Can I get by with the stock thermometer or should I just upgrade.


 

Kyle L

New member
So will the weber thermometer work or should I just take the plunge and get something more accurate? If so what should I get? It seems like a lot of people are less than satisfied with the stock thermometer.
 
Kyle,

Unless there is physical problem with an individual Weber thermometer, you are good to go. IF there is no physical issue, then the issue everyone talks about (dome reading higher or lower) is not caused by the thermometer. It is the thermometer's LOCATION !

If you want grate temperature, you would need to have a thermometer AT the grate.
 
Kyle L,

Yes, you can get by with just the lid thermometer. Keep the pointer in the "Smoke" area. Experience will tell how long to cook.

But, a digital thermometer opens more options. Now the grate temp is know, there is some effect due to where on the grate the probe is place in relation to the meat.

What should you get: Stokers will have a pit & meat probe.....some have Wi-Fi options. An ET732 uses radio and works well through out the entire house. Think about how the smoker will be used. Get what works....lots of equipment with a good record.

Craig,H
 
The temperature at the top of the dome is going to be different than that at the top grate, which will be different from that at the bottom grate, no matter how accurate the thermometer. The consistency of the thermometer is far more important than its accuracy. Finding the right temperature for any given cut of meat is going to be a learning experience, so it's going to take a few cooks before you get comfortable and know that you want to see X degrees on the stock thermometer for whatever particular cut you're cooking. IOW, the stock thermometer is fine. No matter what thermometer you have, you're going to have to learn how to correlate it's readings with how that impacts your cook.

I also suggest you not get too fixated on cooking temp. As long as you're in the ballpark you'll likely be fine, particularly with ribs. The only difference will be how long it takes for the cook to finish.
 
Thank you for all the tips guys! So much info to gather and I think I may be too focused doing everything "right" the first go around. I need to see how my smoker performs I suppose. Hopefully I will get to do this Monday 😎
 
Start simple, use what you have, decide what equipment will suit YOUR cooking.
I like my cheap thermpro (Amazon-$35) pit and meat probes, it's really easy to get caught up in the gizmosis affliction. Start slow, start cheap, when the cheap one breaks, get a better one, I have a buddy that uses a digi-Que and loves it. It's just more money than I want to spend, I'm a cheap guy, unless I see the real value. So far I've not been disappointed but, I've only used it a dozen times.....so far.
What are you doing for Labor Day? I'm doing some ribs, first ones on the WSM to be honest, been doing them on the kettle for 40+ years, this should be fun.
Never mind, I just read your other thread!
 
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Yeah. I'm going to start simple with my basic hand held thermo. I'll post my results if I end up doing the BRITU ribs. Will be my first smoke ever.
 
My first two, I just stuck my fryer thermometer in the top vent. It dialed in just fine, I WANTED more information so I got the thermpro so I could have both temperature readings and, I wanted to be able to sit in my recliner if it was too hot or cold or I felt like I needed to do something inside. Last weeks brisket ran overnight and it was convenient to just look over when I woke up and see what the temperatures (internal and pit) were and whether I needed to go and make adjustments or go back to sleep! I was able to catch a little more sleep! Monday's ribs will be a little less fidgety, I hope
 
I replaced a stock thermometer with another stock thermometer and it meets my needs for the moment.
 
During the design phase, we tried a few different thermometer placements and types. No one could decide on what to put where, where to put the ports for probes, etc and all that. Then they started in about "Well we need it one size fit all and what if someone sticks a finger in there and gets burned?" Finally I gave up because, well.. There's a saying, "We don't all need to agree and we don't all need to have a vote, We just need a decision to be made." And those that were in that position, couldn't decide. The best I could do was the range on the bi-metal thermometer. Those are generally +/- 10% and certainly well enough for cooking. That final position (unless it's been moved) was where I drilled into the lid on my deck one afternoon.

Back then I used to have all kinds of thermometers and probes going in and out and monitoring temps. In testing we had hundred thermocouples glued to the WSM like a made scientist feeding into a DAQ (data acquisition) and spitting out temps over time into an Excel file....

I did an 18 hour shoulder on this past labor day. I started it at midnight, poured mop sauce on it for the first 2 hours or so but then went to bed. The temps dropped off about.. well I don't know when! I was asleep! But at 7:30am or so I stoked the coals and just let it sit around 200-250ish for the rest of the day, even going to the public pool with the family for a few hours.

Around 6pm I opened it up, got my $5 instant read Taylor which read 197.. Whelp, it's done.

Also be mindful of opening the lid and looking and the temps dropping. It's really not that big of deal. In the dead of winter when it's -9 and I open the door to take out the dog, my entire house doesn't drop in temp. The objects don't freeze -even those right next to the door. So certainly the internal temp of whatever you're cooking won't drop if you're checking things out for a moment.

Funny camera angle and cut of meat. It looks like a crab where I picked off some seasoning that I couldn't resist.

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I've often felt that heat loss due to removing the lid periodically was overblown. In my opinion, removing the lid gives the coals a breath of fresh air and possibly gives a small heat spike.
 
I've often felt that heat loss due to removing the lid periodically was overblown. In my opinion, removing the lid gives the coals a breath of fresh air and possibly gives a small heat spike.

Exactly true. And like the vents: "Open for On" (hotter) and "Closed for Cold". The lid is just a giant vent.
 
In the dead of winter when it's -9 and I open the door to take out the dog, my entire house doesn't drop in temp.
While I don't disagree with your fundamental point, I feel compelled to point out that the thermal mass of your house is somewhat greater than that of a typical WSM full of meat. Your house is also likely to be better insulated than a WSM.

Rusty James said:
I've often felt that heat loss due to removing the lid periodically was overblown. In my opinion, removing the lid gives the coals a breath of fresh air and possibly gives a small heat spike.

I think it depends on how long you have the lid off. A loss of most of the hot air in the WSM will slow cooking, but I'd agree that the oft-quoted 10-15 minute cooking time extension is probably way on the long side. From what I've seen the air temp recovers very quickly from a quick peek. Ironically, as you point out in reference to a breath of fresh air, if you have the bottom vents mostly closed to maintain temp then opening the lid may actually cause an increase in temp. On a recent cook I had the lid off for a couple minutes while re-positioning things and when I got it closed up again the temp spiked by more than 50F. Took a while to get things back under control. It's a good idea to be quick when taking off the lid.
 
While I don't disagree with your fundamental point, I feel compelled to point out that the thermal mass of your house is somewhat greater than that of a typical WSM full of meat. Your house is also likely to be better insulated than a WSM.

I think it depends on how long you have the lid off. A loss of most of the hot air in the WSM will slow cooking, but I'd agree that the oft-quoted 10-15 minute cooking time extension is probably way on the long side. From what I've seen the air temp recovers very quickly from a quick peek. Ironically, as you point out in reference to a breath of fresh air, if you have the bottom vents mostly closed to maintain temp then opening the lid may actually cause an increase in temp. On a recent cook I had the lid off for a couple minutes while re-positioning things and when I got it closed up again the temp spiked by more than 50F. Took a while to get things back under control. It's a good idea to be quick when taking off the lid.

We looking at the numbers collected by the DAQ and all the tests, sure. Temps can spike, go up, go down, when the lid is off or vents adjusted. But it recovers surprisingly quick and levels off. In that time how much additional heat of the meat is given up or absorbed really is negligible. For the times there was a spike here and there with a lid or grate temp, the rate of heating of an internal meat probe was linear.
 
Thank you Mike and Jay for the in depth responses. Helps gain a better understanding of things.

Everyone here has good experience and advice -there are not rights and wrongs. It can become a good hobby and develop over time adding various accoutrements as you go. Soon you'll develop your own black magic techniques.

I tend to set my vents a particular way. Some people pay no mind. Some monitor the grate temps, others don't. So enjoy!!

One piece of advice I suggest is to make notes of what you do as you go "until you don't have to anymore". (I still make notes!) And this way you can develop your success and be consistent. YMMV.. and I'm an engineer so I can over think this.. and.. :D
 
The stock thermometer isn't as inaccurate as it is inconsistent. I bought a digital Maverick as a "second opinion" on pit temp. Sometimes it reads close to the stock therm and sometimes they are far apart. Could be difference in placement but most likely just inconsistency from the stock therm. I'd suggest getting a digital as to measure temp on the grate or grates you are cooking on.
 
Location, Location, Location. Once one understands why the differences, the stock therm becomes a whole lot more usable.
 

 

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