Buying a thermometer/temperature gun for beer?

If in a bind I usually wrap a damp/wet paper towel around the beer and place in the freezer, seems to work a little better as the paper towel freezes fast and then you have a frozen layer around the outside contacting the can i.e. like putting in a bucket of salted ice water (which is the best). Another option would be to go to a restaurant supply sale and get a mini hotdog warmer like they have in convenience stores, disable the heat feature and mount it in your freezer and then you can place you can(s) on it and it could rotate in the freezer thus giving you maximum contact while being cooled.

 

Get new roommates who are cool with you putting a couple of beers in the fridge.

 

The W&S shop at one of the grocery stores here used to have a water-bath wine chiller. If you wanted, they would chill your wine for you right there at the checkout. If you're looking for an expensive and impractical solution, this is probably your best bet.

 

This is what I use for checking the temp of beer in a glass, and random other things around the house. It's a professional instrument, expensive new, but I got a great deal on Ebay. Cats also like to chase the laser pointer.

 

I use these for work, but likely a much more precise model (as I can’t tell what the number is). While accuracy is important for me, I am sure it isn’t so much for you. That said, these do have to be calibrated every so often. You could care less if it is off by a degree, but I would check it against something known just to get a feel for where it lies. Something real hot, something real cold, and something in between.

 

This is a Fluke model 66. Since I've had it a while, there surely are newer versions. Figured it needs calibration to stay true, but I don't have a trusted calibration source. Anything I could measure around the house is less accurate. Within a degree is good enough for beer.

 

Have you ever tried pointing at boiling water (e.g., 212 degrees F) or an ice batch (e.g., 32 degrees F) to see what it reads?

Cheers!

 

Had to look this up but ice can get colder than 32F, and while boiling water remains at 212F until it turns to steam, the steam would be higher than 212F as you measure through it to the surface of the water.

 

I don’t believe that to be the case.

From Omega Engineering (re: their infrared thermometers):

“Perform an ice water test by filling a glass with ice and adding enough water to fill the gaps formed between ice cubes. Stir a few times for a uniform surface. Now, point your infrared thermometer directly on top of the ice-water surface at a distance, not more than 5 cm. Make sure that the thermometer lens is at a 90° angle, and the laser is pointing at the surface's center. Record the temperature with this setting. If your IR thermometer reads approximately 32°F (0°C), your device is within the specified accuracy.”

Cheers!

 

But if you have ice cubes frozen at 32F and then set the freezer to 20F, the ice won't maintain its 32F temperature. I found a few sources for this, one is https://www.quora.com/Can-ice-get-colder-than-32-degrees-F

 

That is why you make an ice bath as I detailed above. The ice cubes when within the freezer will be at freezer ambient temperature but once an ice bath is produced the ice bath is at 32 degrees F.

Believe what you want to believe. At this point IDGAF.

Cheers!

 

@bbtkd Fluke actually says to use the ice bath method. It’s just that I make other people calibrate them instead of me doing it myself.

 

Word. I have a beer fridge, it’s like what would be in a college dorm room small and while technically I keep some beer in there, it’s seldom where I grab one to drink.
One of the things that stuck in my head from years ago, reading a post from @Todd - his statement was something like “You people drink your beer too damn cold” and then went on to explain how cold temperatures mask some of the flavors.
And he was right! So beers for thirst quenching are/or just slamming for whatever reason are usually the ones in the fridge. The rest are in the root cellar and sometimes I let them warm up a bit more before enjoying, just to make sure I get the whole experience.
But that’s just me. You all do what works best for you. Because if we were all the same, this site would not be very interesting.
Cheers!

 

Not sure if that was a joke but at a friends wedding the “bar keeper” asked if we wanted ice in our beer.
Oh, the humanity!

 

I’ve seen my wife add ice to beers on cold days. Granted they were lower ABV beers to start, but,…yeah.

 

Fluke Model 66 $325.00 on eBay. (And we all know YMMV on eBay.....)
EdgeStar 17-in 80-can capacity mini-fridge $289.00 from Lowes.
I know what I'd do.

 

I used to do that back in my PBR days, mostly due to a regrettable lack of foresight. But ya gotta drink 'em fast, before they get watered down.....

 

Listen, you don’t need an expensive infrared thermometer. How these things work is that they take a temperature by projecting a cone. The further you are away, the less accurate they are. The more expensive they are, they either have better accuracy at distance and/or they work in more extreme conditions and/or their accuracy is less than +/- 0.1 C. You don’t need any of that shit for beer. Just buy something cheap. Like $60-100 would be fine. Just look at what you are getting and understand it.

You are standing right next to the item you want to measure. You can be within 6-18mo he’s that most of the cheaper models are intend to provide full accuracy at. You don’t have to worry about accuracy at 6, 10, 40, or 80ft away.

Also, read the directions, or you’ll be doing yourself a disservice after all this work.

 

Way too much trouble and expense to just drink a beer if ya ask me. I'll spend the bucks on beer and leave the thermodynamics at work.