Temp readings versus real life

[standles]

I have heard/read about the OBS thermometers being off.   I am ssuming that the DBS suffers the same fate.   I was smoking this weekend and hung my oven thermometer under the middle rack of the 6rack oven.    The DBS temp set point was 230 / temp was 215   the oven thermometer read ~180.   The delta varied some as I got to playing with the temps.

Is this what everyone else is seeing?  Is there a calibration method for the Digital Readout? 

I guess if it is consistently ~35degrees off I can mentally adjust.   I was just wanting to set oven temp to ~50degrees over final internal temp deisred.   

I have even considered just using the bradley to smoke and finish the cooking inside in the oven where I have better temp control.

Thought Suggestions?

Steven

[SKSmoker]

Don't worry about temp fluctuations. I was worried about this real bad when I bought my unit. I don't know what all the hype is about but in the end, your temp over your cook is going to be pretty close what you set the box at. It goes on, and the temp is too high, then it turns off, the temp is too low. It all evens out in the end, and really, it doesn't matter.

It would be a problem if you are thinking like an oven, yes, but the on/off cycle of the bradley averages everything out, and smoking with these low temps, really, if your off by 20F, no big deal.

Mr.Walleye did an excellent post in the forums detailing his temps over a few hours with a probe vs the display. I did the same thing when I first got my box, and mine is out 25F. This isn't an exact "science" and meat cooking this long, it isn't like we are talking about 350F vs 250F. 210 or 230.. really, no difference. I cook everything with the box set to 250F and sometimes it goes to 280 actual or 230... in the end, the food doesn't care and your tummy won't either.

Where it _may_ make a difference is in jerky, but I haven't noticed any problems with the temp swings making jerky either.

[standles]

Thx I will look up the threads if I can find them..

The fluctuations were not what I was really concerned about.   I was more concerned with the difference the digital readout said versus a probe thermometer.

It's fine if it is off a constant delta of say 40 degrees.  I can adjust to that.  If I set my smoker to 210 wanting to sometime obtain an internal temp of 180 and it is off 40 degrees then the ACTUAL temp will  only ever get to 170. (assuming infinite time )

Steven

[Habanero Smoker]

Steve,

Are you sure your oven thermometer is accurate? As mentioned above fluctuations are not critical in a lot of long smokes. When you start smoking cheese, sausage, cured hams, fish, bacon etc. temperature fluctuations can come into play.

[standles]

I checked the oven thermometer by setting it in a convection oven set at 350.   The temps matched when preheated.   I DID NOT however check a temp lower.  Good point.  The oven guage might have been accurate only in a certain range.

Steven

[West Coast Kansan]

boiling water is a nice check point.  212 + - altitude / barametric pressure / all that.  so it is with temp.  Sausage etc you will want control but you will learn your machines personality and can hit it pretty close without rendering out the fat.  Do get a digital for your oven temp though.  It is handy.   8)

[Gizmo]

A few other points not mentioned here yet and are a result of the observations I have made on my digital 6 rack.

The temperature difference you are seeing is probably not a due to a calibration error.  It is due to the location.  As the meat and the rest of the components inside the box all get closer to the same temperature, you will notice the box temp read out come closer or match that of a remote sensor.

The temperature sensor of the digital is in the lower back of the cabinet near the heating element.  I do not trust it to be a representation of the temperarture that the food is receiving.  I suspect it is more for controlling the heating element than controlling the box temp.  I would suggest using a remote digital temperature probe for the cabinet temperature close to the meat.  You will see lower temperature near the top and front of the unit as compared to the bottom and back of the unit.

I do finish off long cooks in the house convection oven.   The convection oven has a probe mode that when the IT is reached, it presets the oven to 150 Deg for a hold mode so I don't have to worry about not waking up to check to see if the meat has reach it (like was the case this morning at 3 AM on the Canadian bacon when I didn't hear the alarm on the remote.