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Troubleshooting

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papac0rn edited this page Sep 17, 2026 · 1 revision

Troubleshooting

Grill not connecting / entities stay "unavailable"

Check the DNS rewrite

The most common issue is the DNS rewrite not working. Test it:

# From a device on the same network as the grill:
nslookup makgrillsmobile.com

# Should resolve to your HA IP, not a public IP

If it resolves to a public IP or fails, your DNS rewrite isn't active. See the Setup Guide for your router type.

Check HA is listening on port 80

The grill POSTs to port 80. HA must be accessible on port 80 from the grill's network.

# From the grill's network:
curl -v http://<YOUR_HA_IP>/GrillService/Service

If you get a connection refused, check that HA is running on port 80 (default for Home Assistant Green and HAOS). If HA is behind a reverse proxy, make sure /GrillService/Service is forwarded.

Check cross-VLAN routing

If the grill is on a different VLAN than HA:

  1. Verify inter-VLAN routing is enabled
  2. Check that a firewall rule allows grill IP → HA IP on port 80
  3. Test with curl from a device on the grill's VLAN

Check the grill is actually posting

The grill only POSTs when it's powered on and the WiFi controller is connected. Look for the sensor.mak_grill_last_seen entity — if it never updates, the grill isn't reaching HA.

"Connected" sensor flickers on/off

Increase timeout (already done in v1.1.0+)

Older versions had a 15-second timeout, which was too aggressive for the grill's POST interval. Version 1.1.0+ uses a 60-second timeout. If you're on an older version, update through HACS.

Check WiFi signal

The Pellet Boss WiFi controller has a relatively weak radio. If the grill is far from your access point:

  • Move an AP closer to the grill area
  • Check for 2.4GHz interference (the grill uses 2.4GHz only)
  • Verify the grill's SSID is broadcasting on 2.4GHz, not 5GHz-only

Setpoint jumps to a weird value on startup

This is the auto-sync feature working correctly

When the grill first connects, the integration syncs the HA setpoint to the grill's actual pit temperature. This prevents accidentally commanding a high temperature when the grill is cold (or vice versa).

Once the grill reports its first POST, the setpoint in HA matches the grill's pit temp. You can then set it to whatever you want.

Flameout alert triggered incorrectly

The flameout binary sensor activates when pit temperature stays 35°F or more below the setpoint for 8 consecutive minutes. False positives can happen when:

  • Grill is still heating up — especially on cold days or at high setpoints. The 8-minute window accounts for most normal heat-up times.
  • Lid was opened — a long lid-open period drops pit temp. This is working as designed — it's telling you the grill lost heat.
  • Wind — strong wind can reduce grill temperature significantly.

If you're getting frequent false positives during normal cooking, the grill may have a pellet feed issue or igniter problem.

Power switch won't turn on

Cooldown interlock

The integration won't send a power-on command while the grill reports a cooldown state (COOL or CD in the power field). This is a safety feature — the grill is running its cooldown fan cycle and must finish before restarting.

Wait for the cooldown to complete (the power state will change to OFF), then try again.

Entities not appearing after installation

  1. Check that you restarted HA after installing the integration
  2. Check the HA logs for any errors from mak_grill:
    • Settings → System → Logs
    • Filter for mak_grill
  3. Verify the integration is loaded:
    • Settings → Devices & Services
    • Look for "MAK Grill" in the configured integrations

curl test works but grill doesn't connect

If a manual curl POST works but the grill itself doesn't connect:

  1. WiFi connectivity — make sure the grill is connected to the correct SSID
  2. DNS on the grill's network — the grill uses DHCP-assigned DNS. Verify the DNS server on the grill's VLAN/network points to your router (which has the rewrite), not an external DNS like 8.8.8.8
  3. MAC address filtering — if your network uses MAC filtering, add the grill's MAC (starts with 68:27:19)

How to read the grill flags

The sensor.mak_grill_flags entity shows raw status flags from the grill. Known values:

Flag Meaning
ATSET Grill has reached the setpoint temperature
(empty) Normal operation, not yet at setpoint

The flags field may contain other values depending on grill state. If you see an unfamiliar flag, please open an issue on GitHub with the flag value and what the grill was doing at the time.

Getting help

If none of the above resolves your issue:

  1. Check the GitHub Issues for similar problems
  2. Open a new issue with:
    • Your HA version
    • Integration version (from HACS)
    • Relevant HA logs (filter for mak_grill)
    • Your network setup (same VLAN or cross-VLAN, router type)

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