Ironwood XL slow warmup.

[caper11]

Hello,
New to the forum but not to the product.
I felt I should post and find out how other grills are working, I suspect the Timberline are possibly experiencing the same.

I have found that the warmup is extremely slow to the point where I will get a low temp error and a shutdown anyone else see a very long warmup. My Ironwood 885 has been rock solid even when starting the grill at -20c, with the way my XL is working I feel it will not work in those temps.
Lots of time with CS and I feel like there is a programming issue and not a hardware problem, but CS is sending hardware to replace when it all checks ouy.
On startup I noticed the induction fan does not blow very hard to make a fire, if I turn on super smoke the fan blows harder and the temp rise is very fast. I have only had this XL for three days now and have been on the phone way more than I want to be. If I let the grill do its own start up, it will take well over 20min to try and reach 165f from 32f, get a error than shutdown.
Anyone else have this issue? Thanks

 

[Grillman71]

I just went from an Ironwood 885 like yourself to the Timberline XL…the Timberline definitely takes longer to heat up and it seems to take longer to reach final temp the closer it gets to it.

 

[caper11]

I think I found a work around for the cold start errors. So far so good.
Yesterday it was 24f so I set my grill at 165F but turned on cold smoke to get the induction fan speed up I didn’t get a cold temp error shut down, and it reached that setpoint faster. Second time yesterday the grill was 38f when I started it with cold smoke at 165f and same, it started no problem and reached it setpoint quicker. I dont know why The programming on this grill has the fan speed set low when the grill is below 125f. That temp must be reached within a certain amount of time or the grill get shutdown, same as the other grills.
The firepot is lower in this grill than my 885 and there are two tray for the heat to reach the temp probe.

I feel this XL cooks way better than my 885 and definitely put more smoke flavor in my cooks.

 

[primeone]

I noticed the same thing coming from the Ironwood 650 to the Ironwood-L. However, it seems like it's been getting up to temp faster the more I used it. I've also noticed there are more temp swings then the older unit, but maybe that helps give it more smoke flavor.

 

[caper11]

Update on my Findings thus far.

Yep the XL does warmup slower than my 885, its not a big deal to me now that I know what it needs to start it up. I have to say this grill is the most flavourful I’ve owned yet, man does it put the smoke flavour into my cooks. So much that I had to adjust my recipes that I have, to not smoke on low temp before I turn up the heat, like my 885. For example I have found that Doritos Nacho potato chips is a wonderful smoked treat, and on my 885 it would take ab a hour to get them smoked on 165f with SS to get the desired flavour in them. On my XL its about 25 minutes. If anyone likes smoked snacks try the chips on a cookie sheet. My kids are like little gulls when I make smoked potato chips. Lol
That being said, my grill starts up just fine if I chose 165f and supersmoke, I do not get low temp shutdowns when I do that, or I just start the grill at a higher temp to just start cooking. Customer service managed to send me a bunch Of parts that I feel that I do not need when I always felt it was programming on startup.
So far myself and my family are really enjoying this new XL, and the flavour that it’s bringing to our table. The XL is a nice compliment to My 885 and my Ranger.

 

[primeone]

Thanks for providing an update! My experience has been very similar with the new Ironwood. I still have yet to try and brisket and I think that will be the ultimate test. Hopefully this weekend.

 

[Pattington2s]

Just wondering if anyone else is having issues with their 2023 Ironwood. My issue is that my XL won’t reach temp - didn’t during the seasoning session or in two subsequent cooks. Tonight, set it to 350 and after two hours, it maxed at 338. Called Traeger all three times for troubleshooting, with no resolution. Was told to wait two days and try again so they could monitor the start up. Doesn’t seem like that’s a solution - for a machine this expensive, would have expected a bit better.

 

[primeone]

Sorry to hear about the issues. Are you running the latest firmware? My ran much better after an update.

 

[Pattington2s]

I believe so - am I wrong to assume it would update automatically?

 

[caper11]

Just wondering if anyone else is having issues with their 2023 Ironwood. My issue is that my XL won’t reach temp - didn’t during the seasoning session or in two subsequent cooks. Tonight, set it to 350 and after two hours, it maxed at 338. Called Traeger all three times for troubleshooting, with no resolution. Was told to wait two days and try again so they could monitor the start up. Doesn’t seem like that’s a solution - for a machine this expensive, would have expected a bit better.

Mine was the same.
It will get better with use. It will need to seasoned and learned. I didn’t believe it when one person mentioned to me but its actually true.
It will not warm up as fast as my 885 but its better.

 

[Pattington2s]

Thanks! Another couple of questions as I continue to navigate this issue: do others seem to get a massive amount of smoke during ignition? Like, full cigar room amounts of smoke; and, do others hear a high pitch whine/whirl from the machine, whether it be a fan or something else? For reference, I am about 40 feet away from the machine and I can hear it whining away. This is the fourth ignition since owning, with none reaching temp. It is set to 350 now and is stalled at 250 for the last 20 minutes.

 

[caper11]

This new style grill smokes way more than my old ones. I actually had to switch to a lighter smoke flavor pellet because of it and/or skip smoking before actually cooking.

 

[caper11]

Lastnight my grill stalled between 350 and 400. Thought it was moist pellets, just out of curiosity I fired up my 885 and it warmed up to 450f before my XL even got to 450, amd it was running for about a half hour before I touched my 885. On the phone again with support for a hour and a half with no real resolve, I did find it interesting that the tech said every time you clean the ash, dump the pellets all out and vacuum the fines out of the auger, I dumped the pellets while my grill was running and there was more fines in the auger than I expected. I’m very careful not to have fines from the bag in my hopper, vacuumed them out and refilled, and it didn’t stall at 350 like it did lastnight.

I fear the XL is NOT going to be a cold weather grill.

 

[Pattington2s]

Lastnight my grill stalled between 350 and 400. Thought it was moist pellets, just out of curiosity I fired up my 885 and it warmed up to 450f before my XL even got to 450, amd it was running for about a half hour before I touched my 885. On the phone again with support for a hour and a half with no real resolve, I did find it interesting that the tech said every time you clean the ash, dump the pellets all out and vacuum the fines out of the auger, I dumped the pellets while my grill was running and there was more fines in the auger than I expected. I’m very careful not to have fines from the bag in my hopper, vacuumed them out and refilled, and it didn’t stall at 350 like it did lastnight.

I fear the XL is NOT going to be a cold weather grill.

Interesting. I am pretty diligent with my pellets but will check the XL tonight. I am currently stalled at 280. I am having severe regrets about selling my 780 Pro. Not one issue with that one.

 

[caper11]

I was on the phone talking to CS yet again yesterday because I warmed up my unit to 450f and it got to its set point in about 25min, actually one of the quickest warmups I had. I threw my meat on the grill and started cooking. The temp was maintaining 460-450f. I went in the backyard to do something, and a little while later I came back to check on my dinner. Walked yp to my grill and it was at 340f. Well im home alone, unless the dog figured out how to open the lid to gey at me food, how and the heck did my grill loose that much temp. Well I feel I once again, I wasted a hour and a half of my life yet again. I asked to talk to a engineer, but they sent me to the supervisor and did more vids and checks. Got a email today that this is the design of this grill….
We are still enjoying the XL but we have been noticing these little quirks that Traeger says is normal.