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Author Topic: Water help  (Read 2476 times)

Offline hopfenundmalz

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Re: Water help
« Reply #15 on: November 01, 2015, 06:08:55 pm »
I think a Ward Labs analysis would help.  The link doesn't show a number for bicarbonate (HCO3) which is critical for brewing if the number is higher.  The iron sounds like an issue at 3000+ppm and I will say right now that I have no real experience with that mineral in my own water.


When I read the report I immediately said that has to be ppb, parts per billion. If you look at the left column, you see that it says "Iron (ppb)" for that row. Moving the decimal, it is 3.13 ppm iron. Is that too high? Yes it is. Martin recommends 0.1 ppm as a maximum.

https://sites.google.com/site/brunwater/water-knowledge
Oooh, good catch.  I genrally don't pay attention to water contents other than the standard 6 we worry about.  If a municipal water source (or a well) has high levels of other things like iron, my experience is zero.  So 3.13ppm of iron is high?  Huh, did not know that.

Hey ShawnMull, do you have rust stained plumbing fixtures?

Yeah, 3 ppm FE is more than I would want.
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Offline mabrungard

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Re: Water help
« Reply #16 on: November 01, 2015, 06:18:03 pm »
That water supply is a very soft water that could easily be subject to picking up iron and manganese. That is the case, as evidenced by the water report. While the bicarbonate or alkalinity is not presented in the report, it is apparent that the values would be very low.

While ion-exchange softened water use is typically a no-no in brewing, this water has very little hardness and will not pick up a bunch of sodium in the exchange. The good thing is that this treatment will knock down the Fe and Mn content and make this a very good brewing water. Given the Fe and Mn content in that water, I'm guessing that water softeners are common in this area. It's OK to use the softened water here.
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Offline erockrph

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Re: Water help
« Reply #17 on: November 01, 2015, 06:18:23 pm »
It sounds like we found the culprit, but I'd thought I'd chime in to say that hops are another potential source of metallic flavors. I'll pick it up from Nugget hopped beers from time to time.
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Offline Village Taphouse

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Re: Water help
« Reply #18 on: November 01, 2015, 07:42:09 pm »
We're lucky to have Martin as a participant here.  Water can be tricky for some and overwhelming for many.  He just pointed out that the mysteries of water can run very deep (pun intended?) and even though some of us get familiar with our own variables... there are many others out there that are foreign to us water mortals.
Ken from Chicago. 
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Offline ShawnMull

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Re: Water help
« Reply #19 on: November 02, 2015, 04:43:48 am »
Nice, glad I could at least figure it out a little  :). I had a feeling when reading the report the iron was crazy high for brewing.

You guys are awesome, thanks for the help.

Offline ShawnMull

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Re: Water help
« Reply #20 on: November 02, 2015, 07:34:37 pm »
Alright I used bottled poland springs (they were on sale today) so I'm hoping it will produce a solid beer.

I used it with the Aletoberfest, I'll try and remember to post if the metal subsides with the background.

Offline Village Taphouse

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Re: Water help
« Reply #21 on: November 03, 2015, 10:05:08 am »
Shawn:  One other thought since you're brewing with extract... are you boiling the full volume of wort or are you doing partial boils?  I ask because a partial boil can bring out some funny flavors which [in the past] have been described as a "metallic twang".  On a partial boil (say 3 gallons), the wort is so concentrated that it can create some unwanted flavors in your beer.  When I was an extract brewer, I found that doing full volume boils (you need a 6+ gallon kettle) was one of the [if not THE] best improvements made in my beer.  Proper fermentation temp was probably a close second.  Not sure if this was mentioned in the thread already but it's something to look into.  It's also possible that the iron content *plus* a partial boil was responsible for the flavors you detected.  Bottled water plus a full-volume boil should produce a really nice beer. 
Ken from Chicago. 
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Offline ShawnMull

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Re: Water help
« Reply #22 on: November 03, 2015, 04:39:38 pm »
I am doing a partial. Good call. The last batch I just did I boiled about 4 gallons (needing to top off like a gallon and a half)

Offline Village Taphouse

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Re: Water help
« Reply #23 on: November 03, 2015, 04:51:37 pm »
I am doing a partial. Good call. The last batch I just did I boiled about 4 gallons (needing to top off like a gallon and a half)
My guess is that your Aletoberfest will be a nice beer.  The different water should be an improvement.  If you still detect any metallic flavors, it could be the partial boil although 4 gallons is better than 3.  Maybe be on the lookout for a 6+ gallon stainless pot and then I guarantee you'll be impressed with your extract beer.  Cheers.
Ken from Chicago. 
A day without beer is like... just kidding, I have no idea.