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One gallon batches/ Hydrometer???

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Airnwater

NewBee
Registered Member
Mar 29, 2014
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Big Island, Hawaii
I'm a newbie, so maybe I'm missing something. I'm making one gallon batches for space and weight(bum shoulder) reasons as well as wanting to try a lot of recipes.

Now, I was a good newbie, I bought a hydrometer but when I went to youtube to see how to use it the first thing I thought was"Holy Crap. that wastes a lot of mead!!"

So how do the one gallon specialists take their readings without wasting half the batch? I was set to pour it back in but read that was not a good idea...

So right now I don't take readings.. but some of the recipes I want to try seem to require it...
 
kchaystack

kchaystack

NewBee
Registered Member
Jul 26, 2013
174
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Lansing, MI
Wash and sanitize everything, and you can return the sample. I do that all the time and never have had an issue. A little star san in a spray bottle makes quick work of it.

Yay mead!
 
fatbloke

fatbloke

good egg/snappy dresser.....
GotMead Patron
Feb 3, 2008
3,632
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UK - South Coast.
fatblokeshomebrew.blogspot.com
Concur with the others.....

Sanitise everything and I've not had any issues......

Sure, professional winemakers will take a sample, do the measurement then dump the sample.

It'd be great to make batches large enough to do that, but I'm making my stuff at home, so have to use many of the home brewing compromises......

Hence, test and put it back........
 
Chevette Girl

Chevette Girl

All around BAD EXAMPLE
Moderator
Lifetime GotMead Patron
Apr 27, 2010
8,447
59
48
Ottawa, ON
Sometimes if you're really careful you can dip your hydrometer into the carboy to get a reading, I use (sanitized!) waxed dental floss tied to it to make sure I can get it back out, and you may find some carboys aren't tall enough to get a reading if your mead's gone dry and you've got one of the longer hydrometers. Emphasis on the careful though, glass on glass... much safer with plastic water jugs.

I like three gallon batches, I can still lift them myself and the mouth is big enough that you can fit the sanitized wine thief with the hydrometer in it to get a sample, take your reading, and then let the sample back out into the carboy.

You'll come up with what works best for you with respect to sanitizing things, I use a 2-litre mason jar to get the bottom and inside of the thief, while it's full, I poke the hydrometer under the surface, and then I have a spraybottle for the exterior surfaces that stick out of the jar.
 
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