Grill Thermometer - Probe Type

I'm searching for a probe-type thermometer to report the temperature of the inside of my Weber 22.5" Silver. I have one I use for meat (roasts, whole chickens, etc.), and it works great. It's a probe that is placed in the meat and then connects to a small digital unit outside the grill. It's very accurate, it sounds an alarm when the meat reaches the desired temperature (which I enter in manually), and the batteries have yet to die.

Right now, I use a simple oven thermometer that I place on the cooking grate as close to the food as possible, so I can get the most accurate reading as to the tempurature that surrounds the food. Even though the gauge is angled at a 45-degree angle, I am not too thrilled with this setup because I must lift the lid, even if only an inch or two, to read the thermometer. And if there's smoke billowing out from the lid, it can be very hard to read!

I would love to have something similar to my probe-type meat thermometer to read the inside temperature of my grill, and I've found the "Maverick" on Amazon, but it got only so-so reviews.

Do any of you have any suggestions or ideas?

check out the maverick et-73, it has two probes, one for meat and one for cooker temp. they have their drawbacks but, as far as I know, its the only unit that has high AND low alarms.

You don't need to get an oven probe, you can simply get another probe like the one you already have. it should work fine as most read up to 400*.

the basic probes from thermoworks work well for me.

Barret, If you like the meat probe you have I would try to get a second probe of the same kind. Make a small clip to hold the probe on your cooking grate and run the cord outside the smoker. This way you can plug in either the meat probe or the cooker probe and get the temps without lifting the lid. If you want a dual probe unit the Maveric is a good one for me. I think that many of the negative comments are due to the fact that the remote display does not extend 100ft as advertised for many users. Mine works great but many folks complain about that. There is a fix for the transmitter however, I have seen it but can't remember where. If you have lots of money you could go with a thermoworks brand .

Mark

Local sporting goods store in town (Academy) has some digital food thermometers with braided steel temperature probes. They work for up to 450 degrees. At 9.98 each I have several and occasionally use one as a grill temp gauge.

Brad.

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by mk evenson:
Barret, If you like the meat probe you have I would try to get a second probe of the same kind. Make a small clip to hold the probe on your cooking grate and run the cord outside the smoker. This way you can plug in either the meat probe or the cooker probe and get the temps without lifting the lid...If you have lots of money you could go with a thermoworks brand.

Mark </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Mark - DUH! I can't believe I didn't think of that before. Thank you so much for making me see the light!!

I just now checked my meat thermometer, and the range is -40° - 572° F, so an identical one will work perfectly for the job. I'll fashion a clip to hold the probe as close to the grate or food as possible, and it will give me an accurate reading of the temp inside the grill. As I said earlier, I'm very happy with the meat thermometer, so this should work mighty fine. Thanks again for the obvious solution!

Oh, and no, I don't have a lot of money, so I'll stick with your original idea....

I purchased a Poulder dual probe thermometer from amazon. It was very well and has a magnet on the back of the unit that will stick to the WSM. I prefer this setup to the maverick (which is a good thermometer btw). I have had absolutely zero problems with my Poulder. It was highly rated by Consumer Reports. Some of the Amazon reviews for all probe thermometers can scare you, but I think a lot of it is user error.

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">I have had absolutely zero problems with my Poulder. It was highly rated by Consumer Reports. Some of the Amazon reviews for all probe thermometers can scare you, but I think a lot of it is user error. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

I killed a few of the polder probes. I was in love with the idea of a single probe for two temps. I now have 3 gathering dust in my basement. The point at which the wire enters the probe is susceptible to moisture. I've had then stop working in the middle of a cook.

I read that you can actually cook the moisture out of them by boiling them in hot oil. Someday I might try it on my box of worthless probes.

Its frustrating how fragile they are, yet so essential.

barret[/QUOTE]

I'll fashion a clip to hold the probe as close to the grate or food as possible, and it will give me an accurate reading of the temp inside the grill. As I said earlier, I'm very happy with the meat thermometer, so this should work mighty fine. Thanks again for the obvious solution!

Oh, and no, I don't have a lot of money, so I'll stick with your original idea.... [/QUOTE]

If you need a cheap probe holder, drill a hole in a piece of your smoke wood, slide the probe through, and set it on your cooking grate.

Have you seen this PROBE TREE from BBQ Guru? It works quite well.

I wonder if anyone has tried to reconfigure it to hold 2 probes when inserted into one of the holes in the lid vent for those of us who use the lid temperature?

Rita