Simple Water Treatment for an Idiot!

[David Woods]

Hi all,

I am about to start my all grain journey and I want to deal with my water! I have read quite a lot about the subject but as I am at the start I want to do something simple to improve my water until I can progress.

My kit brews were OK but I think they had what I would call an astringent quality - all I did was put a Campden tablet in so not much in the way of experimentation!

I do intend to go into the water profile in more detail but it's a bit too much to deal with at the moment so if anyone has a simple "magic" treatment to give me a good start and give me a nice brew I would be very grateful. I do realise this can be a big rabbit hole to go down.

I live on the South coast if that gives any help at all and I don't really want to be lugging gallons of distilled water back home either! so an idiot proof guide to simple additions would be great.

Thanks in advance of your help.

 

[Agentgonzo]

If it's on the south coast, it'll most likely be hard water. Add some acid (I use about 6ml of 80% lactic acid for a 23L batch, I'm outside Southampton and the water is 'very hard') to reduce the pH.
There are some good guides on here to water treatment. I think one by Strange Steve is pinned at the top of one of the forums.

 

[Benfleet Brewery]

Take a look on your water companies website to see if they show the average water profiles for your area. Some even provide dedicated brewers info like mine below. Once you know what you have got it’ll be easier to know what you need to change, if anything.

 

[peebee]

I am about to start my all grain journey and I want to deal with my water! I have read quite a lot about the subject but as I am at the start I want to do something simple to improve my water until I can progress. ...

The title of your post is: "Simple Water Treatment ..." ... yes, it is, "... for an Idiot!" ... no! The water treatment doesn't need an "Idiot", but an idiot will happily change your simple water treatment into a complicated one.

@Benfleet Brewery posted a half decent report. Not the first table; that's rabbiting on about "hardness" and you will be unlucky to have to deal with that twaddle at all. The second table contains all you will want, just six items (ignore the first line, that's just repeating the twaddle in the first table ... "CaCO3"; what's that prattling on about? I can assure you, if you did chemistry at school, you might think you know, but you'll probably have it all wrong! Clue: There'll be virtually no "chalk" in your water!

I wrote a small spreadsheet that attempts to clean up what you need (eventually ... it's linked below in my signature: the "Defuddler" ... warning, may only work properly with Excel on a desktop PC, see Excel Viewer). If I take that and enter the detail from @Benfleet Brewery it comes out:

Thay's it! All six boxes filled and all in colour (no grey "foetid" boxes). Lucky @Benfleet Brewery, he needs no more water information and only has to decide what to brew. A water calculator will even suggest what to add from this information. Nothing else! Don't let anyone tell you otherwise ... just remember what I said in the first paragraph. If not so fortunate you may have to dip deeper into the spreadsheet to get what you need (the "Foetid Mire"). The rest of the spreadsheet contains a lot of tongue-in-cheek information that may amuse you?

I can't make many recommendations because I don't have the water reports for your area. But to start with that last box, "Bicarbonate", is the one to go with (then the first, "Calcium"). You may need to reduce "Bicarbonate"? You can use a bit of acid but that's getting complicated, you can also dilute your tap water with RO water (from a local "Spotless" water supplier) or other demineralised water. "Defuddler" has a dilution calculator built in (or use a "water calculator").

The best advice I can give is get a computed based water calculator that you are comfortable with (there are lots, some free!).

 

[Sadfield]

Boil your water for 10 minutes. Leave to cool overnight and then decant off the chalk (calcium carbonate) that settles to the bottom. Add a teaspoon of gypsum to replace the removed calcium. Done.

https://www.brunwater.com/articles/pre-boiling-water-treatment

 

[peebee]

Boil your water for 10 minutes. ...

I would never suggest the "boiling" method these days (even the most entrenched toads are getting green around the edges; or is it "lighter-in-the-pocket" paying those fuel bills?). Hence, I make a nod at acid carbonate reduction or dilution, those methods do need a tad of working out though).

 

[RoomWithABrew]

If you do nothing else put about 0.3g of sodium metabisulphate in your mash water and pro rata less in any sparge water.
To get rid of chlorine/ chloramine.
But more advanced check your water profile and see what brewfather thinks your recipe pH is going to be.
Add acid to hit something like 5.3.
Then you are ready for an IQ test and more fun.

 

[MashBag]

Let's try this.

Reply with... the postcode of a supermarket or shop near you and your water company.

A few things might happen....

We can all get your water report and have a go.

You might have a neighbour on here who can really help.

We could turn this dry subject into a bit of fun. Magic bullet no. Close enough most definitely!

 

[MashBag]

Boil your water for 10 minutes. Leave to cool overnight and then decant off the chalk (calcium carbonate) that settles to the bottom. Add a teaspoon of gypsum to replace the removed calcium. Done.

https://www.brunwater.com/articles/pre-boiling-water-treatment

PeeBee was this not the instructions on the back of the Boot's kits in the 70's

 

[David Woods]

OK MashBag here goes:

Shop - Tesco Express TN33 0BN
Water Co - Southeast Water

Intrigued as to what may happen!

Dave

 

[Sadfield]

PeeBee was this not the instructions on the back of the Boot's kits in the 70's

Simple and idiot proof was what was requested. If it worked for you then, it'll work now.

 

[peebee]

Ha! I get first bash then!

Not going too well. The first five boxes all fill in okay, but the alkalinity stuff falls over flat on its face. I might have an error in my calculations? But S.E. Water is certainly putting out some complete garbage in their figures!!!!!

I've had to seriously hack the published figures to start getting balance. But the resultant figures above are UNRELIABLE!

DO NOT USE!

Are these sorts of reports the norm down there? I've seen plenty of naff ones, but this one looked okay to start with. I'll try to look into it a bit more ...

 

[Benfleet Brewery]

I would suggest to email the water company and ask them for the information. That’s what I did at first as what I wanted wasn’t included in a usable form in their water report then. This was the helpful reply I got:

I also use an Alkalinity test kit every few months just to make sure I’m starting off in the ballpark area.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Salifert-KH-Alkalinity-Profi-Test-Kit/dp/B001EJ3DOG

 

[MashBag]

I can't find a water report on their website.

 

[peebee]

I can't find a water report on their website.

They do bury it pretty deep!

On the frontpge put postcode in "What's Happening in your Area" to get the map up. Then click on the "What's Here?" menu, then click "click here". Easy, really intuitive ().

 

[MashBag]

Will done that man.
Why would you hide it.. If it is available?

 

[peebee]

I would suggest to email the water company and ask them for the information. ...

Yeap, that's probably what it will need.

Note the reply actually tells you what the "Alkalinity" is measured in: As "HCO3". The published reports often don't bother telling you leaving you to guess what it might be.

I'm all in favour of using the Salifert kits to regularly check "Alkalinity" too. But can't make a sweeping recommendation with them (yet?) 'cos I haven't figured how to get a reliable reading from them in soft water areas.

 

[Sadfield]

The OP's water would be boiled and cooled by now.

 

[Sadfield]

I'm not sure what's keeping them, all the info they need is in the very comprehensive report.

 

[Sadfield]

https://www.jimsbeerkit.co.uk/water.html
Insert the average values from the above water report into this website. Assuming you are supplied by Powdermill Reservoir, too.

1) Alkalinity as HCO3.

2) Select CRS as the carbonate reduction method.

3) Add Calcium, Sodium, Magnesium, Sulphate and Chloride values into the Enter Your Water Composition line.

4) Choose a target liquor profile. And follow any instructions in the warning line (e.g. Clicking the balance Na/Mg button)

5) Add the volume of water to be treated.

6) Buy CRS and salts.

7) Get brewing as soon as possible.

This will give you the quantity of CRS and salts to add to your water.