Oven Thermometers

Oven thermometer. © CooksInfo / 2020

Oven thermometers help you to verify that your oven is actually operating at the temperatures you expect it to be.

They have either a broad foot on them, so that they will hook in between the tines of an oven rack and stand up on them without falling over, or a hook to hang from something in the top of your oven. Many have both.

It’s not uncommon for ovens to be off by 25 to 30 degrees C (around 50 degrees F). Oven thermometers are usually not a lot of money: you can get a reliable one for around $10 to $15 / £5.00.

Oven thermometers can read ranges from 38 C to 315 C (100 F to 600 F). You want one with a very large face so that you can read it through the glass in your oven door without having to open the oven door (which of course would cause the temperature to fall.) That’s providing, of course, that your oven door has glass in it.

There are two types of oven thermometers, bimetallic coil and mercury. Mercury are considered more accurate, though they are really hard to find now.

You can calibrate your oven so that the temperatures will match the dial. Modern electric digital ovens seem to be easier to calibrate yourself: just follow manufacturer’s directions. Non-digital gas ovens are more complicated to adjust: you may wish to get someone who is qualified to do this. Whirlpool advises that if your oven is off by 55 degrees C (100 degrees F) or more, then a service person should be called in regardless. ^[1]Why Would You Calibrate Your Oven? Whirlpool. Accessed November 2020 at https://www.whirlpool.com/blog/kitchen/how-to-calibrate-an-oven.html