Greetings from darkest Essex

[Tom Archer]

Hi,

It's nearly eight years now since I bought my local pub, The White Horse in Newport (CB11 3RF) to save it from closure, and after the nightmare of Covid, and possessing of a large but uneconomic kitchen (the pub only really works as a village boozer) I'm revisiting the idea of having a home brew on tap.

I'm very aware that Rome is not built in a day, and that scores of trials are likely to be needed before anything passable is created. I have extremely hard (chalky) water available on tap, drawn from a local aquifer, but the water analysis data indicates reasonably good year on year consistency.

I'm not looking to play at the Pilsner end of the scale. The pub routinely stocks Adnams and Woodfordes ales and I'm looking at that spectrum with a good measure of Yorkshire tradition thrown in.

All advice gratefully received!

 

[An Ankoù]

Are you intending to adjust the water chemistry or use it as it is?

 

[StJayJay]

Welcome to the forum and good look with the venture!

 

[sifty]

I applaud anyone saving a pub...

 

[Tom Archer]

Are you intending to adjust the water chemistry or use it as it is?

The water locally is very hard, with alkalinity way too high at 341. Calcium is at 140. Sulphate and chloride levels are both low at around the 30/35 level.

Whilst I'll experiment a little, there's a logic to using carefully controlled quantities of H2S04 and HCl to knock out most of the alkalinity and get a good Sulphate/Chloride ratio.

My other business has both acids in stock in analytical grades so it's no great effort to try it out. I've worked out that Sulphuric (originally at 96%) and Hydrochloric (originally at 37%) both diluted down 100 fold to make them safer to handle, and then mixed 3 parts hydrochloric to one part sulphuric, should give the right correction when added at 40mL per litre.

If the pH goes off the scale, I'll know I've miscalculated!

 

[The Baron]

Welcome to the forum and good luck on your journey

 

[lancon]

The water locally is very hard, with alkalinity way too high at 341. Calcium is at 140. Sulphate and chloride levels are both low at around the 30/35 level.

Whilst I'll experiment a little, there's a logic to using carefully controlled quantities of H2S04 and HCl to knock out most of the alkalinity and get a good Sulphate/Chloride ratio.

My other business has both acids in stock in analytical grades so it's no great effort to try it out. I've worked out that Sulphuric (originally at 96%) and Hydrochloric (originally at 37%) both diluted down 100 fold to make them safer to handle, and then mixed 3 parts hydrochloric to one part sulphuric, should give the right correction when added at 40mL per litre.

If the pH goes off the scale, I'll know I've miscalculated!

I do recommend sending water sample to Murphyandson.co.uk to get water treatment solutions, well worth the £30+ cost, and do give good after advice