Temperature strips accuracy

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PavlovsCat

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The temp strips seem like a convenient idea. Had one on a carboy and the temp was reading about 77 degrees. The carboy was in a 68 degree water bath so I checked the temp with the digital probe. The wort was spot on 68F. I could have had a bad strip, but now I just use the digital probe taped to the outside of the carboy, with a little bit of insulation between it and the ambient air.
 
Mine reads a couple degrees low (I have the northern brewer ones). The sticker said 64 the other day and a lab stick dropped in the test jar read 66/67. You probably have a bad strip if its reading 9* high.
 
They are a pretty good approximation, but it seems to me that they measure the air temp more than the actual beer. I bet you have a bad strip.
 
I put one of these strips on each of my first 3 carboys. Even empty, in the same ambient, they all read different temps. In approx. 70 degrees, one read 74, on read 78, and one was blank.
 
My very first batch was fermented in the bucket with a temp strip attached, which read 70 degrees. When I went to bottle, I noticed that there was a banana odor, representing high esters. (used to make this stuff in chem class - it was a good thing back then). One of the reasons for ester formation is too high of a ferm. temp. Now I'm wondering.......
 
just a note I have the temp strip on my better bottle Im fermenting in. The temp strip read 68 degrees. For the heck of it I stuck my thermocouple in the wort, it read 76 degrees f.
 
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