My $30 pH meter from the hardware store gave me a false reading and wrecked a batch of kraut

I was making a big batch of sauerkraut and decided to check the acidity to be safe. The meter said the pH was 4.2, which seemed fine, so I let it ferment for another week. When I opened the jar, it smelled off and had a weird slimy texture. Has anyone else had a cheap tool fail them like this, and what's a good brand to trust?

2 comments

2 Comments

linda65812d ago

Ugh that's rough, but honestly a pH meter from a hardware store for $30? That's basically a toy for fermenting. Those things are never reliable right out of the box, you gotta calibrate them constantly with the little solution packets. A slimy batch sucks, but it's more of a learning cost than the tool's total fault.

umabailey12d ago

Yeah linda658 is right about the calibration, I learned that the hard way too. My old meter was always drifting and I lost a batch of kimchi. I switched to an Apera PH20, it holds its calibration way better for my pickles.