Ironwood XL can't get or hold temp

[Askeptic]

Hello,

I have an Ironwood XL only a few months old that can no longer reach basic temps (250+) during preheat. In order to get above 250f I have to set it to 500f and wait almost 30 min. Once it finally hits say, 350f, I back off the temp to 350f down from 500f and it immidietly falls to 300f and holds there. It use to work absolutely fine, this just recently started.

I clean the grill after almost every cook including vacuuming extra dust. The grill itself looks brand new however holding a temp or getting to temps are now impossible. Treager customer service simply read random things from a book to me and never actually address the issue. I've used the same quality pellets since day 1 and so on. This learning remote seems to be getting dumber.

I am hoping others have had an issue like this and can share what they did, if anything, to fix it. At this point, cooking with this has become more of a chore than a pleasure and I am on the fence to sell it which is a shame.

 

[Bumpa]

I have been having the same problem with my Ironwood 650 over the past month or so. Customer service has been quite accommodating, but the jury its still out as to whether their tips (essentially cleaning the fire pot, replacing the thermo coupler) will solve the problem. I fully agree with the final sentence in your post. Good luck to both of us.

 

[Mikejfix]

Same Issue with My Timberline XL. My two Oven Thermometers report that the temperature is actually 125 degrees lower than the temp reported on the Traeger display! Traeger sent me a new thermocouple but still exactly the same. Yes, Customer service has been very friendly but they need to stop pretending that they aren't seeing this problem 100 times a day. It's a manufacturing defect.

 

[Bumpa]

Same Issue with My Timberline XL. My two Oven Thermometers report that the temperature is actually 125 degrees lower than the temp reported on the Traeger display! Traeger sent me a new thermocouple but still exactly the same. Yes, Customer service has been very friendly but they need to stop pretending that they aren't seeing this problem 100 times a day. It's a manufacturing defect.

I agree. I'm thinking that the electronic control unit - the most expensive component in the appliance - may be the problem. (I have the Ironwood 650 and have had it - a gift - for 15 months. Problem began about six weeks ago.) I wonder if Traeger received a faulty batch from their supplier and the problem didn't rear itself for several months. I'm going to attempt to do two chicken-on-thrones today but am not confident that I'll either get up to temperature or not go way over temperature. I'm hoping we don't come up with another failure because I'm on the verge of calling customer service to either send a replacement control module or arrange for a return of the product.

 

[Whf95222]

Hello,

I have an Ironwood XL only a few months old that can no longer reach basic temps (250+) during preheat. In order to get above 250f I have to set it to 500f and wait almost 30 min. Once it finally hits say, 350f, I back off the temp to 350f down from 500f and it immidietly falls to 300f and holds there. It use to work absolutely fine, this just recently started.

I clean the grill after almost every cook including vacuuming extra dust. The grill itself looks brand new however holding a temp or getting to temps are now impossible. Treager customer service simply read random things from a book to me and never actually address the issue. I've used the same quality pellets since day 1 and so on. This learning remote seems to be getting dumber.

I am hoping others have had an issue like this and can share what they did, if anything, to fix it. At this point, cooking with this has become more of a chore than a pleasure and I am on the fence to sell it which is a shame.

I’ll tell you like I told the last guy. Traeger has some major temperature issues. I went through three Traegers with major temperature issues. Never got the problem solved. After fighting with them for six months I got my money back and bought a Recteq. Again I told the last guy to get your money back and buy something else. Corporate knows they have an issue. They just keep dragging you on it. Disgust me. Good luck.

 

[primeone]

Any updates on the issues you were having?

It's been a few weeks since I used mine and I went to fire it up last night for pork chops. I set it to 400, and it got there without any issues under 15 minutes. The temp swings seemed right in line (+/- 15 degrees)

 

[caper11]

Also wondering about updates. The XL is a love hate relationship

 

[Askeptic]

Mine seemed fixed for 2 cooks after I performed the following steps -

I removed the grill grates, the greas pan and heat deflection plate. I then told it to go to 450 which it did very fast as expected. I allowed it to shut down properly and then added back the internal components I had removed. I once again told it to go to 450 which took longer due to more internals. Once it reached 450 I once again powered it down. I think this may of caused the unit to relearn something.

Afterwards, for the next 2 cooks, everything seemed OK again. After 2 cooks though, it is back to its normal self... takes about 45 minutes to go from 0 to 450 degrees in an environment where the air around it is 95 degrees. Once it gets there though, it seems to now be holding at least.

I have not contacted support because it seems like the only option is by telephone and I do not have the time or patience to deal with them by phone. It also seems like a larger issue here with the controller itself and I am not sure they can do anything other than waste my time.

Live and learn, my next unit won't be a Traeger.

 

[griechers]

I have an Ironwood that I purchased in Nov 0f 2023. I worked great until Dec. 2024. Since then it won't get to the set temp either at all or it takes over an hour (350degrees). I contacted Traeger and the first thing they thought of was a temp sensor. They sent me one of those and after installation, the same problem persisted. After a few mor calls and them trying to have me start it up and seeing the same problem, they sent me the whole control unit which includes the control board, pellet hopper and auger. After installing this, the problem of heating still persisted. A couple more phone calls and the sent the only working parts I hadn't replaced, so far, the hot rod and flame sensor assembly. Replacing that still didn't fix the problem. Traeger had a firmware update on 12/12/24. It was after this that my problems started. I've asked if I could get my old firmware back and they wouldn't do that. I think they have a program/software problem. What else could it be since this started after the update. Right now my advice is DON'T BUY A TRAEGER.

2/15/25
The last statement in my previous post was a reflection of my frustration for lack of solution and many phone calls to tech support and the hours I had spent working with those folks in trying to get the grill operating normally. I will give Traeger kudos for hanging in there with me to get it right. They, basically sent me a new grill in the parts they replaced. It was becoming apparent that even this wasn't addressing the problem. About a week and a half ago I tried using the grill and couldn't get it to 350d. I called, yet again, and spoke with a Tech support from Costa Rica who seemed a little more savvy than a few other souls. When I had followed his startup instruction and ended up with the same poor results, he excused himself from our phone connection and said he would call me back after he spoke with his superior. When he returned the call he had a solution. Traeger was going to send me a new grill in the box delivered to my door. He also said they would send a pickup order for the old grill. They really need to do an autopsy on it. The new grill arrived 2 days ago. I put it together yesterday and fired it up. It worked perfectly. 23 minutes to go from 47d to 490d. Thank you, Traeger.

I must say that in all of my contacts with Traeger support people I never ran into anyone who was anything less than courteous and pleasant. Some tried to tell me that the periods of cool down during startup were normal. I played along with that to a point, then it became apparent it was not normal.

It looks like there may be other users that are having similar issues. My recommendation is to call, and keep calling until its fixed or replaced. I think Traeger would really like to find the cause of this issue.

 

[caper11]

Has it been cleaned/vacuumed out? Using new quality pellets? How cold is it outside?

 

[griechers]

Has it been cleaned/vacuumed out? Using new quality pellets? How cold is it outside?

It's been vacuumed many times. It's been degreased. Washed with vinegar and water solution.