Do you use PH lock when mashing

[Zen_Brew]

I am thinking of doing a partial mash on my next brew per the "easy partial mashing" sticky. I know there wasn't any PH lock mentioned in the thread, but I troll all over the place on the web and saw some Utube video where the guy used a PH lock to lock his PH at I think 5.2 for his mash. I tried to search the forum here but it appears the search function does not recognize 2 charachter search terms. For example it finds nothing if you just search PH.
So I was wondering if anybody uses or recommends using a PH lock solution. I would guess it is more important if you have have very low or maybe high PH water. My PH strips are on order.

 

[Boulderbrewer]

The best way to know whether to use pH 5.2 or not is to know what your water has in it. Send a sample of your brewing water to Ward Labs and have it analized. That said you are partial mashing only half you brew water will be affected by your mash the other affected by you extract mineral concentration. My suggestion is to use your water (because it's cheaper than bottled water) and Brew on. Then get that test from Ward Labs, because soooner than later you will be going all grain and you will need this information. Also don't forget to check out Palmers Mash pH tutorial to get an understanding of minerals in your water and the effects each one causes.

 

[david_42]

I use pH 5.2 and have for years. Works great for all types of water. I can't be bothered with worrying about the chemistry.

 

[Evan!]

The pH of your water is not important; it's the pH of your mash that matters. I've always used pH Stabilizer (the 5-star product) and nothing else (except burton salts a couple times), and I get great efficiency(~76-82%), which is the only reason I use it. However, I recently called my local water authority and talked to one of the lab guys, and he faxed me over the water report for my WTP. So now I have entered the water chemistry of my tap water into ProMash, and I bought some calcium chloride, calcium carbonate and gypsum, and I'm just getting my feet wet with this whole water adjustment thing. As I understand it, residual alkalinity and permanent hardness are the biggest factors for determining what water profile to use for a particular style.

But if you just want to fix the pH at 5.2 for efficiency's sake, then yeah, the stabilizer works fine.

 

[ohiobrewtus]

Nope, I've never used the stuff.

 

[Zen_Brew]

Thanx for the answers. Sounds like the water report is something I can look into once I get a better handle on the basics and want to do the more subtle tweaking of my brews.
Good information.
Cheers!

 

[the_bird]

I use the buffer whenever I remember it, and it does the job perfectly. Mash pH is spot-on, and efficiency gets jacked a few points. I use half the recommended dose, FWIW.