How do Pop-Up Turkey Timers work?
What do fire sprinkler systems and pop-up turkey timers have in common?The first inventors of the disposable plastic sticks that now go into millions of Thanksgiving turkeys each year had an eureka moment while gazing at the ceiling.
The California Turkey Producers Advisory Board had a problem when it came to the timing guidelines used by home cooks.One board member wondered if they could invent a device that would stick in the turkey to report when it was done.
George "Goldie" Kliewer looked at the fire sprinklers and came up with the idea for the device.Automatic sprinklers used heat from a fire to melt a metal alloy plug.The water gushed out from the pipes after the plug was gone.Kliewer wondered if a similar principle could be used to signal when the temperature inside a turkey had reached the right level.
The group's original design, patented in 1961, consists of an outer housing that can be jammed into the meatiest part of the bird, an inner rod which can pop up, a spring that is placed underneath the rod, and a pin made of a "thermoplastic substance" thatThe substance that is selected to melt at the desired cooking temperature could be metal or wax.When the pin thaws, the spring pushes up on the rod, indicating that the turkey is ready for the table.
The basic principle of pop-up turkey timers has not changed over the years.The entrepreneurs in the turkey business started a company to produce and sell turkey timers.The company sold its pop-up business to Volk Enterprises, which is now one of the largest producers of devices.
Consumer Reports warns that some pop-up timers can pop before the turkey reaches the recommended safe cooking temperature of 165 degrees.
To many amateur cooks, the device is as important to the holiday as stuffing, parades and football.