Steven9026
Well-Known Member
I just bought a bottle of PH test strips and want to test my mash PH. How long do you wait after you add your grains to the tun before you test the PH?
Thanks,
Steve
Thanks,
Steve
I usually wait ~15 minutes. I've also read (Kaiser) that they read .3 lower than the actual PH.. I don't have any way to verify that statement but trust Kai. Quote "the strips read about 0.3 pH units lower than the pH that was determined with a pH meter. " Here's a link:
An_Overview_of_pH
I usually wait ~15 minutes. I've also read (Kaiser) that they read .3 lower than the actual PH.. I don't have any way to verify that statement but trust Kai. Quote "the strips read about 0.3 pH units lower than the pH that was determined with a pH meter. " Here's a link:
An_Overview_of_pH
Ph strips are junk imo. I have hundreds you can have for free, simply either don't work or are wildly inaccurate.
IIRC, Kai gathered data from several people on the pH strips and conducted some experiments. It's probably posted somewhere on his Braukaiser.com site.Reading the email reply from the supplier of the strips states "The sensitivity of the part
number is 0.2-0.3 pH units." implying that it could be plus or minus 0.3. Maybe Kai's batch just happened to read 0.3 low ?
So, this would suggest that you could be 0.6 out if you assume its reading 0.3 low, but the batch you happen to get actually read 0.3 high !
Anyone else compared these colorphast strips with pH meter ? I have just order some myself and would like to know if they are always minus 0.3 - if so then fine. If not then they are basically a waste of time right ?
On second thoughts, maybe the "sensitivity" quotes is actually referring to the graduation of the readings !
Anyone else compared these colorphast strips with pH meter ?
My biggest hesitation to buy a decent $100 meter is the process of calibration, storage and ultimate probe replacement at regular intervals. This isn't a tire pressure gauge.
My biggest hesitation to buy a decent $100 meter is the process of calibration, storage and ultimate probe replacement at regular intervals. This isn't a tire pressure gauge.
... but if you HAVE a pH meter, why on earth wouldn't you use it on every batch just to check? Seems to me that would be like saying, "I've brewed this recipe a half-dozen times before, I'm not going to break out the refractomer/hydrometer this time." I mean, you'll likely be fine, likely be within the expected range, but why have the tool if you're not going to use it?
I'm also not sure whether the probes degrade over time (with or without use), or whether they only degrade when actually being used.
So I turn my barley crusher by hand and ladle wort with a saucepot but (will soon) measure mash pH with a shiny new pH meter.
I'm not sure if it's more like a hydrometer (in that efficiency/boil-off/etc can vary so your OG can vary) or more like an Iodine test for conversion (in that, after what seemed like 100 consecutive tests without one ever failing I just stopped doing them). I thought remilard once said that he had done a bunch of test/adjustments and after a while pretty much knew where the pH would be for certain mashes.
IMO it really comes down to personal preference. It's not really necessary (nor is a hydrometer really). Some of us like the geekery end of it to varying degrees while others are more into building fully automated structures or whatever (and everything in between). I do the latter at work (work with tanks/pumps/etc) and strive to avoid it at home but like the geekery end of it to some small degree. So I turn my barley crusher by hand and ladle wort with a saucepot but (will soon) measure mash pH with a shiny new pH meter.
Just curious. For those of you who have used pH meters, did you find that your mashes were significantly off and if so, what adjustments have you made?
Ha, that explains a lot (my dad was/is an actuary, kids love free confetti ).I'm an actuary though, I probably like numbers more than is healthy.
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