All electric Barbecues use what is termed hysteresis control, meaning the power is either on or off depending on the thermostat/thermocouple reading.

The speed of the operation is dependent on the size of the temperature drop when the Barbecue plate is loaded with food.  A quick, substantial drop will activate the power to the element which must heat itself before heating the plate.  Barbecues that contain an insulated 240 volt element have a protective sheath which slows down the heating process.

A thermostat is a component which senses the temperature of a system which then enables that system’s temperature to be maintained near a desired set-point. If it is too close or above the element it will read the bottom of the plate’s temperature which is not ideal.