LF good non-digital stem thermometer [General]

2010 Mar 11
OK, I've had it with digitals. They are hellishly convenient, but I'm sick of them dying. A few years ago I picked up a really nice one from a popular brewing website, and it finally died on me a few days ago.

We've got a few of the cheap $10 ones from the likes of Starbucks, and while they are sufficient I'd like something better. Bigger dial, for starters. Hopefully more accurate as well. And available locally. And for $25 would be nice.

Anyone?

2010 Mar 11
This one from Lee Valley looks decent - Taylor is a good name

www.leevalley.com,40733,44734

And I work right near there.

2010 Mar 11
just bite the bullet and get a Thermapen. it's digital, expensive, and not available locally though ;)

www.thermoworks.com

i'm currently using a Maverick ET-73 for BBQ pit monitoring and IT monitoring. cost was around ~$40 it's got replacable probes (< $10). it works well very, no problems so far. not quite instant read but it works for my intended application.

www.amazon.com

2010 Mar 12
Thermapens look goofy and they don't seem to make a left-handed one.

And that just puts me deeper into the digital game. Sure, it may be better. But if it dies in 4 or 5 years like my last one then I'm out $100 instead of $25, and will be even more frustrated.

2010 Mar 13
haha they look goofy?!

anyhow Thermoworks is blowing out the original Thermapens for $69 + free S/H (US destinations only, cheapest S/H to Canada is $18.50)

these don't go on sale often because afaik Thermoworks doesn't have any retailers/resellers

i finally pulled the trigger on one!

www.thermoworks.com

2010 Mar 13
Well ya, they look goofy and they are right handed. And I'm just having trouble imagining it being comfortable to use. A traditional stem thermometer is designed like that for a reason - it works. And I cannot even find a statement of warranty on their website. For the price I want at least a 10 year warranty. The one I had before had a 5 year for $25.

EDIT: and it does not even have a calibrate button to calibrate it at 0C. The $25 one I had has that.

2010 Mar 13
zymurgist,

I'm getting ready to order a couple of replacement thermometers for my BGEs (Big Green Egg) from Tel-Tru (I pinned my originals, only good to 750F, getting the up to @1000F for quick searing steaks ;-)) )

I'm not sure what accuracy you're looking for. If you're not using it to gauge film developer temps, most CDN Tire thermometers ($10-$15) +/- 5 degree accuracy are good enough for most applications in my experience.

Anyhow, Tel-Tru are US based and known for accuracy, etc. etc. They're a bit pricey but have a great reputation with folks on a few other sites I frequent. CDN$ being close to par helps too.

If interested check out their food service line at www.teltru.com

Let me know if you find anything that interests you. I'll be placing my order in the next few days.


2010 Mar 13
Thanks HotFood - I'll have a look

EDIT: WOW! Now THAT is a thermometer!!! Waterproof, not "splashproof". Calibratable. And cheap as hell to boot!

2010 Mar 13
i shouldn't derail this thread any further because i know you weren't looking for digital, but the Thermapen can be calibrated - check the site. warranty is unfortunately only 1 year :\ it's not waterproof nor would i expect it to be vs a non-digital stem (?)

reason i bought it is the extreme speed of reading (seconds), accuracy (±0.7°F), and most importantly, the size of the probe.

i'll report back!

FYI for anyone else looking....the link i posted earlier is toast. the deal is over, they have sold out and only have the new ones which are $100+

2010 Mar 13
I'm actually going with digital afterall from the teltru site above. I think I must have toasted mine using it as a candy thermometer, even though it is rated for that. For another $25 I'll try a different brand that seems to have a really good rep. $100 - no way.

I'm also getting an analog pit thermometer and installation kit. Also cheap like borscht!

2010 Mar 14
Wow, my original is down to $20 now!

www.northernbrewer.com

And I just went digging through gmail to find it was younger than I thought - only 2 years. I think I'm going to contact the manufacturer about that 5 year warranty.

BTW, lots of good thermometers here too

www.northernbrewer.com

2010 Mar 14
I just contacted CDN about the 5 year warranty - will keep you posted

www.cdn-timeandtemp.com

2010 Mar 16
Reply from CDN - I'm clarifying the "purchase from us" and whether or not that means I need to have purchased it directly from them.

---snip---

We are so very sorry to hear that you have experienced this problem with
one of our products.

The unit can be sent in directly to us under the 5 Year Limited
Warranty. We are only able to repair or replace an item, from here. No
refunds, if it was not originally purchased through us.

Please send to:
CDN
ATTN: Repairs Department
PO Box 10947
Portland, OR. 97296-0947

Also enclose a note explaining the problem that you are having and your
return address. We will repair or replace the unit for you.

Thanks again for your email. Please let us know if you should have any
further questions, concerns or problems.

Sincerely,
NAME DELETED
Customer Service
Component Design NW, Inc. (CDN)
P.O. Box 10947
Portland, OR. 97296-0947
Ph: 503/225-0900 800/338-5594
Fx: 503/226-0924 800/879-2364
Email: Rikki@cdn-timeandtemp.com
Web: www.cdn-timeandtemp.com

2010 Mar 17
why are you looking for a refund? a repair or replacement would be acceptable, no?

anyhow my Thermapen purchase turned out to be a pretty sweet deal, IMO. they gave me free S/H to Canada (deal posted was free S/H to US destinations only). thus, my all in cost was only $72CAD.


2010 Mar 17
Yeah, that is basically the clarification they came back with Monty :-) I clearly did not read it well enough.

2010 Apr 18
so i got my Thermapen and it is AWESOME. reads precisely and instantly (truly instantly!).

it's a little bigger than i thought (toonie in photo for reference) but very light and managable.

recommended.

2010 Apr 18
NIST calibration certificate

accurate to within ±0.4C...so it might be a little overkill ;)

2010 Apr 18
in use

2010 Apr 18
Our Tel Tru order came in as well - been meaning to post about it but have not yet. I'll have to take some photos and report back. I got a nice digital, a big long-stem analog, and an analog for my smoker. Very happy with them so far.

2010 Apr 18
Hey zymurgist,

Good to hear you’re happy with the Tel-Tru’s. I gotta say I’m impressed.

I’m using the analog replacement BGE thermometers and they’re pretty impressive. I popped them into my small Egg last weekend and they were accurate out-of-the-box (tested against 5 other thermometers).

What really struck me was the smoothness of needle during the rise in temp. Kind of like Swiss clock movement.