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Silicone to Seal WSM Tel-Tru Gaps?

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Count Porcula

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I am still pimping out the new WSM.

I broke down and ordered a Cajun Bandit shelf. This smoker is going to end up costing as much as a Ferrari. I don't need two shelves, but I want a single shelf to hold my Inkbird and maybe the tongs. I also ordered a Cajun Bandit cover to go over the additional parts. I have no idea where my original cover is. I'm pretty sure my son Tarzan the Toddler knows. Doesn't matter, since it would not have gone over the shelf and hinge.

I installed a Tel-Tru BQ225, which is about the same diameter as the original Weber thermometer. The Weber worked fine for two smokes, and then it went nuts so it wasn't consistent, or close to it, during one smoke.

I don't plan to rely on the Tel-tru for real accuracy, but it is handy to tell whether I am in the right general area without getting up to squint at the Inkbird and without taking out my phone.

People complain about the Tel-tru sticking out and not fitting the bezel. I am trying a couple of things to make it fit better. I ordered a little sheet of silicone and some silicone gaskets about the same diameter as the inside of the bezel. I am planning to stack the gaskets inside the bezel and put the thermometer in so it sits on them. This may look better, but my real hope is that it will block some of the smoke that comes out. I am going to cut a washer out of the sheet and put it inside the smoker to reduce the leakage on that end.

Hope it works.
 
Man, your into this thing! 👍👍 Got any pics of that side shelf. I'm too lazy to google.😆
 
They sell a metal plate for a WSM that bolts to the side to hold a magnetic therm .
This is one brand . I've seen others .
 
Some of the stuff arrived. I ordered silicone O-rings and two silicone gaskets sort of like washers, to see what would fit. One gasket isn't here yet. It's just like the other one I ordered, however. I thought I might need to stack them.

The photos show what I bought. The big one is just a sheet of 5mm silicone. I figure I can cut things out of it to suit me.

I tried it with the gasket on the bottom and the O-rings on top, and I also tried it the other way. Seems to be fine in either configuration. The rings add height. I haven't found a really thick gasket yet.

The gasket fits snugly under the thermometer, against the bezel. There is a gap between the bezel and thermometer, but you can make the gap even by bopping the bezel. It doesn't look bad, and I like it better than metal on metal.

The silicone should discourage smoke from coming out from the thermometer body, but as I indicated above, it won't block smoke trying to come out under the sides of the bezel. I figure I can cut out a washer with a snug fit around the probe and put it inside the lid under the wingnut.

Living in Florida, I know very little about heating systems, but I found there is a brand of silicone sealant that is used in heating ducts. Safe to 450°. There are also sealants made to create gaskets for engines and so on, and they come in an appealing red shade. I think I may pick up a tube once I get the thermometer the way I like it and fill in the gap around the inside of the bezel. It will make the whole assembly look cute.

I guess you could bypass the O-rings and gaskets and just use sealant, but it would be hard to control with all the parts flopping around and the sealant going everywhere. If the thermometer is already installed on top of the gaskets and O-rings, you can just shoot sealant into the gap, smooth off the excess, and wait for it to cure. I think.

The thermometer looks like it's way off center in the picture, but I believe that's the angle. If it's not right, I can bop it to get it right where it should be.

Another possible idea: using a hole saw to cut out a sheet of 5 mm silicone from the disk, to fit perfectly in the bezel. Or I could glue it to something like a piece of wood, chuck the wood in the lathe, and use the lathe to cut a disk precisely. That would allow me to use a really small drill bit to make the center hole, instead of a big sloppy one from the hole saw pilot drill.

No sign of the shelf yet.




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