Residents hope the Bureau of Meteorology, which takes its temperature readings from nearby Applethorpe, will use the equipment built into the tourist attraction to record temperatures in Stanthorpe, located about 220 kilometres south-west of Brisbane near the state border.

Stanthorpe and Granite Belt Chamber of Commerce board member Josh Cavallaro said the latest push to construct the Big Thermometer had started mid-2017 and its unveiling had ended two decades of waiting.

"There were a few issues with the design and location previously so it never really took off ... and people lost interest with the negativity around it," he said.

"Stanthorpe has always been a tourist destination and given the other 'big' items around Australia and with us being the coldest town in Queensland, we wanted to get another tourist attraction and really wanted to showcase our town."

Mr Cavallaro said talks were ongoing with regards to the weather bureau using data from the Big Thermometer as the official temperature in Stanthorpe.

"The community is loving it, there's been a lot of community involvement in it. The tourists have also loved it, (the Big Thermometer) has always got someone pulled up taking photos with it."

The tourist attraction cost about $100,000 to construct and was switched on on Wednesday.