Mash pH

[nolabrew85]

So my mash pH ended up being 4.8-4.9. What can I expect from this low mash pH?


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[estricklin]

Slightly lower efficiency I would expect. Gypsum would help to raise the pH next time you brew that particular recipe. Lactic acid on the other hand, is a great way to lower the mash pH.

 

[Terek]

I just use 5.2 ph stabilizer. Puts it at 5.2 no matter what

 

[mcl]

Gypsum lowers ph.


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[GuldTuborg]

There are some pretty knowledgeable water guys over in the "Brew Science" section. I'd post this over there. I'm not sure what would happen from a pH that low. Was that a room temp or mash temp reading? Paper or meter?

Generally, gypsum lowers mash pH. The 5.2 stabilizer is generally thought to not be worth the money, either. I'd look to the guys in the Brew Science section for the best advice, no offense to anyone else.

 

[BreezyBrew]

I just use 5.2 ph stabilizer. Puts it at 5.2 no matter what

It's been proven on here by the water experts and others that pH stabilizer doesn't really do anything to the water... just gives it a salty flavor.

 

[jbsg02]

Did you use acid? Tons of roasted malt? That seems very low. Are you sure your ph meter is calibrated properly or are you using the strips?

 

[tblasio]

I found the section on mash pH in Palmer's How to Brew pretty informative, and he includes a spreadsheet tool for correcting pH, mostly for matching your water profile to the SRM you're looking for, but you could use it just to see how much of what to add to get your pH where you want it. This (hopefully) is a link to the tool: http://howtobrew.com/section3/Palmers_Mash_RA_ver3ptO.xls

 

[estricklin]

There are some pretty knowledgeable water guys over in the "Brew Science" section. I'd post this over there. I'm not sure what would happen from a pH that low. Was that a room temp or mash temp reading? Paper or meter?

Generally, gypsum lowers mash pH. The 5.2 stabilizer is generally thought to not be worth the money, either. I'd look to the guys in the Brew Science section for the best advice, no offense to anyone else.

Let's correct my statement to something like calcium carbonate.

 

[GuldTuborg]

Let's correct my statement to something like calcium carbonate.

That'll do it, though unpredictably due to wildly varying levels of solubility based on factors I don't completely understand. For minor upward adjustments, baking soda often works well. Pickling lime, too, but that requires different kinds of calculations. It's all pretty complicated stuff.

 

[nolabrew85]

I know what additions to make manipulate mash pH. I know what darker malts will do to mash pH. I have an accurate pH meter that accounts for differences in temperature. The pH meter was calibrated right before. It was a red ale. I just had a lot going on (I was boiling an IPA at the same time and also helping to move a draft cooler in the house). In the midst of all this I accidentally added to much acid to the mash (it was reading 5.95 after 20 minutes) and got down to 4.9. So I am not interested in how to manipulate the mash as I know that stuff and that info is all over the place on the net. My interest is what exactly does happen when the pH dips below to 4.9. The most I could find was in John Palmers book on brewing water called "Water" (not How to Brew). In that he says that a mash pH below 5 may cause a one dimensional grainy or roasted flavor and may also effect beta amylase.


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[nolabrew85]

Also, I tried to add more alkaline water to the mash to get it back up (I didn't have any alkaline adding elements on me because it is usually not an issue with my alkaline water) but I couldn't get it to raise pH without making the mash too thin.


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[GuldTuborg]

So I am not interested in how to manipulate the mash as I know that stuff and that info is all over the place on the net. My interest is what exactly does happen when the pH dips below to 4.9.

All the more reason to post this over in the Brew Science section. You're going to get more information over there.