- Nov 8, 2013
- 19
- 10
Which one is the best to have???? I just had a meat thermomet and used it, not the digital.
thanks
Ginny
thanks
Ginny
That's interesting. I have only compared my Masterbuilt therm to a cheapy grocery store bought oven therm that broke after the 3rd smoke, but my MBuilt XL was consistently off by 50-75 degrees too high on the reading.
Ginny, you didn't say what smoker you have, but if it is a masterbuilt they are known to run hotter than the display. Some have said as much as 30 degrees. Mine runs about 20 degrees hotter than indicated. I wouldn't trust any brand without some verification. Get the maverick, it's money well spent.
Don
Sorry about that confusion. I was referring to other's comments on this forum and my personal experience with the masterbuilt digital electric smokehouse. I have no experience with their propane fired models nor have I read up on them. I have read on here that most analog thermometers that come installed on smokers or grills are inaccurate and should not be trusted. Glad you got yours figured out.
That's interesting. I have only compared my Masterbuilt therm to a cheapy grocery store bought oven therm that broke after the 3rd smoke, but my MBuilt XL was consistently off by 50-75 degrees too high on the reading.
So it read 300, but was only at around 225-235. Food took HOURS longer to cook til I got that figured out. Thought I was doing a butt at 250 and instead I'm treading water at 125 or so.
Now? All set and works beautifully.
Ginny, I assume your question regarding probes refers to Wade's comment about them going bad occasionally? If so, I'm pretty sure he was referring to the probes that come with the Maverick unit. They do fail occasionally but are available separately and are relatively cheap. Do not immerse them in liquid and handle gently and they will last a good while. As he suggested, you should test them every few months or so with boiling water / ice water to confirm their accuracy.
thanks for the info on this, we have a Masterbuilt 20070213. You don't have to open the door to add the wood chips so that is good, the salmon was done early, we checked it, about 2 hours from the recipe, figured my might have been thinner or something, and guess what the new Maverick thing today, so next time cooking guess we shall really figure it out.
It came so fast from Amazon. I am confused, you mention the probes, is this in the cooker or on the thermostats, sorry if I sound so dumb.
Ginny
I sometimes use several smokers together and I often have several different things cooking. They all cook at different rates so I use multiple thermometers.
The thermocouple at the very tip of the probe is usually fine but but the weak point of the probe is usually where the probe joins the flexible cable. This part is inside the BBQ/Smoker and over time the seal will degrade. Usually this will result in total failure of the probe but sometimes it can result in spurious or inaccurate temperature readings. Calibrating just checks the accuracy of both the thermocouple and the cable. Another way to calibrate (but not as accurate) is to bring your kitchen oven up to a specific temperature and check the probe in there - Of course you will have first had to check that the thermostat on the oven is accurate.
Ginny, I assume your question regarding probes refers to Wade's comment about them going bad occasionally? If so, I'm pretty sure he was referring to the probes that come with the Maverick unit. They do fail occasionally but are available separately and are relatively cheap. Do not immerse them in liquid and handle gently and they will last a good while. As he suggested, you should test them every few months or so with boiling water / ice water to confirm their accuracy.
Happy smoking.
Don