Review on Inkbird ITC-106VH - Fahrenheit and Centigrade PID Temperature Thermostat Controllers for Sous Vide, Home Brewing, Oven, Incubator (AC 100-240V) by Troy Simpson

Let me first say that this controller might be fine for some applications, although I think it might be inaccurate in its temperature readings. However, I cannot recommend this controller for 240VAC applications, even though the manufacturer rates it for those voltages. It might be fine for 120VAC, but are you lucky? And you? The BIG issue I have with this temperature controller is the power supply inside the controller and the design flaw it has. I installed this temperature controller in a 240VAC application and it has been working great for months. However, the last time I applied power, the inrush current limiting resistor in the power supply failed, spewing carbon and metal fumes through the rest of the circuit. Fortunately the guiding path was not formed so it did not catch fire. The power supply seemed to work, but failed this time because I probably accidentally connected the temperature controller to the power supply just as the 240V AC was at its peak (340V peak to peak), causing the inrush current to reach its maximum. All other times were fine as the voltage wasn't at its peak so the starting current was lower. What makes this power supply different is 1) no built in fuse and 2) no protective cover on the starting resistor to catch the splitter should the resistor fail. I've seen this failure mode on other power supplies in development, so this isn't a new scenario to me. This controller is NOT UL listed which explains why it has a design flaw. While UL approval isn't a guarantee that everything is well designed, it does mean that someone other than the manufacturer has reviewed the design and tested the product for things like inrush current and voltage spikes. Instead, I would recommend looking for higher quality. UL listed controller. I found a Solo SL4848 in the same DIN16 form factor for $100; It is UL listed, has 8 ramp/soak patterns and RS485/MODBUS for programmability and monitoring. Even the Omega version of the same controller is only $130. So far the replacement looks good; I only wish I had bought it beforehand.