Thermocouple or not


 
M

MartinBell

New member
I am looking to buy a heater meter, however 1 question

Should I go with the thermocouple option? Struggling to find a decent thermocouple here in the uk as most seem to be out of stock

If I go thermocouple option can I use the other probes as a pit probe until I source the thermocouple?

Thanks
 
MartinBell said:
If I go thermocouple option can I use the other probes as a pit probe until I source the thermocouple?
Click to expand...
The "control" probe is the first enabled probe in the list, so the thermocouple port can be set to "Disabled" and the first food probe becomes the Pit probe.

I prefer the thermocouple for the reasons in the wiki, but I wouldn't say they're a game changer or highly recommended. When I make a HeaterMeter for a friend or friend's friend, it is always a thermocouple type though.
 
Martin, Ive been using this Thermocouple for a few years now, it is fairly long but spot on for my application in an Ugly drum smoker as the tip reaches approx the centre of the drum when inserted from the side. It seems to be in stock at mouser.co.uk and amazon.co.uk. great value for the price in my opinion.

SEN-13715 Thermocouple Type-K - Stainless Steel

 
VicusJ said:
Martin, Ive been using this Thermocouple for a few years now, it is fairly long but spot on for my application in an Ugly drum smoker as the tip reaches approx the centre of the drum when inserted from the side. It seems to be in stock at mouser.co.uk and amazon.co.uk. great value for the price in my opinion.

SEN-13715 Thermocouple Type-K - Stainless Steel

Click to expand...
Thank you should be able to insert this through the grommet in my WSM 22
 
Though the grommet will get you a in-accurate temp reading, unless you want to know the temp near the side between the grates. It would be better to have the probe on the top grate, near the food. This is what I do and just run my cables out under the lid.
 
I run mine through the grommet, but then up to the top grate. The grommet is just a place to get the probe into the smoker.
 
Thermocouples have 1 downfall
The mini thermocouple plug.

What eventually happens is the cable gets twisted at the plug
eventually this twisting may cause the bare wires inside the plug on screw terminals to contact each other,
causing it to read ambient temperature instead of the temperature in the smoker or read erratically

Easy to fix just take care not to twist your plug and cable on the thermocouple
Even then, it just seems to happen over time
 
WBegg said:
I run mine through the grommet, but then up to the top grate. The grommet is just a place to get the probe into the smoker.
Click to expand...
Was thinking of getting an extended probe so extends to centre this would then be halfway between the upper and lower Grill grate. Surely the probes read at the tip?
 
MartinBell said:
Was thinking of getting an extended probe so extends to centre this would then be halfway between the upper and lower Grill grate. Surely the probes read at the tip?
Click to expand...

On my UDS I had used a permanent probe mounted to the side of the UDS and it extended to the center, about one inch below the grate.
 
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