Citric Acid Ph

I use 3 oz per gallon and never check the pH.

 

Any pickle should run from 2.5 to lower. Adding the capes to your mix will naturally raise the pH . I make adjustments the next morning or before I close up my shop. Citric can stay at 1.5 when it stabilizes with your skins. This happens with all pickles !

 

X2 What Frank said! They all move around whatever you use. That's why you should monitor daily. Even your water can be different than the next guy.

 

I always seem the need to adjust the pH the next day. So I keep checking the first few days. After that it's pretty stable.

 

I can't get my ph lower than 2.7 using citric acid and putting in more doesn't seem to lower it. I've already used another 8oz more in my 2 gallon mixture, compared to the standard recipe 3oz citric acid per gallon H20 + 1 pound of salt recipe and I can't seem to get it lower. I am using a ph meter calibrated to 7 using a ph7 solution so it should be accurate. Our water is 5.5. I don't have any other acid around besides vinegar. Will this work? Any advise is appreciated.

 

I just tested distilled white vinegar and the ph meter read 4. So maybe my meter is off, since straight white vinegar should be somewhere around 2.5. I guess I will see the end result in a few days. Maybe I'll go and pick up some ph test strips in the meantime.

 

what are you pickling in 2 gallons? Even with squirrel size critters I mix up 5 gallons.

 

I still do a separate degreasing as that’s not enough to get especially bears degreased.

 

Indeed the meter is off . I rather strips any day over a meter. Jmc