Remote probe thermometer wort proofing

[Bobby_M]

You certainly aren't wrong for assuming that because they should be sealed. No such luck. Shame on them.

 

[bladefist]

I just dangle the tip of the probe into my water/mash then put the lid on over the cord so it stays put. This has always worked fine for me.

The only way it wouldnt work is if your boiling. But why measure the temp of boiling wort?

 

[Bobby_M]

How about measuring the temp of cooling wort? There are just too many chances for submerging the cord. Why take the chance?

Also, a great reason to put it in the boil kettle is to set the alarm for 210F so that you can run over to catch the hot break boilover.

 

[Junebug]

I wish I'd seen this sooner. I had no idea the probe thermometers weren't water proof! My readings were way off last time. Heading out to petsmart today to get some tubing.

 

[Junebug]

I couldn't find any #70 o-rings anywhere. I see that somebody picked up some #60's. I'll give that a try!

 

[Hegh]

Mine just suddenly started acting like it was wet again. I wort-proofed it about a month and a half ago, and it's just been sitting next to a carboy most of the time since. I think some of the dish soap that I used as a lubricant got into the joint.

It's sitting in the oven now, hopefully it'll be all fixed (again).

 

[Reddog68]

Bobby, can you re-post the pics? For some reason they aren't attached to your original post. I would really like to see how you did this, I need this for my new mashtun. Thanks!

 

[avaserfi]

The pictures show up fine for me.

 

[Reddog68]

There they are!:cross:

 

[samc]

I just waterproofed mine and could not get keg lube to work beyond a few inches. Not sure why I have a mini funnel, but it fit in the end of the tubing and I poured a teaspoon or less of olive oil in the tube. The Silicone slid right on and took no more than 2 minutes to get it done. You could also use an eyedropper to put the oil into the tube.

btw - purchased silicone o-rings & tubing from Amazon

 

[Yambor44]

I just waterproofed mine and could not get keg lube to work beyond a few inches. Not sure why I have a mini funnel, but it fit in the end of the tubing and I poured a teaspoon or less of olive oil in the tube. The Silicone slid right on and took no more than 2 minutes to get it done. You could also use an eyedropper to put the oil into the tube.

btw - purchased silicone o-rings & tubing from Amazon

Can we get links? Thanks.

 

[samc]

Yikes - It looks like both items are sold out, but it should give you an idea of what I used. As to the funnel, not a clue where I got it - must be 20 years old.

Amazon.com: 106 Red Silicone O-Ring 70A Duro, 3/16"ID x 3/8" OD x 3/32"W (Pack of 10): Industrial & Scientific
Amazon.com: Silicone Rubber Tubing, 1/8" ID x 1/4" OD x 1/16" Wall Thickness 25' Length: Industrial & Scientific

Can't get the links to work on my computer but the descriptions find it @ Amazon?

 

[Homercidal]

Argh. I killed my thermomter by keeping the probe deep in the mash. It was reading 200+ in the ambient. Now that it's dried out, it's a full 30 degrees off.

Wish I'd read up on this before I did that. It was very accurate too! I think I'll go get another cheap one just like it and try this method. Looks like it will work a treat!

 

[SpanishCastleAle]

Homer,
Did you try baking the probe at 350 F? That supposedly will reset it (or at least boil off any moisture)...never tried it though.

 

[Jewrican]

Homer,
Did you try baking the probe at 350 F? That supposedly will reset it (or at least boil off any moisture)...never tried it though.

yeah just be smarter than me and leave the plug part out of it... i totally melted down the part that plugs into the thermometer so i had to buy a new one anyway.

 

[ShortSnoutBrewing]

Why didn't you keep it plugged in so you knew it was dried out and ready to be put back in service?

 

[Jewrican]

Why didn't you keep it plugged in so you knew it was dried out and ready to be put back in service?

hindsight is 20/20

 

[Jewrican]

i am having a hell of a time finding a number 70. Can someone tell me what the dimensions of the 70 are.. or what you used instead of it? I saw someone used a 60.. how did that go??

 

[Catt22]

Whats keg lube exactly?

Keg lube is silicone grease. You can find it at auto parts stores as dielectric grease. It's non-conductive and not water soluble. In the automotive world it is used for such things as lubing the rubber caps on spark plugs to keep them from sticking and on electrical disconnects to keep out moisture and prevent arcing.

You guys should take a look at something like this digital thermometer that accepts a variety of "K" type thermocouples:

http://www.coleparmer.com/catalog/product_view.asp?sku=9121045&pfx=EW

Several of my brewing buddies use these with this type of thermocouple and they submerge them all the time without problems:

Bead Type Temperature Sensor Type K Thermocouple Probe | Tenma | 72-8366

The overall cost is a little higher, but the hassle factor is much, much lower and you only need to buy it once. Very accurate, can be user calibrated and easy to use. I went through several of the low end kitchen type digital thermometers and now have several nice digital timers in my tool box.

 

[ShortSnoutBrewing]

NNatic-
I couldn't find 70's either so I used 68's. Works like a charm.

 

[Jewrican]

NNatic-
I couldn't find 70's either so I used 68's. Works like a charm.

I just called the manufacturer.. they said they dont see 70's in their new catalogue nor going all the way back to 99

I will get the 68's and see what we can do! Thanks guys!

 

[Jewrican]

Well i returned the ones that I bought and planned to pick up the 68's.. yeah.. they dont sell those either .. JEEEEZ! I cant win for anything .. damn...

well i picked up the 60's as i saw someone talk about them earlier.. they did work but they were tough to work with. If they make them with the same 1/8 ID and maybe a 3/16ths OD it would be fine, but the 1/4 od was a little tough to work with but was doable.

I slid the tubing on no problem. Getting the o-ring under it was a huge problem. Took me probably like 15 - 20 minutes. I stuck a tweezer under the tubing to stretch it out and then worked the o-ring under there. Took a lot of patience but it did work. I then used that same tweezer to pull the o-ring over the tubing and over the o-ring underneath, and then another just before the tubing like Bobby pictures. Doesnt leak a drop now

In the end it was worth it

 

[Yambor44]

Couldn't you roll the tubing back over itself once its in place, install the oring and then roll the tubing back down over the oring?

 

[culaslucas]

What size silicone tubing are you guys using? 3/16" ID? like this: Silcon® Silicone Tubing - US Plastic Corporation

 

[ShortSnoutBrewing]

Just go to the pet store and get some aquarium airline tubing. About half the price

Silicon Airline Tubing 8' (Penn Plax)

 

[culaslucas]

Just go to the pet store and get some aquarium airline tubing. About half the price

Silicon Airline Tubing 8' (Penn Plax)

I was at the pet store today looking at this and I'm just not sold on non 100% silicone tubing. If somehow moisture gets inside, I want to be able to bake the whole thing in the oven and not have to worry about the silicone melting or having to disassemble the tubing from the probe.

 

[Bobby_M]

I agree that the petshop stuff is crap. If you look on ebay, you'll find tons of small diameter silicone tubing meant for R/C planes and boat fuel lines.

 

[ShortSnoutBrewing]

Bobby, maybe you should update your first post if you feel aquarium line hoses aren't up to your standards...

As for me, I've used the stuff on at least 6 - 8 batches, fully submersed in mash, wort, and water for extended periods of time with no issues at all. And if by some chance you did need to bake it to reset what's the issue with taking the tubing off and putting back on again?

 

[Bobby_M]

Bobby, maybe you should update your first post if you feel aquarium line hoses aren't up to your standards...

As for me, I've used the stuff on at least 6 - 8 batches, fully submersed in mash, wort, and water for extended periods of time with no issues at all. And if by some chance you did need to bake it to reset what's the issue with taking the tubing off and putting back on again?

I do agree that it will probably hold up in most cases but I melted it. In a pinch I told my wife she can use it to monitor the temp of a ham in the oven. The ham became glazed with the tubing. If you're careful to keep it away from temps higher than 275F or so, I think it will be fine.

 

[Homercidal]

Mine has so far come back to within 5 degrees just sitting out. I might put it in the oven, but it's close now and i have a spare.

I am not fond of them though. The readings on my new one are slow and seem to vary a lot just sticking in different places in the mash and at different depth on the probe. It's actually more accurate if I only put up to an inch in. As far as the mash goes, I guess it could vary a degree or two.

I'm hoping to be able to build an accurate thermometer and logging system. There must be a fairly cheap or homebrew logging software solution out there, and building or buying a decent probe should not be too hard either. Problem might be getting it for what I consider reasonable amount of money. I want to track temp changes through the mash and during fermentation.