Salifert and CRS addition calculator

[sweatysock]

Hi all,

I came across this website when I was going to make a calculator of my own. Very simple and effective.

http://www.charliekassel.com/crs/

As others have said I always add about 2/3rds then re-measure.

[DerbyshireNick]

Funny enough I have just been creating my own sheet based on the table and IOW example in the extras->water section.

It doesn't seem to calibrate with the above posted one. An issue my end I am sure!

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/ ... sp=sharing

[DerbyshireNick]

To be fair its not a million miles out. The online one doesn't like working things out on a 1 liter basis due to rounding I suspect.

over 30L it seems up to about 0.7ml of CRS out.

So have I got this right. Calculate how much I need, only add 2/3rds, remeasure and add whatever the new reading asks for?

[BenB]

I created my own crs/dls calculator and put it on my NAS. Works well- enter the target alkalinity and calcium and the salifert and mash volumes and it works out the additions.

[AnthonyUK]

That is a bit too simplistic to be of any use TBH unless you have no interest in sulphate:chloride ratios and other mineral content.

[BenB]

I'd rather have a correct pH and incorrect Chloride:Sulphate ratio than the other way round
No point having lovely malty/hoppy flavours if the pH makes it taste like cack.
My first AG tasted like shite because I was still learning how my equipment worked and how mash pH worked, not because my ratio was wrong. I'm a firm believer therefore in KISS

[Goulders]

Ben and Anthony, you are both right.
The CRS calculator is useful because if you get the alkalinity right (adjusting with acid) and have about say 60 to 120 Ca in your water and you don't have excessive quantities of roast grains then the pH will fall in the correct range.
But by adjusting the chloride and sulphate ratios you can get the desired profile you want, and that will determine whether you add gypsum for a more hoppy profile or calcium chloride for a more malty profile (and by how much). Adding 2/3 salts to the mash will help conversion, the other 1/3 being added to the copper.
It also depends on the water you have too. My water is hard (measured alkalinity over 240 on my brew yesterday) and reducing alkalninity to say 50 using CRS increases sulphate to a high level (around140) and chloride (100), which is no good for Kolsch for example, but ok for a pale ale and darker beers. If I want a malty profile I have to add calcium chloride. I did a Black "IPA" yesterday and went with a slightly more malty profile to balance the astringency in the hops, thus adding about 4g of calcium chloride.