jhudson3030
Active Member
has anybody used the etekcity ph meter. im getting ready to buy a meter and came across this one and was curious of the quality
Etekcity ph meter
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I have the PH2011 model
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00NL0BVAY/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20
I calibrated it this evening and will be using it for the first time tomorrow. Other posts have panned the reviews on any meter costing less that a hundred dollars. Well, I don't want to spend that much and I'm not making rocket fuel. I've only made about a dozen batches so far, and more than half of them have been BIAB brews. So far my beers have come out tasting pretty good to me and I've been using bottled (Primo) water for most of them. I got the meter just to see how close to the optimum level I am getting. If I need to adjust the Ph down a little bit, as I suspect since the water report for the Primo water had it around 7.0, I'll use Bru'n Water or Beersmith and adjust it using my cheapo little $20+ meter.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00NL0BVAY/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20
I calibrated it this evening and will be using it for the first time tomorrow. Other posts have panned the reviews on any meter costing less that a hundred dollars. Well, I don't want to spend that much and I'm not making rocket fuel. I've only made about a dozen batches so far, and more than half of them have been BIAB brews. So far my beers have come out tasting pretty good to me and I've been using bottled (Primo) water for most of them. I got the meter just to see how close to the optimum level I am getting. If I need to adjust the Ph down a little bit, as I suspect since the water report for the Primo water had it around 7.0, I'll use Bru'n Water or Beersmith and adjust it using my cheapo little $20+ meter.
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I hope you are not making rocket fuel. Keep your fermentation temperature in check so you don't.
The pH you need to be concerned about is the mash pH, not the water you use. It will be difficult to measure the pH of the mash and adjust it before the conversion happens so take notes and be prepared to make the additions at the time you add the grain the next batch.:rockin:
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There's an old saying that comes to mind: I'm too poor to buy cheap. You can either spend $75 on a proven, reliable meter:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0009YH06Y/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
...or you can spend the same $75 buying and replacing a cheap meter that doesn't feature a replaceable probe. It is a known fact that pH probes do not last forever. Bump it, drop it or allow it to dry out and you're going to have to replace it. So spending a little bit more now will not only get you more precise, accurate and repeatable results, it will actually save you money in the long run...
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0009YH06Y/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
...or you can spend the same $75 buying and replacing a cheap meter that doesn't feature a replaceable probe. It is a known fact that pH probes do not last forever. Bump it, drop it or allow it to dry out and you're going to have to replace it. So spending a little bit more now will not only get you more precise, accurate and repeatable results, it will actually save you money in the long run...
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I hope you are not making rocket fuel. Keep your fermentation temperature in check so you don't.
The pH you need to be concerned about is the mash pH, not the water you use. It will be difficult to measure the pH of the mash and adjust it before the conversion happens so take notes and be prepared to make the additions at the time you add the grain the next batch.:rockin:
+1 on the temp check. Absolutely! I have a very good thermometer (ThermaPen) which I did not mind spending 75 dollars on because I use it all the time and many brewing steps are temperature critical.
Good point on measuring mash Ph, I appreciate all the help and tips I get from HBT and brewers like you, a really invaluable resource.
I apologize if my original comments bent anybody the wrong way, this is just my own personal opinion. The point I was trying to make is that, while mash Ph is important, I have not yet paid it enough mind to justify shelling out another 100 bucks or more for laboratory grade testers. I make beer in my garage, I'm not a chemist/physicist/lab tech, etc. so I don't think I need sophisticated instruments which assure me that the reading is within thousandths. Mash Ph recommendations I have seen are usually expressed as a range, say 5.2 to 5.8 Ph so if the cheap meter is off by a little bit it's probably still within a given range and for me that's good enough. I got the cheap one because I really wanted to know what the mash Ph is, I don't need it to be really precise. If it reads 5.4 and it's really 5.5 or 5.3, does that really matter that much? If I keep track of the Ph for several batches, I don't think it will vary a whole lot. When it does start to give readings which are inconsistent with past readings, I can suspect the probe is most likely shot and then I will consider getting the nice one with a replaceable probe (BTW, the cost for replacing just the probe is more than twice what I paid for the cheapie meter, go figure).
I brewed a nice and tasty Dopplebock today and used the Ph meter to check my mash Ph which is at 156 degrees for 60 minutes. I tested the mash 3 times with the following results:
10 minutes Ph = 5.63
30 minutes Ph = 5.46
60 minutes Ph = 5.45
I did not add any salts or acid to the mash, I used Primo bottled water which tested Ph was 7.33.
I'm pretty happy with the results which put the mash into the recommended range, this time. I plan on repeating the same tests with the next few batches which will vary the grain bill but that will be the only thing that changes.
10 minutes Ph = 5.63
30 minutes Ph = 5.46
60 minutes Ph = 5.45
I did not add any salts or acid to the mash, I used Primo bottled water which tested Ph was 7.33.
I'm pretty happy with the results which put the mash into the recommended range, this time. I plan on repeating the same tests with the next few batches which will vary the grain bill but that will be the only thing that changes.
Did you take direct readings at 156F?
What acidrain said above. I also purchased this pH meter and the ATC is only good for 32-122 deg F. So be sure to cool a sample below 122 before taking a reading.
guitarguy6
Well-Known Member
I have no experience with the Etekcity but I purchased the Milwaukee MW-102 last year and have been really happy with it. I think I paid around $100 or so.
Did you take direct readings at 156F?
No, i cooled it down to the temp i used to calibrate the meter.
wobdee
Junior Member
I also bought one of these cheap meters just to see if it jives with my PH estimates I get from Brewers friend. I figure if it last for at least 3-4 batches and is close to Brewers Friend I probably won't use it much after that.
TheHappyHopper
Well-Known Member
Since it has been about a month since you posted this, have you been able to check the Etekcity meter vs. the Brewers Friend calcs?
Also, what do you guys do to calibrate this meter? Did you use the packets that came with it? Do you calibrate it each time you use it? I am wondering if I can mix up the calibration solutions and then store them in mason jars so that I can check that the calibration hasn't wandered too far off between brew days... From my limited understanding of chemistry, I don't see why not...
I have used mine for my last 2 batches - I have consistently gotten a pH value about 0.4 less than what the EZ Water spreadsheet estimates. Note: I HAVE NOT calibrated it yet (I know, I know, I'm a horrible person)
I am kind of in the same boat as everyone else that has bought one of these cheap meters. I realize that it's not going to be the best and I can't count on it lasting forever, but I AM NOT willing to spend $100+ for a ph meter for my 2 gallon homebrew batches (if I ever make the jump to pro-brewing, then we'll talk), I just want something to verify that my brewing system matches up with the Brewers Friend or EZ Water estimated pH values.
wobdee
Junior Member
I brewed an Ofest last week and the meter was right on with Brewers Friend. A couple weeks before I brewed a Pils and it was off by .1 more than BF but I think I miss measured my acid addition.
I bought some PH calibration fluids and I calibrated before each batch. I don't store the meter in any solution as per the meters instructions.
