After having an 8# butt take way to long last weekend (over 20 hours) I decided to do some testing on my smoker to see how accurate the smoker's digital temperature indicator was. I have an MES40 with a 1200w heating element. It was approx. 85* outside and 65% humidity. The vent was wide open. I used my own digital probe thermometer, which has been tested using the ice water/boiling water test, and the unit's probe thermometer. I let the unit get up to each temperature, which it understandably always overshoots, then comes back down. I took all of the readings when the heating element came back on and the temperature hit the set temperature on the digital readout of the smoker. Here's the readings I got:
Smoker Temp Readout My thermometer probe Unit's Probe
175* Lower Rack 149* 148*
Upper Rack 157 155
200 Lower Rack 184 188
Upper Rack 186 189
225 Lower Rack 203 208
Upper Rack 209 214
250 Lower Rack 222 228
Upper Rack 228 232
275 Lower Rack 241 250
Upper Rack 251 259
Quite a difference at all levels. What this means is that I can't really smoke anything that calls for a temperature of over 250* because the unit won't get there. Now that I have some baseline temperatures I will continue to do temp checks as I am actually smoking some food to see if they hold true over time. Any input or comments are welcome.
Smoker Temp Readout My thermometer probe Unit's Probe
175* Lower Rack 149* 148*
Upper Rack 157 155
200 Lower Rack 184 188
Upper Rack 186 189
225 Lower Rack 203 208
Upper Rack 209 214
250 Lower Rack 222 228
Upper Rack 228 232
275 Lower Rack 241 250
Upper Rack 251 259
Quite a difference at all levels. What this means is that I can't really smoke anything that calls for a temperature of over 250* because the unit won't get there. Now that I have some baseline temperatures I will continue to do temp checks as I am actually smoking some food to see if they hold true over time. Any input or comments are welcome.