My neighbor had this smoker out at the curb for trash pickup. I assumed it was broken but decided to take it home and see if I could get it working. It's fun to take things apart.
First thing was the hopper. It was about half full and as I tried to drain it I found what I can only describe as "pellet mash". This thing had been sitting a while and the pellets were breaking down into mush. For context, this is Florida wear the humidity is high constantly. I eventually got it all out but saw that the auger was clogged with the same stuff. I decided to move to the inside and removed the grates and heat deflector to get a look at the fire pot. Of course, it was filled with more mash. Once enough was cleaned out, I could tell the fire pot was completely rusted out. Using a screwdriver and a shop vac, I slowly but surely chipped away at this stuff and got the fire pot cleaned out then was able to remove it. After doing so, it looked like the auger tube and housing were clogged as well.
It was time to clean that out. I took off the hopper and was fortunately able to remove the auger pretty easily. Once that was done, I could use it and the shop vac again to clean out the tube. Now it can go back together and see if it works.
Hit the power button, it glows blue. Good sign. I turn it to SMOKE and wait. The fan comes on, the auger starts turning and the igniter heats up. More good signs! Unfortunately, the LCD screen is dead.
So it looks like this will need a control board, a fire pot, and an upper rack since that was missing. Also considering an auger housing. Looking at parts, these are the best prices I found:
Control board – $70
Fire pot – $20
Upper rack – $40
Auger housing – $200 (maybe don't need it?)
So either $130 or $330 to get this thing back in good condition. Do you think it's worth it? I already have an Oklahoma Joe's so I'd probably list this to sell.
by mechkelly
6 Comments
Honestly you can probably get a used one that works for the same price – probably not worth the risk of sinking money into it.
Would be worth it. You could flip it or just have a second grill. And who doesn’t love a second grill?
Mine wasn’t in as bad as shape but that’s how I ended up with mine. Came home from work, saw the smoker on the curb three houses down, walked down and asked what’s up, said they were throwing it away because the dog chewed the cord, rolled it home, ordered $12 cord on Amazon. Was smoking meat two days later.
This looks like an 820D3, I bought one from academy sports for $360 a few years back.
My opinion is only put money into it if you want something to tinker with. It was overall a terrible smoker experience for me.
Board and fire pot and sell it?
Save the money and buy a better one.