Need some expertise on a thermometer.


 

GioGarciaFlores

New member
Just smoked a "picnic shoulder" and loved it ( first time ever smoking). I started around kick off, and didnt end till about the 3rd qtr of the Sunday night game. Top vent was at about 1/4 open, Bottom was about the same (kettle 22.5"). The standard gauge was reading 280-300*, I may or may not have made a mistake by assuming that the temp inside 50-75* lower. All which made me smoke the hunk of meat for about 5 hours before I wrapped it. All I had was a $3 thermometer from Walmart, it was the only one available due to them moving a lot of there outdoors equipment for holiday stuff. At the end it read 190* after about 8 hours or so. It was amazing experience, the only thing I didnt enjoy was being left in the dark about the internal temperature of the grill. Any suggestion on easy to use wireless readers?? I've been told by a few friends to check out "I grill wireless probes", any suggestions? Thanks boys!
 
I have a cheap(under $40) wired Thermpro (Amazon, 3 years old) with a wireless remote two probe set up, I set up the smoker or kettle on the patio and can set the remote on my bedside table for overnight cooks or in the living room, there are more expensive units which might be head and shoulders (or Butts!) above but, this has served me well. NFI
To be clear, one probe is meat the other is grate temperature. Both readout on the remote.
Oh. And they will send replacement probes on request. I have not had a probe failure but, it’s like photography, “always have a spare!’
 
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As far as wireless thermometers go, there are several out there right now with a wide range as far as capabilities and cost. Several people on here have the I-grill, and like it. Myself, I have read where the probes tend to wear out on them. Do some research, look around and find out which fits your budget and needs. My advice is run your smoker a few more times without a wireless so you can learn how the smoker runs and reacts. When you do go wireless, don't chase it. Your thermometer now reacts slowly whereas a digital reacts to temp changes instantly. When I first got mine, I chased it back and forth for the first several hours before I realized what I was doing. Good luck, and let us know what you choose.
Tim
 
You might want to consider this: I love mine. It will give you the meat internal temp as well as the actual temps inside the grill at grate level or wherever you place it.

https://www.thermoworks.com/Smoke?tw=VWB&chan=TVWBB

or the upgraded version:

https://www.thermoworks.com/Signals?tw=VWB&chan=TVWBB

I have the Smoke and love it. As you can see it isn't "wireless" but you dont have to open the grill to view the temps. The both go on and off sale often and if you wait a bit, you might get a real sweet deal on one around Black Friday.

The other option for true wireless is the Meater. I have no experience with one, but have heard good things.

https://meater.com/
 
I agree with both Tim’s. The good news is that this is an area where there many more options than existed years ago. The bad news is this makes making a decision even more difficult and it is evolving quickly- very similar to cell phones. Over the years I have collected many- usually not because they have worn out or failed, but more features have become available as the technology has improved or become cheaper.

i have not used the igrill, so unable to comment on it. I have used the Mavericks and the ThermoWorks and both brands have served me well. My old Mavericks are like an early iPhone. Still can make a call, but can’t run all the newest apps. The TW Smoke is like an iPhone 8. Leaps above the Maverick in terms of functionality and features, but also cost. And like the cell phone market, the Smoke is no longer the latest and greatest. They have the new Signals that is out.

With the holidays approaching, I would expect that there will be some good deals to be had on many that are out there, so now certainly is a good time to be shopping.
 
I might need to “notch” my kettle lip, I have never used the probes on the kettle and the previous owner of my WSM had done the notch task on that already!
Doggone it, I’m getting hungry!!!
 
Get a couple of cheap oven thermometers and put them on the grate. Compare them to the builtin thermometer. Do this a couple of times and you will know how actual grate temp compares with the builtin thermometer.
 
I agree with both Tim’s. The good news is that this is an area where there many more options than existed years ago. The bad news is this makes making a decision even more difficult and it is evolving quickly- very similar to cell phones. Over the years I have collected many- usually not because they have worn out or failed, but more features have become available as the technology has improved or become cheaper.

i have not used the igrill, so unable to comment on it. I have used the Mavericks and the ThermoWorks and both brands have served me well. My old Mavericks are like an early iPhone. Still can make a call, but can’t run all the newest apps. The TW Smoke is like an iPhone 8. Leaps above the Maverick in terms of functionality and features, but also cost. And like the cell phone market, the Smoke is no longer the latest and greatest. They have the new Signals that is out.

With the holidays approaching, I would expect that there will be some good deals to be had on many that are out there, so now certainly is a good time to be shopping.

Your comments are quite accurate.

I can comment on the iGrill. I bought an iGrill(2), with 2 more probes for a total of 4..... and sold it after only a couple of attempts at usage. As long as you can make the Bluetooth LE connection, it's a good piece of hardware. It's range is quite a bit shorter than advertised, that range is only attainable under best possible circumstances. I had to have a clear view through glass, less than a 20' range in my case. If it's range were better, it'd be a pretty decent bit of kit.
 
That would work for grate temps, but it won't help with the internal temp of the meat being cooked. If you plan to do any significant cooking on your grill, I suggest you invest in a decent thermometer with remote display. It allows you to read temps without continuously opening the lid and there is no more "guessing". Christmas/Black Friday are around the corner. Put one on the list.
 
Read the exhaust. Buy a cheap turkey fryer therm and clip it into one of the top vent holes. That reads usually 12-15 deg higher than top grate.
That's the only way I roll now.:wsm:

Tim
 
There are many that will say the lid thermometer isn't accurate. That has not been my experience. Mine reads pretty darn close.
I bought a thermoworks thermometer with a remote receiver https://www.thermoworks.com/Smoke?tw=VWB&chan=TVWBB. I rarely use it anymore.
Mainly because I bought an IQ 110 temp controller https://pitmasteriq.com/. I use my temp controller every time I light my smoker. They both pretty much agree with the cheap thermometer in the lid.
Not trying to say you don't need a wireless thermometer. Just agreeing with others above that say to use your smoker a few more times before making a decision. There is an overwhelming amount of toys one can buy. And if one isn't careful one can wind up with a box full of toys one doesn't use.:eek:
Happy smoking:)
 
Granted I haven't fired up mine yet, but based on my ECB which i had to swap the therm on because "ideal" is not a temperature, the lid shouldn't differ drastically from grate temp. I always got that thing to 225 and the new therm on that was always mounted near the old one, on the lid.

That said, thermopro has been my go to company. SMF had a post about a thermopro handheld probe being $11 vs $30 like they used to be. I think amazon consistently has them around $10 now and it's been fantastic. I'll get probably the TP-20 post xmas for my new WSM but even that's only $50. If $50 seems steep they have a 2-probe one for $24 (i think TP-17). Basically you can only read the temp on the devise vs having something wireless so you'd have to go out by the smoker to check but it'd still get you closer to what you want for cheap
 
Sorry Arsh but, there are way too many threads which State drastic differences between dome and grate temps. Where they may be “consistently” differing is a reasonable assumption. One must also assert that dome temp will ALWAYS be higher due to the simple physics that warm air rises.
All that aside, I agree with you completely, my ThermoPro TP-08 (2-probe, remote monitor) has proven to be money well spent, it was cheap, it has not failed me yet, three years and if it dies tomorrow, I’m still happy with the purchase. I have no worry about replacement when, and if, necessary. Not many $30.00 pieces of equipment last more than three years!
It’s simple to set up, has proven accurate enough for my purposes. And always remember:
“Even less than fabulous barbecue, is far better than no barbecue!”
I’m working my way back to less “stuff” as time progresses.
There are times when I really think the best products I’ve served were done “by guess and by God!” It’s a method of cookery which requires patience, attention and, practice. The most important of which, for me, is patience! Wait for things to “feel, look and, probe right” all is rewarded. Don’t overthink, make decisions and, be willing to make a few adjustments as the cook progresses, if necessary.
 
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The lid thermometer is not necessarilly innaccurate.
But it likely wont read the temperature you want. Its affected by the amount of meat, meat temp, and moisture inside.

When i did dry run to season mine ( no food or water pan) i put a thermocouple inside from my multimeter, and another temp gauge in side port.

They all tracked precisely. Within 5 F.

Did same while cooking....waaayyyy different.

With chicken wings, the weber gauge read higher than grate.

With 10 lb cold meat on top grate, weber gauge read 50-75 F lower than grate temp. Themocouple and gauge beneath grate showed much higher temps than grate temp.


Temperatures are simply very very widely distributed inside with a diffuser, water pan, and cold meat, and natural convection, and heat loss to walls occurring. Its always unsteady-state as well. Two points an inch apart can read very different. Especially near a cold heat sink like a large piece of meat!

Btw, your home oven is no better. A single temp measurement just dont work accurately. Its much hotter near elements than center if oven. Put your smoker thermocouples in oven and prove it to yourself. If you want same temo, better wire them together.

Good thing it doesnt matter. Just be consistent, and you get consistent results at slow cook temps. The only difference is time it takes.
 
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I received a Smoke for Christmas....I have to agree with both Tim's as well. The temperature difference between the factory thermometer and the Smoke is different and it is never the same different. I tried to find a 20, 25 or 30 degree difference (something consistent) but was unable to. The digital thermometer reacts quicker and I find the meat probe to be more useful than the grate probe, because at the end of the day it the meat temperature that matters. I like watching the dome thermometer and as long as it is somewhere in the gray "smoke" range, I find the cook times and such are very close. When I was playing with my smoke, I had to set the temperature about 25 degrees away from the target temperatures. I cooked without the Smoke before and I feel more comfortable watching the dome temperature. Don't chase it. Again, I think the meat probe is very beneficial but I haven't figured out the grate probe/dome thermometer differences and how to figure out what it all means yet!
 
Cole: I have the smoke and love it. I very much use the grate probe to monitor my interior temps. It varies from the lid temp and the lid temp is always "chasing" the inside temp at the grate. It doesn't take me much time to dial in the settings to get the exact temp I want and I know it is accurate and the temp right at food level. Being able to leave the meat probe inside the meat while cooking is great since it allows me to keep the lid closed during the cook while still keeping a close eye of the meat internal temp.

If you prefer the lid thermometer to the Smoke grate thermometer, that is fine, but I think you should give it more time to get used to using it.
 
Yes! I agree, I'm going to keep using it, just used it Saturday to cook 4 racks of ribs. It seems to me that it is ABOUT 20 degrees difference most of the time! I must say I'm addicted to my smoker!!!!!
 
Cole, I use mine on a 25 year old Genesis 1000 gasser and it works great. Done many ribs with it over the last year plus. I was thinking you were using it on a Genesis gas grill as well so I cannot attest to how well it works in a WSM or other smoker, but it should work very much the same. On my gas grill, I trust the Smoke much more than the lid thermometer for both accuracy and true heat at the meat level and not way up high in the lid.

I am going to have to break out a rack or two of the ribs in my freezer soon do up a batch.
 
I think it is accurate, probably more so than the lid thermometer. I also think based on observations the temperatures change all the time and the Smoke is quicker to respond to those changes. I think sometimes the temperatures cross paths and are close but the lid is spiking and the Smoke is decreasing or vice versa. Either way, the ribs came out great and this weekend I used the bottom rack for the first the time. I was skeptical because of the difference in heat, but there wasn't much of a difference that I could taste :)
 

 

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