Advice on instant read thermometers

JohnnyTarheel

Bought 2 Thermopens for my sons for Christmas.  They have already made cooking much more reliable and enjoyable!

slovelad

NPHuskerFL said:

Paying $10 (or catching them on sale) only hurts once. TP are a reliable tool to own. Own 2 myself and use at least one of those daily. 

@NPHuskerFL what if you take more than one poop a day... Do you still only use TP once daily? Lol couldn't help myself

NPHuskerFL

Typo on the "$10". I edited that. But, seriously they're worth the money. See recent threads in regards to Thermoworks excellent cs besides building quality products. 

ibanda

Thermopops are on sale right now for $21, an amazing deal!

slovelad

@ibanda really? On their website?

MotownVol

I started out with a Man Law thermometer.  it's not bad but I caught the new Thermo pen on sale in December and love it.   Definitely worth in cost particularly if you can catch it on sale.  

Photo Egg

As everyone above says, Thermapens are awesome...but for the sale price of $21 the little Pop is great. Yes, it takes longer for it to tick to the exact temp. But most of the time 3 seconds will tell you aproximate temp wihin a couple degrees and that's all I need. Say I need steak temp to be 120. When I check it and it slows near 100 degrees, thats all I need. I don't need to wait for the exact tick until my temp nears my target temp.

Mikee

nolaegghead said:

I was using a rectal thermometer but only goes to, like 110F,

Pretty 'crappy' way to measure the temp. Do you have to lube up the thermometer beforehand? Does the meat have to bend over in a certain position before inserting it?

rmr62

I bought a thermapen during their cyber Monday sale, around $70 and worth every penny!

blasting

PSA - For those considering one, Thermapens go on sale very regularly.  No need to ever pay full price.

Hub

Years ago I attended the funeral of a very wise man.  They shared his advice on life during his funeral ...

"If you need it once, borrow it.  If you need it twice, buy it.  If you are going to buy it, buy the best."

True story ... and he would have told you to buy the Thermapen.

Toxarch

I have 2 thermapens. Work awesome. Bought the second one during a sale after having one by the grill and then needing it inside at the same time. Even got some friends to buy them after seeing mine in use. And in case anyone didn't know, it will read oil temp in a fryer. Just be sure to let it cool for a few seconds before folding the probe.

mo egg

This is the one I have used for couple years and works great.

http://lavatools.co/products/javelin?variant=1011604840

slovelad

@mo egg awesome. How quick does it give readings?

chadpsualum

SGH said:

nolaegghead said:

I was using a rectal thermometer 

It's the little things like this why I never stay for the night

Especially if you think you might be coming down with a fever!

MelSharples

I have found over the years that if I had just bought the best (usually more expensive) option available the first time I could save myself money and headaches in the long run. I bought the $20 "instant" read off brand thermometer twice and they worked fine but then I got the Thermapen Classic for my last birthday and it truly lives up to the hype.  Now I have a $70 utensil that works great and $40 worth of junk. I will learn my lesson one day!

garyflintstone

I just got a Lavatools Javelin PRO.  3 seconds.  backlight.  It is awesome.  $28, $58, or $68. 

http://lavatools.co/products/javelin-pro-le00

Angela

slovelad said:

Anyone had issue with their thermapen ? Warranty issues or replacements?

I've had my thermapen for about 8 years and it's still going. 

RRP

Angela said:

I've had my thermapen for about 8 years and it's still going. 

I have 2 Thermapens. The oldest is 14 years old and both are still on the original battery!

mo egg

slovelad said:

@mo egg awesome. How quick does it give readings?

3-4 seconds

HeavyG

RRP said:

Angela said:

I've had my thermapen for about 8 years and it's still going. 

I have 2 Thermapens. The oldest is 14 years old and both are still on the original battery!

I'd certainly go ahead and change out that 14 year old battery. Sooner or later that baby is going to start leaking which could cause a malfunction. It's probably one of those oddball little 12v batteries yes (at least that is what is in my oldest Thermapen)?

HeavyG

mo egg said:

slovelad said:

@mo egg awesome. How quick does it give readings?

3-4 seconds

The Lavatools thermos are nice. I've got two Javelins and a Javelin Pro and am very satisfied with them. Not any significant difference between them and my Thermapens/Thermopops.

The Javelins are good gear at a good price.

Jeepster47

RRP said:

Angela said:

I've had my thermapen for about 8 years and it's still going. 

I have 2 Thermapens. The oldest is 14 years old and both are still on the original battery!

@RRP ... Hey Ron, that little plastic tab that is sticking out from under the cover on your Thermapen ... pull it out ... then the numbers will show up on the screen.  Geez ... 14 years and the tab is still in place ... hmmm.

mlamb01

Thermapen excels when you are cooking multiple items on the grill at the same time, say like a dozen chicken breasts.  The quick reading times will minimize the time the dome is open, which will help keep your temp where you want it.

fishepa

mlamb01 said:

Thermapen excels when you are cooking multiple items on the grill at the same time, say like a dozen chicken breasts.  The quick reading times will minimize the time the dome is open, which will help keep your temp where you want it.

I just take the temp of the largest breast and if it's done the rest are.  LOL

pinballLooking

ibanda said:

Thermopops are on sale right now for $21, an amazing deal!

Thanks for posting. I just ordered one.

Carolina Q

Well, my original T-pen batteries finally died. I guess six+ years isn't bad. Not Ron's 14, but I'll take it. I had noticed recently that it sometimes (not always) took a few seconds for the display to appear. Last night, it simply didn't.

jabam

mo egg said:

This is the one I have used for couple years and works great.

http://lavatools.co/products/javelin?variant=1011604840

I have the same one, bought it a year ago when I bought my egg. Heard about the thermopen never got around to buying one. But this one works great for me.