Gear101

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OK i am about to get one of these, but the prices are very where over the board, anywhere from 19 to 65. I am looking for the really cool one that I can check at any stage of the beer making process. Some say they only have a range of 0-30c and others don't have a rating at all. Which model number is the best to go with, for what I want it to do? thanks

Kaz

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I would look for one that is auto temperature compensating, and measures in brix and SG scales. Keep in mind that none of them can measure gravity after fermentation begins. The alcohol content skews the results, you can use calculators online or in software like Beersmith to compensate and get a reasonably accurate corrected value.

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Homercidal

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For sure look for ATC, which is handy. I have one that only reads in Brix, and it works well. I have never tried one with SG, but I've seen them.

I think you'd be well served to stay away from any that do not purport to be for brewing.

LordUlrich

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I am going to disagree on the specific gravity scale. I have one and the scale for sg is wrong, my understanding is the manufacturer who built most of the brewing retracts around made an error in the conversion calculations. Converting from brix / plato is not that hard.

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erikpete18

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Also, normally the temperature correcting is based upon the temp of the refractometer, not the temp of the wort that you are measuring. The wort volume you'll use is so small, it will quickly cool to room temp. What the temp correction does is correct for the changes that occur if the refractometer is at a different temp than whatever the standard is (probably 60). For instance, if you're in a cool garage (50s) or in a warm kitchen over the stove (70s), you don't need to worry about correcting values.

I hadn't heard about the problem with SG scales. I got one from Austin Homebrew that had both the brix and SG scales, and the numbers I get are generally in line with what I'm expecting, but I'll have to take a second look at it next time I get it out. Like Kaz mentioned, they're not useful for after fermentation unless you want to use one of the calculators, and its incredibly difficult to get a decent taste of your beer by licking off the refractometer . But for any AG step before fermentation begins they're handy to get a feel for how the sparge and boil are progressing.

Gear101

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That is what i am after, the other day my brew came up about one whole ABV off, so will any of the refractometer read the hot wort and come up with the OG? or is there a different type that would be best for that propuse?

erikpete18

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Nope, refractometer is exactly what you're after. I found mine most useful when I first started out doing partial mashes with about a 50/50 grain to extract ratio. I could take a measure of my first runnings to see how the mash did and then take a measure of the sparge to see what else I got out. I'd also measure the gravity of the boil just as it got going to figure out how much extract I was going to have to add, and then measure the boil again at the end to make sure I'd boiled enough off. Finally, I'd use it after topping up with any water and mixing well in the fermenter before adding yeast to make sure I was close to target.

All I do with hot liquids is let them sit in the plastic dropper that comes with the refractometer for a few minutes while I move onto the next step, then add a few drops to the refractometer. By that point the liquid is cooled down to room temp and is ready to be read. Measuring during the whole batch really helped me figure out how changes I was making were affecting the end product (ie single large sparge vs two smaller sparges).

Gear101

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thanks..I am getting one, is there a better one to get over the others?

richbrew99

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I got mine from bobby_m who is on here. Totally happy with it and reasonable.

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microbusbrewery

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BTW, I just saw morebeer has one for their deal of the day today. Normally 59, on sale today for 44.95.

Brewing Refractometer With Brix Scale | MoreBeer