Thermometer for BW

[Peter De Smidt]

Anyone have a recommendation for a fairly affordable thermometer for BW developing?

[malexand]

I use some digital 'instant-read' I picked up in the kitchen section.
any $10 current model are plenty accurate / responsive for B&W work

[nolindan]

I would also recommend the cheap kitchen thermometers. Treat them as disposable, reliability is non-existent.

I don't have to be as careful with them as I do with my Kodak Color and Process thermometers - I get nervous flutters whenever I pull them from the drawer. The Kodak thermometers agree with each other to within a gnat's eyelash; the kitchen thermometers are within a degree or so of the Kodaks.

[Michael R]

I’ve accumulated several Paterson thermometers https://patersonphotographic.com/product/thermometers/ so that when I’m preparing chemicals and monitoring I don’t have to keep rinsing one. I’ve tested them against a fancy super duper accurate reference and they are all good to within a few tenths of a degree C, so plenty good enough. They’ve lasted a long time too.

[Peter De Smidt]

I had a Paterson mercury thermometer for many years. Alas, I broke it. :(

[Alan9940]

IMO, just about any working thermometer would be accurate enough for B&W developing. I have a Weston dial thermometer that I've used for over 40 years along with a couple of Delta 1 and a few other miscellaneous mercury thermometers. All have been checked against a Kodak Process thermometer that's kept safely in its box and used only for checking other thermometers. Always make me cringe a bit when I see folks on YouTube using one of these thermometers for stirring chemicals!

[Peter De Smidt]

I have a number of digital thermometers, a Thermapen, a Temp Alarm...the problem is ....they don't agree! I'd like a consistent reference like when I had my old Paterson. It looks like BH carries them for a reasonable amount, and so I'll just pick one of those up. Thanks!

[Vaughan]

A second (or third, I lost count) recommendation for cheap digital kitchen thermometers (https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256804558932052.html). With the additional suggestion to buy three or four, test them with water about 20C. Keep the two that read the same (or closest) and return the others for a refund. That way you'll have consistency when they need to be replaced.

[esearing]

I have a couple of adjustable thermometers and a digital one. I find the adjustable ones are usually within a degree of the digital one so I adjust them to match the digital once in a while. The luminescence does not seem to have any fogging effect. The long skinny probe is great for Stearman tank temperature monitoring when doing long development techniques.
Example
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/43210-REG/Doran_PRLDT_LDT_Adjustable_Luminescent_2_5.html

[Corran]

I LOVE my Kodak Process Thermometers. I know it doesn't necessarily check the box for affordable, but last time I bought a couple I think I got a pair (one Type 2 and one Type 3) for $75. One does higher temps for color with less fine gradations, one is for b&w and easily readable in the 68-75 F area. So much easier to read and use than the digital thermometers that I got when first starting, all of which failed over about a year in use.

Some folks won't ship for fear of breakage but I've gotten I think 4 shipped to me without problem. The first two got accidentally left at my last darkroom, hanging up on the side of a cabinet.

[Peter De Smidt]

Thanks, Bryan. I'll keep an eye out.

[Doremus Scudder]

I have a Kodak Process Thermometer that I use to calibrate my others. I have a slew of dial thermometers that are adjustable. They get adjusted to 20°C every so often. I also have a few Paterson Color Thermometers (not mercury) one of which is taped to the inside edge of my running water rinse tray. Others get used to check solutions in bottles and graduates. The dial thermometer on my tempering valve is adjustable and gets checked often. For developing film and paper, I have a Zone VI compensating developing timer. I like that, but don't need it really; I can just stick a dial thermometer in the developer tray when printing or make sure everything is the right temperature before developing.

Having a bunch of thermometers that agree (kind of) is nice, so get adjustable ones if possible or find reliable ones that agree with each other.

Best,

Doremus

[Jason Greenberg Motamedi]

Like others, I have a Kodak Process Thermometer, but use it only to check on the accuracy of my other thermometers.
I have a handful of Jobo thermometers which work well enough and agree within a few 1/10s of a degree with my Kodak.
My (relatively minor) problem is that the Kodak is in degrees Fahrenheit, and the Jobos are Celsius...

[wclark5179]

Try Amazon, search, thermometer's..

[Peter De Smidt]

Try Amazon, search, thermometer's..

Did that. Didn't find anything great. Gonna get a Paterson, keeping an eye out for a Kodak in the long term.

[Mal Paso]

I bought a Kodak Process Thermometer back when they were $100 new. I remember the dent in my wallet! It takes a while to stabilize so it's a Standard for the calibration of thermocouple based kitchen thermometers.

[Tin Can]

I installed an Intel-Faucet on plywood years ago

My Kodak Thermometer agrees with it

I was once Therm-O-Couple fingers when I checked my many Diesel rebuilds

[Tom Monego]

I had a Kodak Process Thermometer. When I moved I didn't have space for a darkroom so I donated my darkroom equipment to a school, which unfortunately included the process thermometer. I started back up with developing film and had two dial thermometers that didn't agree. I just bought another Kodak Process Type 3, $55 plus shipping. I just found that the thermometer I had been using agreed with the Kodak, wew. The Process theremometer is in a metal jacket, pretty durable, dropping is not recommended but with a little care it should last well.

[Drew Wiley]

I use my Kodak Process Thermometer for everything. I haven't touched my electronic ones for the past twenty or thirty years.

My Jobo tempering box, which I use for RA4 chemicals, has it's own onboard temp sensor. And once the water bath reaches equilibrium, and I double-check it with my Kodak Thermometer, the Jobo dial temp is spot on, at least within an RA4 level of accuracy. I have a far more accurate recirculating thermoregulator than that, which can maintain temp inside 1/10th deg F, but rarely use it, since it is ridiculous overkill except for the most demanding circumstances.

[tgtaylor]

I use the Jobo process thermometers that came with the CPA. One is in °F and the other °C and their readings are very consistent with each other. For example The F thermometer just read 78.5F and the C 26 or 78.8F. The problem is that they react rapidly to you body temperature and by the time you can accurately read it, the reading has increased. For chemical mixing, I use a DeltaTrak NSF probe and an adjustable Patterson thermometer to bring tap water close to the CPA's processing temperature before powering it on.

[Jody_S]

So I guess I'm the only one who loves those cheap laser thermometers for their speed and ease of reading even in the dark? I love them so much I have 3 of them. Plus a meat thermometer I used to use to measure air temp in ducts, that looks and behaves more like a traditional darkroom thermometer. I have 4 of 5 of those, too. Somewhere.

[Mal Paso]

So I guess I'm the only one who loves those cheap laser thermometers for their speed and ease of reading even in the dark? I love them so much I have 3 of them. Plus a meat thermometer I used to use to measure air temp in ducts, that looks and behaves more like a traditional darkroom thermometer. I have 4 of 5 of those, too. Somewhere.

Laser, Infrared thermometers are inaccurate when used on reflective surfaces. The more expensive ones have an adjustment for this but they need to be calibrated to each surface. Floating a dull black object in the liquid will give a close reading but needs time for the object to get to the temperature of the liquid.

Meat thermometers these days are usually Electronic Thermocouple based and are quite accurate and the low mass of the probes give fast readings. I use a Thermocouple meat thermometer that has been checked against my Kodak Process Thermometer which takes minutes to stabilize.

Try using the Laser/Infrared side by side with a Thermocouple on the same objects/solutions and you'll see what I mean.

[Peter De Smidt]

Well, getting a Patterson from B&H was a bust. I tried twice, and both were broken. I'm just going to use my Intellifaucet as the standard. According to that, my Thermoworks Chef Alarm reads 1F high.

[Tin Can]

I know you are perfectionist

It will be perfect!

Cheers

[Kevin Crisp]

I've found that any used mercury thermometer from Fisher (lots on the auction site) is plenty accurate. They aren't very expensive. Just get one with a reasonable range for processing.

[Greg Y]

Well, getting a Patterson from B&H was a bust. I tried twice, and both were broken. I'm just going to use my Intellifaucet as the standard. According to that, my Thermoworks Chef Alarm reads 1F high.

B&H must be making lots of $$ because their packaging is the worst i've seen.....consistently. Complaints never result in any change, although to their credit they do replace the goods.... it's pretty much a standing joke with them

[jnantz]

if you need another source for non electric ..
sometimes pet stores have inexpensive and accurate thermometers for fish tanks.

[Kino]

I use the the Thermapen ONE by Thermoworks. Not inexpensive, but accurate and almost instant measurements.

https://www.thermoworks.com/thermapen-one/?tw=NEDERLICIOUSMEDIA

For some reason, the Red and Blue colored ones are now on substantial discount; guess they are not favored colors...

[ChuckSilver]

I use a DigiSense with K thermocouple. If you want a cheap/free route call around to some of the local labs, biologics manufacturers, etc. pretty much anywhere that is regulated under cGMP. I picked up a dozen thermometers that were out of calibration but worked just fine. It costs more to calibrate than just buy a new one with papers. Example: i got a bunch from Profile Labs here in CA about 6 years ago for free.

[Peter De Smidt]

I use the the Thermapen ONE by Thermoworks. Not inexpensive, but accurate and almost instant measurements.

https://www.thermoworks.com/thermapen-one/?tw=NEDERLICIOUSMEDIA

For some reason, the Red and Blue colored ones are now on substantial discount; guess they are not favored colors...

I use the earlier model for cooking.

[StuartR]

I use a Hanna Instruments thermometer with a probe that I bought from a food/laboratory supplier at one point when it was on sale. It was not cheap, but it is really worth it. It is waterproof and extremely accurate, but the best part is that it is very reactive so the readings are very quick. This speeds up my entire workflow, as I can adjust the temperature so much more quickly, rather than needing for the temp to stabilize. I think if you look to thermometers that are meant for food inspection (not just home use), you will find the kind that you are looking for. They have to be accurate for safety reasons and they tend to be made waterproof because of the working environment.