Beer-lord shares Handy And Helpful Brewing Tools

[Beer-lord]

John, tonite, soother her feet, rub her back and then........well, I don't need to tell you but it involves whispering in her ear. Once she's asleep, continue to whisper in her ear what you want. Magically, in 90 days, she'll give you want. If not, well, you just weren't at your best so work on it.

[Dawg LB Steve]

Went to LHBS today for grains for a Sunday Brew day, picked up a dual scale Refractometer $35, got home calibrated with distiller water and tested the juice from Sweet Pickle Chips having with lunch, SG of 1.077. I'm gonna love not having to pull a full sample into sanitized tube and sanitized hydrometer oh and so easy to read. Biggest is the preboil gravity I will be able to see and manipulate if needed.

[Beer-lord]

Fun huh? Kind of mad scientist sometimes. I swear it's really helped me alot. If you're not close to where you need to be during the mash, you can let it go longer, stir it, test it until it's close.
Steve, do me a favor the next brew. When done and before you add yeast, take a reading with both the refractometer and hyrdometer and tell me how close they are. Mine is calibrated but off by a bit and I'm curious if yours is off in the same direction.

[Dawg LB Steve]

Let you know tomorrow, interested to know how close or if it is a reading error on the meniscus(sp) on the hydrometer.

[Dawg LB Steve]

Ok Paul here is what went on today. Took readings throughout the day, when it really counted it didn't register that I could have added water to the brew kettle for correct volume, brain fart on comprehension of what I was reading, when I had a pre-boil of 1.058 when it should have been closer to 1.043 . But to the question, I zeroed out before anything played thru the day, when I put the wort in the fermenter and before adjusting water for final volume and gravity, I pulled a hydro sample to compare 1.070 w/refractometer1.066 hydro. Re zeroed the refractometer and compared again 1.067 refractometer 1.066 hydro.

[Beer-lord]

Thanks Steve. I was told that I should only have to zero the refractometer every few months but maybe I should try to do so at the first take and the last take. Still you were close.

[Dawg LB Steve]

Refractometer and Beersmith are the Cats Ass! I just pulled a sample tube of the Rye Pale Ale I brewed Sunday, hydrometer OG 1.057 refractometer Original 14.0 brix, 6 days in hydro 1.008 refract. 6.8 brix input the refract. reading into Beersmith to adjust for the alcohol 1.008!
On another note I'm surprised where this beer is in only 6 days, I guess using oxygen and healthy and big enough pitches of yeast will do that! Estimated FG was supposed to be 1.009

[Beer-lord]

I've never used the refractometer for a post fermentation reading and will try that next time but I've read that Beersmith and some other online calculators aren't really accurate. I'd be interested to see what your trusty hydrometer says just for laughs and giggles.
Next beer brewed, I'll give this a shot and see where it ends up.

[mashani]

Regardless of accuracy, you still can use it to tell your fermentation is done. As you will still get the same inaccurate numbers over days as long as you stick with the same formula. You just won't know exact ABV, just a close approximation. At least for me done is the more important part, so 1 drop vs. a vial full sounds like a good tradeoff.

[Dawg LB Steve]

The hydrometer sample 1.008 and the corrected refractometer reading in Beersmith 1.008 matched. And yes great trade off of full sample over a drop. Will watch as I check each day for terminal gravity.

[jimjohson]

The hydrometer sample 1.008 and the corrected refractometer reading in Beersmith 1.008 matched. And yes great trade off of full sample over a drop. Will watch as I check each day for terminal gravity.

That's what that does??? I thought it was just to convert from brix, and since I got a dual gauge, I been ignoring it.

[Dawg LB Steve]

The drop down box you can pick fermented wort or fermenting and one other choice.

[Beer-lord]

Thanks for the info Steve.

[jimjohson]

thanks Steve