Using Acidulated Malt (Acid Malt)

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redwing_al

http://www.homebrewmania.com/
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I have a PH in my home of 7.5 and I am wondering how much acidulated malt I could add to the grain bill to lower my PH to the preferred 5.2 ? I am reading around 2% to 3% could help without adding a twang. In any case, help me understand this variable. I would like to try it out on my next brew day.

Thanks,
RW_A
 
Your website is a bit "sparse" .... But it's better than mine so I won't hate on it. :)
Amount of acid malt has a few factors not the least of which is your grain bill and the alkalinity of your water.

I don't think anyone can make a suggestion without some more info....
 
You would honestly want to know more than just your water ph and your levels would change depending on your grain bill. My water ph is 7.2 but the calcium level is 10. I add a combination of acidulated malt and minerals to lower ph and raise calcium. I use 3% acidulated in my ipa's with no problem at all. Find a good water ph calculator online and make adjustments accordingly.
 
Have you tried the Bru'n Water spreadsheet? Your local water district probably has a water quality report online that you could use to input all of what it needs, then put your whole grain bill into it and play with the various adjustments
 
The pH of the water from your tap has little to do with the pH of the mash. Adding grains to the tap water will lower the pH but to know how much that will lower it you need to know the mineral makeup of the water OR you need to measure the pH of the mash and adjust that. There isn't any way for us to tell how much acidulated malt to use because it could be that you don't need any....or you might need a fair amount.
 
thank you for your feedback. I will do a little more research on my local water source. The last time I asked for the info, they were not helpful and provided detail that was not helpful.
 
And 5.2 is too low. I've been advised to shoot for 5.4 and have been happy with the results.
 
pH is also going to vary depending on the type of beer you are brewing. Using dark malts will up the pH versus using pale malts which dont really change it. Just some extra food for thought :)
 
Check out the brunwater spreadsheet. Down in the brewing software you'll read about it too.
 
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