thermocouple question (yes I looked through search results)


 

Todd E.

TVWBB Member
I've bullied my brother and BBQ competition teammate into going the HM route. I think I'm going to go the thermocouple option but am totally lost on what "style" to get. I know K type and all that but what are the rest of you TCers out there using in your WSMs? I have been positioning my thermistor pit probe clipped to the underside of the top grate. The wire runs trough a grommet.

I searched this forum for "thermocouple" but after 7 pages of results, I still didn't have a consensus.

Todd
 
There are so many to choose from, for so cheap too.... Being for a WSM you don't have to worry about high temp cooking so the field is wide open. I've purchased expensive ThermoWorks TC's and cheap Amazon ones, they both work fine but the TW unit can take a brutal beating from both heat and moisture.
One thing I always made sure of before I purchased a TC is whether it is the isolated or grounded type. In the beginning some people were having issues when touching the TC with their hand or even touching their grill when using a grounded type TC. I haven't heard a report of this in a long time so perhaps that is a non issue now, but isolated TC's never had this problem in the first place so I stick with them.
Another thing you might look at is the size/mass of the tc. Some are little needles and others have big old probes. The thin units react fast, units with more mass react slower. Fast might seem good but in some cookers it might make the HM a bit over reactive to air flow as the blower kicks on/off. The bigger ones will react slower and therefore have a leveling effect on rapid temperature changes, while a thin probe will send the pit temp graph up and down rapidly.
So bottom line is there is no right answer, and since they are cheap you might want to try a few different styles to see what works out best for you. I think a lot of people use the type with the alligator clip and clip it to their grill grate....
 
I second using one with a "medium" sized probe. You want it to react relatively quick, but you don't want it to be so fast that it's twitchy. I'm using ones that have a 3" long probe end that's about 1/4" in diameter and it seems to be perfect for my needs.
 
I started off using the one on the right, but it was just a tad too sensitive. The one on the left is my go-to pit probe now and I'm getting great results.

C0SuYiil.jpg
 
Steve,

Where did you get your TC probe? I like the mount using the grate clip. Does the probe reside "permanently" inside the smoker or do you run it through a hole large enough for the fastener? Maybe you run the prbe through a grommet and attach the clip for each cook.

Todd
 
Thermoworks sells that clip and dozens of TC's that can be mounted through a hole with a nut. Many TC's share that mounting style....
 

 

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