Trouble shooting a regulator and manifold on Baby Q


 
A

Andy K

TVWBB Member
Anybody have any advice on trouble shooting procedures on these two things for a Q100 or are they a simple replace if you get no gas?

I hate to spend the $$ if I can fix it or if there is a trick to tell if it doesn't work…
 
Since Im new to the Q world- can the old Baby Q regulators handle the extension hose and a 5# or larger tank?
 
Yes they can handle the adapter hose and larger tank and yes the regulator is a simple replacement. Seems to be a high failure point on Q's
 
If you’re experiencing problems using the 6’ adapter hose and 20lb bottle with the Q not getting hot enough or won’t light at all this is a recurring problem that has been posted here before, below is my response to that thread.

http://tvwbb.com/showthread.php?34667-New-Q220-not-loving-life/page5

Here is the Weber response to that problem and where I got the information on the link above.

http://www.weberindia.com/support/faq/faq.aspx?id=1

If it doesn’t work with the small bottle it might very well be the regulator.
I did find on my Q100 the small bottle had to be really snug before gas would flow.
 
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Rich- thanks for the links! I'll try this though I feel like I have but maybe I didn't wait long enough since it has been cold out.
 
Andy if it gets down in the 20s where you are like it does here then I have found that the adapter hose with the 20lb bottle needs to sit with the bottle open at least 5 minuets before starting the grill. Hope that helps
 
Wow "down to the 20's" if it got UP to the 20's we'd be breaking out the shorts and sandals ;-)
 
LMichaels said:
Wow "down to the 20's" if it got UP to the 20's we'd be breaking out the shorts and sandals ;-)
Click to expand...


Remember those days well that's why I left Franklin Park IL 45 years ago and moved to sunny California and then retired in the mountains of Arizona. ;)
 
Ahh good old sunny Franklin Park. I remember it it from living in the city as kind of the western frontier ;-) Now it's sunny NW Illinois near WI state line. I try to look on the bright side though. It keeps the riff raff out.
 
Thanks guys- it's been a pain the proverbial-butt trying to figure this thing out. I light it one day and the next I get nothing. The only factor that seems to vary is the temp from one day to the next so that must be what it is. Sadly I ordered a new regulator out of frustration - any chance I'll hav the same issue with a new regulator?
 
Andy, like I posted earlier this has been beat to death numerous times on the forum here. The problem is the location of the regulator vs. the bottle. On a conventional gas grill the regulator is on the bottle end of the hose with the Q and the adapter hose the regulator is on the grill side of the hose. The regulator senses any change in pressure it will shut down or greatly diminish the flow of gas. It just takes a while for the gas to settle down in that 6’ hose.
There were some problems with the earlier Q regulators so if you’re having trouble with the small bottle too then in may very well be a bad regulator, but if it’s just the adapter hose problem replacing the regulator probably won’t help. Good Luck
 
Well, I got the new regulator and what do you know- it fired right up! On the new regulator I can actually hear the gas when I turn the knob on! But now I think it's a burner or igniter issue. I ires it right up this eve after the install and cooked a rack of ribs on it- worked out ok… cooked them for about 60 mins and tin foiled them after 20 or so and a couple flips. They still seemed a bit tough so some experimentation is required there. But after the cook I went back out just to see if it would fire without a hitch. However- no dice. But because I could hear the gas, I used a long lighter and it fired with no issues. I'm thinking maybe an igniter issue.

I hate to spend the money only for it not to be the right part to solve the problem. It's starting to get to the point that I should have bought new! But even if I replace both burner and igniter, it will still have been cheaper than buying new.
 
Remove the burner. Clean it very well and pay particular attention to the area around the sparker. There will be some extra holes and they do get clogged with residue. Give the burner a REALLY good brushing with a SS brush. That ignitor hardly ever fails
 
also you can adjust the end part so it will spark correctly. I had a small issue with that but after fiddling with it I no longer have a problem.
does yours have a battery ?
 
Hi all! Been busy with work so not a lot of time in the last week. Thanks for everyone's help and input on trying to trouble shoot the original regulator. But despite our best efforts, the original just wouldn't cooperate. Which makes me realize the seller knew the regulator was going bad when they said only use a specific type of 1# bottle. I wasn't too worried about it since I thought I may have to replace the regulator. Nontheless, I still feel like I got a fair deal and now I'm very happy to report that the new regulator came in this past Monday and I was grilling Monday night! I actually grilled Tues and Wed as well. I'm amazed at how well the Q100 works! I never had great expectations due to its size and I wrongly compared all portables to the in-laws Roadtrip for so many years. I like the Roadtrip and always thought it was a clever design but its super heavy and a complete mess to clean. I always thought the Q series were a bit on the odd shape, when compared to the slick looking Roadtrip, but since the Q series are Webers, I always had an affinity to them. Now that I have the Baby Q, I understand the design concept. These things have huge grilling areas compared to the competitors! I cooked three very large sized chuck steaks on it this past week as well as a rack of ribs and (not at the same time though) and blown away at how well it cooked them. Although the steaks took up almost the entire grilling area I didn't have cold spots or bad performance. I dare say better than my trusty Silver B. Plus the taste wasn't compromised by like I've seen happen on the Roadtrip due to undercooking, flare-ups, etc. I can safely say that the original regulator was bad on the Q and the previous owner didn't know how to trouble-shoot it. I'm glad some people think Webers are disposable like other BBQ brands. Now I'm looking to retro-fit a thermometer on my Q and thinking about making it a red-head. I just need to find the right type of paint for that…. any suggestions? Plus, can an electronic igniter be fitted onto an '04-'07 version of the Baby Q (100)? The manual igniter is good but I'm just looking to give it an update if possible. Already got the tables for it and thinking about the getting cast iron griddle while I still can.

Glad that I got this thing up an running without too much extra $$$
 
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