Salmonella Steve Posted January 27 Share Posted January 27 I want to see what water people are using in their brews and if you feel it makes a difference. im using regular town water and in my area it’s fine but I was wondering if people use basic filtered water or RO water or add anything to the town water to remove / soften the chlorine etc and if you think it makes a difference to the final product that worth going through the process? I have a rain water tank near where I brew and wondering if I can connect a filter to it and use that for my brew. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Classic Brewing Co Posted January 27 Share Posted January 27 1 hour ago, Salmonella Steve said: I want to see what water people are using in their brews and if you feel it makes a difference. im using regular town water and in my area it’s fine but I was wondering if people use basic filtered water or RO water or add anything to the town water to remove / soften the chlorine etc and if you think it makes a difference to the final product that worth going through the process? I have a rain water tank near where I brew and wondering if I can connect a filter to it and use that for my brew. I use water straight from the Puratap, been doing it for years, I was filling a sanitised fermenter & leaving it overnight uncovered to help with the chlorine removal, but I don't bother anymore as the Puratap people tell me the filter does that anyway. It gets changed every year. The water is fine even without adding salts & other chemicals for AG brewing. Some members do this, but I haven't bothered so far, 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Back Brewing Posted January 27 Share Posted January 27 I use straight from the tap but am seriously looking at using campden tablets to see if there is any difference 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shamus O'Sean Posted January 28 Share Posted January 28 6 hours ago, Salmonella Steve said: I want to see what water people are using in their brews and if you feel it makes a difference. im using regular town water and in my area it’s fine but I was wondering if people use basic filtered water or RO water or add anything to the town water to remove / soften the chlorine etc and if you think it makes a difference to the final product that worth going through the process? I have a rain water tank near where I brew and wondering if I can connect a filter to it and use that for my brew. I start with plain Melbourne Water water. These days I use Brewfather's water calculator for mineral additions in my all grain brews. I have no idea if it makes a difference. I have never done a side-by-side taste-test. For my first 90 or so batches, which were almost all kit brews, I just used the plain untreated water. Now, when I do a kit brew, I will just add Sodium Metabisulfite. It neutralises the Chlorine in town water. I use 0.1g per 4 litres. I add salts because people more clever than me say it makes for better beer. However, whether kit beers or all-grain, my brews always taste fine. That is, apart from one or two failures that had nothing to do with mineral additions. I have never filtered my water or used tank water, so cannot help with those queries. 3 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ben 10 Posted January 28 Share Posted January 28 6 hours ago, Classic Brewing Co said: The water is fine even without adding salts & other chemicals for AG brewing. Should read "the beer is fine" as that is what matters. I filter my water and also add ascorbic acid. This removes chlorine and chloramine - I am not sure what is in my water, I did have a spec from the treatment plant but I have since moved. I used to add minerals but CBF anymore. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Classic Brewing Co Posted January 28 Share Posted January 28 1 hour ago, ben 10 said: Should read "the beer is fine" as that is what matters. I filter my water and also add ascorbic acid. This removes chlorine and chloramine - I am not sure what is in my water, I did have a spec from the treatment plant but I have since moved. I used to add minerals but CBF anymore. Yeah, I guess it should, you tried it so that is it. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kmar92 Posted January 28 Share Posted January 28 These days I use RO water as the RO filters remove chlorine and chloramine and it also gives me just a blank palette with my water for brewing. Sometimes I add salts as recommended by Brewfather, sometimes I don't. When I do a filter change on the RO unit I am happy that I am using filtered water as when you see the filters they are pretty disgusting with all the mud and crap that they catch and filter out, and of course all the other stuff that they remove. If you have ever seen an old storage hot water unit drained you will understand how much crap is in town water. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greenyinthewestofsydney Posted January 28 Share Posted January 28 Mostly use town water ( western sydney ). I add sodium metabisulfite to remove chlorine and chloramines. I do adjust town water for some brews with mineral/salt additions. I also use my tank water for some brews as well which are mostly pilseners which are better with very soft water. I just run the water through an inline filter from bunnings. It gets out any sediment in the tank. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Back Brewing Posted January 28 Share Posted January 28 I have 10,000 litres in 2 tanks that I have to drain next weekend it's going to be a huge waste but unfortunately it has to be done I will water my lawn and the neighbours lawn so at least some of it will be put to good use Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kmar92 Posted January 28 Share Posted January 28 7 minutes ago, Back Brewing said: I have 10,000 litres in 2 tanks that I have to drain next weekend it's going to be a huge waste but unfortunately it has to be done I will water my lawn and the neighbours lawn so at least some of it will be put to good use Why do you have to drain them @Back Brewing ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Back Brewing Posted January 28 Share Posted January 28 (edited) My shack on the river got affected by the floods so it has to be demolished and a new rebuild done unfortunately they don't fit the new plans so have been moved on A pity but they will be replaced with new modular tanks Edited January 28 by Back Brewing 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aussiekraut Posted January 28 Share Posted January 28 On 1/28/2024 at 6:31 AM, Salmonella Steve said: I want to see what water people are using in their brews and if you feel it makes a difference. im using regular town water and in my area it’s fine but I was wondering if people use basic filtered water or RO water or add anything to the town water to remove / soften the chlorine etc and if you think it makes a difference to the final product that worth going through the process? I have a rain water tank near where I brew and wondering if I can connect a filter to it and use that for my brew. I'm using plain old tap water. No filter, no additions. I figure that if the water is good enough to drink, it is good enough to brew with. The only thing I do is put the mash water into the kettle the day before, so the chlorine can evaporate. I haven't had any complaints about my beer and if a batch isn't great, it usually doesn't have anything to do with water but everything with the operator. I'm no scientist, I just brew beer. If I like what I drink, all is good. That is what is important to me. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChairmanDrew Posted January 28 Share Posted January 28 (edited) 1 hour ago, Aussiekraut said: I'm using plain old tap water. No filter, no additions. I figure that if the water is good enough to drink, it is good enough to brew with. The only thing I do is put the mash water into the kettle the day before, so the chlorine can evaporate. I haven't had any complaints about my beer and if a batch isn't great, it usually doesn't have anything to do with water but everything with the operator. I'm no scientist, I just brew beer. If I like what I drink, all is good. That is what is important to me. If the water is good enough to drink from the tap, it should be good enough to drink from the brew. But where I am, the tap water is awful. We have a simple carbon filter which removes the chlorine taste, but you need to run it slowly to be effective, and when it comes to 20l+ I don't have that much patience. I don't know if the chlorine flavour is present in my beers, but this thread has got me thinking more about water purification in general again. Edited January 28 by ChairmanDrew 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Classic Brewing Co Posted January 28 Share Posted January 28 1 hour ago, Aussiekraut said: I'm using plain old tap water. No filter, no additions. I figure that if the water is good enough to drink, it is good enough to brew with. The only thing I do is put the mash water into the kettle the day before, so the chlorine can evaporate. I haven't had any complaints about my beer and if a batch isn't great, it usually doesn't have anything to do with water but everything with the operator. I'm no scientist, I just brew beer. If I like what I drink, all is good. That is what is important to me. I agree with you AK although I am using a Puratap, I have had one in each of the 3 houses I have lived in for the last 20years. Puratap was founded in 1996. I use the water for everything, drinking, cooking & of course brewing, there are more expensive units available, but this works for me. https://www.puratap.com.au/ A Puratap has been scientifically proven to remove a significant number of chemicals from your water, including 99.9% of the chemicals listed on the Puratap website Testing from the Australian Water Quality Centre has certified that a Puratap can remove chlorine, chloroform, herbicides, pesticides and trihalomethanes, amongst other things. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iBooz2 Posted January 28 Share Posted January 28 32 minutes ago, Classic Brewing Co said: I agree with you AK although I am using a Puratap, I have had one in each of the 3 houses I have lived in for the last 20years. Puratap was founded in 1996. I use the water for everything, drinking, cooking & of course brewing, there are more expensive units available, but this works for me. https://www.puratap.com.au/ A Puratap has been scientifically proven to remove a significant number of chemicals from your water, including 99.9% of the chemicals listed on the Puratap website Testing from the Australian Water Quality Centre has certified that a Puratap can remove chlorine, chloroform, herbicides, pesticides and trihalomethanes, amongst other things. But interestingly enough, Puratap do not publish their "scientific" NATA lab testing results anywhere, I wonder why they don't when they say most competitors' filters are just junk. If you read the Puratap web site, they say their filters MAY remove this and that. Must admit that Adelaide water is pretty ordinary when compared to Melbourne water. Adelaide is at the bottom of the Murray / Darling drainage system and has limited mountains to collect run-off from so it needs all the help it can get. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iBooz2 Posted January 28 Share Posted January 28 I have 23,000 L of rainwater total in several tanks and use it 99% of the time run through, first an inline filter then another twin cartridge filter. Like Melbourne water it is quite soft and calcium deficient, but I only add salts etc. now and then for special brews like a Pilsner or the upcoming Gunnies clone. Have tried adding what Brewfather recommends to my tank water but could not detect much difference, not that I was looking for it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Classic Brewing Co Posted January 28 Share Posted January 28 6 minutes ago, iBooz2 said: But interestingly enough, Puratap do not publish their "scientific" NATA lab testing results anywhere, I wonder why they don't when they say most competitors' filters are just junk. If you read the Puratap web site, they say their filters MAY remove this and that. Must admit that Adelaide water is pretty ordinary when compared to Melbourne water. Adelaide is at the bottom of the Murray / Darling drainage system and has limited mountains to collect run-off from so it needs all the help it can get. So, you are saying Victorian beer is better I have drunk Melbourne water plenty of times & didn't think it was anything special. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iBooz2 Posted January 28 Share Posted January 28 5 minutes ago, Classic Brewing Co said: So, you are saying Victorian beer is better I have drunk Melbourne water plenty of times & didn't think it was anything special. That's not what I said. Tassie water is even better than ours. And besides when was the last time you had a drink of water? There has been a number of interstate brewing companies that have moved their production to Melbourne / Geelong, both for the water and for economies of scale. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Classic Brewing Co Posted January 29 Share Posted January 29 2 minutes ago, iBooz2 said: That's not what I said. Tassie water is even better than ours. And besides when was the last time you had a drink of water? There has been a number of interstate brewing companies that have moved their production to Melbourne / Geelong, both for the water and for economies of scale. Beer contains water. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John304 Posted January 29 Share Posted January 29 3 hours ago, Classic Brewing Co said: I agree with you AK although I am using a Puratap, I have had one in each of the 3 houses I have lived in for the last 20years. Puratap was founded in 1996. I use the water for everything, drinking, cooking & of course brewing, there are more expensive units available, but this works for me. https://www.puratap.com.au/ A Puratap has been scientifically proven to remove a significant number of chemicals from your water, including 99.9% of the chemicals listed on the Puratap website Testing from the Australian Water Quality Centre has certified that a Puratap can remove chlorine, chloroform, herbicides, pesticides and trihalomethanes, amongst other things. Yep, puratap for me 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Classic Brewing Co Posted January 29 Share Posted January 29 3 hours ago, John304 said: Yep, puratap for me John, it appears you are in Adelaide, which area, I am at Glenelg North. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John304 Posted January 30 Share Posted January 30 19 hours ago, Classic Brewing Co said: John, it appears you are in Adelaide, which area, I am at Glenelg North. 19 hours ago, Classic Brewing Co said: John, it appears you are in Adelaide, which area, I am at Glenelg North. Craigmore mate Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Classic Brewing Co Posted January 30 Share Posted January 30 20 minutes ago, John304 said: Craigmore mate OK, the Mid-North. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John304 Posted January 30 Share Posted January 30 Just now, Classic Brewing Co said: OK, the Mid-North. Pretty much Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Back Brewing Posted January 30 Share Posted January 30 26 minutes ago, John304 said: Craigmore mate My old stomping ground I did a lot of business around there also Blakeview Elizabeth and Salisbury we have probably met each other. I live in Mawson Lakes now I'm retired Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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