Just got my Wards Report What next??

[tnorman93638]

I just got my water report back from Wards. Now what do I need to do to tell if my water is good to use or do I need to add something?

I'm on well water in Central California

Here's the results

pH 7.5
Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) Est, ppm 137
Electrical Conductivity, mmho/cm 0.23
Cations / Anions, me/L 2.2 / 2.2

Sodium, Na 20 ppm
Potassium, K 4 ppm
Calcium, Ca 15 ppm
Magnesium, Mg 6 ppm
Total Hardness, CaCO3 63 ppm
Nitrate, NO3-N 4.5 (SAFE) ppm
Sulfate, SO4-S 2 ppm
Chloride, Cl 7 ppm
Carbonate, CO3 < 1.0 ppm
Bicarbonate, HCO3 91 ppm
Total Alkalinity, CaCO3 75 ppm
Total Phosphorus, P < 0.18 ppm
Total Iron, Fe < 0.01 ppm
"<" - Not Detected / Below Detection Limit

 

[ajdelange]

That's pretty good stuff. Now as what you should do next my preference would be for you to go to Amazon and buy a copy of Palmer's book and read it. Next best would be to look through the archives here to see what people do with water like yours (there are many options). Another option is to just start brewing with it. You can do many beers with this water without much treament. The Primer may give you some ideas as to how to modify it for different styles and you will doubtless get lots of specific advice if you say what kind(s) of beer(s) you plan to do.

 

[mabrungard]

There is still substantial alkalinity that will require neutralization for all pale beer brewing and there should be neutralization for all sparging water. Learning to use acid will enable you to make great beer with that excellent starting point.

 

[tnorman93638]

Thanks for the fast response. Looks Like I need to do a lot more reading.