Help wanted for initial settings and tuning

I searched through the pinned topics and the first 12 pages and couldn't find what I was looking for.

For some reason my HM stopped working after doing about 4 cooks with it. I put it away for several months (had to focus on grad school). I recently got it out and magically it's working again. In the process I reinstalled the software and calibrated my probes. I don't remember the PID settings I was using and how much to open the dampers so I'm looking for advice on initial settings, and then how to tune it.


What are some good initial settings to use and are there guides on how to tweak the settings to get it all happy?
How much should I open the dampers?
Is there a guide somewhere on adjust all the PID parameters? I thought there was one but couldn't find it.

Here's what I'm running;
22.5" WSM
a full basket of Kingsford charcoal
HM 4.3 with a rPi3, thermocouple version
Microdamper with the basic fan
I'm in the central valley of California so air temps will be pretty average. The smoker is under an overhang, not far from the house so it doesn't get a lot of wind.

EDIT: I forgot to say I dialed in the servo so it's opening and closing correctly. If I remember correctly from last Spring I would run the bottom damper that the HM is connected to wide open and one damper on top fully open. I think when the servo at the bottom closed 100% it would choke off enough air to bring the temp down. But I'll take advice you have for me.

what I use on my WSM 22.5 with Rotodamper
B=0; P=4; I=0.02; D=5
Fan pulse; min 0%; max 30%; max at startup
Servo 700 - 2110

I found this which helps.

https://github.com/CapnBry/HeaterMeter/wiki/PID-Tuning

Dave Smith said:

what I use on my WSM 22.5 with Rotodamper
B=0; P=4; I=0.02; D=5
Fan pulse; min 0%; max 30%; max at startup
Servo 700 - 2110

Click to expand...

I used your settings and here's how it's going.

Ignore the weird blips at the beginning of the graph. I was running the HM yesterday to test it out and didn't reset the graph. You can see where I put the meat on at about 10:55. It took a while for the temp to come back up so at 11:20 I opened the lid again to make sure the probe was in the right spot (it was). It's been chugging along very happy since then.

Are there any changes you think I should make based on that graph? I should add that I don't ever put water in the pan. I just keep it lined with foil to catch drippings and to shield the meat from the direct heat of the coals.

looks good so far.

The red squiggle icon in the corner by the PID stats is saying that there's a terrible amount of noise on your Pit probe, at least in that screenshot. This can come from the electrical outlet itself or by a ground loop created by some of the probe shielding being grounded or getting leakage from some other electrical device nearby. For the best control you're going to want to see if you can eliminate that squiggle icon entirely. Try moving to another outlet (some GFCI outlets are really bad for this) or moving the probe wire around and make sure it isn't being crimped somewhere.