Pit Boss Temp Blinking [Why and How to Fix]
If you love using pellet grills to cook and smoke your food, chances are that you own a Pit Boss. It’s such an efficient piece of tool that helps you to get a lot done with little effort. And it’s all thanks to a few smart features such as Pit Boss temp blinking.
What is it? Well, it’s a feature (not a problem) that lets you know that the temperature is too low. The auger is trying but failing to raise the temp. And that can become a problem if you don’t solve it quickly.
How do you turn it off?
Well, there’s no button for it to switch it off. But it’s a no biggie. A feature like this can be a hard nut to crack if you don’t know what it means.
If you have no clue about it, you just happen to be in the right place my dude. In this article, we’ll go over the reasons why your Pit Boss the temperature reading is blinking and failing to raise the temperature and how you can solve it.
Why Is the Pit Boss Temperature Blinking?
Well, it’s blinking because your lazy self isn’t taking care of the low temperature. It’s telling you that you’re losing temps. The temp is supposed to blink if the cooking temperature has dropped too low. Why did the temperature drop? The most likely reason is that the fire has gone out.
You’re thinking, “isn’t the auger supposed to help to increase the temperature as it feeds pellets?” Yes, of course, it’s supposed to. But since there is no fire, no matter how much pellet it pushes in, the temperature won’t rise.
Sometimes the pellets being fed to the burn pot doesn’t help because the little bit of fire that was left get choked out. And the flashy temperature keeps on blinking. No capiche?
Let me elaborate. When the temperature gets lower than the required level, the blinking feature starts signaling the auger to push in pellets as it thinks that there are not enough pellets to burn. But if it feeds pellets after pellets, it will only choke out the fire as not enough oxygen is getting in.
Fire dying out is the most common reason, but there are a few more reasons.
Such as:
1. The Temperature Probe Is Malfunctioning
If the temperature reading is inaccurate, the issue is completely different. It isn’t a common issue as far as I have seen, but it does happen. Sometimes, the temperature probe gets too much grease to read the heat level properly.
Most likely, you never took care of it and let grease build upon it. So, it’s reading a lower temp than it is.
You can guess what happens now. The auger will start doing its job, but the temp won’t rise. The vicious cycle continues.
2. Not Enough Pellets in the Hopper
On the rarest of occasions, it might just happen that your bbq-hungry mind has forgotten to restock the hopper with pellets. For me, it’s a one-in-a-million probability. It’s like playing a first-person shooter, and we have an OCD to press R to reload every time we press the trigger.
3. Pellets Soaked with Moisture
Using wet pellets in a smoking grill is a cardinal sin. NEVER DO THAT. You’ll be wasting your precious time and energy trying to clean up the mess.
I don’t get when people deliberately soak the pellets in water. The theory is that it’ll lengthen the burning time. While that’s factually correct, is it actually helping the case? I think not. It’s only slowing down your cooking and preventing the grill temperature rise quickly, making you inefficient at best.
You can guess why the temp will start flashing if you’re using wet pellets.
4. Auger Motor Is Not Functioning
If you see that there are enough pellets in the hopper and there is the fire still burning, but the temp is staying low, the issue may be the auger motor. It’s not working properly. So, the pellet cycle is stopped.
Auger motor can fail anytime due to several reasons. The bushing plate can break, and the motor can fail. Sometimes it may not die completely but gets weak and slow.
5. Too Much Ash Build Up in the Burn Pot
Pellet burns in the fire and turns into ash. And you take the ash out to keep the burn pot clean. It’s the natural cycle. But if you forget to do the one thing (cleaning the damn thing) necessary to keep your grill functional, you’ll face the fire dying out many times.
Ash accumulation messes with the pellets, obstructs the airflow, and prevents the fire from reaching its potential by depriving it of oxygen.
It’s obvious what would happen in such cases.
Why is every one of the issues related to negligence? Something to think about, eh?
The End Result Is the Same!
Yes, no matter what caused the temperature blinking feature to turn on, if you don’t take care of the issue soon, the auger will keep feeding pellets (unless it’s empty). And cause the pathway to jam and overfill the burn pot.
How to Fix Pit Boss Temperature Flashing Problem?
If the issues mentioned above come up, the solution is simple yet taxing. You need to do a bit of Pit Boss troubleshooting to detect the exact reason. It’s nothing really; you have to inspect all the aspects that keep the grill up and running.
The thumb rule for fixing something with an unknown cause is to fix everything. So, get to it!
1. Check If the Fire Is Still Burning
If the temp starts blinking, your first task is to see if there’s a fire inside. Take out the burned pot and clean it if it has gone out. There are most likely tons of pellets in it.
Now, restart the fire and wait for it to burn properly. Don’t forget to let in enough oxygen.
2. Clean Or Replace the Temperature Probe
Check the probe to see if it’s coated with black soot. Clean with soapy water and a wet cloth. It might be tough to get out; use an oven cleaner if one is lying around.
Prevent temperature probe malfunctioning by cleaning it after each cooking session. It’ll make sure that there is no build-up on it.
3. Inspect the Pellet Condition
Open the hopper and check the condition of the pellets. If they are dry, the issue is elsewhere. But if they are wet, take them out from the hopper as well as the burn pot.
Dry the pellets. If you get enough sun exposure, use it to dry them. It’s the best and cheapest option. Some use the oven, but that’s unnecessary. Please do not use them without ensuring that there’s no moisture left.
4. Fill the Hopper
It is what the title says. With no pellets in the hopper, the fire will go out. So, always fill the hopper before starting to cook.
5. Inspect the Motor for Failure
If the pellets pass the inspection and there is a fire burning inside, the motor is the culprit. It’s either busted or too weak to function.
Replace the motor and bushing to restore function to your grill.
6. Clear the Ash
If there’s ash build-up in the burn pot, clear it well. Use a scraper to scrape out the last bit. Spray the oven cleaner on it and then do a final cleaning. Rinse and repeat until it’s squeaky clean.
7. Keep the Hopper Clean
Don’t leave the wood pellets inside the hopper by being lazy. Pellets will soak in moisture by staying outside, and eventually, it’ll cause jamming in the auger due to the softness.
Please take out the leftover pellets after cooking and store them in a safe place.
8. Clean the Burn Pot
Again, don’t let the pellets stay in the burn pot. And if there is an overfilling of pellets as it can happen during temperature blinking, clean the burn pot to restart the grill.
When Does the Blinking Temp Feature Turn on?
The blinking temp features turn on when the temperature drops lower than a set range. There are two temperature levels set for two modes; Cooking mode and Smoking mode.
Smoke Mode
In the Pit Boss, the smoke setting temperature is set between 170° F and 225 ° F.
If the grill temp starts flashing in smoke mode, it means the temp has gone below 110°F. The fire is on the verge of dying.
Cook Mode
In the Cook setting, the temperature range is set at 225°F – 500°F. When the temperature drops below 150°F, the temperature starts to blink.
Pit Boss Flashing Dots; Is It an Error?
If you see the flashing dots on the control board, it means that the igniter is turned on. Do NOT worry about it. It always turns on during startup. The igniter will turn off by itself after a few minutes.
It doesn’t need any fixing.
Frequently Asked Questions
- How long does it take Pit Boss to get to temp?
It takes about 10-15 minutes for a pit boss grill to heat nicely for the smoke setting. And for grilling temperature, you need to wait for 20 minutes.
- Why is my Pit Boss not holding temperature?
The most likely reason for Pit Boss pellet grill temperature fluctuations is not getting enough oxygen to keep the fire going.
- Why would an auger stop working?
Once in a while, the bushing plate can break, which in effect stops causing the auger to quit working.
- How do you know if your auger motor is bad?
If your auger motor is getting hot to touch, it’s most likely broken or on the way. It needs replacing.
Final Verdict
There’s nothing to be alarmed about if you see the Pit Boss temperature blinking. It is a helpful feature, not a problem that needs fixing. Get it in your head.
You can avoid it completely if you take care of the grill regularly. Clean everything at least once a week if you’re a frequent user. Otherwise, clean it every time you bring it out to cook. Always use good pellets and no wet pellets. Don’t be negligent, and it’ll work fine for years. In case you see the temp blinking, quickly turn it off and take care of the issue before the auger gets jammed.
Related:
During smoking on my pit boss the temp will start blinking, I turn it off and then back on and it will start heating back up for about 20 minutes and then start blinking again, It only does this on smoke mode, very aggrevating, Any information to fix this would be greatly appreciated
Thanks Gary for your comment. Don’t worry! this is not a big issue. I already mention in article that “If the grill temp starts flashing in smoke mode, it means the temp has gone below 110°F. The fire is on the verge of dying.”
Can you please recheck the pellet supply or inside the hopper if there is any blockages? Also check for the ash build up and keep the burn pot clean.
Please let me know if there is any more problem.
Hopper and everything is clean and has new pellets, It works fine on 200 and about settings only does this when set on smoke mode. I click it off and back on and it start working again.