Hi Charlie, took some time to digest your photos and went back to the first post and read everything again. I think the offset like Tony suggested will work. That link I sent has replacement units but at a cost in excess of $100.00 if I remember correctly; not sure it is worth it. My CS has the probe just above the element. I like the probe at the top just like our home oven. The first few smokes I did (CS) went fine, but the temp climb was pretty good considering the probe was within inches of the heat. With the probe on top, and a meat product between the element and the top probe, the meat is going to absorb a lot of the heat and may I state even have a cooling effect on the rising heat before it gets to the top probe. In time, as the meat or in your case wet sand, starts climbing in temp, things start equalizing. If you look at what I posted earlier regarding butts in the CS, times were all over yet weight pretty much the same. I gave up trying to figure it out and just enjoyed the results. I know you are aware of all this but I was drinking a cold Negra Modelo and felt the urge to chime in.