LCD Stick on thermometers?

[aamcle]

I have been thinking of using one of these to monitor the output of my CFC, just by sticking it on the exposed copper pipe at the end.

As long as it works to a degree or two I'd be happy BUT will it survive when boiling wort is pumped through the CFC?

If not what do you recomend?


ATB. aamcle

[Wonkydonkey]

Those stick on things are a real waste of time. If you have a thermo pen ? then I would make a hole in a bit of silicone tube and slip the pen in the tube hole and put this on the end of your cfc, but that's if you have any sliicone tube hanging around.
A sort thermowell if you like, or even a copper tee peice with a gland.
There are other ways like those things that you can wrap around a pipe (Velcro pipe probe) which you plug into thermometer. It really depends on how much cash you want to flash....

[Dave S]

I use a Blichmann Thrumometer. They're a bit pricey at £20 I suppose but it works a treat and doesn't appear to be bothered by boil temperatures passing through.

[orlando]

There are other ways like those things that you can wrap around a pipe (Velcro pipe probe) which you plug into thermometer. It really depends on how much cash you want to flash....

You would only need a cheap display for that, is there something you would recommend for a type K thermocouple?

[orlando]

I went for one of these, would suit your purposes too.

[Dave S]

I went for one of these, would suit your purposes too.

Does it work or have you tried it on silicone tube? I'd have thought maybe the thermal resistance would be a bit high.

[Hogarth]

The LCD stick-on jobs are fine for a rough-and-ready reading, but the hot water will knacker them after a while.

I stick them permanently onto aluminium foil, then just press them against whichever vessel/pipe I want to measure.

[orlando]

I went for one of these, would suit your purposes too.

Does it work or have you tried it on silicone tube? I'd have thought maybe the thermal resistance would be a bit high.

Maybe not precisely, but if it is consistently "wrong" I can work with it at that price. I want it for monitoring the wort chill. I just want to get down to approx 20c as I use the conical coil to stabilise my pitch temperature.

[Kev888]

I used a stick-on thermometer initially - it wasn't very accurate but was fine to get the right ball-park (the FV controller then fine tuned the wort temperature) and of course had zero impact wrt disinfection or leaks. But unfortunately the adhesive on mine didn't like the heat (whilst recirculating boiling wort to disinfect). I could probably have fixed it on with better adhesive, or made it removable, but went with a different solution instead.

FWIW this was to bind a naked sensor (NTC but it could have been another type) to the copper output pipe of the CFC with PTFE tape - then insulation and a final layer of pvc tape. (I first soldered a copper slip coupler/joiner over the CFC's pipe for extra thickness, which allowed a small flat to be filed and so fit to the sensor more closely, but that may have been overkill). Theres then a mini-xlr connector cable-tied to the CFC for convenience of connection/disconnection from the sensor.

[Wonkydonkey]

There are other ways like those things that you can wrap around a pipe (Velcro pipe probe) which you plug into thermometer. It really depends on how much cash you want to flash....

You would only need a cheap display for that, is there something you would recommend for a type K thermocouple?

One of these maybe good ??
http://m.ebay.com/itm/TM-902C-Digital-L ... Ciid%253A3

[Hogarth]

FWIW this was to bind a naked sensor (NTC but it could have been another type) to the copper output pipe of the CFC with PTFE tape - then insulation and a final layer of pvc tape. (I first soldered a copper slip coupler/joiner over the CFC's pipe for extra thickness, which allowed a small flat to be filed and so fit to the sensor more closely, but that may have been overkill).

I've been thinking of doing the same. Did you find you got a decent reading, Kev?

I did try binding a PT100 probe straight onto the copper pipe, without any coupling but with tons of insulation around it, and it was useless. Took minutes to react to changes and wasn't remotely accurate. So now I'm thinking of an aluminium 'saddle' to join the pipe and the probe together properly.

[Kev888]

It does seem to be quite reasonable WRT accuracy, and the FV sensor (which i calibrated) pretty much agrees with the CFC's sensor. This was a bead-style sensor to which I soldered wires, not one encapsulated in a tube or plastic casting, so there is very little between sensor and wort except 0.7mm of very conductive copper. An aluminium (or soldered copper) saddle may be even better, provided the thermal mass weren't too large.

TBH I haven't tried to test response time (though I don't see why there should be any large delays). Any adjustment to flow rate takes an appreciable while for the effect to build and properly stabilise on the actual wort though, so there (quite correctly) is a lag between flow adjustment and temperature readout stabilising.

That latter is somewhat inevitable, and isn't due (much) to measurement. But it makes it tricky to set the CFC temperature precisely, so I use the FV temperature controls to tweak afterwards.

[Hogarth]

Thanks Kev. I'll build my saddle and see how it goes.