Does Gypsum go bad?

I was out doing a bit of yard sale browsing, hoping as ever to find homebrew stuff, and actually came across some odds and ends.

At first I was only going to buy a couple airlocks and caps (because I didn't need the other stuff) but he wanted to get rid of it and gave me the lot for $5. Got a 5 gallon bottling bucket, bottle brush, 2 cappers, a ton of caps, 3 airlocks, random tubing, a hydrometer, and the reason I started the thread: a bottle of gypsum.

I've never used the stuff (not really sure if I even need to) but I wanted to find out if it goes bad. The label on the bottle looks a bit old, but the contents look okay (white powder, filled to the top). Should I just toss it, or does it last?

To be honest I was thinking of tossing it anyway because it wasn't sealed, and god only knows what could have gone into the bottle over the years.

Anywho, thanks!

Gypsum is a salt. It will go bad like table salt goes bad, which is to say, basically never. It might clump up if it got wet, but I wouldn't worry about it "going bad."

Yeah, if you store it at normal temperatures, or even in the fridge, it will be fine for quite a long time. Even if it clumps up, within reason, it is fine to use. Just break it apart when/if that happens.

Thanks! I'm thinking I probably shouldn't mess with it anyway seeing as how I don't know much about my water.

Yeah, learn your water before adding things, but you really should learn a little about your water.

Mongrel said:

Yeah, learn your water before adding things, but you really should learn a little about your water.

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Well, I misspoke. I know a *little* about my water. Certainly not enough to start adding stuff, but enough that I'm comfortable brewing with it. I have well water. I had a test done and they said it is hard water, and slightly alkaline. But that was about as detailed as they were (it was a free water test from Home Depot).

I may use that 5.2 stabilizer.

Lick your drywall. If it tastes off, rip it out and install new drywall.

onipar said:

I may use that 5.2 stabilizer.

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Please don't. Kaiser sent a sample in to Ward for testing and found that at the recommended dosage it adds 100ppm of sodium to your water and doesn't really do anything to your mash pH.

Here's a link where they talk about the results, but I can't find the thread where he actually sent the stuff in for the test.

http://www.homebrewersassociation.org/forum/index.php?topic=887.0

Nateo said:

Please don't. Kaiser sent a sample in to Ward for testing and found that at the recommended dosage it adds 100ppm of sodium to your water and doesn't really do anything to your mash pH.

Here's a link where they talk about the results, but I can't find the thread where he actually sent the stuff in for the test.

http://www.homebrewersassociation.org/forum/index.php?topic=887.0

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What!? Dang, thank you so much for bringing my attention to that; I had no idea. I was under the impression it only stabilized the PH to 5.2 (I guess that's what everyone thought since that's how it is advertised). Glad someone thought to test it.

Thanks again. Hell, I'm only doing partial mash anyway, I'm just going to use my water as is and not mess with it.

Gypsum is a mineral salt.

It's dug-up out of the ground.

(Actually, it's processed and refined, but still -- it's found in rocks.)

So, it 'goes bad' in the same sense that rocks go bad. With the exception of Halite, I can't think of any rocks that people eat; nor can I think of any reason why Gypsum would 'go bad'.

The Gypsum you have is probably millions of years old, already. What's a few more on some guy's garage shelf?

Fionnbharr said:

Gypsum is a mineral salt.

It's dug-up out of the ground.

(Actually, it's processed and refined, but still -- it's found in rocks.)

So, it 'goes bad' in the same sense that rocks go bad. With the exception of Halite, I can't think of any rocks that people eat; nor can I think of any reason why Gypsum would 'go bad'.

The Gypsum you have is probably millions of years old, already. What's a few more on some guy's garage shelf?

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Okay, okay. I've already got "it goes bad like salt goes bad," "it goes bad like drywall goes bad," and now "it goes bad like rocks go bad."

I get it, thanks.