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BGE Thermometer - Water problem

Weekend Warrior
Weekend Warrior Posts: 1,702
edited November -1 in EggHead Forum
The BGE thermometer in the lid of my large egg is accumulating water inside it from getting rained and snowed on (It is still working though). Has anyone found a way to get the water out once this has happened? Since it's still winter here in PA, I've been doing alot of window cooking (getting the egg started and then keeping track of the temp and the cook through the window!) and the water inside the thermometer is making it hard to read at a distance. Thanks, Mark

Comments

  • lowercasebill
    lowercasebill Posts: 5,218
    where in PA are you? i am right here in sunndy downtown lansdale.
    i use teltru exposed to the elements for two years with no water.
    i just looked at my bge therms and don't see a way to take them apart so, if it was me, i would put the them in the oven with the oven light on for a day or three. my oven temp with light on is a bit over 100 degrees maybe they will dry out,
    bill
  • YYZash
    YYZash Posts: 44
    I drilled a small hole through the bottom rim of the thermometer. This will allow the moisture to evaporate.
  • Sundown
    Sundown Posts: 2,980
    once you have dried them out with one of the two methods above, Get some clear silicone and very carefully (not smearing it around) apply it to the face where the edge of the metal meets the plastic/glass face. That should take care of any future problems
  • lowercasebill
    lowercasebill Posts: 5,218
    seems to me you should follow all the advice here, drill the hole, dry it out and seal it. i think i would calibrate after this is done.
  • Thans fellas. Great ideas. Doing Cherry Smoked Meatloaf today per QBabe's recipe. Since it's going to hit 40 dgrees here today in western PA(a relative heat wave), I'll acually enjoy sticking my nose outside a few times! Thanks for the help, Mark
  • Beanie-Bean
    Beanie-Bean Posts: 3,092
    I saw a mod once where someone drilled a small hole in the glass...
  • Rollocks
    Rollocks Posts: 570
    small hole and silicone worked for both my thermometers.
  • stike
    stike Posts: 15,597
    cuppla thoughts.

    they already tried to keep water out, so resealing it might work for a while, but you might also get condensation anyway, if you make it airtight.

    there's no effect on the temp reading no matter what you do, because the thermometer uses a bimetallic strip down at the last portion of the stem toward the pointed tip. the dial just registers the temp, it doesn't sense temp.

    i drilled a hole in the 6 o'clock position of the rim.

    thermodrill.jpg

    it let out the water that got in, and short-circuits any possibility of condensation. because it's at the bottom, it's virtually impossible for the rain to get in the hole. if rain somehow gets in thru the glass/rim, it will evaporate very quickly

    no need for ovens or sealing, as this will only solve the issue short-term
    ed egli avea del cul fatto trombetta -Dante
  • Jeffersonian
    Jeffersonian Posts: 4,244
    To help remedy the reading problem, you might do what old-time pilots used to do with their gauges: turn it so the setpoint temperature is at the 12:00 position. That way you don't have to remember the angle the setpoint temp is...any deviation from high noon will mean your Egg is cool or warm.