants and have to have the UL listing.

Right now, you probably have two options. 1, if you're really upset about it, ask for a refund. 2. Go with a manual/external probe to monitor the temps. They're fairly cheap to buy (see the post about running 6 wires; that's three thermometers).

Lots of options, we'll help.

For me? I never use probe mode, in in the restaurant. I'm very much a hands on pitmaster and while I fully understand (and have used/tested) the probe method, I just know there is never 1 set temp that is always perfect. Can get close, but I like to watch my finish temp a little more personally.

Thanks for the reply, SmokinOkie. I'm 6000 miles away in China, so returning it for another model would cost more than what I'd get on the refund. Should have tested that function when in the states but didn't see anything on the forums to make me doubt CS. I did just get the ThermoWorks ChefAlarm last night, but that only gets have the job done. Problem here is that the quality, brand, size, and price of brisket is so inconsistent that it's hard to get a handle on the final cook time. I've have great results at 9 hours and 15 hours, so that probe would really free me up to work on other part of the biz.

But I think you're right about being more hands on. Guess that's my only option right now. Just thought maybe some folks out there may have been able to trick the controller into working somehow. kinda like those video games up up down left down and you get 1000 fee lives.

Thanks again.