Is the Tilt Wireless Hydrometer Worth It?

Today I'm putting a tilt hydrometer to the test and letting you know how it goes! I wanted to do an in depth review of a Tilt hydrometer because they are widely known and used! If you are interested in picking up your own Tilt hydrometer use this link: amzn.to/3AJIkR7
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[@texaslonghousemead1327]

I currently have 3 tilts and use them regularly. I really like them for my big meads like my polish mead, or for any meads that i think might be an issue like any of my citric meads. This will allow me to take a quick glance day to day and see if there are any stalls and stay on top of my nutrients. This also helps track the temp for the diva yeast so i can stay within range.

[@ManMadeMead]

I definitely think they are useful, I just don't worry about tracking all my data a lot!

[@sunshinevalley0]

Informative ❤

[@eddavanleemputten9232]

Thanks! Great information! This cements it: I won’t spend money on Tilt hydrometers myself, but might put them on my Christmas list for loving relatives to pitch in together and get me one… or more.

[@eingoogle-nutzer818]

I do find them very helpful, as I am brewing beer with the Speidel Braumeister. The Tilt connects to the Braumeister via Bluetooth and with its thermometer it can help to control the fermentation temperature. I use a magnetic valve to permit or to prevent the influx of cold water through the double-layer of the fermentation vessel to keep the fermentation temperature stable.

[@Nefariousrouge]

I have one and enjoy using it. Helps me know when the fermentation is done so I can move on to packaging or drinking it.

[@silverblade5567]

I bought a RAPT fermentation chamber and use the RAPT Pill (bought from Canada) and love the combo. The chamber has so many uses and holds the fermentation vessels very well. The Pill is cheaper than the TILT even after exchange rate and it pairs with the chamber to control temp.

[@LauraJayne64]

I have one, I’m bad at reading SG so it’s helped me know what my readings are. I just use it to know if the fermentation has stopped and figuring out the APV. I only have 1.

[@gannas42]

Tempted to pick up a Tilt and attach it to my Home Assistant system. That would be sick. Although the price tag seems a bit high for what comprises this device... Thanks for the review!

[@sjporr]

I’ve been looking at these tools and possibly thinking about adding something. This was a good product review that helps me for a future possible buy. Cheers

[@ericadams5019]

Thanks, I really wanted to learn about this device. You helped alot!!

[@classCexplosive]

Thank for the in-depth and honest review!

[@conradwheeler68]

I have 2 of them, and use a TiltPi to do my logging. I calibrate them before each use. Water to establish the zero point and the must compared to a hydrometer reading. That is really just to make things exact. ultimately, the only thing that matters is knowing when it flatlines, to show when it is either finished or stalled.

[@kevin_ninja_jones2363]

I would think it would reduce the infection rate because you wouldn't have to open it up or mess with your brew to get a reading. For someone like yourself that makes a lot more mead and wine or beer because of the channel it would be worth the cost but someone like me who is new and only brews a gallon of 2 at a time not so much. But I would definitely buy one later on

[@conradwheeler68]

BTW, I use them in 5-7Gal stainless milk can primaries, while inside a chest freezer, with the TiltPi just outside of the freezer and they work fine... Although the battery usage is higher. I replace batteries every 6 months or so. The one thing to keep aware of, is floating fruit/adjuncts... anything that can touch or rub against the tilt can throw off its readings, so holding fruit down in weighted bags is a best practice (even if you aren't using a tilt) . BTW, the heavier the gravity, the more it resists sinking, therefore higher gravity make it more horizontal, lower gravity makes it "tilt" downward more. 😁

[@scoot1506]

What do you recommend for weighing the bags down?

[@TheInfinityzeN]

@@scoot1506 I using pickling weights. They are solid glass, easy to sanitize, and you can pick them up fairly cheap.

[@TigerPat_9180]

Really Enjoyed Your Video , Thanks ! 🐯🤠

[@timhicks273]

Thank you brother. I have one sitting in my Amazon cart right now. Glad to hear your perspective before I buy it. I'm busy and don't check as often as I should. Wished you would have checked how accurate it is though.

[@kipprix]

Mine has been spot on

[@O48Twitch]

How does it do with a fruit load? Can't see it working out with a fruit cap all that well

[@benthomsen2220]

My thoughts too

[@ManMadeMead]

I can't say I have experience with them in that circumstance!

[@tim-tim-timmy6571]

Thanks for the review, I am considering buying one for wine-strength meads. I am not comfortable opening the fermenter to try to catch that 1/3rd sugar break down. Day 3 already? Oh no, day 4?... That would be a good tool for that I think. I saw your video on light vs darkness fermentation. You mentioned that adding nutrients threw off the measurements. Could you elaborate on that? Cheers

[@ManMadeMead]

In that circumstance the gravity reading was thrown off. I imagine if I had not opened the app right after adding my nutrients, I might not have had the problem!

[@PatrickBuckles]

Didn't even think to use mine in mead! I had it in my beer only boxes.

[@kipprix]

I like mine if for nothing else I can maintain closed fermentation and avoid issues when pulling samples, simple walk into fermentation room, open app and instantly know SG reading.

[@Eric-yg8dh]

In another video you mentioned the Specific Gravity was off after adding nutrients. Did it ever correct itself?

[@ManMadeMead]

Not really... It could have been user error though...

[@ughadunk]

They are worth every penny! Tilt transforms the fermentation from a guessing game to a Star Trek experience.

[@fatbruhskit]

Thanks for convincing me to spend more money. Great video!

[@ManMadeMead]

Thank you!

[@danielanthony1054]

Brewing is a hobby for me so I don't really need to make my life easier. It's the whole experience of measuring your gravity and seeing where things are manually that's fun for me. I could see this being important on a large scale with professional equipment, you can catch a potential stall quickly and prevent a loss of thousands of gallons of wine/mead, but personally i'm fine with my 12 dollar hydrometer

[@blainesimpson8134]

It's sad that Tilt, who has a monopoly stanglehold in the US, doesn't care enough to make a descent app. The profits they make from a few sales could cover the cost for that.

[@theastronomer5800]

I stopped using a hydrometer a long time ago. If you know what you're doing (how much honey to use, what yeast you use) then you know exactly what your brew will be like when done. The only thing that can happen is it might get stuck (rarely), but you can taste that it's too sweet and then change the conditions to get it going. I may use my old one in one every 10 brews if I'm making something new.

[@scoot1506]

You can avoid using one if you're not doing a SNA but ALWAYS take a first reading and last reading to make sure it's done.

[@CrazyAboutVinylRecords]

@@scoot1506 The dude doesn't have to play by your rules.

[@banjax80]

Different colors are coded to permit using more than one. If you had two blacks you can't use them at the same time.

[@ManMadeMead]

I didn't realize that. That's super good to know!

[@Zeingeist]

If you stand them up vertically, they will stop logging. According to their instructions at least. I did that and saw the same. I like using these in connection with TiltPi for large batches that I want to make sure go right (because large batches are inherently more expensive, and I don't have a lot of budget).

[@ManMadeMead]

Ohh this is good to know!

[@blainesimpson8134]

This review is glaringly missing any coverage of device accuracy and consistency. Shouldn't that be a primary consideration when buying any measurement device? I have seen complaints that (a) the readings are sometimes way off, and (b) readings can significantly change just by, for example, cleaning the unit. I see that expert brewers don't trust hydro readings of Tilt/Pill/etc. and just use them to watch trends. I'd expect that the manufacturers probably cheap out with unreliable temperature detection too. I'd really like to see independent assessment of the Tilt Pro MINI's accuracy and consistency. The MINI Pro is much less expensive than the regular Pro and the manufacturer says it's 10 x as accurate as the baseline model reviewed here, but for all I know they may just be reporting another decimal point from the same sensors.

[@АндрейХруцкий-л1ю]

I just throw my regular hydrometer in the glass fermenter and don't take it out. Doesn't have an app, but it also costs 1 dollar, so it works fine for me 😁

[@martharetallick1150]

It looks like it's too wide to be dropped into a half gallon carboy.

[@ManMadeMead]

And 1 Gallons!

[@Zeingeist]

It will fit in neither. I have several 1 gal carboys and I can't use it in them. I do like wide-mouth vessels better though, so I wasn't too concerned. 1 gallon batches are usually play/proofing batches.

[@CrazyAboutVinylRecords]

Piece of junk. Mine was dead on arrival and I returned it.

[@ManMadeMead]

That stinks! I'm sorry!

[@chancehoover944]

Thanks for reviewing this product and for responding to my email.

[@ManMadeMead]

Of course!