Emergency

[Mexibilly]

Anybody able to reccomende an amount of baking soda to bring mash pH from 3.6 to 5.4 with 35 minutes remaining in the mash?

 

[IslandLizard]

It's probably too late already. And you wouldn't want baking soda, it increases the Na+ too much at the same time. Ca(OH)2 (Pickling Lime) would be much better.

All depends on the size of the mash and what's in there already mineral-wise. How did it drop so low?
Emulsify a tablespoon of Pickling Lime in some water, dilute with some wort then add the slurry. For starters.

[EDIT] I'm just shooting from the hip here...

 

[Mexibilly]

That's what I did.
8.75 2 row
1.25 Vienna
1.25 flaked maize
.63 Carapils
5 gallons mash water with 1 tsp gypsum and 1 tsp CaCl.
8 tsp 10% phosphoric.
Acid addition based on Brewers friend calculator. I should have probably just left it alone. Hopefully the jalapeño burn will mask any off flavor.

Using a quality pH meter from work, calibrated at 4.
I'm afraid the first reading may not have been accurate. T pulled a sample at 14 minutes and spaced it. It cooled to 50.
Read 3.57. I added about 2 tsp baking soda dissolved in hot water.
Took another sample and it read 6.5.
Added a little phosphoric and mixed well and it was down to 4.3.
I'm not jacking with it anymore at this point.
If I still get a tool allowance as department coordinator I'll spend it on a good pH meter.
This could be way worse.

 

[IslandLizard]

Next time do a test mash with 1/2 pound of your grist mix. Read the pH and take it from there. There must be something incorrectly entered into that calculator or your water is much "leaner" than you think it is.

Let us know how it turned out.

 

[ajdelange]

That's what I did.
8.75 2 row
1.25 Vienna
1.25 flaked maize
.63 Carapils
5 gallons mash water with 1 tsp gypsum and 1 tsp CaCl.
8 tsp 10% phosphoric.
Acid addition based on Brewers friend calculator.

That should have gotten you pretty close to 5.4.

I should have probably just left it alone.

Always suspect the pH meter if things don't look right. It's a very simple matter to rinse in off and dunk it is 4 buffer.

I added about 2 tsp baking soda dissolved in hot water.
Took another sample and it read 6.5.
Added a little phosphoric and mixed well and it was down to 4.3.

If the phophate additions just balance the bicarbonate additions you will have, in effect, added sodium phosphate and bicarbonate to the beer. If the dwell at low pH didn't denature the enzymes then you should be OK.
I'm not jacking with it anymore at this point.

 

[Yooper]

Anybody able to reccomende an amount of baking soda to bring mash pH from 3.6 to 5.4 with 35 minutes remaining in the mash?

There isn't any way your mash pH was 3.6- so I wouldn't worry about it!


Edit- just saw AJ's post- what he said.

 

[ajdelange]

I actually calculated 84 grams which made me realize that:

There isn't any way your mash pH was 3.6

 

[Mexibilly]

Thanks guys and gals. This meter is used by technicians testing cooling water weekly and I'm certain it isn't being cared for like it should be.
That said, I did calibrate it to 4 with fresh buffer and it lined right up like it should have.
Hopefully the addition of the extra junk didn't have a significant negative effect.

 

[Mexibilly]

That should have gotten you pretty close to 5.4.

Given that your calculation and mine were the same, and that this is the first time I've been off using the same methods, I might quit checking, especially with the environmental technician's meters.
Hopefully my knee-jerk reaction didn't do too much damage...

 

[Mexibilly]

After a few weeks I got mid 50s efficiency.
Lesson learned. No trusting a mistreated pH meter.
On a positive, the beer looks, smells and tastes good, if a little sweet.
Maybe the jalapeno heat will be a perfect combination