New EX6 Owner


 
J

Jerry We

TVWBB Fan
Finally made the plunge and ordered an EX6 direct from Weber. Arrived in 3 days and the first thing I did was look at the manufacture date and was disappointed to see February 2020. Assembly was easy and the initial startup went well and reached 600° in about 13 minutes. It came with the updated hopper but not the welded auger assembly. Software and firmware was either up-to-date or updated quickly behind the scenes. First two cooks went well and food was delicious. Third cook was spatchcock chicken which was cooking at 400° and just as the bird reached 165° the grill started dropping temperature until it was at 100°. Shut it down and the grill pot and auger assembly were full of unburned pellets. Called Weber support and they said they would be sending a new auger assembly, hopper insert and glow plug. That was Monday and today is Wednesday and the order still has not shipped. Sent an email to Weber and received a quick response that they would overnight the parts today. Very disappointed and will be tracking the 30 day return period closely but hope this fixes the problem. Meanwhile the EX6 sits covered on my patio and I am using my firepit on a beautiful day for grilling.
 

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That’s pretty strange for any pellet grill to flame out running at 400. Did you drop the set temp or anything trying to hold the chicken? Did you leave the lid open for a really long time?
 
Sorry to hear that Jerry, hope everything turns out okay. Almost pulled the trigger on a new EX4 when they first came out then started to hear about the problems everyone was having. Decided to pick up a great deal on a new Camp Chef for half the price of the Weber, doesn't have all the bells and whistle that the weber has but it does have the sear capability which I used once to see how well it worked and it worked fine.
I have other grills for that function.
Starting to read some good things about the Weber's now and some great cooks coming off them. Mixed emotions, the Camp Chef has been perfect so far so I'll probably just stick with it.
Again hope everything works out as once the bugs are fixed it appears the Weber's do really well.
 
ShaneF said:
That’s pretty strange for any pellet grill to flame out running at 400. Did you drop the set temp or anything trying to hold the chicken? Did you leave the lid open for a really long time?
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I started the cook at 275° for about 30 minutes then raised it to 400° where it ran for about 45 minutes until it started dropping. I only took a quick peek twice during the cook. Was also using Weber pellets.
 
That is very strange then. Once the fire is going, you it should just be throwing very tiny logs on the fire and stoking it. Unless something caused the fan to fail, it's hard to imagine what when wrong. Even if the fan failed, there should be enough air to keep a fire burning. At 400, there's usually a pretty strong fire going, so you'd think it would be pretty darn hard to smother no matter how many pellets you're throwing at it. Where you typically see flameouts is people trying to push the lowest possible temps, especially in warmer weather.

The only other thing I can think of is that the pellets bridged and put an empty gap in the auger and the fire actually went out. After it was out it, the pellets fell into the chute again and the grill dumped a bunch of pellets into the pot. If you do not have the ramp and the finger guard installed, you can get bridging with any brand of pellets. I had it happen a couple times on my first SmokeFire with Weber pellets.
 
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I'm a recent owner too, had issues similar at the beginning. Firmware update is very important, then install your replacement parts. I have had no issues since installing the parts. I keep it clean as well.
 
So the SF is up and running again. The final problem was resolved with a new thermocouple. Once that was installed I fired it up and it took 14 minutes to get to 600. Supposed to have several days of nice weather here in Northern Illinois so hope to get a lot of cooks in before it turns bad.
 
Live in the same area and have not heard about any "nice" weather LOL. What part of the screw city you in?
 
LMichaels said:
Live in the same area and have not heard about any "nice" weather LOL. What part of the screw city you in?
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Been in the same house near CV mall for 40 years. Forecast can change quickly but all next week is supposed to be sunny and in the 60's - Fall is my favorite season. Heading out to Cattle and Cream shortly to pick up a couple 2" ribeye's to reverse sear on the SF. Hope all goes well!
 
Well I'll be dipped. We're neighbors. Right off Perryville and Mill just south of the new CV school. Been here since 92
 
I only had one flameout all stock no replacement auger or anything. What pellets are you using the weber pellets are smaller in diameter, so that could cause you an issue. It's a great grill I have had only two issues with the grill so far. A blown fuse and one flameout, but I was in the smoke mode so I understand that because of pellet bridging.
 
I was using Weber pellets. When I opened the rear access door the motor and auger fell out along with the two screws that hold them in place. Weber did not use the lock washers when they attached the new welded auger assembly and the screws came loose and fell apart. I attached the new auger assembly with the lock wash washers and it has run fine since.
 
Jerry, I'm a little confused. You said that Weber sent you a new auger assembly because it was not included on your new grill. But then you said they failed to use lock washers to attach the new auger assembly. So, did your newly ordered SM come with the updated auger assembly or the original?

I'm just curious because I'm preparing to order a new SF from Weber and I want to know what to expect.

Thanks.
 
When I called Weber with the problem the support person said my grill did not have the new auger assembly and they would send the updated welded assembly. When the new parts came I opened up the back and it did indeed have the new assembly but had not been installed properly. I would advise everyone that buys direct from Weber to check to make sure they used the lock washers when they updated the assembly. Attaching a picture of the bent piece where the screws go.
 

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Jerry We said:
When I called Weber with the problem the support person said my grill did not have the new auger assembly and they would send the updated welded assembly.
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Is Weber not proactively sending out the new auger assembly to registered customers instead of waiting for them to call in with an issue?
 
From what I understand you have to call and say you are having a problem. I believe if you order direct from Weber they will update the auger assembly and hopper insert before shipping.
 
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