Meat thermometer mayhem...

Sweet100s

Lessons learned and one conundrum remaining...

Thanksgiving mayhem occurred when I discovered my Maverick temperature probes would not work with my Maverick transmitter*.  

* I thought the probes were dead.  They were not.  I simply did not know that some Maverick temperature probes are incompatible with some Maverick temperature based units !!   I didn't realize I had mis-matched probes and base units! 

I decided to do before Christmas what I should have done before Thanksgiving: calibrate and re-organize my temperature probes.  Especially since I plan to use my Big Green egg a lot this Christmas.

Step 1) Battery check 

Took all the batteries out and checked for rust and leakage.

3 units had some of each. Tried to fix all 3 using tips via google 

for battery leakage - alcohol and qtips 

for rust - nail file and alcohol 

I was able to fix 1 of the 3.  1 transmitter and 1 receiver remain dead.  The Polder seemed fine - still working at this point.

Step 2) Probe match up

Here I realized that some Maverick temperature probes are incompatible with some Maverick temperature based units.  Eureka!   I retreived temp probes from the garage that I had marked "dead".  They are no longer dead when paired with the right base unit. 

Decoder key: (in case anyone else has 2  Maverick Redi-Chek  transmitter - receiver sets that are different models.)

Maverick probes with black colored plastic near the plug end are incompatible with grey colored receiver holes on Maverick transmitter base units.

And Vice-Versa.  

Grey only to grey, black to black.   In low light near the BBQ, the color differences might not be obvious, and you might assume you have a dead probe, like I did.

I did not expect that incompatibility from Maverick.  However the good news is that the grey / silver receivers can work with the black transmitters.  And vice versa.    I guess this makes sense.  The receiver is just receiving a signal.   On the other hand, the transmitter is making a physical connection with the temperature probe.

Step 3) Calibration

At my altitude, boiling water temp should read 211 degrees Fahrenheit. 

After measuring, I recorded on blue painters tape the boiling water temp that the units read so I know which probes run high or low. Then taped that to the end of the wire.

The Polder probes measured either perfectly or almost perfectly (I think they were 212). 

Now, for the truly baffling part.  I thought I was nearly done.  I was deciding which ones to use for BBQ vs inside oven and where to store.   Decided to use the Polder for inside oven since it doesn't have a remote transmitter / receiver setup. 

So put 2 new batteries in it.  Turned it back on.  Now - the Polder base unit doesn't even turn on anymore. Tried 2 different brand new batteries.  Still dead.

I'm baffled.  Note the pic below that shows the Polder was working fine.

Any ideas / suggestions? 

The Mavericks I bought for Big Green Egg use.  The Polder I inherited from my mom.   So it's kind of sentimental I guess. 

Jeepster47

Thanks for the data.  Especially the color code info ... didn't know that.

My son dropped my 732 receiver and now the last digit on the pit temp looks like hieroglyphics.  Called Maverick and they were able to hook me up with a new receiver for $20 plus shipping.  Since the probes and transmitter were in good shape, I took them up on the offer.  You might consider that option in the mix.

I store my probes, loosely coiled, in zip-lock sandwich bags.  Keeps them from tangling and getting kinked.  You could also store the calibration data on/in each probe's storage bag.

Can't help on the Polder ... sorry.  If you end up purchasing a new temp alarm, look closely at the ThermoWorks units.  I bought my wife the ChefAlarm unit for inside use ... very intuitive and easy to use.  Others on the forum have the Dot and speak highly of it (http://eggheadforum.com/discussion/comment/1630952#Comment_1630952).  Their equipment is just plain good stuff.  But, be warned ... if you buy something from them, you will be their newest, best friend ... they drive me crazy with sales on the stuff I purchased just last month.

Sweet100s

Thanks Jeepster, I'll take a look at the dot. 

Sweet100s

Received an email this morning from Amazon with a bunch of thermometer models and prices linked. 

I noticed that the Maverick 733

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00FOCR4UI/ref=pe_225750_129311730_em_1p_3_ti

seems to have black-colored connectors on the Transmitter.
The probe description is:

"Probe wires are 3 ft long and are rated for 716°F"

and the Maverick 732

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00C2EEODQ/ref=pe_225750_129311730_em_1p_8_ti

has grey. 

I'm surprised Maverick is still selling probes that would incompatible with very similar transmitter models.   I thought my situation was because I bought the models several years apart. 

Jeepster47

@Sweet100's ... I have an older 732 and a new 733 ... the temp probes on both are dark gray and are interchangeable.