reverse osmosis - bottled water ????

[the new brew]

Just a quick question has anyone ever try using a reverse osmosis system for the water in there home brew??? i know the systems are quite expensive but this must be the best way to treat your water???

or even bottled water i know asda do a 2l bottle for only 17p each so lets say 40 pints you would only need around 11 bottles so would be only about £2 which i don't think is too bad i know everyone sez its just tap water but its filtered and does not contain chlorine or chloramine so is this a bargain that's been overlooked people wait 24hr and add stuff to rid of chemicals, just like to hear other peoples thoughts about this first.

 

[alawlor66430]

Asda bottled water is fine, I'm quite lucky up here that my tap waters pretty good, but I'd say 2 quid was a bargain for piece of mind !

 

[Vossy1]

Reverse osmosis is a great way of getting a blank template water so you can make any target water you want.
Bottled water also usually lets you know some of the mineral content and it doesn't contain chlorine or chloramines.
The best way to treat your water is to know what's in it and how to adjust it accordingly, not an easy subject! so a lot of folk settle for bottles.

 

[wezil]

Hi, if your worried about the chlorine/chloramines in tap water just install a charcoal filter (much cheaper and less wasteful than a RO unit, most of which will waste up to 90+% of the water passing through them)! Most chemicals used in brewing won't remove chloramines either (they can't break the ammonia bond). However sodium thiosulphate will if used at about 0.1-0.3g per 10ltr. This breaks the chloramine bond down to form ammonia (a yeast food). Yes it is safe, I keep fish and they have showed no problems while using it.(nor have my brews) Or as an alternative to buying an RO unit, visit your local aquatic centre with a large plastic drum as most sell RO water fairly cheaply.

 

[mike77]

I haven't used them yet but I thought that half a campden tablet was supposed to remove the chlorine and chloramine.

 

[Jeltz]

I use 1 third tap and 2 thirds RO. The local tap water has high permanent hardness so that can't be removed by boiling.

I've had an RO unit for years as its the best way to strip water of impurities before adding a synthetic salt mix for my marine fish tank. I don't know if it makes much difference but I always do it that way.