Magnesium Chloride

[applescrap]

So here is some data on Antimony:
http://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/dwq/chemicals/antimony.pdf

Your salts for topical use most likely aren't that much of an issue because skin is an effective barrier. Oral consumption may differ. Not to freak you out or anything. Like said before, people here aren't gonna tell you one way or the other, just figure out the concentrations and decide for yourself.

Hmm, dont know what to think. Soaking in 2 cups of this stuff seems pretty hard core to me if it was toxic. My biggest fear would be the milk of magnesia action.

 

[Miraculix]

Yes, that's my thought. The beer may taste like **** anyway with that much magnesium (although maybe not laxative at that rate- although I shudder at the thought of Milk of Magnesia beer ). You could always taste it and see if we were all wrong about the sour/bitter effect on flavor with more than about 30 ppm. If it tastes ok, then it'd be sucky to throw it out but my guess is that it'll taste bad anyway.

The laxative effect roughly starts at 2g of salt if you are small and sensitive, I can take 3.5 g dissolved in a glas of water without any ill effects.

We are talking about a natural salt that was left behind when an ancient ocean dried out, keep this in mind, this is not a chemically produced product in a lab with all the impurifications technical standard chemicals can have due to the production process.

Taste the beer, if the beer tastes great than drink it.

 

[Big Monk]

The laxative effect roughly starts at 2g of salt if you are small and sensitive, I can take 3.5 g dissolved in a glas of water without any ill effects.

We are talking about a natural salt that was left behind when an ancient ocean dried out, keep this in mind, this is not a chemically produced product in a lab with all the impurifications technical standard chemicals can have due to the production process.

Taste the beer, if the beer tastes great than drink it.

Don't conflate natural with safe. Uranium is naturally occurring but I wouldn't consume the stuff in the raw. Mercury is naturally occurring but not good for you. Lightning is 100% organic but I don't want it anywhere near me. ;-)

Just because the MgCl is naturally occurring, doesn't mean that consuming a bunch of Magnesium is good for you. Now add the fact that if it isn't food grade, I wouldn't be using it in my beer, period.

There are so many worthwhile equipment and ingredient choices out there that using something that isn't food grade to make your beer seems too easily avoidable.

 

[Miraculix]

Don't conflate natural with safe. Uranium is naturally occurring but I wouldn't consume the stuff in the raw. Mercury is naturally occurring but not good for you. Lightning is 100% organic but I don't want it anywhere near me. ;-)

Just because the MgCl is naturally occurring, doesn't mean that consuming a bunch of Magnesium is good for you. Now add the fact that if it isn't food grade, I wouldn't be using it in my beer, period.

There are so many worthwhile equipment and ingredient choices out there that using something that isn't food grade to make your beer seems too easily avoidable.

Don't conflate me mentioning the word naturally with me saying that naturally is safe in general. Never said that.

Did only point out that a technical grade chemical produced in an industrialised process is very likely to be contaminated due to the production process and the lack of purification, because of the technical grade.

In this case, there is no real production process, it is just about getting it out of the ground.

 

[applescrap]

The laxative effect roughly starts at 2g of salt if you are small and sensitive, I can take 3.5 g dissolved in a glas of water without any ill effects.

We are talking about a natural salt that was left behind when an ancient ocean dried out, keep this in mind, this is not a chemically produced product in a lab with all the impurifications technical standard chemicals can have due to the production process.

Taste the beer, if the beer tastes great than drink it.

Based on this, I cant understand how drinking one batch with a dose of this "salt" could be that toxic, but to each their own. I remain on the fence but I am getting way closer to one side. I can't help but think of all the sodium nitrite and preserves in some of our food. In extra doses, sodium nitrite is lethal, yet I love Hot Dogs.

 

[Big Monk]

Based on this, I cant understand how drinking one batch with a dose of this "salt" could be that toxic, but to each their own. I remain on the fence but I am getting way closer to one side. I can't help but think of all the sodium nitrite and preserves in some of our food. In extra doses, sodium nitrite is lethal, yet I love Hot Dogs.

The point is, as Bilsch referenced earlier with his link to the data sheet for this stuff, that there are other things in this salt, notably barium, molybdenum, selenium, antimony, etc., and that the product is not considered food grade.

I don't believe anyone is giving a definitive opinion either way, and they shouldn't, but the overall point is to calculate the amounts present in the beer based on dosage, volume, etc. and see how comfortable you (the royal you or we) with that.

I think bad beer is likely the worst case scenario here but everyone gets to choose what they are comfortable with.

 

[Miraculix]

The point is, as Bilsch referenced earlier with his link to the data sheet for this stuff, that there are other things in this salt, notably barium, molybdenum, selenium, antimony, etc., and that the product is not considered food grade.

I don't believe anyone is giving a definitive opinion either way, and they shouldn't, but the overall point is to calculate the amounts present in the beer based on dosage, volume, etc. and see how comfortable you (the royal you or we) with that.

I think bad beer is likely the worst case scenario here but everyone gets to choose what they are comfortable with.

Exactly!

 

[Silver_Is_Money]

I would give Ward Laboratories, Inc. a call, explain your predicament to them, and ask them if they can test your beer for metals contamination, and if so, at what cost.

 

[z-bob]

Look at the PDF posted by Bilsch with the assay. It has the antimony, barium, and selenium contents in ppm. From that and the amount that you added per volume of your beer, you can figure out the ppm's in your beer. Compare that to the allowable levels in drinking water, and you can make your own informed decision whether to drink it or not.

I think the magnesium taste is going to be the biggest problem. But if you *like* magnesium, use USP Epsom salts next time It's cheap!

 

[Yooper]

Look at the PDF posted by Bilsch with the assay. It has the antimony, barium, and selenium contents in ppm. From that and the amount that you added per volume of your beer, you can figure out the ppm's in your beer. Compare that to the allowable levels in drinking water, and you can make your own informed decision whether to drink it or not.

I think the magnesium taste is going to be the biggest problem. But if you *like* magnesium, use USP Epsom salts next time It's cheap!

That's a good point.

I didn't do the math, but what is the ppm of the magnesium? If it's not all that much, the flavor wouldn't be too bad. If it's over, oh, 40 ppm or so, then the flavor would be impacted and would make the beer taste bad anyway so it wouldn't be something you would want to drink.

 

[Jasonwb88]

As you can tell, I rarely treat my water. I have had great results brewing all sorts of pale hoppy beers with no water treatment. This was an attempt to take advice from a local brewer and use magnesium chloride to add chloride but not affect the sulfate level. Base magnesium for my water is 2 ppm. I added 46 grams of Magnesium Chloride to 22 gallons of brewing water.

According to Brewer's Friend water calculator my profile looks like this: https://www.brewersfriend.com/mash-chemistry-and-brewing-water-calculator/?id=7KRLWGY

68 ppm MG2, 195 ppm CL, and 76 ppm SO4

I am unsure as to how to calculate the total ppm contribution of these elements. Would I assume that the ppm listed on the MSDS/Analysis sheet posted is the total contribution to my beer?

 

[Mirilis]

Probably mentioned already but dont use magnesium.. it gives you the ****s when you get too much.. magnesium-excels-against-constipation/

 

[Silver_Is_Money]

In addition to the heavy metals contamination potential, I'd be worried about the potential for bitterness from 68 ppm magnesium. My well water has 55 ppm magnesium, but the most I've ever used of it was 33%, along with 66% RO. A practice I've since stopped.

John Palmer's book titled 'Water' states that 40 ppm should be the upper limit, but then immediately after that it quotes a source indicating that 86 ppm is the point where bitterness becomes apparent, so 68 ppm is splitting the difference.

 

[Miraculix]

Did anyone actually tried to Google... For example.... Magnesium chloride heavy metals?

The first hits say that zechstein is below 10ppm in heavy metals. Just as I said before, judge for yourself, wild guessing doesn't help anyone.

 

[Big Monk]

Did anyone actually tried to Google... For example.... Magnesium chloride heavy metals?

The first hits say that zechstein is below 10ppm in heavy metals. Just as I said before, judge for yourself, wild guessing doesn't help anyone.

Bilsch linked the datasheet a few pages back:

http://www.genuinezechstein.com/genuine-zechstein-coa-a101-a901.pdf

Manganese - 1.01 ppm
Antimony - 0.224 ppm
Barium - 0.209 ppm
Copper - 0.1 ppm
Molybdenum - 0.161 ppm
Selenium - 8.06 ppm
Zinc - 0.206 ppm