OK...What happened? (Long)

You'll have to do a little more diagnosis, we don't have enough information.

The fire's I've seen are because of HIGH temp and grease. Do you clean off the drip pan and the tray it feeds into. I've seen fires from the grease build up in the trough and on an uneven surface where the grease stayed in the back.

Thanks for the reply, Smokin. The big flame was actually from the firepot which had a huge amount of pellets. No other fire was noted. I always do a "pre-flight" inspection and change all of the foil before starting. The drip pan and tray were clean as was the bottom and firepot. Again, I had cleaned the firepot two short cooks prior, so I'm confused why it was full 15 minutes into warm-up.

Chris

So, are you saying the firepot was just "overflowing" with pellets and that's what was creating the huge fire?

Yes, the overflowing firepot caused the fire. I just don't understand what created the overflow.I've been cooking long and short cooks for two months without a problem. I have not had a chance to try the unit again. Maybe it was just a fluke. I just don't want to mess anything up further.

I recommend cleaning out your firepot before EVERY cook - the reason being is that all the pellets from a previous cook may not have been burned up, so when you start a new cook you are actually starting with too many pellets in the fire pot.
I suggest, after cleaning out your oven, run it with no product in your oven for a couple of hours to see if you still have problems. If there is still an issue, give us a call here at Cookshack (800) 423-0698 and ask for either Bill or Tony and we will help you trouble shoot what is going on.

Bill
Cookshack Customer Service

Thanks Bill.

Make sure to get out any ash around the ignitor (if yours has the kind that extends into the firepot) as ash can get caked up/around the element.

One thing I also recommend, is that if you start with an empty pot, WATCH to make sure it ignites.

Thanks for the advice guys. I called Tony at Cookshack yesterday and he was very helpful. One thing that I learned is that there are many different ways to start your cook on the FEC-100. That being said, I would like to ask everyone "How do you get your FEC ready to start cooking."

Chris

quote:

Originally posted by SmokinOkie:
Thanks Bill.

Make sure to get out any ash around the ignitor (if yours has the kind that extends into the firepot) as ash can get caked up/around the element.

One thing I also recommend, is that if you start with an empty pot, WATCH to make sure it ignites.

I could not agree with you more, Smokin. When you start your FEC, make sure it ignites! Why tempt fate.

Good point John and Smokin'. And it may have been part of my problem. I had been starting at 235 and letting the machine do its thing until this time. I just noted that the Traeger manual recommends starting on Smoke for 4 minutes then setting your temp. I now agree that confirming ignition is a must.

Chris

quote:

Originally posted by pairodocs:
... I just noted that the Traeger manual recommends starting on Smoke for 4 minutes then setting your temp. I now agree that confirming ignition is a must.

Chris

Do you have the Traeger or IQ4 controller?

If you have the Traeger, NEVER walk away until it ignites.

I have the IQ4, but the manual is a little unclear about the start-up procedure. I looked up the Traeger manual online to try to get some ideas. Talking with Tony, he said different folks used different ways to start.

Chris

The reason I asked is the "ignitor".

The traeger controller has it come on for 4 min and NEVER comes back on unless you turn the dial to zero then back up.

The IQ will determine if the ignitor needs to come on anytime during the cook.

What works for me?

I clean the pot each time
I take a small handful and throw it onto the ignitor each time, then I wait to make sure they've started.

100% success with this method, for me.

I follow the same procedure as Smokin and have had no problems with any starts. I have an old small shop vac that I use to vacuum out my firepot prior to each new burn.

Well, I finally got to try the FEC again today. I cleaned the firepot again as suggested and noted a 1/2 inch hard cake of ash that I missed on the previous clean. I removed the ash and added a handful of pellets to the firepot as Smokin recommended. The unit lit without difficulty and came up to temp. I threw on a chicken to continue the cook. The FEC performed flawlessly.

Lessons learned:

1. Clean the firepot frequently (if not every cook) and clean it well.

2. Make sure the fire ignites. May sound obvious, but I did not even think about it.

3. Cookshack customer service is great!

...I'm sure there are more, but it is time for some chicken casserole.

Thanks Tony, Smokin, and all that replied.

Chris

quote:

Originally posted by Pairodocs:
...and noted a 1/2 inch hard cake of ash that I missed on the previous clean.
obvious, but I did not even think about it.
Chris

The ash is likely the culprit. It CAN and WILL get superheated and then it blocks the ignitor (depends on which ignitor0

Very happy you're up and smoking...

Congrats.