Adjusting pH during mashing

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Brewdogbrew

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Hello Everyone,

Researching effective ways to adjust mash pH after grains have been added. I check at 15 minutes to see pH. I have been using calcium carbonate if the pH is too low and gypsum if the pH is too high.

I have moved away from pre-treating strike water because sometimes the pH is right where I want it after mash in.

As far as sparge water I have been using phosphoric acid to get the pH 5.2-5.5.

The water I use is typically pH 6-7 depending on source to start with.

I also see there is a product called mash stabilizer that claims will automatically lower, or raise, your mash to 5.2 pH. Anyone use this and does it work?

I would appreciate any ideas or ways to ensure pH is correct during the mash in/out.

Cheers!
 
Hello Everyone,

Researching effective ways to adjust mash pH after grains have been added. I check at 15 minutes to see pH. I have been using calcium carbonate if the pH is too low and gypsum if the pH is too high.

I have moved away from pre-treating strike water because sometimes the pH is right where I want it after mash in.

As far as sparge water I have been using phosphoric acid to get the pH 5.2-5.5.

The water I use is typically pH 6-7 depending on source to start with.

I also see there is a product called mash stabilizer that claims will automatically lower, or raise, your mash to 5.2 pH. Anyone use this and does it work?

I would appreciate any ideas or ways to ensure pH is correct during the mash in/out.

Cheers!
5.2 Stabilizer absolutely will not work. It can't, the inventor has repeatedly declared this on various forums and podcasts, but the marketing people still sell the snake oil to the gullible and uninformed. This is unconscionable and unfortunate, but not surprising. It was formulated for one very specific situation, and the buffers are inctive under almost any actual mash conditions. Don't waste your money.

Calcium carbonate also is virtually insoluble under any conditions encountered in brewing, and so it should never be used in brewing, as it will contribute neither calcium no alkalinity as desired. It is sold in the shops because it does have applications in winemaking.

The best way to adjust mash pH is with acid to lower it, or baking soda or pickling lime to raise it. The calcium/ phosphate reactions you are relying on with gypsum are much slower, and reversible, especially once the mash has begun, so better to directly adjust acidity or alkalinity.

But once you've mashed in and the buffer systems have been established, it is more difficult to shift the pH, and most of the enzyme activity will have taken place by the time you do.

Much better to calculate the necessary additions of acids and salts beforehand and add them to the strike water before mashing in, so that the correct pH will be established from the start. There is an abundance of software to help you.
 
mash pH isn't anywhere near stabilized at the 15 minute mark. My data shows that its more like 45 minutes for pH to become static.
 
I adjust my water to target my ideal mash pH but keep 85% phosphoric acid and baking soda nearby in case I end up too far off in either direction.
 
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