Beginners Guide to Water Treatment (plus links to more advanced water treatment in post #1)

[strange-steve]

I have considered switching before if only to save on all the plastic used with bottled water. I will get one of those testing kits but for this weekend do you think the NI report is not that accurate? I will try to post the report

If you hit the link "view report" just above calcium hardness you'll get a more detailed report

 

[Braufather]

ok will do that, cheers!

what about citric acid to reduce bicarbs? they are about 60 at moment so not much to get it down to 25 or so? if I get get mash ph to under 5.8 all good as I understand it? everything else will look after itself with limits. there will be a bit of gypsum and CC needed anyway by the look of it.

 

[strange-steve]

ok will do that, cheers!

what about citric acid to reduce bicarbs? they are about 60 at moment so not much to get it down to 25 or so? if I get get mash ph to under 5.8 all good as I understand it? everything else will look after itself with limits. there will be a bit of gypsum and CC needed anyway by the look of it.

Bicarb of 60ppm isn't too bad at all, you could probably get away without acid depending on the recipe. What are you brewing? If you aim for a higher calcium content, say around 150ppm it will help lower the mash pH too.

 

[woolley2002]

Can anyone confirm with me the following water adjustment sounds about right from brewfather for a citra SMASH

 

[Braufather]

Bicarb of 60ppm isn't too bad at all, you could probably get away without acid depending on the recipe. What are you brewing? If you aim for a higher calcium content, say around 150ppm it will help lower the mash pH too.

4kg pale, 800g Munich, 200g oats, loads of late amarrillo, simcoe and citra. So an IPA/pale ale but with a fair bit of Munich. No crystal though. Want it a bit on the juicy side (but not full on NEipa,) so thinking of a 50:50 ratio of gypsum and cc, so I think I’ll do as you say at take it up to 150.

thanks for the help! cheers

 

[strange-steve]

4kg pale, 800g Munich, 200g oats, loads of late amarrillo, simcoe and citra. So an IPA/pale ale but with a fair bit of Munich. No crystal though. Want it a bit on the juicy side (but not full on NEipa,) so thinking of a 50:50 ratio of gypsum and cc, so I think I’ll do as you say at take it up to 150.

thanks for the help! cheers

I don't have any experience with using citric acid, but I understand there can be some residual flavour from it. That being said you'd only need a very small amount, according to Bru'n Water an addition of 0.04g/L will remove about 30ppm of bicarbonate.

 

[Braufather]

So about 0.1g in mash. May have it in reserve. Check the mash ph 5 mins in and add it if it’s above 5.8.

 

[Braufather]

Too much Campden?

I misread amounts and have put about 3/4 of a tab into 25 litres when it should be less than a half so maybe double the advised amount? Will that have unwanted side effects does anyone know?

 

[MmmBeer]

Too much Campden?

I misread amounts and have put about 3/4 of a tab into 25 litres when it should be less than a half so maybe double the advised amount? Will that have unwanted side effects does anyone know?

When I started treating my water I discovered that several consecutive batches had the same off flavour that I couldn't seem to identify. It was slightly sulphurous and definitely ruined the beer. I finally identified the cause of the problem was adding half a campden tablet in the mash water and another half in the sparge water, when it should have been a quarter in each.

As soon as I corrected this the quality improved dramatically. I have recently omitted the Campden altogether, with no ill effects, possibly a consequence of my water quality.

 

[Brewnaldo]

When I started treating my water I discovered that several consecutive batches had the same off flavour that I couldn't seem to identify. It was slightly sulphurous and definitely ruined the beer. I finally identified the cause of the problem was adding half a campden tablet in the mash water and another half in the sparge water, when it should have been a quarter in each.

As soon as I corrected this the quality improved dramatically. I have recently omitted the Campden altogether, with no ill effects, possibly a consequence of my water quality.

This interests me as I was unaware of this possibility and I usually use a full one

 

[Braufather]

I ended up dumping the water and starting again with half a tab. Better safe than sorry.

 

[bobukbrewer]

I use half tablet to 32 litres water

 

[hughjamton]

Just a bit of clarification please.
I'm in Kent, so the water is hard and alkaline, from memory, (could be dis-remembering) when I used to keep marines, and regularly tested the water, it used to average about 270ppm for alkaline and 145 for Calc. before going through my very expensive pumped 6 stage R/O system that I gave away when I stopped keeping the fish.
I've just taken delivery of my new, cheap, RO unit.
My intention is to use 100% RO water and add to it as required, in my mind it seems easier (I'm often wrong)
1st question, is this sensible?
2nd question, which one, Calcium Chloride Dihydrate Flakes 77 % or Calcium Chloride hexahydrate.
3rd Question, as I'm starting with a blank canvas, will I need acid? (I don't think so, but again, often wrong)
4th Question, Apart from Gypsum and Calcium Chloride what else would I need? I already have AMS, Phosphoric, Gypsum and campden tabs.
I'm a beginner, just about to keg my 10th brew, apart from adding campden I've been using the water "as is" straight from the tap.
I'm more than happy with my beers so far, but they've all been bitters or porters and I want to try some paler beers ready for the summer.

 

[MmmBeer]

Just a bit of clarification please.
I'm in Kent, so the water is hard and alkaline, from memory, (could be dis-remembering) when I used to keep marines, and regularly tested the water, it used to average about 270ppm for alkaline and 145 for Calc. before going through my very expensive pumped 6 stage R/O system that I gave away when I stopped keeping the fish.
I've just taken delivery of my new, cheap, RO unit.
My intention is to use 100% RO water and add to it as required, in my mind it seems easier (I'm often wrong)
1st question, is this sensible?
2nd question, which one, Calcium Chloride Dihydrate Flakes 77 % or Calcium Chloride hexahydrate.
3rd Question, as I'm starting with a blank canvas, will I need acid? (I don't think so, but again, often wrong)
4th Question, Apart from Gypsum and Calcium Chloride what else would I need? I already have AMS, Phosphoric, Gypsum and campden tabs.
I'm a beginner, just about to keg my 10th brew, apart from adding campden I've been using the water "as is" straight from the tap.
I'm more than happy with my beers so far, but they've all been bitters or porters and I want to try some paler beers ready for the summer.

I'm not an expert on these things and I'm sure someone can give you a fuller answer, but,
1 It depends on what you are brewing, for pale beers it will be good, for darker beers, you would need a lot of additions (or mix with your tap water).
2 They are the same, other than the amount of water bound up in the crystals, might need to add slightly more of the hexahydrate.
3 No
4 If you are using pure RO water, you may need to add some carbonates, especially for dark beers (or mix with some tap water again).

Hope this helps.

 

[strange-steve]

Can anyone confirm with me the following water adjustment sounds about right from brewfather for a citra SMASH

View attachment 41446View attachment 41447View attachment 41446View attachment 41447View attachment 41446View attachment 41447

I can't really see from your screenshots, what is your post-adjustment profile?

 

[strange-steve]

1st question, is this sensible?

Personally I don't like 100% RO but I know plenty of people do.

2nd question, which one, Calcium Chloride Dihydrate Flakes 77 % or Calcium Chloride hexahydrate.

It doesn't matter as long as you know how to use it. If you're doing the maths yourself then you'll need to account for the extra water weight so to speak in hexahydrate compared to dihydrate. If you're using software of some kind it should tell you which variety has been used for the calculations. If you're arbitrarily chucking in teaspoons then it probably won't make much difference. The table in the OP assumes dihydrate.

3rd Question, as I'm starting with a blank canvas, will I need acid? (I don't think so, but again, often wrong)

Probably not as long as you have sufficient calcium in the mash.

4th Question, Apart from Gypsum and Calcium Chloride what else would I need?

As above, maybe some sodium bicarbonate for dark beers or better yet use your higher alkalinity tap water rather than adding it back.

 

[hughjamton]

Thank you both.
So, dihydrate it is, is 77% OK?
Is it a better idea if I use RO up to a balanced blend and my tap water for my darker beers?

 

[hughjamton]

Just a bit of info that maybe helpful to some.
Proper tropical fish shops, not places like pet city, but particularly ones that do marines, will often do a water test for you, sometimes using salifert kits, but often using proffesional equipment, not sure what the cost would be nowadays, but about 10 years ago, in the local Swallows, it was £8.00 for a full water test.
You take a water sample in, but you often have to book an appointment.

 

[strange-steve]

So, dihydrate it is, is 77% OK?

Yep.

Is it a better idea if I use RO up to a balanced blend

RO can be useful for diluting mineral content to a workable level, which in my opinion is a better option than using 100% RO.

 

[hughjamton]

Yep.

RO can be useful for diluting mineral content to a workable level, which in my opinion is a better option than using 100% RO.

Is that even for a pilsner?