slow roasting maple with a meator!

[doc henderson]

well it is a holiday.  we canceled our usual family reunion.  we had and anniversary party 2 weeks ago, a b-day party a week ago, cookout yesterday, and a wedding Next weekend.  So nothing to do today.  so  i grabbed a dry piece of maple in my shop and measured moisture.



 

drilled a hole the same size as my meator probe.



 
put in the warmer at 160°F.



 

In case you do not have one, it is a probe for cooking meat, it has a thermistor on the tip half for internal and the back measures ambient.  it can estimate time to finish after a while.  it can give an alarm when goal internal temp is reached.  the box is storage and a charger as well it links to the probe and then blue tooth is good up to 160 feet.  I took screen shots of my graph, but it did not upload to the forum due to format.  



 

 internal got to 133 at about 45 minutes.  the oven was not up to 160° for the first 20 minutes.  I shot a non contact of the surface and it was 140° and I cut the end off and did a non contact measure of the internal area and it was 140.  that was after an hour in the oven when the measured temp by the prob. was about 142.  so I think this would be close and reassuring that a core temp got to 133.  you can also record the graph, and it at least in this very non extensive study shows,  it is relatively close.  
I will continue to try to add the graph from my phone.

[doc henderson]

converted to jpeg and here is the graph



 

[doc henderson]

this was a small piece of wood.  about 3 x 6 x 0.75 inches.  relatively lots of BTUs in this old military hospital fluids and blanket warmer. so the time is not what you would have in a hot box or kiln, but I think the probe could be "helpful" and provide a graph to show core temp above 133° if one were concerned about sterilization.  it would require a just less than 1/4 inch hole (0.235 inches).     @firefighter ontheside 
the probe is 100 bucks and I would not get it just for this, but if you already have one, another application.

[firefighter ontheside]

Thanks Doc.  I like it.  It would be useful for someone who can get the temp in the kiln high enough to sterilize wood, unlike me who cannot get higher than 120.  I bought a cheap oven meat thermometer that has a wired probe.  I drilled a hole in a 6/4 piece of walnut and stuck the probe in.  Then I close the shed door and leave the readout thing hanging out.  The meator would be a little more slick and I wouldn't have to have a piece of wood right by the door.

[PA_Walnut]

Neat idea. Now we need a widget like that to measure MC in the core and we'll all rejoice in the bluetooth revolution!! 

[samandothers]

Doc
Is the hole tight enough to avoid air near the end of the probe from causing the reading to be higher than the wood?  Glad you got the chance to play some with the Meater for this purpose.

BTW should this slow roasting maple using the Meater be in the food forum?  :laugh:

[doc henderson]

the bit and the probe have different profiles so the is air there, but the hole is snug around the rest of the probe so no exchange.  It would be a small amount, and not sure it would be hotter than the surrounding wood. all for fun.  I thought about a flat type spade bit that could mimic the probe, but that would be some work, and I have other things to do.  Just a thought for those of us debating core temp and wood sterilization.

[doc henderson]

 

 

some cottonwood in my "heat box" fluid and blanket warmer from an old hospital.

[kelLOGg]

Doc
Is the hole tight enough to avoid air near the end of the probe from causing the reading to be higher than the wood?  Glad you got the chance to play some with the Meater for this purpose.

I put putty around the outside end of the thermocouple so air doesn't influence the temp reading.