My lid temp off by -40* to -50* any advice??


 

AaronH

TVWBB Member
So I'm doing an overnight smoke of two butts and they have been going steady for about 12 hours. yummmmmm!!

Here is the problem: I have a new DigiQ DX going and the temp is reading about 240. The lid reads about 190-200. I have a pyrex food probe in one butt and the DigiQ in another. They are both around the same temp +/- 2* and I have a magnetic grate thermometer reading 240 as well. The only part of the puzzle is that the lid temp is WAY off. I don't think the DigiQ probes are messed up because the thing on the grate has the same temp as the DigiQ and both food probes are spot on. (also checked with an instant read and they are perfectly in sync)

My first smoke I went by what the lid said (didn't have the DigiQ yet) for 250 and the butts were done a lot faster (not that I care about speed, but think it was about 10 hours) But from what I can gather that would be actually around 290-300.

Is this normal? It's a brand new WSM 22.5 and only have done 2 smokes so far.

I know grate/lid temps vary, but should it really be 40-50* difference??

Thanks
 
Perfectly normal in every respect! There are a number of threads on TVWB that deal with this subject. ...all of your thermometers are reading correctly, including the Weber lid mounted unit!!! They all measure the temp at their location only
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...the locations temps vary from each other based on current weather, primarily... if it's cold outside, the center portions(grate) of the uninsulated cooker will tend to be warmer than the outside edges(lid) and vice versa. In baking, oven temps and recipes are neccesarily precise...but we are smoking, in a cooker that is not insulated, ergo precise cooker temp is not easily achieved nor required
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As you evidenced by your prior 250* cook , all you need is the Weber installed lid/dome therm to have a successful, relaxing, and enjoyable smoking session
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...just shoot for having the needle verticle plus or minus ... any thing in the shaded smoking range is sufficient
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A probe therm to monitor doneness is cool.... complicating matters beyond that is a personal choice
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Thanks for the reply.

Cool. Well at 13.5 hours they came out perfect!! I was reading around about temp differences but 40-50 seemed a bit much, though it is in the high teens low 20s out there today too.

I think what freaked me out is first thing this am the DigiQ read 240 and the WSM read 190. That was a little too "low and slow" hahaha.

Now just have to toss on the ribs and get ready for game time.....
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by AaronH:
Well something is going on for sure. Did ribs (the beginner baby backs from the site here) and again this time they took almost 2 hours longer and still prob could have gone another 30-60 mins.

I love the DigiQ (though with that overnight smoke I'm double thinking my choice to go with that over the stoker, getting up at 2, 3:30 and 5 wasn't fun hahahaha see previous post in Fan forum lol)

I have to say that after a couple smokes I'm starting to think I think the WSM does just fine on it's own. The stoker/DigiQ is cool no doubt (and maybe it's my lack of overall exp with it and smoking in general) but as said above if its in the shaded area youre good to go.

At one point the DigiQ and the Lid temp were off by 70* the temps at the lid were ALL OVER THE PLACE. When I didn't use the DigiQ the temps stayed steady where I wanted them (with minor adjustments over time).

As I said above I had a grate termo also and at times that was the same as the lid at others it was the same as the DigiQ?!?!?! Was a really strange day for sure.

One thing different was I did use Kingsford and not Stubbs (I think personally I prefer the Stubbs). Overall outside temps were just as cold both days. Who knows?!?!

Anyway after all that the food came out AMAZING! And my guests were very happy. They are amazed that I'm still so new at this. What a long day. 26 hours from loading the WSM with coals to loading the last dish in the dishwasher. Time to get some rest!! </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
 
I live in the Boston area also Aaron and while smoking this winter, my lid temps compared to DigiQ II temps were about 40 to 50 degrees apart also. I usually cook at 240 grate temp on my 22.5" WSM and it depends on the outside temperture how far the two readings are apart. During the summer, when the outside temps were in the 80's, the lid thermometer was about 5 to 10 dgrees below what the DigiQ II was showing. I think the problem is the length of the thermometer stem in the lid. Since it's so short, colder outdoor temps, which cool the lid, are causing the lid probe to show a lower temp, because the air at the top of the lid is being cooled by the colder metal.

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">At one point the DigiQ and the Lid temp were off by 70* the temps at the lid were ALL OVER THE PLACE </div></BLOCKQUOTE> I know it was windy in the Boston area on Sunday and that is why your lid temps were fluctuating. It happens to me also, but the grate temp usually stays very close because your not relying on natural draft, which is effected by wind and your forced draft system not as much. I've used my WSM with & without the DigiQ and I get much more consistent results using it. The grate temperature is what you should be concerned about, because that is where your food is at. I know that everyone says that as long as your cooking between 225 & 275 degrees for low & slow you will be fine and that's true, but many of the top pitmasters say that a big key to creating good BBQ is keeping the temps as even as possible. Whether you like to cook low & slow or high and fast, I thing the DigiQ will help give you those consistent tepmeratures.

Ed
 
Thx everyone for the info.

I did email Weber and asked them about it being off by that much and they are sending out a replacement anyway. Very killer customer service I have to say. I also ordered a Tel-Tru before I posted with a longer stem and will prob mount that and keep the new one Weber sent out as a back up.

I think I can just go by the DigiQ and have faith in it. I just got all messed up because I made it too complicated and didn't know what to trust. All these thermometers all over the place and my OCD brain saying "well what if the DigiQ AND the grate thermo are wrong and the lid is right, then I would say, well what if the lid is wrong...... Ughhhh. Guess I just need faith in my equipment.

Anyway, thanks for the info and the help guys. Much appreciated. I'll get the hang of this one day. Hopefully when it warms up, this smoking in the cold isn't fun. I never realized how much time I actually spend out side doing it until I get out and start. From loading the coals, checking on it, foiling the meat, spraying the ribs, cleaning the smoker, I ended spending too much time freezing my butt off (mine not the pork)
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content"> I think I can just go by the DigiQ and have faith in it. I just got all messed up because I made it too complicated and didn't know what to trust. All these thermometers all over the place and my OCD brain saying "well what if the DigiQ AND the grate thermo are wrong and the lid is right, then I would say, well what if the lid is wrong...... Ughhhh. Guess I just need faith in my equipment.
</div></BLOCKQUOTE>

To paraphrase what someone else said on another therm thread, 'If you have 1 thermometer you always know the temperature. If you have 2 thermometers you have no idea what the temp is'.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Jerry P.:
To paraphrase what someone else said on another therm thread, 'If you have 1 thermometer you always know the temperature. If you have 2 thermometers you have no idea what the temp is'. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Hahaha that was my problem!!
 
Remember that bbq is done when it is ready, which will not always be in the same time. The actual temperature you cook at isn't that important. You DO want to maintain a steady temp though.
 
Well here is an update. I got a Tel-Tru (just because I love the way the look) and decided to do a little test. Boiled some water and the Tel-Tru and DigiQ were spot on and the Weber was off by about 20* too low. I guess that would be magnified at lid temps since the lid (on average from what I read) is different from 10*-20* so that's were I am getting my 40* +/- on lid temps.

Well now that it's all sorted out, time to mount the Tel-Tru
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Thanks again everyone for the help.
 
Thanks for the post Aaron. Could you report on your observations after your first cook with the Tel-Tru ?
 
Aaron,like you my weber therm also reads very low so i got a replacement from weber and swapped them over and put the old one in the exhaust vent along with a performer thermometer aswell,i aslo had the redi check rigged up and a free standing oven therm sat on grate ,so 5 therms alltogether...all were pegged around 240 except the new one again in the lid mount,which still read about 200...i suppose its easy to just live with it reading low and take the reading and add 40 but like you it would be nice if it read nearer the other,s...... anyway......Which tel tru did you get and did you have to drill, i fancy one myself.
 
graham I got this one with the 4" stem:

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Yeah you have to make the stock hole a bit bigger. For the stock one its a small hole and the Tel-Tru is something like 1/2". I also ordered the "instillation kit" was like $6 for a nut and washer but I couldn't find the same type of nut around here anywhere so for $6 it was worth it for me. Though expensive for just a nut and washer. There is also a little slit for the stock thermo and I just cut a tiny piece of that silver tape stuff and covered it up. The cool thing about the Tel-Tru is it is larger then the stock one and easier to read from a distance. I do like how the stock one has "Smoke" at the 12 o'clock but imo I think the Tel-Tru looks SWEET!!!

Mark B will do!!

I think what I will do next time is chill out on all the thermos lol. I will have faith in my Tel-Tru for lid temps and the DigiQ for food/pit temps (already been checked for accuracy) and thats it. (Well my Thermopen just to double check for doneness).
 

 

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