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All you need instant read thermometer for $14.99


 
A little off subject. Given all the issues I had with my Chef IQ as late, they sent me a brand new one but I am hesitant to open it. Thinking I may leave it in the box and I ordered this https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DGGPSX3N?tag=tvwb-20 Saw a lot of good things about it. :unsure: so I will report back. Planning to use it on my brisket and plate short ribs cook. And it just dawned on me I forgot to hit Sam's club for a pork butt and mashed taterrs OH CRAP! Too much on my plate today
 
Jon Tofte said:
Just to pull this together, this $6.39 thermometer is no Lightning as far as construction goes. It does have a nice display, though, and for the unbelievable price is hard to resist as an indoor or backup one to have.
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I bought two and delivered today.
For the price... can't beat it.
The hook on the probe is kinda a pain . One review said they removed it.
 
timothy said:
I bought two and delivered today.
For the price... can't beat it.
The hook on the probe is kinda a pain . One review said they removed it.
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That might not be a bad idea. I haven’t grilled since I got mine, but I did notice that the hook is annoying.
 
I briefly tried this new thermometer in bright light while doing ribs on my Recteq. The display was more legible than this quick picture shows. Sorry about the reflection. The temp reading was very quick. Pretty good for six bucks! I will be doing some more extensive testing in days to come.

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Some of the reviews said it needed to be calibrated. As soon as I installed the battery and opened the probe it counted down to 74 within a few secs.
That's my indoor temp so that's good enough.
 
Easy way to check it is to put it in a pot of boiling water. It should read 212. or within a degree of that. A cup of ice water should show 32. +-
 
I have a Thermapen Mk4 which I have had for many years I paid $59 bucks for it and love it but since my wife kept stealing it for the kitchen and I needed one downstairs for when I use the performer I bought a Lightning back in 2023 for $27 bucks a great sale on Amazon. To be honest love them both but would have no problem recommending the Lighting.
 
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Used my ThermoPro TP19HW yesterday and, while cleaning the probe pulled it out of the unit. Fed the wire/sensor back into the probe and pushed it into the unit. Checked against a known accurate thermometer and the readings agreed. It's likely just fine but going to get a backup just in case.
Just ordered a TP623W. Appears to be a newer model with all the same features as the TP19H. Walmart has them for $14.99 after a $5 discount. Will report on it after a few uses.
 
My first one came with 3 year warranty. When it broke I called them and in 2 or 3 days a brand new one was on my door. Seemed to be much improved though same model. Has been flawless ever since (6 years now). And I really mistreat it. Having left it out in blazing sun, brutal cold, rain, snow, chipped it out of ice, name a way you can damage something........I've done it. That was the TP19.
Since buying the Lightning that too has been mistreated in so many ways I can't count. Yesterday while I was using it between the heat coming off the grill and the sun beating down I could not even pick it up it was so hot. Had to handle it with gloves. Working like a champ.
Not thumbing my nose at the ThermoWorks product many like. I get where it might even be necessary in a food service environment. But that is not me. It's overkill. Much like that giant Commercial mixer I have. I don't "need" it. We like it because it's so smooth and quiet but 90% of the time we'd use a mixer we could get by with the little 3 qt 1957 model 3C I have downstairs. But, then while it's overkill for my application on a value quotient since I only paid about $150 for it, it's really not. Because it's the best darn $150 mixer you will ever lay eyes on :D
 
$6.39 Thermometer Update

I have had the opportunity to put this incredibly low priced thermometer to some additional tests.

It is certainly quick enough, and although my phone pics don’t show it, the display works adequately in bright sunlight. Stunning in low light.

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Today, I stuck it to the outside of the narrow shelf on outside of my new Pit Boss Phoenix pellet kettle. The magnet is a nice touch, but it was a hot day and even that far from the Phoenix’s bowl (it was running full speed for high heat grilling), the thermometer stopped working, showing “HHH” when opened.

I brought it back inside and used my Lightning to finish the cook. Later, I tried it again and all seems to be fine.

MY CONCLUSION:
This is a pretty flashy and yet also quite functional thermometer for an impossibly low price. It is lightweight and not rugged. Still, if someone accepts its limitations, it’s a very nice tool. Next time I use it outside, I won’t expose it to so much heat. Used inside it would probably be a perfect kitchen thermometer.
 
What was odd is that the thermometer was closed and while kind of hot, it was not too hot to hold. I have an old cheap timer which also reacts negatively to getting hot. I don’t know whether a higher quality unit would have shrugged off the same heat factor, but I won’t be putting any thermometer on the narrow shelf of the Pit Boss Phoenix for anything other than a minute or two. I guess too close to the heat of the grill.
 
Next time you fire up a gas grill to max temp, stick the the probe into one of the holes on the side of the cook box. It should be hot enough to take it over max temp and you can watch it happen. I find that as a good way to verify the internal ambient temp of grills as well. At least until it gets hotter than the max temp of the thermometer being used.
 
Jon Tofte said:
What was odd is that the thermometer was closed and while kind of hot, it was not too hot to hold. I have an old cheap timer which also reacts negatively to getting hot. I don’t know whether a higher quality unit would have shrugged off the same heat factor, but I won’t be putting any thermometer on the narrow shelf of the Pit Boss Phoenix for anything other than a minute or two. I guess too close to the heat of the grill.
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As Bruce said it can be a therm exceeding max temp but it also can be a bad probe but exceeding the temp seems a bit of a reach since you said it was closed. What do they claim the max temp is? On a One its 572 degrees and I believe the Lightning is the same.
 
I left my Lightning out on the shelf of Big Z last week and it was close to the pit and in direct sun. I did not realize how hot it was until I tried picking it up. Sun was hitting so hard I had to use gloves to hold the grill lid handle and the Lightning was right under it. Went to probe the meats and HHH brought it inside and in a few min all was well again. It had forgiven me
 
Brian B Atlanta said:
As Bruce said it can be a therm exceeding max temp but it also can be a bad probe but exceeding the temp seems a bit of a reach since you said it was closed. What do they claim the max temp is? On a One its 572 degrees and I believe the Lightning is the same.
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I think it was the overheating of the actual body of the thermometer - which was still nowhere near 500 degrees. It sounds like Larry had a similar happening. Lesson to the wise is not to let the built-in magnet lure a person into attaching it anywhere near the hot part of a grill, even more so on a hot, very bright sunny day.
 
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