Is my water alright?

[quicktolearn]

I learned that water is important to brewing good beer. Our water is as follows
pH: pH: 7.4 7.4
Calcium (Ca): Calcium (Ca): 167.0 167.0 ppm ppm
Magnesium (Mg): Magnesium (Mg): 43.3 43.3 ppm ppm
Sodium (Na): Sodium (Na): 14.0 14.0 ppm ppm
Sulfate (SO4): Sulfate (SO4): 43.0 43.0 ppm ppm
Chloride (Cl): Chloride (Cl): 1.9 1.9 ppm ppm
Bicarbonate (HCO3): Bicarbonate (HCO3): 177.0 177.0 ppm ppm
Apparently copy paste is so excited it pasted twice. So is my water OK to brew with? Should I add water salts or baking soda or anything?

 

[skitter]

No idea about what exact chemical composition s make good beer. What I do know, is I will spend the time to fill my 3 - 1g jugs from the fridge filter (2.5g fermenter) instead of spending 3 bucks on Ozarka. Wont trust Houston tap water

 

[Trox]

If your tap water tastes and smells ok (no obvious chemical smells to it) then it is good to go for brewing beer.

 

[tgmartin000]

If you're brewing extract, it's probably OK, but if you're brewing all grain, you've got way too much bicarbonate to brew light colored beers. Otherwise your numbers look really good. You'll probably want to try to add some sulfate for hoppy beers, and a touch of calcium chloride won't hurt to get your chlorides up to help accentuate mouthfeel. Also, if you have chlorine or chlormaines, you'll need to remove them.

 

[quicktolearn]

If you're brewing extract, it's probably OK, but if you're brewing all grain, you've got way too much bicarbonate to brew light colored beers. Otherwise your numbers look really good. You'll probably want to try to add some sulfate for hoppy beers, and a touch of calcium chloride won't hurt to get your chlorides up to help accentuate mouthfeel. Also, if you have chlorine or chlormaines, you'll need to remove them.

I am brewing all grain (just did my second batch!) which is why I am concerned with water now. So a tsp of Epsom's salt for sulphur, another tsp of calcium chloride, and then run it through a charcoal filter? Thanks for all the help.

 

[SEndorf]

Now that you're armed with your water report, the next logical step is to profile those numbers with the Bru'n Water spreadsheet. This tool will allow you to see what specific adjustments are desirable depending on what you're brewing.
I've just started tinkering with water adjustments and it brings a new dimension to the hobby.
You might also take a look in the "brew science" subforum. We're fortunate to have some respected, well known heavy hitters in the brew science area that I've found patient and extremely helpful there.