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Post by beer18 on Apr 29, 2012 15:26:46 GMT -5
I used my smokenator on saturday for the first time. I was pretty successful using it and the ribs turned out good, but i had trouble with my thermometers. I have a weber kettle with a thermometer that came with it. It slides in on top by the handle and sticks in at the very top of the dome. It read only between 170 and 190 degrees, but when i pulled it out and put in the vents it read 300 to 320 degrees. So I took the one out of my gas grill and stuck it through the vent hole like the instructions say to and it read around 230 degrees which was good. So my question is there that big of a difference between the two stops that i took the temperature? Or is it just a bad reading. So I looked online and found a taylor 814 dial grill and smoker thermometer that you would drill a hole to install has anyone done that is that a good idea or am I better off getting the one that the smokenator recommends even though it gets no so good reviews.
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Post by tatoosh on Apr 30, 2012 4:00:17 GMT -5
Hi there beer18, my experience is that bi-metal thermometers are notorious for being off, sometimes by substantial amounts. If you can, get a digital one with a probe. Lots of good makers: Maverick, Thermoworks and so forth. Also an instant read digital for checking meat temperature is really really handy. I've had one for years and cannot imagine being without it.
You should check your thermometers. Depending on the range they work at, try on in ice water, should be close to 32F - 40F, then in boiling water, 212F (if you are near sea level). I have a bi-metal I used for my oven and when I got a digital, I found it was 30F to 50F off.
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Post by ecripps on Apr 30, 2012 20:30:52 GMT -5
We've used several digital thermometers. The Maverick was the best, but we've gone through several sets of probes. I like the idea of drilling a hole in the side of the kettle so you can get the grill temp. Regardless of what you use make sure it reads 212 in boiling water.
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Post by beer18 on May 1, 2012 20:06:45 GMT -5
Thanks for the response guys. I will take your advice and look into a digital one. With that I will try a dry run since I went strait into smoking the first time to firmilurize myself a bit more.
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Post by ribenater on Sept 28, 2012 13:52:21 GMT -5
I just got a Maverick ET-732 after playing 'guess the temperature' one too many times. I drilled a hole, as small as possible to allow the probe through, in the kettle, low enough to clear the lid (duh). With the cable through the hole, I sealed the hole with stove gasket sealant . Works great. It's also easy enough to remove the probe to clean it.
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Post by smokenator on Sept 29, 2012 17:19:58 GMT -5
I called Weber about adding a thermometer and the said by drilling you can crack the porcelain and really suggested I didn't. I went with the candy thermo suggested by the creator of the DTS along with a cheap-o digital thermo I have been using for some time now. I just bought the one for the dome in case my digital goes out sometime I have some way to finish the cook until I can get the Maverick. I liked the though of mounting one in the side but didn't want to crack the coating like Weber said.
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