Local Water

[dirtydingus]

Local water is supposedly good for beer, but needs the chloramines removed. I believe it's 1 campden tablet to 5 gals-----right.

 

[Abbas]

I use half a tablet. 1/4 in mash water and 1/4 in sparge water.

 

[z-bob]

Local water is supposedly good for beer, but needs the chloramines removed. I believe it's 1 campden tablet to 5 gals-----right.

That's a lot more than you need; I think a quarter tablet is enough, but maybe it's a half a tablet.
I just add a pinch of K-Meta when I heat the water.

 

[Silver_Is_Money]

1/4 tablet is likely sufficient.

 

[BlueHouseBrewhaus]

Local water is supposedly good for beer, but needs the chloramines removed. I believe it's 1 campden tablet to 5 gals-----right.

A Camden tablet will help with chloramines but you still need to know what else is in your local water. Water chemistry is a big (and important) topic. What is the pH? What is the alkilinity? What are the levels of calcium, sulfates, sodium, etc? The answers to those questions can have a big impact on your beer. Your best bet is to send a sample for analysis. Most people use Ward Labs. They will analyze your water for the things brewers need to know. All the instructions are on their website. It's about $20 and money well spent. Once you have the info, you can download a brewing water app like Bru'NWater and it will tell you how to adjust your water. I also highly recommend perusing the Brew Science forum and asking whatever questions you have there.

 

[carluchi]

While I agree a water report is best, I usually go by the rule of 'if your water tastes good, it should make good beer'.

Of course this implies you have removed chlorine / chloramine and do not taste any iron.

I would brew a few with your water to see how it comes out before springing for a test.

 

[_HH_]

Yeah I’m with carluchi. If you like the taste of your beer with the water you’re using, all good. If you don’t like it, or it tastes muted or dull, consider checking the water to make sure your mineral contents are in the right ballpark and your sulphate to chloride ratio is where you want it to be.
It may be something completely different such as your recipe design or implementation causing the flaw, but if you don’t know what the composition of the water you’re brewing with you’ll never know if it needs to be adjusted.

 

[balrog]

Be somewhat careful with the "if it tastes good use it" homily. I like the taste of my water but it is better for light beer styles than for porters/stouts/ambers. It is so far beyond soft as to be almost RO water. I learned this after a few "thin" amber ales, then a Ward Labs report. My mentor on the other hand, has been brewing with the same water for years without issue and without any water adjustment at all.

 

[kh54s10]

Where I used to live the water was great. I didn't have problems brewing any kind of beer without making adjustments. Just before I decided to move I got a water report and did a couple making adjustments. I didn't notice any improvement. It probably did make the beer better, but not to the extent that it was noticeable.

Now in Fl, the water is different, my beers have been hit or miss. None were bad, just not quite what I expected. Recipe? Could be.

I tried one batch with distilled water and it was not any better that with the tap water.

So, IMO, if you are getting good results with your tap water, there is no reason to mess with it. If you want to see if you can make your beers better then go for the water report and adjusting. Or if you are having problems, water is one of the first places to look.

In answer to the Campden, I use 1/2 tab in my water. I treat enough for the mash and sparge.

 

[wallyLOZ]

Search on Google for your local water quality report. You'll find out what's in it and what adjustments you'll need to make. Brewer's Friend has an easy water calculator to follow. Can't comment on other software since I've only used BF. Good luck.

 

[kh54s10]

Search on Google for your local water quality report. You'll find out what's in it and what adjustments you'll need to make. Brewer's Friend has an easy water calculator to follow. Can't comment on other software since I've only used BF. Good luck.

I've never been able to find anything useful as a water report on the internet. Where do you look?

 

[wallyLOZ]

I Googled "water quality report for edgewater florida". Your are correct. There's very little useable info. I would call the office and ask to obtain the full report. It's public info so they shouldn't have a problem getting you a copy.
I've also used a couple different brands of bottled water, asked for, and received their report.
Let us know what you find out. I'm curious now!

 

[kh54s10]

I Googled "water quality report for edgewater florida". Your are correct. There's very little useable info. I would call the office and ask to obtain the full report. It's public info so they shouldn't have a problem getting you a copy.
I've also used a couple different brands of bottled water, asked for, and received their report.
Let us know what you find out. I'm curious now!

Moving again soon so nothing is going to happen in the near future. I have seen what some have gotten from their municipal water reports and I am not sure they even look at the things brewers need to know. They are mostly testing for contaminates. Like how many ppm of lead in the water.

 

[wallyLOZ]

The report for this area does list all of the usual contaminates, but also lists info we brewers need. Potassium, Sodium, Chloride, Calcium, Sulfate, Chlorate, Magnesium, are all listed. My big issue is getting rid of the chloramine. Hope your new locale has a better report for you.

 

[VirginiaHops1]

I've never been able to find anything useful as a water report on the internet. Where do you look?

I'm sure not all water companies do it, but I was able to find a detailed water report online for my location. People should definitely look around online first or call their water company before paying Ward Labs, they may get lucky. I had to google around a bit before stumbling onto this.

https://www.fairfaxwater.org/imar_f...u2zU44qOdY32B8XZfXb3ll9JdHIrvCBDZgA61Wdbw2stM

 

[bobeer]

I researched online to find the who-was-what with my water and where it came from. I then emailed them explaining I was a local brewer and needed some info on the water. They couldn't give me everything but what they did give me was enough to tell me I could pretty much brew with it as is.
I think if you really want the low-down on your water (and why not if you're looking to learn and make better beer, right?) you need to hit up a 'pay for' source and do it right. I'm sure the investment will pay for itself.
Admittingly I haven't really gone much further with the water chemistry stuff since I can brew with my water and I like the outcome. I should though!
I had to dump 12 gallons years ago when I first moved into a short-term rental that had terrible water. I hit the ground running and brewed 2 big batches before doing my homework. Still makes me sad to this day...

And FWIW I agree, the water chemistry forum here is awesome and there's some good stuff for beginners on there.

 

[_HH_]

I think if you really want the low-down on your water (and why not if you're looking to learn and make better beer, right?) you need to hit up a 'pay for' source

Not necessarily - I reached out to a local brewery who kindly gave me their water chemistry data for free. It helps that I’m in there regularly and have some rapport with them already, but I’m sure a brewery local to you would be happy to help. Worth an ask!

 

[z-bob]

If your water tastes good, you should be able to brew good beer with it -- but it might take some adjustments or you might be limited to certain styles. I've taken it as a personal challenge to brew with my local water with just minimal adjustments (dechlorinate, and add acid.) Some styles are a lot easier to do that with than others. There's no point in me even attempting a Czech Pils using city water; I can buy RO water for that.

There's a local brewery here that's not very good (they brew something really good occasionally, mostly their stouts, but I think that's by accident) and I think their biggest problem is trying to use the local water with just a small carbon filter and probably no pH adjustment. I haven't been there in a few years.