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Post by Seven on Nov 10, 2020 11:38:06 GMT -6
Wasn't sure whether to post this in The Brewhouse or here but since it's "gadgetry" I figured here made more sense. Anywho, I've had my ThermaPen for probably more than 5 years and it's gotten a pretty good workout in the kitchen, grill, smoker and brewery. I noticed recently that it's getting harder to open and upon closer look, it appears as if the gasket has worked its way out, causing the hinge to bind. Has anyone else had this issue? The company has been very responsive but since I'm out of warranty, it'll cost me $35 (plus shipping I imagine) to have it sent off to repair vs. maybe $60-70 for a new comparable one, i.e. not the latest top of the line ThermaPen. I'm thinking about opening her up and seeing if a good cleaning and resetting of the gasket will get it in good working order again.
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Post by Ken on Nov 10, 2020 11:46:33 GMT -6
I have not had that issue. The only real issue I have had is that opening the thermometer (pulling the probe open) does not make the thermapen turn on. I sometimes have to open it two or three times to get it to turn on. Thermapen has always been very responsive and they will absolutely fix it but I would consider looking at it myself (that's if you feel comfortable doing that) to see if you can fix it. I bought a black one and had some issues with it and sent it back (years ago), they resolved it and sent me some kind of coupon code for the hassle and then they had a $59 "no box" sale (or something) and I used the coupon code and got a new one (yellow) for something like $20. So I have two. I bet you end up fixing it yourself successfully.
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Post by Ken on Nov 10, 2020 11:48:39 GMT -6
Btw, how sophisticated do we think these digital thermos have gotten? Amazon has a ton of them and some are less than $20. You get what you pay for?
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Post by Seven on Nov 10, 2020 12:08:04 GMT -6
I have not had that issue. The only real issue I have had is that opening the thermometer (pulling the probe open) does not make the thermapen turn on. I sometimes have to open it two or three times to get it to turn on. Thermapen has always been very responsive and they will absolutely fix it but I would consider looking at it myself (that's if you feel comfortable doing that) to see if you can fix it. I bought a black one and had some issues with it and sent it back (years ago), they resolved it and sent me some kind of coupon code for the hassle and then they had a $59 "no box" sale (or something) and I used the coupon code and got a new one (yellow) for something like $20. So I have two. I bet you end up fixing it yourself successfully. Thanks. I think I read that the issue you're having may be due to low battery. They are offering me something like 35% off a new one so it's tempting to just try to fix the one I have AND buy a new one. Regarding other thermometers, I've gone thru quite a few over the years and some were decent for a bit then got wonky and needed to be replaced. Do that every couple years and you're almost to the price of a ThermaPen.
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Post by drez on Nov 10, 2020 19:15:52 GMT -6
I have noticed some issues with my thermapen lately. Mine has to be 8+ years old. I will not replace it with the same when it dies because I do not think it is worth the premium price. I have an inkbird in the brewery and it is great at a fraction of the price.
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Post by Ken on Nov 10, 2020 19:32:34 GMT -6
I have noticed some issues with my thermapen lately. Mine has to be 8+ years old. I will not replace it with the same when it dies because I do not think it is worth the premium price. I have an inkbird in the brewery and it is great at a fraction of the price. Yeah, was wondering if the rest of the world caught up with Thermapen for a fraction of the price. That said, I *do* like my Thermapen and if you don't mind a pink one or brown one, etc. you can occasionally get one for $59 or so.
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Post by jimdkc on Nov 10, 2020 21:34:38 GMT -6
Btw, how sophisticated do we think these digital thermos have gotten? Amazon has a ton of them and some are less than $20. You get what you pay for? Most of the cheap ones are not nearly as responsive as a Thermapen. I bought the older model Thermapen on one of their recent $59 sales. I'm very happy with it. Temp settles in about 3 seconds. I keep it in my brewery. I have 2 made by Lavatools: The larger one (Javelin PRO, list price $55) is about the same size and shape as the Thermapen. Response time is MUCH slower than the Thermapen. Probably takes 7-10 seconds to settle. I don' use it. NOTE: I think I have an older model of this... the current model claims 2-3 second readings. The smaller one (Javelin, list price $27) is nearly as good as the Thermapen. It's response time is probably 4-5 seconds, compared to the Thermapen's 3 seconds. I use this as my main kitchen thermometer.
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Post by drez on Nov 11, 2020 6:52:14 GMT -6
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Post by Seven on Nov 11, 2020 7:26:27 GMT -6
This looks decent...pretty good reviews on average! How long have you use the Inkbird? Some reviews mention that calibration is difficult.
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Post by Ken on Nov 11, 2020 8:37:15 GMT -6
Two things I like about that one: 1) It's rechargeable. No more screwing with those disc batteries. 2) You will never lose it because it's bright ORANGE!
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Post by OldMan on Nov 11, 2020 14:06:05 GMT -6
another shout out for the inkbird. They just ran a 50% off promotion over at HBT.
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Post by Seven on Nov 11, 2020 14:52:04 GMT -6
another shout out for the inkbird. They just ran a 50% off promotion over at HBT. That's a good price! I found instructions online for opening up the Thermapen so I may give that a shot. It'll cost me $35 to have it repaired by the company, plus probably an additional $3-5 to have it shipped to them.
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Post by OldMan on Nov 11, 2020 15:04:48 GMT -6
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Post by OldMan on Nov 11, 2020 15:07:45 GMT -6
another shout out for the inkbird. They just ran a 50% off promotion over at HBT. That's a good price! I found instructions online for opening up the Thermapen so I may give that a shot. It'll cost me $35 to have it repaired by the company, plus probably an additional $3-5 to have it shipped to them. I took mine apart because I was having issues with it turning on- turns out I broke it when I swung the probe too far back. I'll see if I can find the pictures- there's not much going on inside of them
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Post by Seven on Nov 18, 2020 8:30:03 GMT -6
Update...I got the discount code from HBT and placed my order today. I believe it came to about $12.50 for the Inkbird, which is a very good price. Thanks, OldMan!
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