Ironwood WiFi antenna?

[RemE]

My grill, Ironwood 650, worked fine staying connected to my wifi until I seared a steak (475 degrees) and the temp probe had a error that came up on my phone saying like heat probe error. Once that happened I lost the grill connection to my wifi. I have not been able to get it to work since. I have tried every scenario that the Traeger can come up with to reconnect my grill to wifi. If my grill connected to my wifi for 2 months from its original location, why would it say it can't connect today? Traeger said I needed a wifi extender which I installed 10ft away, but does not help. The grill will show up on my phone as a wifi network for a few minutes after I try to add my grill. This problem seems to be a major issue with the 650, so was hoping someone could help. I am a plumber, not a tech guy which may also be part of the problem in setting the wifi back up. )) Thanks!

Probably not related to your cook. I suspect that your controller has failed in the wifi section. If a full reset didn't get you re-connected, it should be replaced. If your phone gets good wifi signal when held at the grill location, it's probably not an issue with your network.

The temp error also points to something messing up with the controller.

 

[Grill Monster]

Is the plastic face of the control panel facing the direction of your wifi device/ access point???

No, it is actually facing 180 degrees from the wifi. Thing is, it worked fine for two months in this same position. The one issue that seemed to set this whole issue off was the error I got from either the meat probe or the grill temp probe that came up as a error temporarily on my phone's traeger app when I was finishing a sear on some steaks showed that the probe failed. The grill went offline at that same moment, and has not connected since.

 

[Grill Monster]

Probably not related to your cook. I suspect that your controller has failed in the wifi section. If a full reset didn't get you re-connected, it should be replaced. If your phone gets good wifi signal when held at the grill location, it's probably not an issue with your network.

The temp error also points to something messing up with the controller.

I have been on the phone with Traeger support 4 times now and they keep saying the controller is fine. Every person I have talked to outside of Traeger support says the controller needs to be replaced. Traeger said there were wifi issues with their grills and they sent out an update around Feb 3rd to fix the issues. That has not helped. My last call was that a "Level 2" support person was going to "go into my grill" electronically to solve the issue. I just picture this "Level 2" long haired dude with a long beard in a dark office eating pizza, w/ crushed soft drink cans all over his desk logging into my grill! That was suppose to have happened by yesterday and there is no change to my system as it is still offline. I may just have to go postal on Traeger support and demand a new controller. If that doesn't work and I just buy a new D2 controller, does anyone know the approximate cost, where to buy one, and also how much trouble it would be to replace it? Thanks for everyone's help!

 

[RemE]

Controllers are $200-300

They are super easy to replace, 4 front screws, tips out, take cover off bottom of the pellet hopper for wire access.

If it shows connected to your WiFi when checking in the grill settings then yes, Traeger guy might be able to access. If not connected, support is blowing smoke.

Some of the support folks are clueless.

 

[Grill Monster]

Great news! I received an email from Traeger support today! See Below...
e have successfully reset your UUID for your Ironwood 650. This means your grill is one step closer to being connected. To get this grill paired we have left some instructions as well as a link to a video on how to pair your grill. If you have any questions or are still unable to connect the grill please call us back so we can assist you further.

Thank you for your time
-Traeger Support Braedon

Please power cycle the grill (switch off power and unplug) and redo initial pairing from the start. 2.4 GHz home WiFi network Grill location within range.

How to pair your WiFIRE grill

The reset worked and I am back online with my Traeger! All is well in the world once again!

 

[RemE]

Woot, that's great news!

 

[hungry87]

I just pulled mine off and had a look too. Here's what I found.

My Ironwood 885 uses the ESPRESSIF ESP32-WROVER WiFi module. According to the schematics for the ESP32-WROVER, there is supposed to be a U.FL connector located at J39 on the circuit board. That U.FL connector would allow the connection of an external antenna, but it's MISSING on the module that Traeger is using. So, there is no way to connect an external antenna.

Now, the built-in (PCB) antenna is located above the module and will only pick up a signal from the FRONT of the grill (i.e., your grill must face the direction of your WiFi router) because the only thing between the PCB antenna in that direction is the plastic controller faceplate. In all other directions, the steel hopper will block the signal.

I hope this helps someone.

Image shows the PCB antenna (the black rectangle), it also shows the missing U.FL connector at J39.

View attachment 1972


Schematic shows that J39 is for the external antenna (ANT2). But, with no U.FL connector, it's impossible to connect one.

View attachment 1973

The above schematic is for the ESP32-WROVER-E (it shows J39 as "NC" or not connected). The ESP32-WROVER-IE shows the connector in place, so the Timberline grills must use the IE version.

I was about to say if they're using an ESP32/8266/ESP-IOTblahblahbullshit series of chipset (which they are!), then this should be piss easy'ish to overcome.

Can someone with a Timberline take a photo of the controller? I'd like to know if it's the same ESP chipset between the IW and the Timberline, and if they've just installed the U.FL with small lead on the Timberline.

Also, can someone confirm it's the same controller board too? I'm curious if it's identical hardware beteween the IW's and Timberline, and if the only difference is the U.FL connector, then it's likely Traeger just do some tweaks in the firmware.

In theory it's just a matter of soldering on the U.FL to J39, then running an appropriate cable with antenna on it.

Other option which will work, is to scrape the sealant of the black antenna track and solder a very short piece of RG178 coax, with an appropriate SMA connector at the end, then hook up an external antenna. Link below details how to do that, and I've done it with a heap of different ESP based devices for some projects I'm working on.

How to add an external antenna to an ESP board

If you’ve purchased an ESP board without a connector for an external antenna and find you are pushing the limits of reception - all is not lost. Also this is slightly easier than moving the 0603 sized resistor required to use the external antenna socket on some boards. These parts can be found...

community.home-assistant.io

 

[Shawn1145]

I put a UFL connector on J39 and a small 2.4ghz dipole antenna and it works. If you have the means to do it, hot air soldering required, it takes about 5 minutes.

 

[hungry87]

You legend. I saw a little while ago that firmware is actually irrelevant and it’s always active, and you’ve just confirmed it.

If my IW wasn’t under warranty I’d make a YouTube video. Like you said it’s really simple if you know how to solder. If people are worried you could get cold solder but it’s longevity is a bit to be desired.

For those who are worried about soldering and the like, the other option is to buy a WiFi 6 router that has mesh networking. Caveat is your network needs to have a seperate 2.4ghz band setup. The WiFi 6 aspect won’t fix things, but having a second access point (not a repeater) with dedicated 2.4ghz will greatly help.

I have this at home and the repeater is 12 meters away, upstairs, separated by reinforced concrete, and the grill gets great signal.

 

[Shawn1145]

You legend. I saw a little while ago that firmware is actually irrelevant and it’s always active, and you’ve just confirmed it.

If my IW wasn’t under warranty I’d make a YouTube video. Like you said it’s really simple if you know how to solder. If people are worried you could get cold solder but it’s longevity is a bit to be desired.

For those who are worried about soldering and the like, the other option is to buy a WiFi 6 router that has mesh networking. Caveat is your network needs to have a seperate 2.4ghz band setup. The WiFi 6 aspect won’t fix things, but having a second access point (not a repeater) with dedicated 2.4ghz will greatly help.

I have this at home and the repeater is 12 meters away, upstairs, separated by reinforced concrete, and the grill gets great signal.

Mine is still under warranty also. You can easily remove the UFL connector if needed and I don't think anyone would know any different.

 

[Grillmeister14607]

A) to the user of the Meraki AP - Meraki FTW. So easy to diagnose this stuff with such excellent networking gear, With the meraki wifi tool on my phone I know EXACTLY the signal I'm getting, and with the web interface I can see the signal strength over time at the remote client.
B) Where does everyone typically install their grill? Probably facing away from the house. Where is the wifi access point,. On or in the house. Where is the (measly onboard) antenna facing now? Away from the wifi access point. What's between the wifi access point and the antennae? Several metal plates including the front of the bin, the back of the bin and the back of the bin shell. . What engineer thought this was a good idea? Not only that but they missed an excellent add-on sales opportunity by deleting the antenna connector. They could have sold tons of external antennas for extra dosh. Dumb.
C) I ended up turning my grill 90 degrees. Signal went from -79 to -64. Turn it to face the house and it's -32. This maps with the grill metal being the main factor, and the directionality of the installed antenna. The access point is literally 6 feet away and it's a high end commercial MR36 AP - not some cheapo consumer AP.
D) Some simple user testing at peoples houses could have revealed this - seems kinda....dumb.

 

[smokeOnwater]

In the schematic above it also shows the resistor R14 missing as well. So soldering on the U.FL connector won't do anything by itself.
ANy idea where R14 (and what is the value!) is on the PCB... is it silkscreened somewhere?

 

[ronnasboy]

Been on here before about this, but finally figured it out after something I read this AM. can't believe it can be this simple, but maybe it is. I have a Gen1 (AC) Timberline 1300, which has the same basic problem as all the other WiFire grills except the new Timberline- no external antenna. After countless hours on the phone with Traeger, trying range extenders, and resetting the settings a few hundred times, I read somebody's post about pointing the front of the grill directly at the wifi source. Seems crazy, but apparently the built in antenna only can pick up a signal through the front control panel. I looked at my wifi settings and said signal strength 0. I just swapped the position of the grill with my charcoal grill, which turned it 90 degrees and aimed it directly at the wifi extender. It connected instantly, and signal strength now -40. Seems to be too good to be true, but after many many hours of trying everything else unsuccessfully, I would definitely try this before tearing out any more hair or trying to. modify the board.

 

[smokeOnwater]

Yes the antenna on the Gen 1 Timberline is what is called a strip antenna, right on the circuit board, and works OK (our cell phones used them), BUT the problem is that the RF signal will bounce right off the back of the steel hopper box on the back of the controller, and will not penetrate to the rear of the grill. However, the strip antenna will do OK going through the PCB material and the controller plastic.
Hence why the grill must 'face' the wifi transmitter/extender.

On the other hand, you can use a trick, which is keep your grill in the original position, then place the charcoal grill in the right position so as to 'bounce' the signal off the charcoal grill to the traeger. It'd be a hack, but it could work. Better to do what you did.

The Gen 2 external antenna drops below the steel box and has no problem hitting the wifi signal from any direction.
Plus the external antenna if done right (short cable to antenna) should perform better than a strip antenna, all else equal.

 

[Jim G]

Would adding an outlet to an IW885 and plugging in a WiFi extender increase signal strength?