Not very happy right now...

Was it in direct sun? The controller is a computer and can over heat. Make a little cover to get the controller out of the direct sun if that was the case.

Whatever the problem,Cookshack will help you out and fix it. Call them monday morning

Wayne.... I think that's what the cause was. My smoker is located on my backporch which gets sun in the afternoon.... It worked fine from about 8am until about 2pm when it started to get direct sun on it, then it flipped out.

I tested it again last night and it seems to be working fine now. Although when I started it back up and set the temp to 175 just as a test temp.... it went all the way up close to 300 before it clicked off and dropped down to 175 where it maintained temp just fine. I know it's supposed to temp spike some at the beginnning but I didn't think that much.

Anyway... yeah, I think direct sun on the controller was the problem so I'm going to keep it shaded next time.

We got our on the sunny side of the deck with a nice beach umbrella covering it - can wheel it completely under the umbrella like I did last night so when it rained later that night my pork butt just kept slow smoking. Works like a champ.

It will need to be out of direct sunlight. That is the cause of the "hot" display you saw on the controller...

As for why it ran up to near 300 degrees before backing down to 175... that's how it's programmed. When you first start the smoker it will run for 20 min or so without cycling off, this gets the wood smoking. It will then cycle off and cool off. You can 1)wait on it. or 2)preheat your smoker and open the door to dump heat after the startup process...

There are many "fixes" out there for the direct sunlight issues, I use the umbrella like the picture above. Another is to Prop a sheet pan, bus bin, piece of plywood etc over the controller, it protects it from direct sun... and rain...

Just some ideas...

Next time your near a Home Depot (or whatever home improvement store you use) pick up a disposable mortar mixing tub. Use it upside down or right side up to shade your controller or keep it out of the rain. When you’re done smoking it is the perfect size to soak the racks and grills in for a couple of hours. It really helps to make cleanup a snap

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Like Nordy said, the SM-025 has a set program so that it runs for 20 minutes on High. You have to remember that if you turn the smoker off, or lose power, it has to cycle through this 20 minute program.

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Originally posted by Chef-Boy-Arnie:
Next time your near a Home Depot (or whatever home improvement store you use) pick up a disposable mortar mixing tub. Use it upside down or right side up to shade your controller or keep it out of the rain. When you’re done smoking it is the perfect size to soak the racks and grills in for a couple of hours. It really helps to make cleanup a snap

Smart man, that Chef-Boy-Arnie...