Using Brass Fittings in Mash Tuns a Health Concern?

[Brewmegoodbeer]

I built a mash tun about 5 months ago from brass fittings (ball valve, pipe tee, brass nipples) and was originally concerned about lead exposure even though the parts were "lead free" which means less than 0.25% lead on WETTED surfaces (inside the brass pipe where water would be). Now if you are leaving acidic wort in a mash tun for 60 minutes in contact of the outer surfaces of the brass in your mash tun, you are bound to leach off whatever is on the brass into your wort. I know many ppl use these brass components, but im thinking maybe it is more dangerous than us home brewers think. You would have to experiment with the break down of what is contained in wort after using brass peices. As far as I know, there is no official reserch on this. My concern is 5 months after i have been brewing with brass, I all of the sudden have hypertension and got on meds for it. Lead exposure is known to cause hypertension. Im not saying that brass is the culprit, but i sure as hell just bought all stainless steel products to replace my brass just in case. I think more scientists need to get involved in the use of brewing with certain metals and whether its safe or not.

 

[UndeadFred]

You could have your blood lead levels checked. That would give you the answer, I suppose. But do you know how much of the older 4% brass is in legacy water systems? Unlikely that your brass fittings were anything more than a drop in that bucket.

 

[Brewmegoodbeer]

Im just concerned about how they say lead free in "wetted" surfaces. That means they can legally use as much lead as they want anywhere but inside the piping. In a mash tun, you are in contact with the outer surfaces of the brass. With a mixture of the acidity of the wort, 150 degree water, and leaving the brass submerged in it for atleast an hour, i would think that your going to leach the brass. It may be a paranoia thing for me, but since only the wetted surfaces are lead free, thats open risk to leach lead from the outer surfaces.

 

[MaxStout]

No idea how much lead had leached into your beer, but you were smart to replace those fittings with ss. It's just not worth the risk to save a few bucks. And I certainly don't trust those cheap Chinese fittings from Lowe's, etc., to be low in Pb content.