How To Read a Hydrometer

Oct. 3, 2009 - PRLog -- The sole use of the hydrometer is to measure the specific gravity (SG) or "thickness" of any liquid. For winemaking purposes it therefore can measure the concentration of sugar in a solution, but it can also indicate the concentration of alcohol in a wine.

To measure the alcohol volume of your wine, you should take a reading at the start of fermentation and another one at the end of fermentation. Dividing the difference in your reading by 7.36 will give you the volume of alcohol produced. Example: A start reading of 1085 and an end reading of 1005 has a difference of 80. Divide 80 by 7.36 gives you an alcohol content of 10.9 % by volume

To use your hydrometer is a fairly straightforward procedure:

1. Ensure your hydrometer is sterile, most can be boiled. You could also use a chlorine solution.

2. Draw some of your wine must into a test cylinder or other glass tube.  Your sample should be free of sediment and bubbles. If you are going to rinse the test cylinder, use some of your wine must instead of water to prevent the sample from being diluted.

3. Stand your hydrometer into the test cylinder and allow it to float freely without touching the sides of the test cylinder. Wait for it to completely settle.

4. Take your reading at the surface of the liquid.

5. Unless your test tube has been thoroughly sterilized, DO NOT pour the sample back into your fermenter.

TIP: When the hydrometer is not in use, you could keep it in a container with a chlorine solution. When you want to use it you just rinse off the chlorine in water twice, use it, rinse and put it back in the chlorine solution and then it is sterilized and ready to use again next time.

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