Refractometer Calculator Which one??

Vallka

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Just trying to figure out which one you all use, I have tryed BF and Sean Terrill as well as a few others, don't seem to get the same numbers from any of them. i want to use with alcohol present.
 
I have a spreadsheet I developed based on the formulas in BYO Mag a year or so back. I tend to stick with it. I've compared it against BF's calculator and gotten the same results, cross-checked it against my hydrometers (I use two, one normal and one "finishing" unit) and gotten the same results. I like mine better because I don't have to go out and look for the conversion from SG to Brix - the calculator does it for me. But I'd rely on the BF calculator based on my experience with it (and cross-checks against it).
 
Brewer's Friend has always matched my hydrometer readings within a couple of points (well within user error).
Make sure you get your own wort correction factor correct in the software for the greatest accuracy.
 
Brewer's Friend has always matched my hydrometer readings within a couple of points (well within user error).
Make sure you get your own wort correction factor correct in the software for the greatest accuracy.
Good discussion string. I find Brewer's Friend, BRIX, and the hydrometer are usually in close agreement. Ya know, I got to play with all the toys.
 
I always cross reference Brewer's Friend with Sean Terrill's, and then the refractometer will get compared to my Tilt, and my hydrometer. They're usually all within a couple of points of each other, and that's good enough for me. I usually use my hydrometer for OG & FG (I drink both samples :) ) and use my refractometer and the Tilt for the "between times" of fermentation. I don't like pulling a 250ml sample every time I use my hydrometer, but that's just me. I'd rather that end up in the finished batch.

This article is good - it's about determining your refractometer's correction factor. Flora Brewing has a video about it too.

Brew On!
 
Not trying to get too off topic, but this seemed like a good thread to ask this question. When using the brewers friend calculator, I'm perplexed by the corrected final gravity sometimes. For example, if I take two different beers, one beer with OG 1050, and a final brix reading of 6.07, it pops out a corrected gravity of 1009 / 2.31 brix. Second beer OG 1056, final brix 6.32, it pops out a corrected gravity of 1007 / 1.86

How can this be the case? How can the higher of the two (before correction) final gravity's come out as the lower after correction. Am I not understanding how this works? Does attenuation and alcohol created factor into it?
 
The key is the amount of alcohol present. Alcohol has a higher refractive index than water so more of it means a higher reading. The second beer has more alcohol, hence the lower FG reading after correction.
 
The key is the amount of alcohol present. Alcohol has a higher refractive index than water so more of it means a higher reading. The second beer has more alcohol, hence the lower FG reading after correction.
Ok I was thinking that might be the case but it still seemed odd. So because it has higher alcohol and an actual lower gravity, it's initial reading higher because of that very alcohol affecting it to read higher?
 
A little late to the party ... I have created a quadratic based refractometer calculator. Take 3 readings of 3 different unfermented worts (I made an ~1.075 SG wort with DME and took measurements, then added some water and repeated twice) and enter the WRI (uncorrected Brix from refractometer) and SG (measured with a hydrometer) and the quadratic factors will be calculated. After that, you can get OG with the WRI reading, or FG with starting WRI and ending WRI. Also calculates attenuation and ABV.

It's not pretty, but it works. Feel free to try it out and let me know what you think! For the time being, the URL is https://vps.djsnet.org/pc/refractocalc-web.pl.

Thank you.
DJ
 

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