I cannot connect via Wifire. I have tried everything already. Now what?

[Biffdotorg]

Grill worked find for years. I upgraded my wifi...and now I can't connect.

Please understand, when I say it worked...it worked after jumping through most of the hoops listed here. Turn it off. Unplug, turn it on, turn it off, plug it in, jump up and down four times...on your right leg, turn it on, hope for the best.

Is there any recourse other than buying another grill?

This is a HORRIBLE made in America experience.

Why blame the MFG of the grill for something that has worked just fine for "so many years" as you say. You are the one that changed the configuration, you are the one that 'upgraded" your equipment. But that is the fault of the grill mfg?

Most new WiFi Access Points and Routers are set to use 5Ghz by default as that is what most have in notebooks, tablets and phones. It gives the best performance but limits the range. Many mesh systems run better, so the average user appreciates the "upgrade"

But in your case, you have a grill that is communicating over 2.4Ghz. Just like Blink cameras and other well known WiFi devices. So get to know your new router/access point and setup a 2.4Ghz guest network or SSID and use it for your grill. Heck, call it "grill network" to make your life easy. But don't blame Traeger for your change, that you did on your own.

Call your router MFG if needed, or fire up google or CoPilot to get directions on how to setup a guest 2.4Ghz network on your new router and live life happily without badmouthing someone that was not to blame for your issue.

 

[roadking51]

feel your pain. I too have jumped through the hoops for 2 years. Gave up. Learned to be 100% manual and hands on with my Timberline. While it can smoke and deliver quality results, it is in no way worth the $$ spent. Will definitely look for an alternative when it presents a symptom requiring more outlay. We are NOT alone. IMHO, Traeger doesn't really care about their reputation with existing consumers, or perhaps lost future sales.

 

[OldMayfield]

Unfortunately I joined this sad fraternity this morning, after 5 1/2 years of seamless connection. No equipment changes on my network, except a larger than normal crowd staying over (10).

Grill was off-line this morning as I prepared to smoke a 14lb roast. After several attempts to reconnect the grill, I unpaired it and stated over.

Grill will pair, connect to the “Traeger” virtual Wi-Fi network, then connect to my home Wi-Fi network (both connections show in the “WiFi Settings” menu display). But when it asks me to assign the grill a nickname, it will not allow the nickname assignment, the network disappears from the grill display, and when I finish pairing without the nickname the grill is not shown on the app.

I can use an 3rd party thermometer today, but any advice on how to fix this. is appreciated.

 

[RayClem]

Most of the new routers attempt to use the same SSID for both 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz connections. If this is the case, your cell phone will automatically connect to the 5 GHz radio. Your grill will only connect to the 2.4 GHz radio. This creates an incompatibility. The way to resolve this is to disable the 5 GHz radio in your cell phone while you set up a connection from the grill to your router. Once the setup is complete, you can re-enable the 5 GHz radio in your cell phone.

 

[OldMayfield]

Most of the new routers attempt to use the same SSID for both 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz connections. If this is the case, your cell phone will automatically connect to the 5 GHz radio. Your grill will only connect to the 2.4 GHz radio. This creates an incompatibility. The way to resolve this is to disable the 5 GHz radio in your cell phone while you set up a connection from the grill to your router. Once the setup is complete, you can re-enable the 5 GHz radio in your cell phone.

Thanks @RayClem. My IPhone 12 will not allow me to disable the 5 GHz radio (at least according to several articles on the internet). However my router will, so I disabled the 5 GHz radio on the router. No luck, similar problem: In the Traeger app I can pair my phone to the grill using the Traeger virtual WiFi network which is then indicated on the grills's display. I then select my (now 2.4 GHz only) WiFi network and enter its password in to the app. The grill's display shows it is connected to this network for about a minute. On the phone in the app a wheel spins with the notification "Connecting". After a minute, the grill display reverts to the Traeger virtual network name. No change to the phone, wheel spins, I give up after 5 minutes or so.

I've rebooted the router (which solved a Netflix streaming issue BTW), disabled a mesh node and of course turned the grill off and on several times. No luck.

Thanks for trying Ray. If you or anyone else has ideas, I'd appreciate them. I'll see if Traeger's help line has any miracle cures.

 

[OldMayfield]

Thanks @RayClem. My IPhone 12 will not allow me to disable the 5 GHz radio (at least according to several articles on the internet). However my router will, so I disabled the 5 GHz radio on the router. No luck, similar problem: In the Traeger app I can pair my phone to the grill using the Traeger virtual WiFi network which is then indicated on the grills's display. I then select my (now 2.4 GHz only) WiFi network and enter its password in to the app. The grill's display shows it is connected to this network for about a minute. On the phone in the app a wheel spins with the notification "Connecting". After a minute, the grill display reverts to the Traeger virtual network name. No change to the phone, wheel spins, I give up after 5 minutes or so.

I've rebooted the router (which solved a Netflix streaming issue BTW), disabled a mesh node and of course turned the grill off and on several times. No luck.

Thanks for trying Ray. If you or anyone else has ideas, I'd appreciate them. I'll see if Traeger's help line has any miracle cures.

Well, belay that @RayClem , when I set up a 2.4 GHz Guest Network on my router, the router app would not let me disable the 5 GHz network, the Guest Network did not show up in the Traeger app, but then the grill connected to my main network just fine and appears in the app. Problem solved. Go figure.

My guess: rebooting the router fixed the problem, I should have not disabled the 5 GHz radio, after reboot when both bands were active I connected. I guess I should have trusted my router.

These types of computer shenanigans are why I retired...

 

[roadking51]

Thanks @RayClem. My IPhone 12 will not allow me to disable the 5 GHz radio (at least according to several articles on the internet). However my router will, so I disabled the 5 GHz radio on the router. No luck, similar problem: In the Traeger app I can pair my phone to the grill using the Traeger virtual WiFi network which is then indicated on the grills's display. I then select my (now 2.4 GHz only) WiFi network and enter its password in to the app. The grill's display shows it is connected to this network for about a minute. On the phone in the app a wheel spins with the notification "Connecting". After a minute, the grill display reverts to the Traeger virtual network name. No change to the phone, wheel spins, I give up after 5 minutes or so.

I've rebooted the router (which solved a Netflix streaming issue BTW), disabled a mesh node and of course turned the grill off and on several times. No luck.

Thanks for trying Ray. If you or anyone else has ideas, I'd appreciate them. I'll see if Traeger's help line has any miracle cures.

 

[roadking51]

Traeger bashing aside, my suggestion is that you might want to try setting up a 'guest network' on your router and retry this connection. This has worked for me with my "smart" water heater after two weeks of frustration with the support knowledge base surrounding the envelope of installation, maintenance and functionality of both the manufacturer and the software app for controlling the unit. Good luck

 

[mikeytee]

Had that same problem a couple of months ago. I think my Netgear booster was playing games with the 2.whatever network, Unplugged it and plugged it back in, still no luck. Called Traeger on a weekday when they weren't so busy and a nice lady let me through it, after trying a few different things finally got it connected. One thing I know, to fix it you have to shut it down completely then unplug it and plug it back in. Finally got it to work, which was good because I needed it for my Christmas Brisket. When I first got it about 5 years ago the app would not play with my Samsung android, so I bought an old, really old Iphone on ebay cheap. It hooked right up. Now the app has been fixed and plays reasonably well with my Samsung. If you're using a VPN that could be causing some issues too, I don't know. They're temperamental. I still have the old Iphone just in case.