All Grain ph

[stevem]

Couple of questions for the all grain brewers.

1) Do you adjust your water/mash for ph?
2) How do you measure the ph?
3) How necessary is it to do this adjustment?

Thanks
Cheers
Steve

[chris.]

Couple of questions for the all grain brewers.

1) Do you adjust your water/mash for ph?
2) How do you measure the ph?
3) How necessary is it to do this adjustment?

Thanks
Cheers
Steve

I measure the ph of my mash water using ph test strips or a ph indicator (that I use for my aquarium) & adjust using a pinch of citric acid. Tap water is generally alakaline.
I try to get the ph down to around 5.5.
It's not necessary but is beneficial for the enzyme activity & helps with conversion.

[gregb]

Sydney Water straight from the tap. Mash away, no ill affects noted. Having enough quality entertainment with hitting and holding a stable mash temp. For all my arsey/seat-o-the-pants ways I'm getting really good beers from my AG capers.

Cheers,
Greg.

[chris.]

Sydney Water straight from the tap. Mash away, no ill affects noted. Having enough quality entertainment with hitting and holding a stable mash temp. For all my arsey/seat-o-the-pants ways I'm getting really good beers from my AG capers.

Cheers,
Greg.

I agree Greg. Sydney tap water (maybe not straight from the tap, filtered water is best) has worked fine for me in the past. & I advise using it for your 1st mashes.

When I mentioned a ph of 5.5 in my last post I was refering to a mash ph not strike water ph. I usually try to get my strike water to a ph around 6.

[stevem]

Thanks guys. I tried my first all grain on the weekend. Only did half a brew. Guessed the ph and stuffed the sparge but learned a lot. Will forget about ph for the next couple. Hopefully Brisbane water works as well as Sydney water!

Cheers
Steve