Using a broken hydrometer

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Phunhog

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Well.....I am brewing right now and I noticed my hydrometer is broken at the very top. It is still usable for today. I was just wondering if it will still be accurate? Like I said it is only the top 1/4 inch that broke off and it still floats fine. Not a big deal except for making sure I hit my OG. Thanks. Al
 
That thing floats. You lost some weight and it will float higher. Try tapeing the broken off piece onto the top if you are desperate. You just need the weight so it does not have to look pretty.

Post a pic of it patched. I could use a good chuckle.
 
Your reading would be a little bit too high, as it'll sit a little too high in the wort. It it's only 1/4" of glass that broke off, what's that weigh in comparison to the ballast? Not a whole lot, but a little.
 
Ok...I am trying to figure why it wouldn't be accurate still...no wort is getting in the hydro. I assume a sealed hydro just has air in it. I guess what I will do is get all my numbers and then calibrate it after brewing and then adjust.
 
Because the gravity reading is based on how heavy the entire hydrometer is vs how dense your beer is. You've lost some weight from the broken glass that is no longer on the hydrometer so it will float higher giving you an inaccurate reading. I would test it in water first and see how far off it is and use this number as a correction when you take your gravity readings.
 
Yes it is just filled with air, but the glass piece that broke off removes weight from the hydro, which means it won't sink as far into the wort as it should to give you an accurate reading.

But you should be able to calibrate it after you get a new hydro based on your FG readings like you are suggesting.
 
Well..good thing the LHBS is 5 minutes down the road. During the boil I ran down and got another hydrometer. For the record the broken one was 11 points off...didn't think it would be that much difference!! Anyways I hit my OG perfectly. Thanks for the help!! Al
 
11 pts off - holy moses! Are you certain some of the metal balls didn't fall out? Point noted on big a difference a little chunk of glass might make. :mug:
 
For the love of God, toss the thing out! Tape? Really? You've GOT to post pics of that.

It will not measure worth cr@p and you've probably also dislodged the paper to some degree so it is likely WAY off calibration.

My (humble) $0.02.

Edit: I probably should have read the whole thread...11 pts...yikes and thanks for making my point! Cheers.
 
next time, put it in some distilled water and see what the difference is. and adjust for those points. since in distilled it should read 1.000
 
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