Digital thermometer needed for mashing?

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allanmac00

allanmac00

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I have one of those steel thermometers that I use for checking wort temperature for pitching yeast. Would that be good enough to get strike water temps, or do I need a digital thermometer? Mine gets a read pretty quickly, it just seems like it's not as precise of a read as it could be.

Mine is similar to this:
http://northernbrewer.com/pics/fullsize/large-dial-thermometer.jpg
 
No you don"t need a digital thermometer. I actually will be sticking with my analog Fermatap dial thermo. Just calibrate it with ice water and then boiling and you are good to go
 
Unless you have something special you need a digital
and you need to take a little time to be sure your mash temp is where you want it. Don't rush this step
 
Two conflicting answers. Get a thermometer that is readable and works for you. Personally I like my oven thermometer with a probe. I waterproofed the probe with silicone tubing and tie wraps. I prefer to keep it in the mash the whole time just so I can monitor temps (I brew outdoors). The crappiest thing about thermometers is that no two read the same, and you just have to compare a couple and get an idea of which one you are going to put faith in.
 
Boar Beer said:
Unless you have something special you need a digital
and you need to take a little time to be sure your mash temp is where you want it. Don't rush this step
Click to expand...

reasoning?

Why I ask is if you peruse the threads you will see a lot of people have had issues with digital thermometers. I have been through at least 4 myself . I am going to drill my MLT to accept the fermentap thermo so I don't need to open the cooler to see my mash temps. But in reality once I hit the temp and close it up it may lose a 1° to 2° in an hour.
 
springer said:
No you don"t need a digital thermometer. I actually will be sticking with my analog Fermatap dial thermo. Just calibrate it with ice water and then boiling and you are good to go
Click to expand...


Perhaps a dumb question, but how do you calibrate it?
 
allanmac00 said:
Perhaps a dumb question, but how do you calibrate it?
Click to expand...


If your thermo is like mine there is a little screw on the backside of the face . To calibrate all you need do is place it in a glass with crushed ice and water dont let the probe touch the side or bottom in a few minutes the water will be @32° and so should the the thermometer. If not adjust it up or down with that screw .You really dont need to the boil side but I do to see if its linear in temp. Never had one off by more the 1° when the lower temp is set correctly
 
If it lacks a calibration screw you just have to either remember or write down the amount it is off.

My Brewmometer is spot on and I use it to calibrate my other thermometers. The digital one I just bought to replace the last one that I dropped in hot water (anyone else done that?) is off by 5F. They are NOT inherently more accurate then non-digital. They all have to be calibrated.

GT
 
Analog thermometers are useless (for me). I can't read the temperature accurately without my reading glasses, and I can't see anything with my reading glasses fogged up, like they are when holding the thermometer in a kettle of hot water.

I've always had good luck with digital thermometers except when the battery is dying.

-a.
 
I like the idea of a digital thermometer with a remote probe. I bought one from Home Depot that worked ok... for a day. Deciding I didn't want to deal with cheap stuff, I bought this one instead:

Traceable Mini Thermometer - Home Beer Brewing - Mfg# 4039

Certified to be within +-1 degree Celsius over the temperature band of interest, and it even comes with a certificate to show the actual error! (Mine reads -0.5C below true temps). A little pricier than a regular thermomenter, but it works well. Just don't put it in the oven! (I put the probe in there for a few minutes, to see how accurate my oven was, and the plastic sheath started wrinkling up! Fortunately the thermometer still works fine). They sell another model that is certified to be within +-0.2C (I believe) but that is more expensive, and just overkill IMHO.
 
double_e5 said:
I have one of both that read the same so the one that gets grabbed is the one that gets used.
Click to expand...

I had 2 dial thermometers that both read exactly the same and BOTH were off by 7-8 degrees after checking them against a new lab thermo and a new digital.Boy, was my face red!:mad:
 
DaMoGan said:
I like the idea of a digital thermometer with a remote probe. I bought one from Home Depot that worked ok... for a day. Deciding I didn't want to deal with cheap stuff, I bought this one instead:

Traceable Mini Thermometer - Home Beer Brewing - Mfg# 4039

Certified to be within +-1 degree Celsius over the temperature band of interest, and it even comes with a certificate to show the actual error! (Mine reads -0.5C below true temps). A little pricier than a regular thermomenter, but it works well. Just don't put it in the oven! (I put the probe in there for a few minutes, to see how accurate my oven was, and the plastic sheath started wrinkling up! Fortunately the thermometer still works fine). They sell another model that is certified to be within +-0.2C (I believe) but that is more expensive, and just overkill IMHO.
Click to expand...
Seen this thread?
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f11/warning-do-not-use-professionalequipment-com-104638/
 
Be aware...I've had thermometers that read right at boiling and/or freezing temps, but were off at mash temp. Since I don't mash at either boiling or freezing temps, I got a certified calibration thermometer and use it to calibrate my brewing thermometer at 150 (approximate mash temp range).
 

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