# Brix Refractometer



## 4085 (Nov 23, 2012)

I have a friend who has bought one of these from ebay. I presume they take the same sort of filters as the 'proper' ones. Does anyone either have a good source for them, or would be willing to sell a couple of dozen?


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## knightsfield (Sep 22, 2014)

Hi,

I have a brix refractometer and it requires no filters. You place a couple of drops of coffee on it and shut the glass screen.

Are there different types that requires a filter?


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## jeebsy (May 5, 2013)

You generally require a filter for espresso you get undissolved solids in there which can skew the readings


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## knightsfield (Sep 22, 2014)

Ok, I've only ever used mine for coffee produce with a clever coffee dripper.


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## Mike mc (Apr 10, 2012)

How do the brix compare to the vst.one hell of a price difference but as with most things in life you get what you pay for i suppose


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## MWJB (Feb 28, 2012)

Mike mc said:


> How do the brix compare to the vst.one hell of a price difference but as with most things in life you get what you pay for i suppose


They don't compare. They read in different scales. Fine if you want to measure your coffee in brix, but I don't know what use that would be.


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## Mike mc (Apr 10, 2012)

MWJB said:


> They don't compare. They read in different scales. Fine if you want to measure your coffe in brix, but I don't know what use that would be.


Thanks.looks like vst is the only way to go


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## knightsfield (Sep 22, 2014)

You can convert brix to Tds by multiplying the brix reading by 0.85 to get tds. This can then be used in the VST app. No idea how accurate this is.


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## MWJB (Feb 28, 2012)

knightsfield said:


> No idea how accurate this is.


It's not. But if you want to carry on evaluating your own brews like this, go ahead - you may get results that mean something to you, for a given regimen, you aren't going to get results comparable with the VST refractometer though.


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## majnu (Jan 31, 2014)

what about the Reichart ones, something like this:

http://www.coleparmer.co.uk/Product/Reichert_Digital_Brix_RI_Chek_Refractometer_Brix_and_Refractive_Index/WZ-81030-60

Doesn't mention any software though as I'd like to enter some values somewhere like in the VST one.

Also is there a place where I can view the results for different coffees used in immersion and drip brewing method coffees?


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## Glenn (Jun 14, 2008)

Reichart provided the original coffee version

The one linked to is not suitable


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## MWJB (Feb 28, 2012)

majnu said:


> what about the Reichart ones, something like this:
> 
> http://www.coleparmer.co.uk/Product/Reichert_Digital_Brix_RI_Chek_Refractometer_Brix_and_Refractive_Index/WZ-81030-60
> 
> ...


The refractometer in your link reads in brix (which is for sugar solutions, not coffee) & RI, you need one that reads in coffee TDS to use with the VST software.

As Glenn says, Reichert did supply a version of the VST coffee refractometer, but it has been superceded by the VST Lab II, made by Misco with custom optics to VST's spec.

Ideal extraction yields will reflect brew methods & grind quality, there are different modes & targets in the VST software that account for this. Normally, you'd be looking for 18.5 to 20.5% yield, though the object is to measure what you have & repeat/adjust accordingly . There is the "Adventures in refracting" thread, also the "Boffin thread"...

http://coffeeforums.co.uk/showthread.php?19486-Adventures-in-refracting&highlight=adventures

http://coffeeforums.co.uk/showthread.php?20671-Boffin-thread-(-ek43-refracting-pressure-profiling-other-guff)&highlight=boffin


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## majnu (Jan 31, 2014)

MWJB said:


> The refractometer in your link reads in brix (which is for sugar solutions, not coffee) & RI, you need one that reads in coffee TDS to use with the VST software.
> 
> As Glenn says, Reichert did supply a version of the VST coffee refractometer, but it has been superceded by the VST Lab II, made by Misco with custom optics to VST's spec.
> 
> ...


I was looking at the Atago PAL Coffee which reads in TDS, but it's still expensive for a novice hobbyist. It's just the inner geek in me that wants to try something like this.


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## MWJB (Feb 28, 2012)

Well, there are cheaper devices that use more coffee for a sample &, like the Atago, don't come with any software to turn the readings into an extraction yield (this is the purpose of the exercise, folk talk about "TDS'ing coffee", but TDS is just a measurement to help us accurately calculate yield), such as conductive TDS meters which were popular before the coffee refractometer appeared, readings fluctuate and may vary depending on how well filtered the coffee is & temp, but it my give a useful range of numbers for a given method & ratio (not that they'll mean anything to anyone but you - I had one, but tired quickly of the wandering readings). The Atago is an awful lot of money for the accuracy (or lack of it) quoted, it's still a Brix refractometer & coffee is not simply a sucrose solution.


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