thermometer accuracy question


 
P

P Mata

New member
If i just stick one of those 8in thermometers through the top vent of my Weber kettle, is it still accurate? The thermometer inevitably touches the lid so isn't it reading the temp. of the lid rather than the cooking chamber?

Am I correct to assume the lid gets hotter than the chamber since it's absorbing the heat?
 
A termometer reads temp by the tip of the probe.

If you get it(the point of the probe) close to the grate were you cook the meat. It should be accurate. But temp is just a guide. Never chase temps. Food will turn out great anyway. You trust your oven right? Check grate temp in the oven and you will be surprised.
 
I just know where I want the needle to point on my WSM, happens to be about 225 to 230. My WSM is happy at that temp and the results are great so I am not too concerned about it being exactly accurate. Like Wolgast said it is just a guide. Get to know your smoker and enjoy.

Mike
 
I once ran my maverick in my oven and was surprised to watch the temperature fluctuate by 40 degrees!!! Happened over and over again. I was testing a recipe and I wanted to hold 225, the oven would drop to 220, then fire up and heat up to 260, then shut off and drift back down to 225 over and over again.

The lid area temp of your grill will most likely read hotter than the grill level. My lid temp is typically about 50 degrees warmer than grill grate temp. Indirect of course.

So what temp do you use? What if you're doing a pork roast that is 4 - 5 inches thick? It's reasonable to assume that temps will be different at the top of the roast vs the bottom of the roast.

I guess what I'm getting at is that.. Wolgast is right. It's just a guide. Do a few cooks, find what works for you and stick with it. That's part of the fun for me.
 
Stick with the same thermometer and get to know it, regardless of how accurate or not it is.
I have three different thermometers all with the same probe lengths, all show 212° in boiling water, but all three read differently on the kettle.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">I once ran my maverick in my oven and was surprised to watch the temperature fluctuate by 40 degrees!!! Happened over and over again. I was testing a recipe and I wanted to hold 225, the oven would drop to 220, then fire up and heat up to 260, then shut off and drift back down to 225 over and over again. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

That's how ovens operate. They cycle which is why Alton Brown cooks his rib roast in the oven inside a creamic dome. Helps even out the fluctuations.
 
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