How Accurate Are Digital Kitchen Scales | Fixing Precise Accuracy

Kitchen scales or digital food scales come in handy when measuring ingredients for recipes. But how accurate are digital kitchen scales? Are they really as precise as the manufacturers claim?

In this article, you will find out the digital food scale’s accuracy level, and the reasons behind their inaccurate measurements. You will also learn how to repair an inaccurate digital scale. So, without any further delay, let’s dive in.

Why an Accurate Kitchen Scale is Necessary

When it comes to measuring ingredients, most people rely on their eyesight. But what happens when you need to measure something smaller than your eye can see? This is where kitchen scales come in handy.

If you’re using a kitchen scale and that doesn’t provide proper accuracy, it would be very unwise to use it. Due to using an inaccurate scale your cooking recipe might get ruined. Besides, your diet plan will be harmed as well which may have a serious effect on your health let alone the perfect recipe.

Or, if you’re planning a party at your home and want to prepare dinner for all, an inaccurate kitchen scale itself is enough to spoil your arrangement. So, you can guess the significance of accurate measurements of your food scale is extremely high.

Kitchen scales, also known as food scales, show almost precise readings. Depending on the various types – analog and mechanical scales show much more precise measurements than digital and smart kitchen scales.

How to Check the Accuracy of Your Kitchen Scale

If you’ve ever baked something and wondered why your recipe didn’t come out quite as you expected, chances are good that you used a faulty digital kitchen scale. How do you know whether your scale measures correctly? Here are some quick things to look at:

• Does the scale display the correct amount of grams?
• Is the weight displayed in both grams or kilograms? This is important because if the weight is displayed in grams, then you need to convert the weight into kilograms.
• Is the number displayed in both kilograms or pounds?
• Is the unit of measurement displayed in ounces or grams convertible?
• Is the decimal point and unit conversion buttons working fine?
• Does the scale give you the option to change the units of measurement?
• Does it come to 0.00 when the tare button is pressed?
• Can you reset your kitchen scale as per the instruction manual provided?
• Can you perform a calibration successfully after faulty reading?

Food scales are great because they make cooking easier and more accurate, especially when it comes to baking. But what happens when you buy a scale and realize it doesn’t actually work very well? Here’s how to tell if your scale is accurate –

Check the Scale with Both Dry & Liquid Ingredients

Your scale needs to be accurate enough to weigh dry ingredients such as flour and sugar, it should be able to accurately measure liquid ingredients (fluid ounces) like milk and water. If your scale can accurately measure liquids, it will also be able to accurately measure solid ingredients like eggs and vegetables.

Check A Specific Products Weight in Multiple Kitchen Scales

Find any random item in your kitchen, say for example – a fry pan. Weigh it in your digital food scale. Now, reweigh it in some of your neighbors’ kitchen scales (of which you’re sure of accuracy). If everywhere the weight remains constant, then you can be much assured that your kitchen scale is measuring fine and vice-versa.

Use Spare Coins to Put your Scale in Check

A single penny weighs 2.50 grams, according to the US Mint. If you have a few pennies lying around, you can use them to test out your scale. Just place a single penny on your scale, set the unit to 0.01g, and see how many grams it reads. If your scale rounds up to three grams, you’ll want to recalibrate it.

Compare with Reference Weight

Take a pack of 6 beer cans from your mini-fridge. A standard beer can usually weigh 12 Oz (actual weight). So, they altogether should provide 72 Oz of weight. 

If the weight shown on your kitchen scale’s display is 72 Oz as well, then you need not to worry about the accuracy of the scale and if not, vice-versa. You need to fix the inaccurate readings right away.

Take The Tare Test

Place your kitchen scale or bathroom scale on a flat surface. Switch it on. Now, see the reading of your scale. It should show 0.00 g. If it isn’t showing the value, press the tare button.

Now, it should definitely show the correct weight i.e., – 0.00 g. If any other value than this is showing on the LCD display of the food scale, unfortunately, I’ll have to say that your food measuring scale is faulty. And, you, my friend, need to calibrate it as soon as possible.

Possible Reasons Behind Inaccurate Measurement of Kitchen Scales

Just because you bought a new kitchen scale doesn’t mean that it’s accurate. There are several reasons why you might notice inaccurate measurements when using a kitchen scale. Here are the possible reasons behind inaccurate measurement of kitchen scales.

There are many reasons why a scale may not measure accurately. Some of these include:

• The scale was improperly installed.
• The scale does not use enough pans.
• The larger bowl pan is too heavy due to carrying maximum weight.
• There is something wrong with the balance mechanism.
• The scale is old or not on a flat surface.
• The scale uses faulty batteries instead of AC power.
• The scale has been dropped and affected the digital screen.
• The scale needs recalibration.
• The scale’s weighing platform (stainless steel platform) might be damaged.

How To Increase Accuracy of An Inaccurate Kitchen Scale

To increase the accuracy of an incorrect kitchen scale all you need to do is two simple things –

1. Reset your kitchen scale with tare feature

2. Calibrate your kitchen scale

Pro Tips To Retain The Accuracy Of A Kitchen Scale

After gaining proper accuracy, you need to retain it in order to get correct measurements all the time. For that, you need to perform the following advises –

• Always keep your kitchen scale clean. There should be no dirt and dust in or out the scale.
• Buy simple design smart scales or glass scales having ease of cleaning and a wide range of measuring features.
• Always check the batteries, battery life and change them as per schedule.
• Put it on a flat surface before measuring for precise reading.
• To be on the safe side, always tare the scale before taking readings on smart scales.
• Reset it whenever required with tare function.
• Calibrate it as per instructions provided with the used manual with calibration weights.
• Do not try to weigh more than maximum capacities of the scale.

FAQ on the Accuracy of Digital Food Scale

1. Are Digital Scales 100% Accurate?

No. Most brands claim to have 100% accurate results, but in reality, there will be some percentage of error in every digital or mechanical scale. But, if you purchase good quality analog scales or mechanical scales, manufactured by a well reputed brand, you can achieve more than 99% accurate result on a backlit display.

2. Do Digital Scales Lose Accuracy?

Well, unfortunately yes, digital scales do lose accuracy. But that’s not too frequent. Good quality accurate scales will provide precise measurements on digital display at least for consecutive 5 years. Besides, they provide a warranty. If any earlier than your warranty, digital scales show wrong readings, you have the option to change or repair it for free of cost from the manufacturer.

Final Words

Food scales are a very important tool in your kitchen for precise measurements. But, you need to be sure of “how accurate are digital kitchen scales”. If they don’t provide accurate readings then it might be dangerous for you in some situations like – spoiled recipe or even your diet plan chart. We have provided how to check, repair and maintain the accuracy of your kitchen scales. Hope that helps you.