ProAccurate Thermometer Calibration Error

Whenever I try to Calibrate my CDN ProAccurate Thermometer it reads "ERR" -- any idea what the hell this thing is doing?

It was working perfectly and then all of a sudden it started telling me the ambient air outside in Atlanta, GA was 37 degrees. Yeah..right. Now I have nothing to measure the temperature of my mash with.

Stevorino said:

Whenever I try to Calibrate my CDN ProAccurate Thermometer it reads "ERR" -- any idea what the hell this thing is doing?

It was working perfectly and then all of a sudden it started telling me the ambient air outside in Atlanta, GA was 37 degrees. Yeah..right. Now I have nothing to measure the temperature of my mash with.

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First, make certain that you have it set on Fahrenheit, not Celsius. Next, try the following procedure with attention to the note at the end.

Maybe it has something to do with this:

E. Self-Calibration

1. Place the stem into at least 1 inch of crushedice
with water. Do not let the stem touch the
bottom of container.

2. Press the CAL button for 2 seconds. CAL
appears on the display for 2 seconds, then
32.0°F appears.

Note: To avoid accidental recalibration, this function
works only when the ambient temperature is 23 to 41°F.


Here's the link to the CDN site in case you want to go there: http://www.cdn-timeandtemp.com/pdf/products/DTQ450en.pdf

It's the ambient part at the end that's F***ing me up. The temperature is 42.5 degrees off, lol -- This has become the brew day from hell.

Stevorino said:

It's the ambient part at the end that's F***ing me up. The temperature is 42.5 degrees off, lol -- This has become the brew day from hell.

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You do realize that the "ambient" temperature they are referring to is the temperature of the ice/water slush. IOW, the calibration button will only be active in that range. I think if you push the calibrate button when the probe is outside of that range it will give you the ERR indication.

Catt22 said:

You do realize that the "ambient" temperature they are referring to is the temperature of the ice/water slush. IOW, the calibration button will only be active in that range. I think if you push the calibrate button when the probe is outside of that range it will give you the ERR indication.

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Yup -- when I put it in my slush/icewater -- it reads -10.5 Fahrenheit

As a last resort you might try replacing the batter. Sometimes just removing and replacing the old battery might reboot it. It's worth a try. Normally, these thermometers are very reliable and quite rugged. I've had mine for several years and not problems at all.

Catt22 said:

As a last resort you might try replacing the batter. Sometimes just removing and replacing the old battery might reboot it. It's worth a try. Normally, these thermometers are very reliable and quite rugged. I've had mine for several years and not problems at all.

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I really don't know what could've happened aside from a freak calibration to what the temperature outside was at the time. It was literally perfect one second and I picked it up 5 minutes later and it told me it was 30 something degrees outside.

This is the second brew day I've used it.

I did try taking out the battery twice, didn't help either time.

Thanks for the help though.

Ever figure this out? Mine is doing the same thing-- CAL does not appear. It goes blank and then I get ERR. Just figured out mine if off 3 degrees-- frustrating.

I just had a customer return one to me for the same reason. I plan to talk to CDN on Tuesday. The unit should let you recalibrate no matter what it's reading but obviously being off by more than 2F is possible.

Bobby_M said:

I just had a customer return one to me for the same reason. I plan to talk to CDN on Tuesday. The unit should let you recalibrate no matter what it's reading but obviously being off by more than 2F is possible.

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Thanks-- let us know what you learn. I might try a new battery in the meantime?

Nope, it's definitely not a battery issue.

bobby_m said:

nope, it's definitely not a battery issue.

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10-4

soup67 said:

10-4

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2nd on not a battery issue, I changed mine thinking it may work after.... I guess this is going to push me over the edge to get a better thermometer...

Currently mine is reading 36.1f in crushed ice water. Same Err message when trying to calibrate. THis may explain some of my mash issues

Thermopen open box sale here I come!

-Jason

CDN does have a warranty on those and the calibration error would certainly qualify.

Any luck on this front? I am having the same problem: When attempting to calibrate, I place the tip in crushed ice water, it reads 33.9F, I hold Cal button for 2 seconds, then the CDN display reads "Err."

ryanjbrowne said:

Any luck on this front? I am having the same problem: When attempting to calibrate, I place the tip in crushed ice water, it reads 33.9F, I hold Cal button for 2 seconds, then the CDN display reads "Err."

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I am also having the same issue. I have never really used the thermometer because I have not been able to calibrate. It is at least 3 degrees high. Thanks. Mark

Bobby_M said:

CDN does have a warranty on those and the calibration error would certainly qualify.

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Indeed. I returned mine back in May. I didn't get confirmation they got it, but a quick email with my tracking info got a replacement sent out the same day.

They had this problem with the first lot of the redesigned narrow tip. I can assure you that the replacements are all good. Send it back to cdn with a note about the error.

Bobby_M said:

They had this problem with the first lot of the redesigned narrow tip. I can assure you that the replacements are all good. Send it back to cdn with a note about the error.

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Yep--thanks. Contacted them and it's still under the 5-year warranty, so I'll be sending it back.

UPDATE:

Sent mine back 5 days ago and just received a new one in the mail. It calibrated perfectly in a distilled, crushed ice water solution. It also hit the temp on the money when boiling distilled water. Love this thermometer.

Bobby - anyone have a link for where to contact the company for this replacement? I've used mine once or twice and it just started doing the calibration error before my last brewday.

Very lame.

Stay tuned, I'll post the address on the back of the package when I get back to the shop.