Johnson Control Digital Thermostat isn't waterproof?

I just ordered one, but the Amazon details say that the probe is gas, and is not waterproof? Isn't the sensor supposed to be placed in a glass (other container) or water or "blue ice" for consistent temperature readings inside the kegerator?

Some of the Amazon questions/answers say that you have to buy a thermowell to waterproof the probe. One other answer says that "the probe tip is waterproof, but not the entire probe or wire connecting to it".

I just bought one myself. It just seems like the sensor is heat wrapped. To be safe I'm going to put the sensor in a small piece of copper tube and solder the end to be safe.

kickflip_mj said:

I just bought one myself. It just seems like the sensor is heat wrapped. To be safe I'm going to put the sensor in a small piece of copper tube and solder the end to be safe.

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Does it really need to be in a glass of water/blue ice? Why cant it just be in the fridge normally?

spaceyaquarius said:

Does it really need to be in a glass of water/blue ice? Why cant it just be in the fridge normally?

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I blue tape it to the keg, it seems to work ok

You want the temperature of the liquid, not the ambient air temp in the fridge

If you submerge the sensor in a liquid or tape it to the keg you will be measuring the temperature of something with a larger thermal mass. This means that you are more close to the actual temperature of the beer and plus temperature swings should be reduced and as a result your keezer should cycle less, thereby causing less wear and tear and making your keezer live much longer.

Now I see said the blind man. So taping it to the keg should be sufficient. I'm not ready to kill my thermostat in water right out of the box. Taping it to the keg right now... YEAH!

spaceyaquarius said:

Now I see said the blind man. So taping it to the keg should be sufficient. I'm not ready to kill my thermostat in water right out of the box. Taping it to the keg right now... YEAH!

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And cover it with something insulative - like a piece of thick foam scavenged from product packaging - to isolate the probe from the air. You'll get very good tracking of your beer temperature...

Cheers!

day_trippr said:

And cover it with something insulative - like a piece of thick foam scavenged from product packaging - to isolate the probe from the air. You'll get very good tracking of your beer temperature...
Cheers!

Click to expand...

OK, so foam over the probe inside the fridge taped next to the keg (not in water) is better than the probe alone. For more stable readings?

Or are you talking about inside a glass of water?

I use blue painters tape to tape mine to the outside of a keg (fullest one I have in there and below the liquid line), then insulate it by either throwing an old bath towel over it or taping an old can koozie on top of it. My keezer does not cycle often and works great.

You do not need to submerge it this way

spaceyaquarius said:

OK, so foam over the probe inside the fridge taped next to the keg (not in water) is better than the probe alone. For more stable readings?[…]

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Yes, that. Not the other thing...

Cheers!

The probe should NOT be submerged. Take a folded wash cloth and put the sensor against the side of a keg near the bottom then tape the cloth over the sensor. The sensor will measure the temperature of the keg and the kegerator will not cycle as often.

The sensor should just be a 1k ohm nickel resistive sensor. As long as you don't get the controller wet, it should be fine. If you are worried, a dab of silicone on the top will seal it fine. If not you can get one for about ten bucks that will work.

Edit: Just to add, I install and program Johnson Controls products (and others) for a living. A sensor is a sensor, as long as the controller knows the values of the sensor, you can use and brand/style that matches.

I might get yelled at for this but instead of taping mine to the side of the keg, I taped it to the side of my beergas cylinder. Why? Because I was tired of having to move the probe each time I changed the keg, and since my nitrogen cylinder is the least-often changed in my kegerator, I only have to do it every 6 months or so. I placed a second fridge thermometer in the kegerator and comparing it to the Johnson reading, they are just about identical, within a degree or two at most. Your results may vary but it's worth considering.


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And ^that^ just goes to show there are still plenty of ideas out there to consider

I can see if you used to sticky-tape the probe to the keg it would take time to manage because you'd probably have to do it in place.

fwiw, otoh, I picked up a half dozen 2" wide/24" long velcro straps from either Home Depot or Lowes (it was years ago and I can't remember which). And I have as many small squares of 1" thick closed cell foam. It takes about 20 seconds to strap the foam to either a keg or a carboy, and then stick the vessel in one of the fridges or the keezer and tuck the probe under the foam...

Cheers!