My thermometer that i use in my homemade incubator.

[Sammbalina]

This is exactly why I won't use electric/digital. I use dial meat thermometers and calibrate them in both boiling and ice water.

How do you know it is calibrated correctly? Water will continue to boil well over the boiling point, and the water at the bottom will start to bubble, while the majority of the water is still a lower temperature, so how do you know you measured it at just the right time in the boiling process? I don't trust having to calibrate a thermometer. I don't see how you can guarantee that, even when 'calibrated', it is correct.

 

[Mosey2003]

I don't see how not calibrating at all is better than at least trying to calibrate.

 

[aart]

so how do you know you measured it at just the right time in the boiling process?

When it's at a 'full boil'.

I prefer to use a medical thermometer in a pan of warm(~100°F) water with incubator therms for comparison.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...incubator-thermometers-and-hygrometers.73634/

 

[Sammbalina]

I like the medical thermometer method. I think I would trust that, thanks. I don't understand why that isn't how most people calibrate, medical thermometers would have to be almost perfectly accurate, otherwise people would be taking their kids (and themselves) to the doctor WAAAAAYYYY too much!

Edit: I stopped and got a medical thermometer on my way home from work and tested my thermometers. My outdoor glass thermometer I got a week ago specifically for my incubator is almost spot on, only off by a 1/4 of a degree, and my ‘calibrated’ meat style thermometer was 6 degrees off!

 

[aart]

I like the medical thermometer method. I think I would trust that, thanks. I don't understand why that isn't how most people calibrate, medical thermometers would have to be almost perfectly accurate, otherwise people would be taking their kids (and themselves) to the doctor WAAAAAYYYY too much!

Edit: I stopped and got a medical thermometer on my way home from work and tested my thermometers. My outdoor glass thermometer I got a week ago specifically for my incubator is almost spot on, only off by a 1/4 of a degree, and my ‘calibrated’ meat style thermometer was 6 degrees off!

Which is fine for meat.

Medical therms are usually labeled to be within a 0.2 to 0.5 degrees F tolerance.

 

[davedavey]

Awesome

 

[davedavey]

This is exactly why I won't use electric/digital. I use dial meat thermometers and calibrate them in both boiling and ice water.

well mine have always worked great. Thanks

 

[davedavey]

still working