water choice

[the_bing]

hi guys, first post here.

i'm still waiting on the delivery of brewing gear but a question that has arised is;

what water to use?

rain?
tap?
bottled?
radiator?

what do you guys use? Sorry if this is a silly newb question, but i'm yet to get started properly.

 

[Runwell-Steve]

I would start with tap water, its cheaper. Unless you tap water tastes awful of course.

 

[Drunken Horse]

Asda Badics still water 17p for 2 litres. Shouldnt be a problem with my tap water in Liverpool (although it does vary because it comes from quite a few different sources) but for consistency I used bottled.

 

[the_bing]

see, i think my local water is fine.
but my brewing friend says its too hard.

is hardness an issue?

he suggested bottled but as you say, tap is free

 

[rpt]

Are you brewing kits or AG? It's only if you are mashing that the water is more critical. Even if you are doing AG then I wouldn't worry too much about water treatment for your first brew. If it is really hard then brew stout or other dark beer.

I would treat the water with a Campden tablet to get rid of the chlorine though.

 

[the_bing]

going to brew a kit to begin with, but want to brew my own AG recipes eventually.

thanks for the advice!

 

[winelight]

I use tap water and mine is extremely hard but I use a (under-counter) water filter that is intended to filter out the hardness. Seems to work for the kettle, etc. Also gets rid of the chlorine smell.

 

[Pinchy]

I live in Suffolk where the water is really hard. "Very hard" on this scale:
http://www.eswater.co.uk/_assets/docume ... rdness.pdf

Although my kit brews have all been good your question got me thinking!
I did a quick google and came across this:
http://beersmith.com/blog/2008/08/24/br ... d-or-soft/

You should be able to find out your water details quite easily. I can search my postcode on anglia water.

 

[fizz head1982]

I use rain water, I think it tastes the best! - and its completely free! Lincolnshire tap water is pretty bad and I am too tight and lazy to buy it and cart it back home. Before i use it it's got all kinds of flies and insects in it and some other stuff but after a filter and a boil its delicious.

 

[alf1887]

Have a look on your area's water suppliers website for a water quality report. I use tap water, Yorkshire water say it is slightly hard. So far beer has tasted ok. Always put 1/2 campden tablet in it.

 

[pittsy]

I use rain water, I think it tastes the best! - and its completely free! Lincolnshire tap water is pretty bad and I am too tight and lazy to buy it and cart it back home. Before i use it it's got all kinds of flies and insects in it and some other stuff but after a filter and a boil its delicious.

will rain water have enough calcium , magnesium , sodium , chloride , sulphate , although some of these in too high an amount can cause poor beer but so can too little .

 

[Pinchy]

Another good option if you have bad water is to dilute it with bottled water. Seems a good compromise to me.
For my next brew I think I will use bottled water to make up half of the total volume required.