HeaterMeter Pit Probe Error


 

DChung

New member
Hello,

So I testing my Heatermeter with my probes that I just got. Initially when I turned on the Heatermeter it would display -No Pit Probe- because there wasn't any plugged in. Then I plugged in the K-type thermometer for the pit probe and it read the temperature accurately at around 78 degrees, the same as all the other probe slots when I tested probe 1,2 and 3 with the thermoworks pro-series probes. Then I hit reset configuration on the Heatermeter and then when I plug in the K-type thermometer into the pit probe it now reads ~430 degrees @ room temperature and with the pit probe unplugged it reads 4 degrees instead of displaying -no pit probe- now. The other probe positions read accurately when tested still. How do I fix my pit probe reading?
 
Hello,

So I testing my Heatermeter with my probes that I just got. Initially when I turned on the Heatermeter it would display -No Pit Probe- because there wasn't any plugged in. Then I plugged in the K-type thermometer for the pit probe and it read the temperature accurately at around 78 degrees, the same as all the other probe slots when I tested probe 1,2 and 3 with the thermoworks pro-series probes. Then I hit reset configuration on the Heatermeter and then when I plug in the K-type thermometer into the pit probe it now reads ~430 degrees @ room temperature and with the pit probe unplugged it reads 4 degrees instead of displaying -no pit probe- now. The other probe positions read accurately when tested still. How do I fix my pit probe reading?


What is your mv/C setting on thermocouple?
Is it still set to thermocouple?
 
Last edited:
Yeah resetting the configuration takes everything back to default, which is that all 4 probes are thermistors of the Thermoworks variety so it needs to be set back to Thermocouple to calculate properly.
 
Can the HM determine if it's never been configured? If so, I wonder if it might be helpful to auto change the pit probe to to TC based on the temp of the pit probe ie: under 10 / over 400.
 
Yeah it knows it has no configuration but it doesn't have a temperature reading at that point. It needs be set as one type, read the temperature over a few seconds, then make a decision to switch to thermocouple. That would rely on one of two conditions:
A) The user must ALWAYS have a probe plugged in when HeaterMeter boots the first time and comes to life
B) The user must NEVER have a probe plugged in when HeaterMeter boots the first time and comes to life

Because there's overlap between the two conditions: an unplugged thermocouple can look like a plugged in thermistor. Because a user who hasn't read all the documentation might do either of these, then making the HeaterMeter guess which probe type to set itself to is worse than the default state of always being the same thing, since it is magically changing the configuration behind the scenes based on data the user would never see. That's why I never put in probe type guessing.

If there was no overlap between the conditions it would definitely be worth it though.
 
You Could make it on first boot ask if the pit probe will be a thermocouple or thermistor on the HM LCD screen. Not sure how difficult that would be.

I never saw it as an issue though, as you’re going to want to modify the PID settings, and will be in the configurations anyway.
 
How long is the config expected to persist once set? I had this issue, then updated it to thermocouple and it was fixed. The next day I plugged in the HM again and the config had reverted to thermistor.

Sorry if I am thread hijacking; will repost if needed.
 
How long is the config expected to persist once set? I had this issue, then updated it to thermocouple and it was fixed. The next day I plugged in the HM again and the config had reverted to thermistor.
It should last for years once set. I've not encountered any of my devices losing its configuration so I haven't had the opportunity to figure out how to prevent it. The only thing I can think of is that the EEPROM write is somehow not getting enough power to complete the write or is interrupted somehow in the course of its write and it never actually gets fully written to storage. I rewrote all our storage routines to be the preferred atmel way within the past year, which I think reduced the occurrence so make sure you're on the latest snapshot if you're experiencing a config reset on the HeaterMeter with each boot. If it persists, I'd love to get more information and possibly borrow your device for testing in my lab.
 
It should last for years once set. I've not encountered any of my devices losing its configuration so I haven't had the opportunity to figure out how to prevent it. The only thing I can think of is that the EEPROM write is somehow not getting enough power to complete the write or is interrupted somehow in the course of its write and it never actually gets fully written to storage. I rewrote all our storage routines to be the preferred atmel way within the past year, which I think reduced the occurrence so make sure you're on the latest snapshot if you're experiencing a config reset on the HeaterMeter with each boot. If it persists, I'd love to get more information and possibly borrow your device for testing in my lab.

Bryan, I'll keep an eye on it and will reach out if it reoccurs. Thanks for the quick followup and details.
 

 

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