How many hydro's have you broken?

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Mike-H

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I have gone through 3 hydrometers so far (over probably 7 brews). I guess i'm clumbsy, just wondering if anyone else has broken any.
 
I had my first one that came with my first brewing setup kit, and I took the OG, and then after it fermented I went to get it to take a reading, and it was in pieces in the tube. I have no idea what happened to it, but I never got a new one. I thought about getting one just to tell the ABV, but I know that i can brew good beer without it.

So I guess my answer is 1, and then I gave up on them.
 
I must confess.....don't even have one yet. But will be getting one when I'm out of kits and go with recipes to make sure I'm where I'm suppose to be.
 
Brewpastor said:
I can't recall. Breakage happens. The real question is how many animals have you killed while brewing! My count is four.


You can't leave us hanging like that! You either need a new thread or hi-jack this one!!!
 
Brewpastor said:
The real question is how many animals have you killed while brewing! My count is four.

Impressive, do only intentional kills count? Do you include only mammals or do I get credit for arachnids, fowl and reptiles?
 
Well, if we count micro organisms I am probably in the trillions by now!

Actually, I am speaking about unintended kills. 2 sheep, 1 pigeon and a mouse.

Brain cells don't count.
 
I thought I had lost my hydro during a move so went and bought another one. Returned to house, found original one (that I had had for over ten years) and then it rolled off the worktop and proceeded to smash on the floor. All within a couple of minutes. A roller coaster of emotions!:cross:
...may go and buy a spare at lunchtime (lucky me has a HB shop within 15min of my work)
 
I broke the glass candy thermometer I was using for brewing last week... just barely hit something with the top of it and it just shattered. Never broke a hydrometer, but then again I hardly ever use it :)
 
Pastor,

Since you won't fill us in on all the gory details, let me posit a scenario that satisfies two separate but equally disturbing questions:

You were brewing in a barn, where there were several farm animals, birds, mice, etc. It was your first attempt at Wheat Beer, and you were very excited. But several minutes into the boil, tragedy struck. A boilover was imminent, so you made a mad dash to turn off the gas...but in the process, you knock over the whole rig. This ignites a horrendous fire that burns down the barn, killing two sheep, a pigeon and a mouse.

To this day, you're unable to even drink wheat beer, much less brew it, because of the horrible imagery that comes flooding back...

:D
 
OH MY GOD! It is like you were right there! At last my dark secret is out. I feel such a sense of relief of all that has been pinned up inside of me.

No, it was gas.

Actually, I bloated the sheep with spent grain, pegged the pigeon from across the brewery with a full bottle of beer and crushed the mouse with a cornie of dopple bock.

Each beer was named for the deceased:
Silence of the Lambic
Pelted Pigeon Pale Ale
Rodent Back Grand Cru
 
Brewpastor said:
Actually, I bloated the sheep with spent grain, pegged the pigeon from across the brewery with a full bottle of beer and crushed the mouse with a cornie of dopple bock.

Each beer was named for the deceased:
Silence of the Lambic
Pelted Pigeon Pale Ale
Rodent Back Grand Cru

Between this and your post yesterday about which of us had the most life insurance and the hottest wives....

You're quite unusual for a man of the Lord, aren't you? ;)
 
Brewpastor said:
Actually, I bloated the sheep with spent grain, pegged the pigeon from across the brewery with a full bottle of beer and crushed the mouse with a cornie of dopple bock.

Each beer was named for the deceased:
Silence of the Lambic
Pelted Pigeon Pale Ale
Rodent Back Grand Cru
That is classic! :D
 
I've lost count, but it certainly extends into double digits.

I don't break them any more because I use a refractometer for OG's, and it doesn't roll off the counter. It's probably paid for itself by now just in saved hydrometer expenses. It's certainly paid for itself in saved time and wasted wort.

-a.
 
I broke my third one last week. I was pulling some tubing out of a box and didn't see that the hydrometer was in-tangled in it. It fell on the floor and that's all she wrote! I didn't have it in it's storage container and I hope I've learned my lesson.
 
Brewpastor said:
OH MY GOD! It is like you were right there! At last my dark secret is out. I feel such a sense of relief of all that has been pinned up inside of me.

No, it was gas.

Actually, I bloated the sheep with spent grain, pegged the pigeon from across the brewery with a full bottle of beer and crushed the mouse with a cornie of dopple bock.

Each beer was named for the deceased:
Silence of the Lambic
Pelted Pigeon Pale Ale
Rodent Back Grand Cru

What a great setup!


I bet your sermons are spectacular.

;)
 
Broke my first one tonight while bottling my Cherry Stout. Thanks for jinxing me. :mad: It was in the tube with a sample to test and my elbow knocked it off the table. Worst part is I had not observed the FG reading yet:confused:
 
Broke my first one while brewing my second batch. Had just taken my OG reading and cleaned it up. The storage container for it was a hollow tube with caps on each end. When I was placing it back in the tube it pressed on the foam on the other end and out it popped of the tube and on to the floor. I have a much nicer storage case now :D
 
The question is, when are they going to make hydros with stronger glass. This is ridiculous...it's like everyone has the shakes.
 
Evan! said:
The question is, when are they going to make hydros with stronger glass. This is ridiculous...it's like everyone has the shakes.

Better yet... why not stainless steel or aluminum? You might not be able to use them in a lab where you are measuring the density of acids and whatnot, but they would work fine for homebrewers.

-walker
 
Just one, but that was while it was sitting in the drain bin. Smacked it with a pot I was rinsing. I put them up on the window sill now.

If you made them stronger, they wouldn't float properly. Ditto for any other material, except maybe an aerogel.
 
They actually do make a polycarbonate hydro (i think it's make by Nalgene). Problem is the cost...you'd be halfway to a refractometer by the time you bought one!

Oh, and yeah...count me in on the list of broken ones. Just one so far, but it's really just a matter of time.
 
Broke my second one last week while measuring last runnings. Needless to say I don't know what's my resulting OG was. I think I'll put some kind of a washer in to the bottom od measuring jar next time.
 
I bought my first hydrometer 12 years ago and I still use it today. I do have a back up my neighbor gave me but it doesn't have a thermometer.

I even have my first carboy I bought 12 years ago also... If you treat them right they will last a long time.
 
I've broke two. One when I knocked the hydrometer jar over and the other when I just knocked the hydrometer off of a shelf in the garage. It was in the case even with pieces of foam around it, but it landed right on the weighted end. At least the mess was self contained.
 
I broke one a couple weeks ago brewing my stout. I had it packed with the rest of my gear and had removed it to get other items out of my big box. Left it on a chair and it rolled off, shattering into a million pieces. So sad. I stopped at the brew shop on the way home and bought my second (and hopefully last).
 
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