Thermometer on SS Flue

 
Old-Duckman
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Post by Old-Duckman » Mon. Sep. 15, 2014 7:05 pm

Got my stove last January (Hitzer 50-93) but just had the chimney sweep prepare my chimney and install the stove today.

He used 316 stainless steel for the piping from the stove to the chimney. I asked him if a magnetic thermometer would stick to the flue and, well it won't.

He mentioned a probe style thermometer and I looked them up on line and found this one for $26 and change:

FlueGard Thermometer
Autumn colors on the face specify the temperatures and 3 stove operation zones, measuring the temperatures up to 1700?F in the center of the flue at the end of the 4" stem. Requires one 1/4" hole.


Is this what I will have to go with ? If so what is the "stem" that it is supposed to be placed at the end of ? Assuming the "stem" is one of the pipes, which end would be the end that it would be installed at ?

Are there any other options, that don't require having to drill a hole in the flue pipe ?

TIA


 
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Post by coaledsweat » Mon. Sep. 15, 2014 7:20 pm

With a probe you must drill a hole.

 
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Post by scalabro » Mon. Sep. 15, 2014 7:34 pm

A magnet that is attracted to SS, is a real sign of crappy stainless.

I just rest my magnetic one on top of the horizontal section of pipe.

 
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Post by McGiever » Mon. Sep. 15, 2014 8:00 pm

The 4" stem is the 4" probe out the back of the thermometer dial. ;)

 
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Post by Sunny Boy » Mon. Sep. 15, 2014 8:55 pm

You could use a hand-held infrared thermometer.

I use the Raytek at the top of the bunch shown here.
http://www.instrumart.com/categories/729/infrared ... &gclsrc=ds

And, you can check temps on any part of the stove of stack (or anything else) form up to 30 feet away.

Plus, if you get bored, pets love to chaise the laser dot across the floor ! :D

Paul

 
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Post by Old-Duckman » Mon. Sep. 15, 2014 8:59 pm

McGiever wrote:The 4" stem is the 4" probe out the back of the thermometer dial. ;)
Duuuuuhh ! Guess I was trying to make it too hard...I succeeded !

Thanx for the common sense answer..

 
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Post by Old-Duckman » Mon. Sep. 15, 2014 9:02 pm

Sunny Boy wrote:You could use a hand-held infrared thermometer.

I use the Raytek at the top of the bunch shown here.
http://www.instrumart.com/categories/729/infrared ... &gclsrc=ds

And, you can check temps on any part of the stove of stack (or anything else) form up to 30 feet away.

Plus, if you get bored, pets love to chaise the laser dot across the floor ! :D

Paul
Thanx much Sunny Boy, I really like that idea !


 
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Post by McGiever » Mon. Sep. 15, 2014 9:17 pm

IR thermometers don't work well on light colors or on reflective surfaces such as SS or even on new shiny copper pipe.
You can add a spot of flat black paint where you might want to take your readings. :)

 
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Post by Old-Duckman » Mon. Sep. 15, 2014 9:40 pm

McGiever wrote:IR thermometers don't work well on light colors or on reflective surfaces such as SS or even on new shiny copper pipe.
You can add a spot of flat black paint where you might want to take your readings. :)
Thank you for that info. Actually I was researching them after I read Sunny Boy's post and found that they are not good on shiny surfaces, you idea of a flat black paint spot is a good one.

I found that the emissivity on the less expensive models is fixed at .95. There are emissivity rating tables that give you the ER of common materials, stainless steel is .59.

So I guess you could do the math but I also found ones with adjustable emissivity at a fairly reasonable price.

The Fluke 62 Max + has a temperature range up to 1200 F. Is that adequate for this purpose ?

 
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Post by Lightning » Mon. Sep. 15, 2014 9:46 pm

This is the best money I've ever spent. It has alarms for high and low temps and 2 probes. I can carry the remote all over the house while I have the ash pan door open to rev up the fire..  

I have one probe secured to the flue pipe set at 260 degrees and the other probe secured to the front over the load door set at 400.

http://www.maverickhousewares.com/et732.htm

 
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Post by McGiever » Mon. Sep. 15, 2014 9:58 pm

The Fluke 62 Max + has a temperature range up to 1200 F. Is that adequate for this purpose ?
More than adequate...better hope to never see higher than ~700-800 F range on exterior...but shooting into the hot coals can be over 1000 F. :)

 
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Post by titleist1 » Mon. Sep. 15, 2014 11:03 pm

$26 sounds excessive, I've had a $10 barbeque temp probe in my flue pipe for many years.

http://www.amazon.com/FANTASYCART-Barbecues-Therm ... ture+gauge

 
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Post by ddahlgren » Sun. Sep. 21, 2014 3:15 am

Most 316 stainless flue pipe is double wall and if yours is the surface temp is meaningless. A probe is by the best way to go as there are to corrections to deal with at all and will find the flue gases much hotter than the surface temp would lead you to believe. I magnetic ones Rutland brand is almost total junk. To get into their 'safe burn zone' of 300 I have to run the center of the flues at 650 and way more than it needs to be. It is not a pipe with a dense liquid in it, it is hot air and there is a boundary layer of shear between the gases and the wall of the pipe with very little flow. When you measure in the center you are getting the real temperature. My pipe your pipe his pipe and her pipe can all read quite different with the same gas temperature. Sure you can get a rough idea that might be useful on your stove after a bunch of trial and error but the actual temperature even within 20% is not very likely.

 
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Post by titleist1 » Sun. Sep. 21, 2014 7:42 am

Your other option is to get an IR point and shoot temp gauge. I got one last year to play with and was surprised to see the temp it read on the black stove pipe was very close to the temp on the probe at the same place. I was thinking the surface temp would be a lot less than the probe but it was not. It was interesting to see the difference in temps on the bottom of the pipe compared to the top on the horizontal run.


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