Why Is My Electric Smoker Not Getting Hot Enough?

A smoker is an excellent tool for cooking different types of meat. You can make pork steaks, beef steaks, and much more on your smoker. The only thing you must ensure for easy cooking is the right temperature.

Sometimes your electric smoker may not be getting hot enough. If you want to know more about this, you're in the right place. Here is everything you must know.

Why Is Your Electric Smoker Not Getting Hot Enough?

Here are some reasons to help you understand why your tool may not be hot enough:

Faulty Smoker

The top reason your tool may not be heating is that it may be faulty. Your device may have an internal problem causing the heat to never be enough. This issue may happen if you have been using the tool for many years.

Old smokers tend to become poor with time which makes cooking harder. This is also true if you have not been caring for the smoker properly, such as cleaning it regularly.

Sometimes the problem may not be with the entire smoker. Instead, one part of the tool may not be working properly. For example, the heat sensor system may be faulty.

Remember, if that happens, your tool may be heating enough, but you may not believe that because of the wrong value. You can easily get your tool changed if it is faulty by calling the company. Of course, the warranty must be valid for this.

You may also change the part that is not working. These easy fixes will help you heat the tool easily. So you can cook dishes faster and more conveniently.

Low Fuel

Many people forget to check the wooden chips their electric smoker has for working. This is another reason why your tool may not be heating enough. Remember, if fuel is low, the smoker will not be working at its best.

So it will take a long time for the tool to heat properly. The smoker may also not reach the ideal value because of fewer wooden chips. The best part is that this problem is easily solvable by getting more pellets.

You can add the pellets to the tool to make it work easily. Another thing that will help is using high-quality chips. If the quality is excellent, the smoker can run for a long time, even with fewer pellets in the hopper.

Also Read: The Ultimate Guide to Finding the Best Pellet Grill smoker for Your Outdoor Cooking Needs

Opening The Lid Often

It is no secret that you may be eager to enjoy the meal you are making on a smoker. The steak that you want to cook may be your favorite. This is why you may be opening the lid more often to check whether the dish is ready.

You must avoid doing this often because it will cause your tool to lose heat. This means the smoker may not reach the proper heating value. Many people believe something is wrong with them when it does not heat enough.

However, you should always stop to consider whether you are using the smoker the right way. This device is not supposed to be opened frequently when cooking. So you should avoid opening the lid, again and again to check on the food.

This will allow the heat to remain in the smoker and help you cook your food more easily. If you want to monitor the food, you may do so using other methods. For example, you may put a thermometer on the device with an alarm system to get an alert when the ideal value is reached.

Cooking On A Chilly Day

You may believe that the weather does not affect a smoker's ability to work, but that will be wrong. The tool may not heat enough if you're using it on a cold day. This is because the weather will be keeping the device cold.

The best way to get rid of this issue is by cooking in a shaded place. You may also shift the tool in the garage if the outdoor weather is too cold. The smoker will be able to heat better if you make conditions better.

You may also avoid cooking in an outdoor space on cold days. Remember, some electric smokers can work inside your home, too, if they don't take up much space. You may also check if the company of your smoker sells thermal blankets.

A thermal blanket will cover your tool and allow it to retain heat. So your tool will be able to become hot enough due to low heat loss.

Adding Too Much Meat Quickly

You may allow your tool to heat for a few minutes and then load it with a high amount of meat. This is not the best way to cook more food on a smoker. The tool will not be able to become hot enough if you load more meat pieces instantly.

The best way to avoid this problem is by letting the tool heat to the ideal value. After that, you can place a few pieces of meat on the surface. This is because placing food always causes the temperature to drop a bit.

So adding many meat pieces to the smoker is not a good idea. You should cook a few steaks first, then add more to the tool after you have removed the first batch. It may take some time to finish cooking, but the results will be better.

It is no secret that meat does not cook to perfection when a smoker has not heated it enough. So avoid rushing things to enjoy the lesser cooking time. Waiting and cooking batches may take time, but you will enjoy a tastier meal with your family.

Chips May Be Damp

Adding chips or pellets to your electric smoker is important for cooking. However, you may not be meeting the correct requirements. If the chips in the smoker are damp, it will take a very long time to heat.

So your smoker may not be getting hot enough because of this reason. Many people also purposely used such chips for faster burning. Whatever the case, you should not use such chips.

The top way to avoid this problem is by changing the chips with dry chips. These pellets will help your tool heat faster and better with fewer losses.

Dry chips will also help you save money on pellets. They last for a longer time and allow you to cook for longer without getting new pellets. You will also not have to worry about refilling the tool often with chips.

Another great thing about changing the chips is that it can help you confirm whether this is the reason your smoker is not getting hot enough. If you change the chips, but the tool is still not heating enough, it means the issue is something else.

Final Words

This is everything you need to know about your electric smoker not getting hot enough. It is important for the tool to become hot enough before cooking. The meal may not cook because of this problem.

Your steak may also be raw after cooking it in the smoker. So you should understand the reasons behind the problem. This will help you fix the smoker in no time.