How long to expect #2 wifi to get to temperature

[valleskm]

Evening all, Picked up a used #2 wifi in what looks to be good condition. First smoke was 4 racks of ribs. Had the Flavor Saver about 2/3 filled with water. Set app to just 1 step at 235 deg smoker temp. It took about an hour for smoker temp to get to 200 deg, and then about 3 total hours to get to the 235 set temp. PID settings P=60, I=850, D=130, T=2s. It looked like in the app the heating element was working at 100% just about the whole time. E-mailed Smokin It and got the impression from Steve that that's not normal operation.
Then for fun the next day tested empty smoker - no meat, no water - set to 325 smoker temp. PID settings P = 1, I = 0, d = 0. Smoker temp got to 300 deg in about 50 min.
I've never used an electric smoker, even though I've done a decent amount of smoking with charcoal and straight wood, so I'm open to the possibility there's some operator error.
Do these numbers make sense? If I smoke a full packer brisket, for example, how long should I expect the smoker temp to take to get to 225? Thanks - don't want to operate it too much if there's something wrong

 

[swthorpe]

I have a #2 analog smoker and it typically takes around 45 minutes to complete the first heating cycle to reach the set temp.  Sorry I can't help with the #2wifi.

 

[valleskm]

Thanks Steve. I would guess the wifi should be similar with the same box size. 45 minutes with meat in there sounds reasonable. Maybe I need to play with the settings some more or check the connections to make sure none of the power is getting lost along the way. Or maybe I just missed something the first time.

 

[Lonzinomaker]

PID controllers don't function well with empty smokers. They have a hard time controlling the cycles.  Put a bread pan with 3-4 cups of damp sand or dirt in and then see how it performs.
Do a search for pid settings, I know some posts have them listed so you can compare.

 

[old sarge]

See if this helps any:
https://www.smokinitforums.com/index.php?topic=7501.msg67343#msg67343

 

[valleskm]

Ok Dave and David. Appreciate the responses. I'll give the bread pan a try.
I used P 60 I 850 D 130 the first time, which was what it was already set to, so that seems to line up with the post link for the #2. I'll see what happens with some more experimenting.
I didn't have any of the meat touching the smoker temp probe, but with 4 racks of ribs in there I'm sure they were pushed up against the back of the smoker below the probe. Would that affect temp readings at all?

 

[old sarge]

I will say no. Do your best to keep meat from touching the cabinet just for safety's sake. Also, gently clean the probe.  If covered in 'stuff' it could throw off readings.  Not necessary to always clean the probe. Just once in a great while.

 

[valleskm]

Ok thanks much. Haven't had time to test again, but will do that soon, and hope that the controller/heater can get to set temp in an hour or less with food in it. Maybe I'll try it a little less loaded up the next time

 

[old sarge]

Keep at it. 

 

[valleskm]

So had time to run another quick test today
I set it at 300 deg for 2 hours. Put an alum pan with sand in there. No water pan. P = 60, I = 850, D = 130

This is how it went with the temps-
From 60 to 263 deg: 42 min, 100% output
From 263 to 282 deg: 12 min, 50-60% output
From 282 to 300 deg: 31 min, 60-70% output
After that held almost perfectly at 300 deg for 30-40 min (pretty incredible to see it keep temp within a degree!)

So it seemed pretty good. Not real loaded up, so that might change things some.
Just curious how it took 40-45 min to get to 263 at 100% output, and then about the same amount of time to get to 300 from there since the controller dropped the output.
I?m fine with that if that?s how it goes. Since I?m new to this all, wondering if that?s how it works for most of you out there.