Kettle Thermometer Leak

I just purchased a Bayou Classic 44 Qt plus a Fermentap thermometer to mount inside. I ended up drilling the hole a tiny bit too big but it seemed not enough to make a difference. Now the thermometer leaks. Not a a lot by any means. It is a tiny drip about every 30 seconds to a minute. Its a new pot, so I'm being over-anal about it I'm sure.

I ordered another o-ring to put on the outside, and I think I over-tightened it a bit so I plan on not torquing it down when I add the additional o-ring.

Basically I'm wondering if a tiny leak is worth spending time trying to fix if nothing I plan to correct works. I don't think I'm going to lose any significant volume during the brew process, but I wanted to find out for sure from someone who has had this experience already.

 

What's your time worth?

 

Check out the way Kal does the weldless fittings on theelectricbrewery.com (it's the same way as Blichman), the idea being that you can't over tighten... Might work for this too

 

A flat silicon gasket and stainless steel washer should do the trick.

 

doing the silicone sandwich will do the trick. did that on a sight glass and it works for a year now.

 

On the contrary, it is very easy to over tighten, especially with the o-ring gaskets that are stock with them. Flat silicone ones and decent washers are the way to go.

 

+1: flat silicon gasket and ss washer. Basically a square with a hole in the middle cut to size; the washer will help to form a seal.

 

I don't agree, by nesting the o-ring inside a washer, the o-ring can only compress to the width of the washer. Assuming you've used the correct sizes*, the o-ring will not over compress. Check out @Kal 's diagram and explanation. All the stuff on my HLT, MT, and BK that I did this way is fully leak free and feels super solid.

*which may/probably not work depending on what the stock washers are... Might need to purchase some new ones for a leak free fitting