Need to know the temperature of your oil rig?
VB2's leidenfrost effect does not require any exact temperature; one reason why VB2 doesn't have a tight control of temperature or a digital readout. (it would also cost a lot and add plastic components to the unit)
Although, in some cases it's good to know what temperature you are running. Be careful not to confuse your heater temperature with what you want the oils to experience (Heater temp and the oil temp are hundreds of degrees apart) or compare our ceramic to metal nails directly. The rule of thumb for Titanium e-nail and nail temperatures is not the same for our ceramic disks, which need quite a bit more temperature to deliver the same amount of heat energy to the dab.
In addition, if you think your unit is having a problem, it's good to be able to share temperature readings with us so we can troubleshoot over email or phone.
The only type of sensor that we trust to measure heating surface temperature is a "Type K Thermocouple."
This thermocouple temp sensor sold here is an inexpensive version. (product number 8141) Please note it reads in Celsius. You don't have to remember school to convert the temp... Just double the reading to get the temp in Fahrenheit. Celsius is about 1/2 of Fahrenheit at high temperatures.
Beware of Infrared Guns
People sometimes use the ever convenient infrared gun to test the temperature of their rigs. Aimed at the hot spot it shows a temperature immediately- But we've never seen them read our heater reliably.
It seems that since infrared guns measure the average temp of a spread of surface area, they are being thrown off by the VB2 housing and other cooler parts near the heater. Even though the spread is relatively small, we find that the reading can be 200-300 degrees off .
This Omega brand temp sensor seems supremely functional- Best of both worlds? It does infrared AND K type thermocouple. If anybody tries this one, please let us know if it worked for you!