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Thermoworks tw8060 question

 

I have a question about checking the probe for ambient temps for accuracy. My dog ran between my LBGE and a table I use to set various tools on while I'm cooking and got wrapped up in the probe wires that were hanging out of the Egg which resulted in the TW8060 hitting the ground and the probe wires being yanked loose. Afterwards I noticed I was getting some ridiculous readings from  the oven probe once I got it put back into the Egg. I've called thermoworks and spoke with a guy there last week. Long story short, he advised me the best (first) thing to try was the ice bath test. I've finally gotten around to doing that as I'm planning to cook appx 17 lbs of butts on the egg tomorrow. At any rate, the result of the ice bath test is showing my oven probe reading 33.2 degrees. Can someone tell me how much difference (if of any significance) that is going to translate to? Due to procrastinating; plus trying to be a mizer I'm going to try to make this work for at least one more cook...If its off 1.2 degrees, is it going to stay off just by 1.2 or is there some sort of a multiplier in there that I'm not aware of/thinking of?  Thanks in advance!

Comments

  • U_tarded
    U_tarded Posts: 2,042
    Do boiling water too. Then you should be able to figure out a % variance. I've been watching football all day ( read drinking) so I may be way off.
  • bettysnephew
    bettysnephew Posts: 1,188

    Thermocouples are generally pretty tough.  If the plug end has a screw on the cover I would open it up and make sure the connections are tight and/or not broken.  Most thermocouple driven devices have thermocouple break protection.  It will drive the display to maximum or possibly a line of dashes when the tc goes open.  If the connections are good I would next exchange the plugs on the display unit and see if the problem moves to the other readout.  If it does, you have located that the problem is actually a thermocouple and not the display.  If it still acts up on the same display the problem is likely in the head unit.  There is no set of rules that will say that the degree readout will be consistent (+1.2°) across the scale.  Also unless the ice bath was being vigorously agitated it is likely that the temperature indicated was correct.  If the above does not show the problem, connect the probe to the unit and gently wiggle the probe to cable junction area to see if the display runs amok.  If it does go wild you have a broken connection at the probe end and the probe will have to be replaced.

    A poor widows son.
    See der Rabbits, Iowa
  • Skiddymarker
    Skiddymarker Posts: 8,522
    My 8060 reads between 33 and 35 in an ice bath test and 210-214 for a boil test. Given I learned to cook with the dome thermo, this kind of accuracy is rocket science. 
    Delta B.C. - Whiskey and steak, because no good story ever started with someone having a salad!
  • jfm0830
    jfm0830 Posts: 987
    Unless all of the water had turned to solid ice you should have gotten a reading like you did. Sounds like you are fine.

    By any chance did the probe wires get a little wet? Twice I have been washing one of my probes on my Maverick ET-73 and had a little water run down off the probe and onto the braided wire. Until the water dries out and evaporates I get a reading that is 2X the actual temp.

    Jim
    Website: www.grillinsmokin.net
    3 LBGE & More Eggcessories than I care to think about.
  • jerryp
    jerryp Posts: 232
    I have the same probe and love it.  The key to an ice bath test is using crushed ice and just enough water to come to the top of the glass you're using.  Just those variables are enough for the slight difference in your calibration test,  Boiling water test is iffy because water starts to boil at 220 but will get hotter. 
  • Skiddymarker
    Skiddymarker Posts: 8,522
    @jerryp - not sure I follow. The way I understand it water under standard atmospheric pressure and at sea level, boils at 212ºF and unless the testing is done in a lab, will not get hotter than 212º. If you go below sea level where atmospheric pressure is higher the boiling point will be higher. If you go to high elevations (Denver), the boiling point will drop due to the lower atmospheric pressure, typically as low as 202ºF. 
    This also assumes the atmospheric pressure is average, about 15psi if you are American or 101 kilo-pascals for the rest of us. The boiling point will change depending on the atmospheric pressure, that is if it is lower if it raining or higher if it is sunny. 
    For most of us, living at less than 1000 feet above sea level, within one or two degrees of the ideal is usually close enough. 
    This calculator is kinda fun to play with, using sea level pressure of about 15 psi boiling point of water is 100ºC, Denver at about 13 psi the boiling point is 96ºC. The temps are in Cº where 100C=212F. 
    Delta B.C. - Whiskey and steak, because no good story ever started with someone having a salad!
  • Ragtop99
    Ragtop99 Posts: 1,570
    impurities in the water could cause the freezing point to be above 32*F.
    Cooking on an XL and Medium in Bethesda, MD.