# Cheap Remote Probe Digital Thermometers



## Thirsty Boy

I have been looking for a nice meat thermometer for using in my smoker - I wanted one with a probe I could stick in the meat and leave in while cooking - and monitor from the outside without having to open up the smoker. It will serve double duty providing me with an accurate picture of the temp in my HLT (the 40L urn's thermostat isn't exactly accurate)

So after much looking on e-bay and in BBQ stores and kitchen supply places - I figured it was going to cost between $35 and $65 to get what I needed ...... until I found this







A Fantast Meat thermometer/timer $15 at IKEA

Looks the goods and seems like a bit of kit that could be useful to homebrewers all round. I will be heading out to buy one tomorrow and I will let you all know if they are any good.

Thirsty


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## kook

Brilliant work TB!

I've been looking for one for my smoker too. I've almost bought a Maverick ET-73 (along with a thebbqguru.com WSM Eyelet Kit) on several occasions but always changed my mind due to the price. 

I'll be picking one of these up instead!


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## Barramundi

they look the goods for the price , pity ikea dont do mail order...


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## NickB

IKEA Bulk Buy?....... h34r:


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## wabster

This really looks the deal, thanks TB. Can you let us know it is accurate at the lower temperatures. I need a digital to keep milk at 32c for cheesemaking. I'll also use it for mashing grain, as well as other grog making activities if it fits the bill. I've been trying to track down one for a while but many are actually fridge or aquarium thermometers and have limited temperature measuring ranges.

Cheerz Wabster


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## Thirsty Boy

hah - I'm making cheese at the moment (halloumi) and I am using a digital stick thermometer... as I was taking the temp I thought that teh ikea jobbie would be good for this too...

I'm going up later today to grab one, and in the next day or two I'll do a comparison run with my good scientific thermometer and report on its performance over a range of temps

TB


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## warrenlw63

Don't use the Weber ones. I bought one a couple of years ago and it lasted about 3 months before going haywire. Not a great longevity factor in them I'm afraid.  

Warren -


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## afromaiko

That looks like a real bargain, good work. I wonder what the deal is with the whacky bent probe?

I've previously bought this one from Jaycar that costs about $40 and seems accurate but is a bit whacky in that it is designed to be mounted in a box, but then you can't access the buttons on the back to power it on etc!


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## flattop

Great find Thirsty i was just thinking i needed something like that, now my problem is finding time to get across to Richmond before Christmas.....


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## raven19

Thirsty Boy said:


> A Fantast Meat thermometer/timer $15 at IKEA



TB - Keen to hear how it goes, I have seen similarly priced ones on Evilbay which only good for fridges I assume. 

Any info on operating temperature ranges once you open it up would be of great use too.

Cheers!


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## domonsura

Cheers Thirsty - i was just about to have a probe like this made for my 'good' thermometer, so I could use it in _my _BBQ./smoker but it was going to cost a bit, so I'll just get one of these instead. Off to ikea it is  Might stop past Kmart and score a new deepfreeze for the keg fridge while I'm out buying myself Christmas pressies


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## kook

You'd hope it's accurate in the mash / sparge range, as that is the cooking range for beef. Med/rare is around 60C, up to 76 or so for well done!



afromaiko said:


> That looks like a real bargain, good work. I wonder what the deal is with the whacky bent probe?



It's a meat probe. To stick into a hunk of meat! If it was straight the wire would end up pointing upwards.


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## flattop

Raven the ad says

1.5V battery required.
Measures temperatures up to 130C/266F.
The cord is heat-resistant up to 220C/428F.


No mention of accuracy but usually that kind of thing is within 1-2% accurate.


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## afromaiko

kook said:


> It's a meat probe. To stick into a hunk of meat! If it was straight the wire would end up pointing upwards.



Isn't that what you want, so the wire doesn't hang down on the hot plate? :huh: A straight probe would offer more flexibility in terms of usage. Sorry, I've never used one of these while cooking before.


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## DonMac

Good tip, I have just phoned Adelaide IKEA and was quoted $12.95 and they are holding 48 in stock, off to pick one up. Don.


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## kook

afromaiko said:


> Isn't that what you want, so the wire doesn't hang down on the hot plate? :huh: A straight probe would offer more flexibility in terms of usage. Sorry, I've never used one of these while cooking before.



It might not clear the lid if you're doing a big shoulder or a turkey. Bending the wire any more than 80-90 degrees could snap it if it's the same as the others I've seen.

All the meat probes I've seen for smoker are like that. The grill probes are normally clip-on.

Touching the grill shouldn't be an issue - it should be the same temperature as the outside of the meat (around 100-120C).


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## Thirsty Boy

OK, so I grabbed a couple of these things and I have been trying it out a little. Without doing a full on comparison with my good thermo - I did the fast and dirty calibrate.

In vigorously boiling Melbourne tap water - 100C
In my mouth under my tongue (just like mum used to say) - 37C [I am healthy and without chills or fever]
In a glass with about 50/50 ice/water being stirred around - 1C

I put it in the freezer and it will read 0 but below that it errors out. So it seems fairly accurate at the usual calibration temps - I'd want to be more sure if I was going to use it for fermentation or mash control.... but I'm happy with it as it stands for BBQ/Smoker work and for HLT. And thats what I bought it for.

For 15 bucks its just about unbeatable value if it ends up being a reliable enough unit.

TB

ps - it needs a AAA battery that is _not_ included.


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## Chad

Good find.
A drum smoker was on list of projects over the x-mas break. Sourced a drum a few weeks ago and is sitting in my garage ready to go.

The best part is, I'm off to Ikea next week to pick up some unrelated stuff, so I will hunt this down while there.


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## Jase71

I bought one of these, but have no idea how accurate they are. Anyone ? 

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/Digital-Cooking-Pro...1742.m153.l1262


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## Fermented

Should be reasonably accurate as there really isn't a lot to them (electronics, sensor, etc). Usually similar ones I've seen are OK +/- 1C in the 10 - 100C range.

The only downside I can see is that it's not a remote probe so some applications would be limited.

Cheers - Fermented.


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## therook

I bought one of these from IKEA and it lasted 2 brews....DON'T do what i did and submerse it up to the braid.....fcuked it up big time

Rook


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## Stuffa

Rook,
I did the same thing to a similar braided probe, I think the sugars in the wort get into the braid and give it false readings when dry. I soaked the probe in boiling water for a while then put it in the oven to dry out and hey presto it's reading true again.
Chris


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## warrenlw63

Stuffa said:


> Rook,
> I did the same thing to a similar braided probe, I think the sugars in the wort get into the braid and give it false readings when dry. I soaked the probe in boiling water for a while then put it in the oven to dry out and hey presto it's reading true again.
> Chris



Therein lies the problem Stuffa. Not something you'd be wanting to do every mash... Sometimes cheap isn't alway best.

Warren -


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## Polar Beer

therook said:


> I bought one of these from IKEA and it lasted 2 brews....DON'T do what i did and submerse it up to the braid.....fcuked it up big time
> 
> Rook




ahhh! I've done the same thing. Mine has lasted 4 brews if you count this one. Wish I had read this first. 

Set the alarm for 5 this morning to get an early start. Had the strike water ready earlier then expected...add grain to mash tun...something doesn't look right. Get out an old thermo and what do you know, I'm mashing at 48 degrees.  
Perhaps if I'd had a coffee first I would have picked it up earlier. I had to add another 8 litres of water to the 14 already in there to bring it up to temp. 

off topic - can any one enlighten me as to the negative impact of adding this extra water?


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## reVoxAHB

P & L Brazil said:


> off topic - can any one enlighten me as to the negative impact of adding this extra water?



The simple answer is: there is not much impact. Don't sweat it. So long as you're over a 3/1 g/w ratio the conversion and extraction changes will be minimal. If you normally mash with a 2/1 g/w ratio, and today you've bumped to 3.5/1 you would likely notice a higher efficiency, but as I say starting with 3/1 and over and changes are marginal.

What you'll want to look out for is how your grain bed compacts compared to what you're normally used to.

The longer answer is: things like mash time, pH, grind, grain bill composition, etc. can throw you out, or impart changes. Too many variables to nail down or assume specific to g/w ratio change. Kai's study of efficiency and attenuation from Basic Brewing Radio suggests the enzymatic activity of the amylases is affected by the thickness of the mash. Thinner mashes enhance the maltose production and therefore increse the fermentability.

But again, I would say this will be marginal, generally speaking.

reVox

edit: added the longer answer to offset simple


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## Carbonator

afromaiko said:


> That looks like a real bargain, good work. I wonder what the deal is with the whacky bent probe?



The probe looks exactly the same as "The Chefs toolbox" crap my missus bought. She submersed the probe over the braided wire part and it was stuffed too.

She got a free replacement, so I reverse engineered the probe. All inside is 2 wires with the insulation remove and the strands twisted together and pushed into the bent metal tube (probe). I took could see nothing in the tube without the wires.

We now have a spare control unit with clock, timer and alarm.





I suggest thinking very careful about buying crap like this if you can afford something of more industrial quality.


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## Polar Beer

reVox said:


> The simple answer is: there is not much impact. Don't sweat it.



Cheers ReVox.


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## porky

P & L Brazil said:


> ahhh! I've done the same thing. Mine has lasted 4 brews if you count this one. Wish I had read this first.



when you say you did the same thing, does that mean that you got the braid wet as well?
I bought two of these, so just checking. Mine will go through the side wall, not able to get wet then.

Cheers,
Bud


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## brotom7

I bought one of these Link off Evilbay and it worked well until I accidently had some cooling water splash all over it.
Reasonable price, two remote sensors, accurate to a degree as far as I could tell, rubber casing and I did drop it a couple of times on the concrete and no problems.

I might just buy another one and make sure it's out of the way for any water.


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## Thirsty Boy

ummm, i fail to understand?? How does the fact that immersing the probes past the end of the probe up to where the braid is, buggers them up, make them "cheap crap" or in fact bad in any way? It may make the person in question a bit clumsy for dropping it, or possibly a bit dull for doing something that is patently silly, but being surprised that sticking underwater something that is obviously not waterproof renders it ineffective.......?

Try taking a lovely industrial unit...say the mashmaster or the fridgemate, and dropping its probe in water past the waterproof bit. I suggest that they will soon fritz out as well. Or perhaps a digital stick thermometer like the one Jayse bought, chuck it in the mash and fish it out when you want a reading - they stop working (I have done this accidentally... they do stop working)

The IKEA units are fine and very economical for what they are... a meat thermometer that can be used nicely in brewing applications - with a little care


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## Carbonator

Thirsty Boy said:


> ummm, i fail to understand??



Obviously! So this is a bit of an explanation for those whom may have specialist skills in other areas.

I don't intend to start a debate and if your happy with your economy equipment, there is no point reading any more of this!

Any temp probe that is not *100%* water-proof can not be relied upon to last or work correctly. A retailer selling a relatively cheap control unit with a probe that can't be fully submersed in a saline solution and remain 100% operational whom states their product is "industrial" grade should be treated with caution.

We are dealing with heat related changing electrical resistances within a probe causing an attached device to regulate other devices or a person to view a display and make judgment calls based on the output/displayed information, so it could or could not be important depending on the situation in where you are using it.

With these Crappy open probes with bare wires twisted together, it is very obvious that a liquid or corrosion (including humidity in the air) will catastrophically impact the validity of the output of the probe.

If you decide to get something that is truly "Industrial", it will not be effected by any liquid or humidity (except in the case of some acids and temps, etc). 

*YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR*!

Here is an "Industrial" probe, be it "low-end";



So after all that, I still realise there is no nead to spend heaps of cash if you are happy with an "indication", so if you want something cheap with 100% submersible probe, I suggest getting a fish tank thermomitor that will handle the higher temps required (some only handle up to 50C or 70C). I've been using one in my fish tank for years and the only thing that went wrong was the battery died. Get them from retail aquariums or eBay. B)


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## Fermented

The Ikea jobbie is basically a meat thermometer. Most of this kind with a braid to the probe isn't intended for immersion conditions. It's good if you don't fully immerse, but just use it as a momentary reading device to check where you're up to. Takes about 30 sec to stabilise the reading.

For a little more, Jaycar has DMMs with a K-type thermocouple. While they're accurate within a degree or two, their repeatability can be suss but they can withstand some immersion. Putting a layer of heatshrink tubing from 20 mm onto the probe (use a hair dryer to shrink it, not a flame) will improve it.

Proper industrial sensors (similar to the one in Carbonator's post) cost a bit more (ca. $80++) from places like Festo, SMC, etc but I will attest to their longevity under harsh conditions. Some in machinery I bought in 1997 were still going strong when the machines were sold in 2004. They were in injection moulding mould temperature controllers and had been constantly immersed in doped (anti-rust) water at 45C-90C for the duration.

Cheers - Fermented.


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## Vlad the Pale Aler

Wrap the steel braid in heatshrink to seal from liquid.

Kook- Mazzega in Kelmscott have a similar digital meat thermometer for $20 complete with remote function that works up to 100ft.


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## TidalPete

Vlad the Pale Aler said:


> Wrap the steel braid in heatshrink to seal from liquid.



You beat me to it Vlad. Worked for me too. :icon_cheers: 

TP :beer:


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## Polar Beer

budwiser said:


> when you say you did the same thing, does that mean that you got the braid wet as well?
> I bought two of these, so just checking. Mine will go through the side wall, not able to get wet then.
> 
> Cheers,
> Bud



Exactly that. It's gone crazy now and that's all I can put it down to.


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## Simon W

Carbonator said:


> ....
> We are dealing with heat related changing electrical resistances within a probe....
> ....
> With these Crappy open probes with bare wires twisted together....
> ....



The probe you're describing is not a resistive device, it's a thermocouple, two disimilar metals that generate a small voltage dependant on the temperature.... the Seebeck effect. (the exact opposite of the Peltier effect used in car fridges etc).


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## porky

Purchased two of these last week from Ikea.

First time use was today, did two brews, a single Bosuns best bitter and a double of Tony's Little Creatures clone (one of my favorites).

Worked great, fast to respond to temps, which Mashmasters are not, and with the alarm function I set it for 76 for mash out and it beeped when I hit the temp. I got close to MO with hot water addition, but had to use a three ring burner to get the last two degrees. 

As seen in the pics, the probe goes through the side of the tun. I can push it in further than the pic, as I did when temp was achieved to check it closer to the middle, but with stirring it was the same anyway.
Because I made a silicone plug for it to pass through, I am able to pull the probe out of the tun while water is still in it and it doesn't leak....works kinda like a ducks arse  
Now, I won't be getting it wet like so many seem to have, and I can't see why it won't last awhile. 

Thanks TB for the heads up

Cheers,
Bud

and carbonator, use a bit of imagination hey. any one can purchase anything. but we don't purchase beer do we...nor do we purchase our brewerys. we make thing work for us as cost effectivily as we can.
it is called part of the fun.


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## Fermented

That's a great and simple idea, budwiser.

Looks like Occam's Razor is at it again. 

Cheers - Fermented.


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## Polar Beer

budwiser said:


> Worked great, fast to respond to temps, which Mashmasters are not, and with the alarm function I set it for 76 for mash out and it beeped when I hit the temp.



The alarm is handy...but does anyone know how to turn it off? Not only the alarm, but the unit itself? I was flicking it over to the timer function just to shut it up. 

FYI - called Ikea to enquire about an exchange for my ruined unit. Unfortunately the person I spoke to (Richmond, melb) had very very poor English skills. After much frustration I eventually managed to get the staff member to understand that I wasn't calling to advise the product was "Fantastic" :huh: , rather it's a thermometer called FANTAST!!
"Why do you want to return your item sir if it's fantastic?" serious

After all that, I was told all returns need to be done in store.


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## Bribie G

Jase71 said:


> I bought one of these, but have no idea how accurate they are. Anyone ?
> 
> http://cgi.ebay.com.au/Digital-Cooking-Pro...1742.m153.l1262



I bought something almost identical from CraftBrewer and it's great for strike water, mashing etc and is suitably accurate. However problem is that when trying to get temperature of the current brew in the fridge and holding the probe against the side of the fermenter I don't really trust the reading because obviously there's cold fermenter on one side of the metal and warm air on the other side..... 
So the Ikea one would be great to feed down through the airlock hole and just leave it there ... suitably sterilised and the hole stufed with cotton wool whatever.

I know some guys just sit a thermometer in a jug of water in the fridge but that wouldn't give really accurate reading during initial fermentation where the wort is generating its own heat and that's the critical area I need to monitor especially with West Yorkshire yeast.

How much currently are they from IKEA does anyone know?
Advantage of IKEA in Brisbane is that they are just down the road from Ross' store - or maybe a disadvantage as it's a bit of a trap

"Abandon All Dough ye who enter here" :lol: :lol:


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## porky

P & L Brazil said:


> The alarm is handy...but does anyone know how to turn it off? Not only the alarm, but the unit itself? I was flicking it over to the timer function just to shut it up.



I raised the set point, it stopped beeping.
I won't turn it off. I have a similar unit that doesn't go above 70 C (so no good for brewing) in the shed and it has been on with the same battery for about three years now. 

Cheers,
Bud


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## porky

> How much currently are they from IKEA does anyone know?



Mine came from Logan and were 15 bucks each.

Cheers,
Bud


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## DiscoStu

I bought one of these from Jaycar and I bought the probe thermocouple to go with it.

Works really well, faster to read temp than my old cheap $10 digital, I have the wire type taped to the side of my fermentor and the probe I use in the mash tun and for testing the kettle temp.


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## cubbie

BribieG said:


> I bought something almost identical from CraftBrewer and it's great for strike water, mashing etc and is suitably accurate. However problem is that when trying to get temperature of the current brew in the fridge and holding the probe against the side of the fermenter I don't really trust the reading because obviously there's cold fermenter on one side of the metal and warm air on the other side.....
> So the Ikea one would be great to feed down through the airlock hole and just leave it there ... suitably sterilised and the hole stufed with cotton wool whatever.
> 
> I know some guys just sit a thermometer in a jug of water in the fridge but that wouldn't give really accurate reading during initial fermentation where the wort is generating its own heat and that's the critical area I need to monitor especially with West Yorkshire yeast.
> 
> How much currently are they from IKEA does anyone know?
> Advantage of IKEA in Brisbane is that they are just down the road from Ross' store - or maybe a disadvantage as it's a bit of a trap
> 
> "Abandon All Dough ye who enter here" :lol: :lol:




I have an old fridge with the old bulb type theromstat. I was able to easily pull the old temp control out and replace it with a new dial (+30 to -50) and probe which sits in a 1.5 litre water bottle. This was cheap and easy, but the dial is in intervals of 5 and it has a slight give (so hard to set), plus I don't think I could easily place the bulb in my fermeter. I try to set the temp to 17-18c to account for the extra temp in the fermenter. As you mentioned the IKEA probe looks like an option to place through the airlock so I can calibrate my temps.

Do the other fridge control options mentioned on AHB involve placing a probe in your fermenter?


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## maj

BribieG said:


> However problem is that when trying to get temperature of the current brew in the fridge and holding the probe against the side of the fermenter I don't really trust the reading because obviously there's cold fermenter on one side of the metal and warm air on the other side.....




i don't quite have such good temp control myself going the frozen water bottles in a broken fridge method BUT I did hear on one of the Jamil episodes - can't remember which - that he tapes his probe to the side of the fermenter and covers that with a curved piece of styrofoam. Assuming he's talking about his thermometer probe i can't see why that wouldn't work for you, Bribie. It's certainly what i'll be doing when i do get a working ferment fridge.


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## samhighley

*bump*

There's a new thermocouple thermometer at Jaycar:





Comes with two thermocouples and promises "laboratory accuracy" of 0.5%.

Linky dinky


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