How to adjust your pH when brewing

Correctly measuring the pH of your beer during the mash stage is a key way to identify when you need to take steps to reduce or increase this vital parameter. If you find your pH isn’t within the ideal range, you can utilise a few different methods to achieve the ideal outcome with the help of a pH tester. Read on to learn more:

Why is it important to measure beer mash pH?

The pH of your mash has a direct impact on multiple aspects of your beer, including the taste, the colour and the overall stability of your end product. Keeping track of pH during mashing is an easy way to monitor if changes need to be made. An ideal range of 5.2-5.6 allows for optimal enzyme activity to get beer that looks and tastes how you want.

By monitoring the pH of your mash regularly with a pH tester like Halo2, you can quickly make the adjustments necessary to get consistent results in brewing. Not measuring pH can lead to beer that tastes astringent, dry or even metallic, as well as potentially affecting its shelf life.

How do you change the pH of mash?

If you find the pH of your mash is outside of the recommended range when you measure a cooled sample of wort, there are a few options available to you.

For pH that is too high and therefore less acidic, you can introduce calcium sulfate or calcium chloride. You could also choose to add lactic acid or phosphoric acid. Adding distilled water, where most of the impurities have been removed, can also help with lowering the pH of your beer mash.

If your beer is too acidic, below the 5.2 pH level, introducing a buffer is the best solution. You could choose to add soda ash or chalk, also known as calcium carbonate, or you could opt for baking soda, which is sodium bicarbonate.

How can you monitor pH changes?

A digital pH tester is the ideal solution for monitoring pH changes in your mash. A pH tester can be used as many times as you want, unlike test strips, which means you can repeatedly test samples to ensure your measures to increase or decrease pH are effective. 

Test strips also rely on your perception of a colour chart, which means you can’t dose your mash as accurately as you could with an electronic reading. Using a digital tester for monitoring pH in the mash is a cost-effective and reliable solution for continual measurement. Hanna’s pH testers can be easily cleaned and calibrated for continual accuracy in testing beer.

Hanna has a comprehensive range of pH testers for mashing, including:

• Halo2: a Bluetooth tester with single-button operation
• Halo: a Bluetooth electrode that stores measurements on the Hanna Lab app
• HI-981031: a simple and practical beer tester for liquids and semi-solids

Buy pH testers for mash online

Our pH testers for beer are available online now, with free next-day delivery. Shop Halo2, Halo and the HI-981031 pH tester online today, or speak to our expert team for personalised advice on the best pH tester for mash to suit your requirements.