Lab grade thermometer?

LobsterOfJustice

Recovering Detritophobe
I know this isn't exactly chemistry, but it has to do with water parameters so I figured this was the best place to put this thread.

I am looking for a lab grade thermometer I can use to check my heaters and my controller, can anyone recommend one? Right now when my Ranco controller is reading 77 the heater that's plugged in to it is reading 75.
 
any glass type thermometer should work for this. all you need to do to check it is put it in a cup of icewater, should read 32 degrees
 
Yah best test at home. Cup 50% water 50% ice mix and wait 3 minutes temp should be 32F
 
I got a NIST glass thermometer for around $40 from Cole-Parmer. I think it was a good investment, personally.
 
I know this isn't exactly chemistry, but it has to do with water parameters so I figured this was the best place to put this thread.

I am looking for a lab grade thermometer I can use to check my heaters and my controller, can anyone recommend one? Right now when my Ranco controller is reading 77 the heater that's plugged in to it is reading 75.
Any good thermometer for cooking, baking or making candy would be fine I would think. I use a digital kitchen thermometer with a probe to check temps. Works fine and cost 20 bucks.
 
From Cooks Illustrated

RECOMMENDED

ThermoWorks Super-Fast Waterproof Pocket Thermometer
An extra-thin probe that allowed for easy temperature checks, even inserted horizontally into chicken breasts, and relatively fast readout times put this model at the top of the rankings. We also liked the location of the readout screen at the side of the wand (as opposed to the end) and the simplicity of its controls. Its few drawbacks are a low maximum temperature, the fact that it can’t be calibrated (reset when accuracy seems off), and its lack of an automatic shutoff.
$24

CDN ProAccurate Quick-Read Thermometer
Although this bulb-shaped thermometer felt awkward and cheaply made, and testers found it was too easy to hit the small buttons accidentally while gripping the head, it received top marks for speed, accuracy, and temperature range. An automatic shutoff preserved battery life.
$16.95

ThermoWorks Super-Fast Pocket Thermometer
While just as fast as the other ThermoWorks model, one of our two winners, this model lost points for a bulb-shaped head that was awkward to handle and whose screen was harder to read than one positioned on the side. The slightly longer probe was an advantage when reaching into the oven. Unlike the other ThermoWorks model, this one has an automatic shutoff feature.
$29

Comark Waterproof Digital Thermometer
The side buttons were helpful, but the small screen was difficult to read. It also took a whopping four seconds for this thermometer to even turn on.
 
I don't remember which one I bought. It was years ago. I searched the site, but I couldn't find anything all that similar. I saw one thermometer for incubators that could be used by removing it from the bottle. Mine is full immersion, and as I look at the price list, I think mine probably wasn't NIST. :)

I might try the ThermoWorks, though.
 
Here is the lab grade thermometer i use. Its iso traceable calibrated with paperwork guaranteeing its accuracy. Thomas Traceable Mini Thermometer, with Stainless-Steel Probe, 7" Probe, -58 to 302 degree F I bought it on amazon for 35 it works great.
 
Even lab grade thermometers sometimes have to be recalibrated, My lab has to check thermometer calibrations every six months. We often have one that no longer reads correctly and has to be sent back to the manufacturer for recalibration. All thermometers get sent baco to the manufacturer every two years for recalibration. In order to remain NIST certified, they must be recalibrated every so often. So just because the thermometer was certified and reading correctly when you purchased it, does not mean it is necessarily reading correctly anymore. Even stuff that is NIST certified will get out of calibration after a period of time.
 
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