Analog VS Digital Thermometers

[RonW]

I've been lurking the forums long enough I decided to sign up today. Mostly because I have a question/thought.

Like I said I have been lurking the forums (for probably about 6 months now) and have noticed that most brew set-ups are using analog (dial) thermometers. Even newly designed kits (besides automated) are coming with analog thermometers.

Keep in mind I haven't been a brewer for long, but I have been in the BBQ arena for several years now and everyone in that realm knows better than to trust an analog thermometer for even the most insignificant task.

But my question is, After all the meticulous effort that goes into making beer, why are so many people relying on an analog thermometers when trying to strike/mash/sparge, ect. when much more precise instruments are available at a fraction of the cost of a new BK.

Is it not all that important, i.e. just trying to stay in a certain range? But when I see that I am supposed to mash at lets say 153, I am not ok with trusting an analog that could be ~25 degrees off.

Am i being too uptight about my temperatures?

 

[unionrdr]

I got frustrated with the dial type thermometer I bought. The darn dial turns around, negating any accurate setting. At least to me? I now use to floating thermometers, one for the mash, one for the sparge water. Many use better quality probe style thermometers that work well. I have yet to find any probe style I'd use in my bbq pit, though.

 

[JoshuaW]

I see where you are coming from, it is not uncommon for high temp BBQ thermometers to be significantly off. In the case of the analog thermometers most people use for brewing, they are built for higher accuracy and often have a method for calibrating them. Nothing is perfect, but they wont be ~25*F off.

I personally prefer digital, but a high quality digital is more expensive than a high quality analog.

 

[Spartangreen]

I hate to worry about batteries. That being said, I use both depending on what I'm doing. Dial seems to last and last where I've been through several digital type.

 

[RonW]

I guess maybe I just have a stigma of analog thermometers from what I have learned in the past.

Yes a high quality digital is more expensive than analog. But I've been looking at video tutorials and all that about brewing equipment/tutorials and people have 2-300$ brew kettles, several hundred dollar fermenters, kegerators and all that, but use a $20 analog thermometer to check temperatures.

If BBQ has tough me anything, it's that a good thermometer is worth it's weight in gold. Trying to figure out why people put so much money into all these big ticket items and ignore some of the smaller ones.

 

[slym2none]

My dial thermometer is accurate, and it works.

I also don't have a SS 3-vessel system, just a small-ish pot, and a bag.

 

[normonster]

25 degrees off!! Holy shizzzzzle. Going to have a high finishing gravity. lol. I check mine every brewday with a spirits based thermometer so I feel like I'm closer than +/-25 my self.

 

[specharka]

I've been lurking the forums long enough I decided to sign up today. Mostly because I have a question/thought.



Like I said I have been lurking the forums (for probably about 6 months now) and have noticed that most brew set-ups are using analog (dial) thermometers. Even newly designed kits (besides automated) are coming with analog thermometers.



Keep in mind I haven't been a brewer for long, but I have been in the BBQ arena for several years now and everyone in that realm knows better than to trust an analog thermometer for even the most insignificant task.



But my question is, After all the meticulous effort that goes into making beer, why are so many people relying on an analog thermometers when trying to strike/mash/sparge, ect. when much more precise instruments are available at a fraction of the cost of a new BK.



Is it not all that important, i.e. just trying to stay in a certain range? But when I see that I am supposed to mash at lets say 153, I am not ok with trusting an analog that could be ~25 degrees off.



Am i being too uptight about my temperatures?

There's nothing scientific that promises a digital thermometer is any more accurate than an analog thermometer. BBQ thermometers have a larger range than dial thermometers but a larger resolution as well. In contrast, digital thermometers might have a much finer resolution than analog thermometers, but approximately the same margin of error. The only convenience associated with a digital thermometer is that it's easier to read.

View attachment ImageUploadedByHome Brew1448327415.099448.jpg

 

[RonW]

There's nothing scientific that promises a digital thermometer is any more accurate than an analog thermometer. BBQ thermometers have a larger range than dial thermometers but a larger resolution as well. In contrast, digital thermometers might have a much finer resolution than analog thermometers, but approximately the same margin of error. The only convenience associated with a digital thermometer is that it's easier to read.

Im not saying you're wrong here, and definitely don't want to start arguments or sound like a tool. I have done the same thing as you with many different thermometers, so have many other people. Is that scientific? No, but its enough to make me stray from dials. However, I was comparing them side by side with iced and boiling water. I HAVE seen dial thermometers up to 25 degrees off and it often takes them a long time before they settle into their range.

Maybe like someone else said, the dial ones for brewing are better calibrated.. I don't know. But for me personally I trust my thermapen and maverick more than I would trust any dial.

My question stemmed from wanting to buy a new mash tun. If I end up with one that is equipped with a dial, maybe time and use will change my mind.

 

[PeteNMA]

If you buy a good quality dial thermometer from a reputable vendor it will usually be sold with a stated tolerance, which you can subsequently calibrate at appropriate temperatures. I have one (installed on my kettle) from Brewhardware which is within 1F when checked against my Thermapen between about 120F all the way to 212F.

It's also important to note that thermometers are not necessarily required to be all that accurate. Provided you are within a couple of degrees at mash temperature, you're going to be just fine making beer.

A dig around these forums will also show hundreds of threads where people warn against using the cheap thermometers which come with turkey fryer kits and the like, the very same that the BBQ crew warn about. As you note, these can be comically inaccurate.

 

[RonW]

Am i being too uptight about my temperatures?

It's also important to note that thermometers are not necessarily required to be all that accurate. Provided you are within a couple of degrees at mash temperature, you're going to be just fine making beer.

This is what I was really looking for. Thanks Pete

 

[PeteNMA]

No worries. There's a lot of information around which can be very difficult to synthesize down to what you actually need to worry about, what you don't need to worry about and stuff which you only need to worry about as you either progress with this hobby or as you scale up.

As I mentioned I have a Thermapen, which gets used for checking my mash temps and is also used to calibrate the dial thermometer in my boil kettle and my PID controller for my hot liquor tank.

I use it in the mash because it reads fast and accurately, so I can get a stable reading after dough in quickly, then throw the lid on and walk away. Thanks to a lot of use with my particular system, I can be fairly confident that I'll hit my targets and won't need to do any adjusting after the fact, however if I'm within 2F of where I meant to be I don't worry about it.

I'm more concerned with being consistent from batch to batch, which is where good notes come in. Accurate recording of your water volumes, grain bills and associated temperatures will mean that you can hit the same mash temp time after time. If you are reading a mash temp of 152F, but you are actually mashing at 150F or 156F then it doesn't really matter. You will either like the resulting beer, in which case you can repeat the process easily and make more, or you know what you will need to change to try and manipulate the final product to be more to your liking.

As for the dial thermometer in my boil kettle, even though it is more than accurate enough above about 120F, it's only ever a yardstick for how close I am to boiling. Do I have five minutes to go and grab something or do I need to be on guard with the anti-foam? Do I need to run the chiller longer or can I stop recirculating and pump out?

The dial thermometer on the kettle is because I never need a super-fast reading, a digital thermometer in a fitting would be fried by the burner in short order, and I really don't like sticking my hand down near the boiling or near boiling wort, no matter how fast the Thermapen is.

 

[DU99]

unless you spend big $$$$'s most are inacuurate.i have check four of my digitial ones ,they are different prices and none are the same.i checked mine by boiling water and see what they read.

 

[harry_the_face]

I have gone through a number of dial thermometers that have become great inaccurate from water getting into the dial. The problem I have worth digital is that I have not found a digital that has a waterproof probe or the probe is really short. If some company was smart they would build a good brewing thermometer.

 

[gotraut]

I recently switched to Dwyer digital thermometers and been happy so far. They are in a dial form factor, fit perfectly in my thermowells, solar powered so no batteries, adjustable angle, and they seem accurate. They are spendy though.

http://www.dwyer-inst.com/Product/Temperature/Thermometers/Digital/SeriesDBT

 

[normonster]

I recently switched to Dwyer digital thermometers and been happy so far. They are in a dial form factor, fit perfectly in my thermowells, solar powered so no batteries, adjustable angle, and they seem accurate. They are spendy though.

http://www.dwyer-inst.com/Product/Temperature/Thermometers/Digital/SeriesDBT

Pretty sick. Not bad at around $75. Can they be calibrated or is it just not necessary?

 

[gotraut]

There is a calibration screw on the back of the dial.

 

[unionrdr]

I wish the dial thermometers had some way to lock in temp settings. I bought one, used it once or twice, found it can't hold adjustment, & parked it. Floating thermometers don't have these problems...