Tel True thermometer--dome

deltadawn · February 2010

For those of you who use the Tel True dome thermometer, which model is the best? Are they sealed from rain/snow? Our BGE dome thermometer has had moisture in it, so not sure if that has effected its accuracy. We do use the Cyber Q and they both seem to match pretty close.

We recently did Clay Q's pulled beef and it took much longer than his directions, so I'm thinking our thermometers were reading lower. Probably need to calibrate.

Any thoughts? Thanks, Dawn

The Naked Whiz · February 2010

Tel Tru has two models on their site specifically listed for BGE. I prefer the longer 5" stem because it is more accurate. The 2.5" stem will read 10-15% off because the probe doesn't stick into the cooking chamber far enough for the entire sensor to be in the cooker. Not a big deal, but something to be aware of. The BGE model is LT225R. Good luck!

One other comment. All my BGE thermometers went bad with time. I've got about 6 or 8 Tel Tru's and have had them quite some time now. None of them have ever gone bad. So, I think they are worth the money if you ever have to replace your original thermometer.

Leggo My Eggo · February 2010

Saw a post on this topic yesterday. Check out the nakedwhiz site since he has a complete review on what you are looking for.

Jeffersonian · February 2010

Oh boy, here we go again.

For reference, my local dealer sells the BGE thermometers for right around $25, about the same price as the Tel-Tru unit, including shipping.

deltadawn · February 2010

Do you have any trouble with the 5" stem stabbing the meat on the Large BGE? We don't cover our BGE, so it is exposed to the elements, snow/rain. Should we be covering to protect the thermometer?

Boilermaker Ben · February 2010

Dawn,
Before you replace your dome thermometer, you might try calibrating it. Just see what temperature the thermometer reads for a pot of boiling water. I should be 212F. If it's off, calibrate it by turning the nut in the back. Cook with it for a couple weeks and then test it again. If you're continually having to recalibrate, or if the condensation behind the glass makes it hard to read, I can see why you'd replace it. Otherwise, I'd save the cash (no, realistically, I'd probably buy some steaks

)

Leggo My Eggo · February 2010

You could either by the cover for the egg or bring in the thermometer. I keep mine covered so I have never had an issue with condensation.

fishlessman · February 2010

all my bge therms went bad as well, recalibrate, cook food, shut vents, needle would read whatever temp i was cooking at even if you put it in the freezer

ill stick with teltru and i like the shorter 2.5 inch stem, ive gotten used to it reading low over time. never had one fail unless i bent it in half. ive had my tel tru in fires as hot as around 1200 best guess and they still work fine, any one with a bge therm want to try that :laugh:

Humphrey Chimpden Earwicker · February 2010

well, if you and the whiz say it... well that's different.

:woohoo:

CaptainJimmy · February 2010

i have the 5" teltru that i bought because of a recommendation from TNW's site after i broke my BGE thermo.

the teltru is dead on out of the box, works incredible. will buy another one should this one go bad. I cover the egg when i remember, so 50% covered 50% uncovered...

i cook on it nearly every day though, so...

azbbguy · February 2010

Do most of you run the 200-1000, or the 150/750 version?

The Naked Whiz · February 2010

The aforementioned 6-8 Thermometers have all been out in the weather for years with no problems.

fishlessman · February 2010

they may read linear going up but i just dont trust a therm that reads 212 after the boiling water test is over:laugh: shouldnt it be linear going down in temps as well.

probably due to a mix of beer, distractions and high temps but thats never been a prob with any teltrue ive owned

Humphrey Chimpden Earwicker · February 2010

you have the 1100 degree tel-tru if i amemba correctly, right?

Doug in Eggmonton · February 2010

Both the bge and the tel-tru have the condensation problem at my house. I fixed it on the tel-tru by drilling a small (but not small enough) hole in the bottom so the air could get to the moisture. That works for the condesation problem but I cracked the face glass when the drill bit touched the glass (oops) :pinch:.

Doug

Bacchus · February 2010

Does the condensation cause a level of innacuracy or is it merely annoying?

fishlessman · February 2010

just the 1000 degree one, i have to guess after that

Jeffersonian · February 2010

My Tel-Tru has some moisture in it, and it hasn't affected it so far.

Jeffersonian · February 2010

Humphrey Chimpden Earwicker · February 2010

:woohoo:

fishlessman · February 2010

wish i didnt toss mine, looks like you and stike might want to shell out for broken therms :woohoo: :laugh:

Jeffersonian · February 2010

Not me, Fishless, I'm a dedicated member of the Tel-Tru cult. I've gone so far as to fashion little finger cymbals out of a couple of 2-1/2" models as I sing their praises at the local airport, exhorting weary travelers to join us.

Now I'd better stop typing before I use numbers and get flamed by Wess for being a pantywaist egghead.

Humphrey Chimpden Earwicker · February 2010

talk about a non-sequitur

you gotta stop keeping lists of transgressions committed against you here. for one thing, no one else is, and so if you show up somewhere with a laundry list of grievances you're likely to be met with a blank stare.

that said. if you prefer to keep track of these slights, i guess it's no harm. but it really is strange when you call out folks by name as if to start the very confrontations you pretend you are trying to avoid.

no one mentioned wess. why did you? feeling persecuted? maybe hoping to feel persecuted?

maybe you do it because it's fun. here, let me try. > "i'd call fidel a tool, but he's so thin skinned he'd get all upset"

anyway. no hard feelings about thermometers, man. unless of course you have some yourself. me, i could give a rat's adze about tel-tru or BGE thermos. i'm gonna get me one of them "rental" thermometers everyone's talkin about

Fidel · February 2010

You take your rental thermometer and shove it up your a$$

deltadawn · February 2010

Thanks everyone for your input. We will plan to calibrate the therm we have. If it isn't accurate, probably get the Tel True.

Does anyone that has the 5 inch stem have trouble with it stabbing into the meat? It sounds like it is the most accurate.

Thanks, Dawn

Humphrey Chimpden Earwicker · February 2010

i knew you couldn't NOT use that.
haha

Gandolf · February 2010

I don't drink wine, but my wife and most of our friends do. I drink a lot of other stuff, so not claiming innocent here :laugh: :laugh: I drill a correct size whole lengthwise through a wine bottle cork. Insert cork onto Teltru 5" thermometer stem before placing the therm into the dome. Makes a perfect spacer to keep the stem from going too far into the Egg. I always have ready access to new spacers when needed too:)

Jeffersonian · February 2010

I have both, but yes, the 5" occasionally stabs into the meat, particularly when I'm using my adjustable rig with a large load of pork butt or ribs. When I have a possible interference like that, I'll do one of the following:

* Put in a spacer on the outside of the Egg to reduce the length of the probe inside

* Use my 2-1/2" thermometer (and yes, it does register about 12-15% low, so I have to do some quick mental math to convert)

* Put my 5" in the top of the DFMT instead of in the usual probe hole.

Bob V · February 2010

I don't have the 5", but have two Tel-Tru's to cover different ranges, one for lower fires and one for blazing.

I like the Tel-Trus and their reliability, but all this accuracy is really a judgment call anyway. There is about a 50 degree difference from the dome to the grill plane (search the forum, there were long discussions of this some years ago, someone even charted the differences over time on a low & slow cook), and there will be a difference between the 2.5" stem and the 5" stem because of where each tip sits in the air stream.

If you experiment with a Maverick or other digital thermometer at the grill plane and compare it to the dome thermometer, you'll learn the variance of your own dome thermometer over time.

What I'm saying I guess is that absolute accuracy gives way to relative consistency over time. As long as my dome is +/- 20 degrees or so, it's all good.

Bob V

fishlessman · February 2010

if you can figure out the tip for a meal at a resteraunt after a few drinks, you can figure out the short 2.5 inch probe, its as easy as adding ten percent to the probes reading

its actually a couple percent more but not enough to make a difference in your cook, or get the longer probe and use a funny looking spacer

Jeffersonian · February 2010

On the contrary, I was about to mention some cross-checking I had done between my Tel-Tru and a reference thermometer. That involved numbers. The last time I tried that, I was denounced in terms supposely considered unacceptable here by that fellow, despite not having mentioned him in that post, either.

I seem to be caught between the Scylla of not providing Pearson Chi-square analysis with a 95% confidence interval of thermometer reliability and the Charybdis of providing middle-school algebra explanations of thermometer behavior, with the latter prohibited and the former demanded.

Perhaps you should also avoid my posts and save yourself the aggravation of having to instruct me on what I can and cannot say here.

Tel True thermometer--dome

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