Infrared thermometer, anyone use em?

[Dave70]

I need a new thermometer, and these are cheap (ish) and look cool.
Obviously unlike a probe type, they take readings from the surface only, so there may be an issue there, but they're super convenient, which offsets this slightly.

What do you think?

 

[Bribie G]

I take it this is a laser pointed device? Excellent for taking temperatures of matt surfaces such as fermenters and cubes. So if you are pitching a cube and it reads 19 degrees then all good, and useful for checking temp of fermenters if you don't have them in a fridge, for example fermenting under lagging in the garage, as I do in the winter, or in a dead fridge with ice blocks.

No use whatsoever for measuring wort or anything reflective like glass or a SS container as the rays get reflected and diffracted all over the place and the device gets totally confused. I won one a few years ago and use it often, for the above purposes, but probably won't buy another if this one dies.

 

[Truman42]

I use mine all the time for checking wort temp in a fermenter prior to pitching and checking the temp of a starter in a conical flask. Not that exact model shown above though.

Ive done some tests and even through glass mine is never more than 1 C out which is good enough when wanting to know if my yeast starter is cool enough to pitch the yeast or if its close enough to my wort temp so I can pitch my starter etc.

 

[Mr. No-Tip]

Define cheap(ish)...

I've had a thermopen for a couple months....still has a probe for liquids it's superfast and pretty easy.

 

[Mr. No-Tip]

I use mine all the time for checking wort temp in a fermenter prior to pitching and checking the temp of a starter in a conical flask. Not that exact model shown above though.

Ive done some tests and even through glass mine is never more than 1 C out which is good enough when wanting to know if my yeast starter is cool enough to pitch the yeast or if its close enough to my wort temp so I can pitch my starter etc.

The yeast starter scenario seems a great idea.

 

[Dave70]

I take it this is a laser pointed device? Excellent for taking temperatures of matt surfaces such as fermenters and cubes. So if you are pitching a cube and it reads 19 degrees then all good, and useful for checking temp of fermenters if you don't have them in a fridge, for example fermenting under lagging in the garage, as I do in the winter, or in a dead fridge with ice blocks.

No use whatsoever for measuring wort or anything reflective like glass or a SS container as the rays get reflected and diffracted all over the place and the device gets totally confused. I won one a few years ago and use it often, for the above purposes, but probably won't buy another if this one dies.

I use mine all the time for checking wort temp in a fermenter prior to pitching and checking the temp of a starter in a conical flask. Not that exact model shown above though.

Ive done some tests and even through glass mine is never more than 1 C out which is good enough when wanting to know if my yeast starter is cool enough to pitch the yeast or if its close enough to my wort temp so I can pitch my starter etc.

Oh dear..

Define cheap(ish)...

Thirty bucks (ish)

 

[Camo6]

I found one for about $3 plus $9 delivery. Similar to one in pic. Took bout a month to get here tho. Works a treat. Use it for rough temp readings as per trumans post. Good for checking wort temp when using IC with recirc. Always reads within .2 OR .3 °c of stc1000 when reading fermenter temp in fridge.

 

[NewtownClown]

No use whatsoever for measuring wort or anything reflective like glass or a SS container as the rays get reflected and diffracted all over the place and the device gets totally confused. I won one a few years ago and use it often, for the above purposes, but probably won't buy another if this one dies.

The DO work on such materials if you know the Emissivity Value of the material being measured.
Cheap devices are preset to an Emissivity Value of .95 because that is what most organic materials return, expensive ones are variable so a value can be "dialled" in. Emissivity Values can be found in tables in many web sites. Here's one and another .
Matt black tape or paint on the surface of a material to be measured returns very close results, as does masking tape.
I have a very cheap pen type one I have used for + three years (same battery!) that is very accurate +/- 1c when compared to a thermometer of known accuracy

 

[Dave70]

I'll be using it to:

check strike water temp.
check mash temp. (obviously giving a stir)
check wort temp before pitching.
pointing at my wife and making some rubbish joke like ''set phasers to stun.."


If it's +/- a degree here and there, that's all I ask.

 

[Truman42]

Oh dear..




Thirty bucks (ish)

Care to eloborate why you said "Oh Dear" ?????? Not being a smart arse just curious as to why you think my method doesnt work?

 

[jberries]

As for measuring the temperature to
-check mash temp. (obviously giving a stir)
-check wort temp before pitching.
it can be tricky as I have noticed that when aimed at bubbles it reads a lot less of a temperature than when aimed at the wort without bubbles.

So as mentioned above, not so great for liquid.

 

[Spiesy]

Excellent for taking temperatures of matt surfaces such as fermenters and cubes

I use mine all the time for checking wort temp in a fermenter prior to pitching and checking the temp of a starter in a conical flask. Not that exact model shown above though.

Should be fine... huh?

 

[Dave70]

Care to eloborate why you said "Oh Dear" ?????? Not being a smart arse just curious as to why you think my method doesnt work?

"Oh dear" simply implied my own befuddlement as to how two experienced brewers could draw two completely different conclusions.

Who knows? Maby your one is awesome and cutting edge and Bribie won his in an RSL fundraiser or something.

Hope that squares things up.

 

[donburke]

my mashmaster thermometers on my hlt, mash tun and kettle are surprisingly accurate, and have retained their accuracy for the past 2 years, despite the less than gentle treatment

i occasionally compare them to a glass lab thermometer and a thermopen and get consistent readings across all instruments

but i kind of like the idea of getting one for 'pointing at wife' factor

 

[QldKev]

I'll be using it to:

check strike water temp.
check mash temp. (obviously giving a stir)
check wort temp before pitching.
pointing at my wife and making some rubbish joke like ''set phasers to stun.."


If it's +/- a degree here and there, that's all I ask.

Besides shooting the wife, an stc-1000 can do the rest with a nice big display you can read from a distance. As a bonus if you're using elec heating it can even turn of the element at the correct temp. It's pretty handy for making Sous Vide steaks (guess what's cooking for dinner)


QldKev

 

[Truman42]

I got mine from Blackwoods and it cost around $60 so maybe that's why it's accurate. It's a completely different design. Not 100% but close enough.

And I too use it for pointing at my wife's boobs and making an eeeeehh noise. She rolls her eyes and says "grow up" its fun being a guy. You can act like a little boy and get away with it.

Have any of you ever known a woman who thinks Family guy is funny??

 

[Yob]

SWMBO laughs her ass off.. Love's it

 

[GuyQLD]

SWMBO laughs her ass off.. Love's it

That's a rare woman you have there Yob. Mine can't stand it - Don't know what's wrong with her.

 

[tonyt]

Reckon they would be ok for checking kegs in fridge?

 

[dmac80]

The DO work on such materials if you know the Emissivity Value of the material being measured.
Cheap devices are preset to an Emissivity Value of .95 because that is what most organic materials return, expensive ones are variable so a value can be "dialled" in. Emissivity Values can be found in tables in many web sites. Here's one and another .
Matt black tape or paint on the surface of a material to be measured returns very close results, as does masking tape.
I have a very cheap pen type one I have used for + three years (same battery!) that is very accurate +/- 1c when compared to a thermometer of known accuracy

Newtown clown is correct about the emissivity setting on IR temp measuring devices, the only other thing to note is that you really need to know the background emissivity of the surrounding environment, as this has has an effect on the measured temp.

I did a week long course on Infrared Thermography with an expert in the field from Canada, and what he would say about these devices (point and shoot type) was that they were 'a piece of crap'. He meant this in terms of the accuracy of the temperature measurement.

They are great for rough measurements, but i wouldn't use them for any critical temp measurements in brewing (e.g. mash temp). A good brewing thermometer would be the best bet, not as convenient, but should be more accurate.

Cheers
Dan

P.S. My wife enjoys Family Guy, it's one thing we actually watch together.

Edit:Clarity