Will using tap water be "ok"

[AnimatedGIF]

TL;DR:
Would hard (331mg/L CaCO3) tap water be ok for a pale-ish ale?

Full story
There's a lot I don't know enough about when it comes to brewing, and water is one of them.
I have been threatening to go All Grain for about a year now, and finally have everything I need to be able to do so.
I have done three small stove-top batches before, which were great, but I used bottled water for them. I am now able to do larger batches (up to 23L) so using so much bottled water does not sit well with me.
My understanding is that for some beer styles, (hard) water straight from the tap is actually really good (e.g for stouts).
If I were to brew the following with tap water, adding in half a campden tablet, would it be ok? As in, will it be drinkable? I am happy with "drinkable" while I experiment with my equipment and leftover ingredients.

19L batch
3.42KG Maris Otter
15g Magnum @60m
15g Harlequin @5m
30g Harlequin DH (4 days)

1 pack of US-05

Note that I am trying to use up ingredients I already have, so not set on the above, just experimenting really.
Just to be clear, I appreciate there is a lot more to water than hardness and just using a campden tablet, but I want to be sure I am not going to end up with something that end up needing to be poured down the drain.

 

[The Baron]

No you will not have to pour it down the drain even hard water will make a reasonable beer but and this is the but water is the key element for getting the best out of your brews.
I personally and this is going to sound daft do not alter my water as water treatment can become a complicated issue for some people but if you can grasp it do so is my advice (old dog new tricks).
If you are really wanting to do something immediately bottled water is a bridge between and not too expensive if you read the many threads on this site.
So all my beers are just treated with campden tablet and Lactic acid for the PH and all my brews are well drinkable but again if you can get into water treatment it will improve your beer by how much I can not say.
Hope that helps you a little

 

[Sadfield]

In short, yes. Only one real way to find out. You'll brew beer and it'll likely be drinkable, although that is largely dependent on personal taste and expectation.

I do wonder if its a false economy though, as you could be taking a hit on brewhouse efficiency, not get the best out of your hops, risk brewing something lower in quality than your previous brews having spent time and energy on a brew day. All for saving 15p a pint.

If you can spare the time and energy usage, preboiling might be a more acceptable option.

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

 

[peebee]

It's "hard" reported "as" CaCO3. It's a way of reporting. There is no, or virtually no, carbonate in UK tap water (any real "carbonate" will be "bicarbonate").

So they are reporting "carbonate hardness", or "temporary hardness", or, because you are dealing with tap water, "alkalinity" (alkalinity covers other things you don't get significant amounts of in tap water).

When talking of hard water for "beer styles" they'll actually mean "permanent hardness", or hardness due to calcium or magnesium (and other salts too insignificant in UK tap water), and often reported "as" Ca.

Not a full answer, but might gel some of the replies you will get.


@the baron has just replied before me! Take heed of his "water treatment can become a complicated issue" comment; what I've said is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to water.

 

[The Baron]

Yes it can be complicated but if you can grasp it do it I wish I had the time and inclination to understand it but too Old!!! and my beers taste ok to me

 

[Cheshire Cat]

Our water is relatively soft but I use or used Strange's water calculator but there are others. So find out what profile you need for a particular beer style add that and your native profile and it will tell you what and how much chemicals to add. The chemical additions I use are
Campden tables
Phosphoric acid
Gypsum
Calcium carbonate
Baking soda.
Look for Steve's threads they are good. I used his calculator when it was available and now copy it from a previous brew.

 

[Rodcx500z]

This is one part of brewing i will never understand, i have just got my water ready for tomorrow all i do is a crushed campden tablet, i believe were i live south of the ribble the water is soft but you do get a whiff of chlorine now and then, Friday morning it may be manky brown as they are cleaning the pipes over night on Thursday, but as above my beers all taste good well to me anyway

 

[Cheshire Cat]

If you guys tell me the water profile you need and your local profile and you recipe I will send you the additions you should add to mash and sparge water.

 

[An Ankoù]

TL;DR:
Would hard (331mg/L CaCO3) tap water be ok for a pale-ish ale?

Full story
There's a lot I don't know enough about when it comes to brewing, and water is one of them.
I have been threatening to go All Grain for about a year now, and finally have everything I need to be able to do so.
I have done three small stove-top batches before, which were great, but I used bottled water for them. I am now able to do larger batches (up to 23L) so using so much bottled water does not sit well with me.
My understanding is that for some beer styles, (hard) water straight from the tap is actually really good (e.g for stouts).
If I were to brew the following with tap water, adding in half a campden tablet, would it be ok? As in, will it be drinkable? I am happy with "drinkable" while I experiment with my equipment and leftover ingredients.

19L batch
3.42KG Maris Otter
15g Magnum @60m
15g Harlequin @5m
30g Harlequin DH (4 days)

1 pack of US-05

Note that I am trying to use up ingredients I already have, so not set on the above, just experimenting really.
Just to be clear, I appreciate there is a lot more to water than hardness and just using a campden tablet, but I want to be sure I am not going to end up with something that end up needing to be poured down the drain.

It should be fine to use your tap water and I see you're already treating it for any chlorine/chloramine that might be in there. I used to live in Poole where we had to change the shower heater every year to eighteen months because the water was quite hard. I really liked the beer I made there and when I wanted to make lager, I used rainwater. If you have to pour it down the drain, it won't be because of the water- it might make the hops a bit harsh, but let's man up- we're not brewing for schoolgirls (joking. having a John Wayne moment). I had always thought that stouts were often built around softer or temporary hard water -HCO3 , but I begin to wonder.

 

[obscure]

I’m in Oxfordshire and it has pretty hard water. I also have never treated my water, now I am not saying that I potentially might get better results if I did but I am happy enough with the results I have gotten. It’s also true that I make a lot of darker beers but even my pale ales have being perfectly drinkable.

 

[AnimatedGIF]

Thank you all for your replies.
Ultimately if I can get to grips then I shall head down the RO route, but I am in the worst situation whereby I am currently having to buy beer, so need to get stocks up!
Planning on cracking out a couple using tap water over the next week or so based on these responses.
Incidentally I saw there's a water calculator on brewer's friend, so when I get a chance I shall stick the numbers in from my water report and see if I can figure out how to treat it.

 

[peebee]

Cor ... I've just been reading:
Sewage

When I mentioned earlier "alkalinity covers other things you don't get significant amounts of in tap water", sewage is one of those things that can mess up the simplistic "alkalinity = temporary hardness".

The morel being: "Alkalinity" gets really complicated with sewage in your brewing water. I recommend avoiding it.

 

[Scrattajack]

Incidentally I saw there's a water calculator on brewer's friend, so when I get a chance I shall stick the numbers in from my water report and see if I can figure out how to treat it.

There's a very good youtube video on the Brewer's Friend water calculator (there's a link to it on the BF forums pages). Goes on a bit but worthwhile.

 

[An Ankoù]

There are two approaches to all this stuff about water chemistry: that we should adapt our beer to the water we have; that we should adapt our water to the beer we want to make. The first gives us our regional differences between beers of very much the same composition-light beers made with London water and those made with Burton water, lagers made with Pilsn water and lagers made with Dortmund water. The second reflects our desire to clone the beers we have already tried, from around the country, even from around the world and this involves adjusting the water just as much as choosing the right yeast. But classic styles haven't evolved this way. In the past, the brewer's skill focussed much more on getting the most out of his local water and using only one house yeast (which, if lost, is something of a tragedy).
I wonder if there is water so awful that it's OK for drinking, but not for brewing. And I think we might consider going back to making the best we can with the water we have. The Bavarian tradition doesn't allow additives and they make some cracking beers. Even if their attempt to make a Burton Bitter might come out quite differently.

 

[Andrew Booth]

Up here in West Yorkshire the water is okay for brewing. When I first started all grain I had a look at Yorkshire Waters Website and the water profile for my area. It’s pretty soft water around here chlorine is in the very low parts per million as are the other stuff they put in to tap water. I’ve never had a bad result really and don’t add anything to my water profile unless I’m doing a burton type beer

 

[White Rose Al]

Up here in West Yorkshire the water is okay for brewing. When I first started all grain I had a look at Yorkshire Waters Website and the water profile for my area. It’s pretty soft water around here chlorine is in the very low parts per million as are the other stuff they put in to tap water. I’ve never had a bad result really and don’t add anything to my water profile unless I’m doing a burton type beer

Not sure where you are matey but starting to smell more chlorine in water out in Wetherby. For kit brewing I am going to add 1/2 campden in 25L for 24 hrs to see it reduces it

 

[Andrew Booth]

I’m in Halifax mate not a great deal of chlorine over here

 

[An Ankoù]

Not sure where you are matey but starting to smell more chlorine in water out in Wetherby. For kit brewing I am going to add 1/2 campden in 25L for 24 hrs to see it reduces it

It'll work. There's no need to wait 24 hours, it's immediate. Just stir well and use.

 

[Andrew Booth]

Supply Zone:	Halifax 2004
Areas Covered:	Akroydon, Boothtown, Cornholme, Hebden Bridge, Luddenden Foot, Mytholmroyd, Siddal, Sowerby Bridge, Todmorden, Walsden
Report Period:	1st January 2018 - 31st December 2018
Water hardness type:	Soft
Water hardness average:	13.6 mg/l calcium

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Substance	Typical Value	UK/European limit	Unit
Calcium	10.4		mg Ca/l
Magnesium	1.9		mg Mg/l
Residual chlorine - free	.47		mg/l Cl2
Residual chlorine - total	.55		mg/l Cl2
TotalColiforms	0	0	no/100ml
EColi	0	0	no/100ml
Aluminium	6.5	200	µg Al/l
Colour	1.1	20	mg/l Pt/Co Scale
Conductivity	131	2500	µS/cm
Fluoride	.05	1.5	mg F/l
Turbidity	.16	4	NTU
pHHydrogenIon	7.6	6.5 - 9.5	pH Units
Iron	10.4	200	µg Fe/l
Manganese	.7	50	µg Mn/I
Nitrate	1.86	50	mg NO3/l
Nitrite	.002	0.5	mg NO2/l
Sodium	13.4	200	mg Na/l
Copper	.0109	2	mg Cu/l
Lead	.1	10	µg Pb/l

 

[Andrew Booth]

This is the report for my area never had any problems with any of the brews I’ve done either kit or All grain