Stoker temp vs BGE temp variable?

Gabe · June 2012

Hi-

I've had a stoker for a bit now, and I notice that the temperature of the Big Green Egg thermometer is not always comparable to the temperature the stoker is. It would make sense, for example, if the stoker were off the egg by 15 degrees consistently throughout the cook, but sometimes the egg thermometer temp is higher by as much as 40 degrees. Sometimes the stoker is higher by as much as about 20 degrees.

Thoughts I had were:

1) Maybe at the beginning of the cook before the meat shrinks the BGE thermometer is closer to the meat thus affecting it.

2) Being on the grate, the stoker pit probe is more affected by flame ups of fat dripping on the coals

3) Maybe the pit probe is placed too close to the meat causing shifts in its temp during the cook as the meat changes size as it loses fat.

Anyone have any thoughts on this?

bigguy136 · June 2012

I also have a Stokers. I calibrated the temp probes when I got my Stokers. After a cook, I clipped the Stokers pit temp probe to the shaft on the BGE temp probe. After 20 minutes, I readjusted the BGE probe to match the Stokers reading. Now when I have my Stokers probe elsewhere, my BGE temp and Stokers temp are within a couple of degrees.

nolaegghead · June 2012

According to the documentation that came with my DigiQ DXII, it's normal for the grate temp to be different than the dome temp where the hole is on the Egg. Their theory is the food is on the grate and that's the best place to regulate the temp. The grate has mass and changes temperature more slowly than the air in the dome, so you get an integrated average temp over time, less susceptible to spikes. Also, mechanical thermometers are notoriously inaccurate. Sounds like you calibrated it to the stoker thermocouple. The DigiQ manual also said their thermocouples were factory calibrated and there's no need to calibrate. I checked mine using the ice/boiling water test. Dead on. Being in New Orleans, I'm at sea level, so no correction for barometric pressure.

Griffin · June 2012

If you are using a pit controller, go with the temperature of the pit controller (assuming you know its calibrated) and ignore the BGE therm. I don't have a stoker, I have an Auber Instruments, and that is what I do when I use it.

crmilt · June 2012

I always clip my Auber thermometer to the BGE thermometer because I am used to cooking by BGE "dome" temperature. At least that is what I assume people mean when they give a temperature to cook by.

lousubcap · June 2012

Most temperatures that are referenced (unless mentioned otherwise) are dome temps as that is the one indicator that all BGE's have. That said, there is a recent thread about the dome/grid off-set (especially prominent with indirect cooks) linked here that is worth a read.

Dome vs Grid temp

Sometimes you can end up in the "too much info" space...