johnson controller probe question

hey everybody.. i've started designing my keezer, look forward to getting the bulk of it done next weekend when swmbo and the offspring are away for the weekend (along with brewing a few batches) and i just had a question..

i have the analog johnson controller that has worked well so far as a spare fridge.. it is the one with the silver looking bulb at the end of the long metal coil.. i want to make sure it doesn't get poked around too much as it seems that the metal is quite fragile and i don't want it to break.. is that probe allowed to touch the side of the keezer or other items at all? i was thinking of getting some angle iron (the kind with all the holes in it) and just securing that to the corner of the keezer and having it just drop down between that and the side so it won't get knocked around.. if touching the side is bad maybe to use an empty and uncapped white labs yeast container to have it sitting in so its just touching plastic and not any metal..

any help is appreciated.. looking forward to documenting it and having it up here for critiques as well

bump

It sounds like you have a bulb sensor, as opposed to an averaging element. If it's a bulb, the temperature is sensed only at the tip... so you're okay as long the tip is suspended in free space. If the tip is touching something, you'll be measuring the temperature of whatever it's touching.

I keep mine submerged in a nalgene bottle full of water. My temps are much more stable that way.