BeerBorg

ScrewyBrewer wrote:Thanks Eddie! I've been following your posts on your nano-brewery start up too. Here in NJ we're currently looking into getting the process started for the Screwy Brewing Company. I was down to Naples Beach Brewery in FL a few months ago and I liked what I saw and the the NJ laws are pretty similar. Now we're following along with the progress of "Little Dog Brewing Company" starting up in Neptune City NJ. Currently we're still trying to find a good location to have a tap room/brewery tour on premise with take out food from a nearby restaurant. A 1,200 square foot commercial property is plenty big to house a 1 barrel system, cooling room, office, bathroom and taproom. Having water included with the rent is a huge plus too, but the demand for a quality beer will quickly outpace the output of a 1 barrel system.

Tomorrow we're brewing our first Cascadian Dark Ale using a modified water profile, so for the next installment I post we should have half a dozen beer styles to pick from. If I hadn't done the proof of concept brews using modified water profiles myself, I would have missed out on a huge opportunity to take my beers to a professional level. I have to thank John Palmer's book 'Water' for providing a dizzying amount of information because once my head stopped spinning with all the information I realized just how much I had to learn. The book didn't provide any specific brewing examples but it did spike my interest and got me motivated to find answers. This morning I'm putting the finishing touches on the recipe and the water profile over my morning coffee, I'll be checking on your progress too it'll be great to compare notes on your future brewery plans!

ScrewyBrewer wrote:I did my first monthly maintenance on my digital pH meter this week. I haven't brewed in about three weeks and the pH meter should be calibrated at least once a month to keep the probe in top condition. My meter has a small reservoir in the cap that I fill with 7.01 pH buffer to keep the bulb wet before storing it away, it was still wet when I opened it so that was good. Calibration with the model I have is simple just turn it on and once it's booted up press the 'Off' button and hold it until 'CAL' displays.

The meter then prompts you to 'USE 7.01' that's when you dip the probe into 7.01 buffer solution until the display reads 'REC', after several seconds 'USE 4.01' will display and you dip the probe into 4.01 buffer solution until 'REC' displays. After several more seconds the meter is calibrated and ready for use. I repeated these calibration steps three times before refilling the reservoir with 7.01 solution and storing it away again.

In between calibration steps I put the end of the meter housing on a piece of dry paper towel to absorb excess liquid before taking the next reading. I don't let anything touch the bulb though as this is not recommended according to the manufacturer. In between each calibration I test the pH meter by taking reading in 10.01, 7.01 and 4.01 buffer solution to make sure it reads accurately between samplings. On brewday I'll keep the three buffer solutions handy so I can easily recalibrate the meter before taking each reading, it's really not too much extra work to make sure you get the best results possible.

bucknut wrote: Screwy, which Hanna meter are you using? I noticed the pic you showed earlier in the thread was of a Hanna HI 98121, but in the description you mention it was a Hanna HI 98120. The diff in the two was that the Hanna HI 98121 does "ORP (Oxidation Reduction Potential) readings". I'm going to get a better meter and yours sounds like it's working out good for you.