Meat probe thermometer?

[sfarler]

A couple of years ago I bought this Pyrex Profesional Meat Probe Thermometer.

Recently it started not giving the correct temperature so I thought it needed a new battery. Last night when I put in the new battery and wanted to use it in my pork tenderloin it went crazy. It first gave a temperature of HI and then 253 then 87 then 354 then 91, etc.

Does anyone recommend a really good probe thermometer?

[LakeMartinGal]

I use a Taylor brand that looks like the one you posted. I had the same issue with one I bought at Target, though... Maybe they just get crazy after awhile.

[suebear37]

I have the Taylor thermometer, too. I don't use it all that often, but I've had it for several years & it works great. I think I paid about $20 for it.

[dneilson]

I like Polder's. I believe they patented the first one. I replaced the first when it no longer read 212F when placed in boiling water.

Dolores

[sneezles]

I've noticed that sometimes those wires just go wacko! I bought one from W-S that will do two temps at once. It's very handy when doing to pork loins. Runs about the same price, I think, as the Polder, etc.

[SusanMac]

I have the same Pyrex one posted above & absolutely love it. Mine is a few years old too. Hmmmm....does that mean it will conk out soon?

I'd love to get a wireless one for my next one!

[dreamer101]

I don't have any thermometer problems but my digital kitchen scales started acting that way. Weighing in grams with nothing on it yet it jumps all over the place. It has lithium batteries. I changed them but still jumping around.

[PattiA]

I consistently had trouble with probe thermometers until I read the instructions and discovered that most of them are rated only to 390F. I was frequently using mine above 400F. After a while of "abuse" the probes get flaky. I use a Taylor model and keep a stash of replacement probes on hand.

[Hammster]

I have this one:


Made by CDN in Portland, Or. The probe wire wraps up in a groove around the back so the entire thing is a pretty tidy package for putting in a drawer.

One of the things that will hasten a thermometer's demise is to let the wire get kinked. Try to avoid kinking the wire that runs from the base to the probe. Keep that thing nice and smooth and kink free.

Dreamer, I've seen what you are describing with my scale and it turned out my scale wasn't sitting firmly on the counter. There may have been a crumb of something under one of the feet that made the scale wobble a bit and not be stable.

[sneezles]

One of the things that will hasten a thermometer's demise is to let the wire get kinked. Try to avoid kinking the wire that runs from the base to the probe. Keep that thing nice and smooth and kink free.

Kinda hard not to get a kink if it's in a closed oven.

[Hammster]

Kinda hard not to get a kink if it's in a closed oven.

I don't know about your oven, but all of mine have had rounded edges on the door and oven walls. The wire does get a bit of a rounded bend, but no kink. Think of a kink like what you do with a garden hose to stop the water from flowing out.

Another "weak" area of a probe thermometer is where the braided part of the wire enters the back of the probe tube. The tube is crimped around the braid which helps hold the braid in place. However, if the braided part of the wire gets tugged on, to remove the probe from the meat for example, the sharp edge of the crimped tube can start to cut into the braided part and cause that sharp kink and the wires inside the braid will start to break at that point. Thermocouple wires are somewhat stiff and brittle (relatively speaking) so they have to be handled with some amount of care.

[gperls]

It will also mess up those probe thermometers if any kind of liquid gets into the probe where the braid meets it. That isn't a water-tight seal, so you have to be careful not to let it rest in liquid.

[sfarler]

Thanks for all the input. I've just ordered the Polder THM-360 Dual Probe Cooking Thermometer from Amazon.com. It's only $28.80 and there is no shipping charge. I think I paid $60 or $80 for the one that just went kaput from BB&B. I like the idea of having a backup probe.

I'll be more careful not to let the cable get kinked or wet. That could have been the problem.

This BB is the greatest!