You can insert the thermometer for long enough to take a good reading – which is about 5 seconds. You can even leave it in the meat for 10, 15 or 20 seconds if you are unsure of the reading; but that really is not necessary. It will give an accurate reading in about 5 seconds. Then press the ‘HOLD’ button and remove the thermometer and it will still show the temperature reading.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Thermometers
Infrared Thermometers eT650D and eT1050D
The two laser beams cross at a distance of 8 inches (203 mm). This is the recommended target distance for most measurements. Since the distance-to-spot ratio of the eT650D is 10:1, the spot diameter at this distance is 0.8 inches (20 mm). To measure a smaller spot area, move the thermometer closer to the target and use the distance-to-spot ratio of 10:1 to estimate the spot size. For instance, at a target distance of 5 inches, the spot size is 0.5 inch (13 mm). But you can also measure surfaces at distances greater than 8 inches, the eT650D and eT1050D can easily detect temperatures of targets several feet away. The further away the target, the greater the spot size, and the two laser dots approximately tell you the edges of the circular measurement spot. So make sure the target area you want to measure is larger than the spot size (lies inside the two laser dots).
To measure the grilling grate surface temperature, hold the temperature gun at a shallow angle and shoot the laser across the top of the grilling surface. The lasers should be visible on the grate of the grill. If your angle is too steep you may be sensing the heat of the coals beneath, which will not give an accurate reading of the grilling surface.
You will have to open the oven door to measure the temperature of the pizza stone. You cannot measure it through the glass of the oven door. To do this, open the oven and shoot the laser across the stone at an oblique (shallow) angle. You can hold the trigger down and scan the stone to get a series of temperature readings for the whole pizza stone surface. Typically, an oven will reach the ambient air temperature for baking well before the pizza stone reaches that temperature, so simply hearing the oven beep that it has reached temperature does not indicate that the pizza stone has reached the target temperature.
A black cast iron or dark non-stick coated pan will give you accurate readings at the standard emissivity of 0.95. However, a shiny stainless steel sauté pan will give you inaccurate readings due to the shine unless you adjust the emissivity of your eT650D infrared thermometer. You can find detailed information about that in the manual which comes with your thermometer. One more tip: you can use the scan feature of the thermometer to discover how evenly your pan is heating and how the temperature changes when different foods are added to the pan.
No, the eT650D is not designed to measure body temperature. It will only measure skin surface temperature which is not an accurate reflection of your internal body temperature.
For information on our NIST certification and calibration services, please visit the NIST FAQ section.
FAQ – Digital Meat Thermometer eT820F
Yes! Simply hold the thermometer so that your hand is not in the steam, so you do not burn yourself. The thermometer is sealed to prevent steam from entering the sensitive electronics or battery compartment. The digital display may fog up from the outside, but it will not fog up on the inside and you can easily wipe it clean. Remember to press the ‘HOLD’ button when the five seconds are up, and then remove the thermometer for safer, easier reading.
No! This thermometer should not be left in food which is cooking, either in the oven, on the grill or on the stove top. It is an instant read thermometer, so you can take a reading very quickly, and then remove it.
How can I tell if a whole meatloaf is really done?
Ground meats should be measured at the thickest part. For meatloaf, this is the very center of the loaf. Do not insert the thermometer tip too deeply, as it will be measuring the bottom half of the loaf, which is closer to the pan and heat. Instead, insert the thermometer just slightly past the tip, and the tip will be in the center of the loaf, which is furthest from the heat.
To measure thin cuts of meat, like pork chops or steaks, you’ll want to insert the thermometer into the side of the cut of meat. Try to position the thermometer towards the top and angle it slightly downward so that the measuring tip is as close to the center of the meat as possible.
Where do I measure?
The best way to measure poultry is to insert the thermometer into the bird at the inner thigh, just between the drumstick. Make certain not to touch the bone with the tip of the thermometer. (Don’t insert it too far, just so the tip is in the meat completely.) When the temperature reads 165°F for the inner thigh, then the bird is ready.
