[tomsawyer]

One more and then I promise to quit:

The United States Public Health Service has established a specific standard of 10 milligrams of nitrate nitrogen per liter as the maximum concentration safe for human consumption. Problems in adults that drink water with excessive nitrate are essentially nonexistent and are rare in infants. The principal sources of nitrate and nitrite (NO2) for adults are vegetables and cured meats, which supply more than 95 percent of the total nitrate in typical diets.

So its not EPA but the US Public Health Service.

[denny]

There are typically no toxic effects in adult humans, just in young infants.

My concerns are pretty well expressed here..

http://www.ehow.com/how-does_4914598_do-nitrates-food-do-body.html

And especially if I'm getting nitrates through sources such as vegetables, why on earth would I want to knowingly consume more of them?

[mabrungard]

Good info Tom, but only EPA has the authority regarding establishing and enforcing Primary Drinking Water Quality standards.  I'm assuming that EPA relied on the Public Health Service though.  

[micsager]

Well, now I don't know WTF to do.  I sure do like "listening" to you guys discuss it. 

thanks loads.

[Tim McManus]

How about vegetables then?

Currently about 65 of the average 73 milligrams of the nitrates we consume daily come from vegetables.  
The highest concentration of nitrates occurs in root vegetables and leafy vegetables such as spinach, lettuce and other greens.

This is why I avoid vegetables.   

[tomsawyer]

Denny that reference really doesn't provide much to be conerne4d about.  I'll take the word of the National Academy of Sciences.

Honestly, the theory that NO3 to NO2 to nitroso = cancer seems plausible.  But if the research doesn't bear it out then we must reject the theory.

Besides, I like an occasional piece of summer sausage, and vegetables.

Micsager, put in an under-counter drinking water filter with a combinatoin ion exchange/ activated carbon cartridge.  They're not that terribly expensive.  It'll give you peace of mind.  Then you can do like half the people with those things and forget to ever change the cartridge again.

[Kit B]

...Or, you can do like I do & brew with bottled water, due to my excessive Magnesium levels.

[tomsawyer]

...Or, you can do like I do & brew with bottled water, due to my excessive Magnesium levels.

That cause sour/bitter, or diuretic/laxative effects?

[denny]

I appreciate your references, Lennie, but I'll still skip the summer sausage (usually!).

[Kit B]

That cause sour/bitter, or diuretic/laxative effects?

Not meaning to hijack...
Sour/Bitter, but its not exactly a flavor as much as it is a mouth feeling thing.
I have a feeling the compounded levels of my water plus the extract's mineral levels were leading to the harshness.
Since I started all-grain & using bottled water (with salt additions) at the same time, I don't know for sure what the biggest influence was on my improved beers.
...But, they're far better, now & I'm afraid to go back to my tap water.

Here's my water:
Total Hardness as CaCO3 357 mg/l
Calcium as CaCO3 208 mg/l
Magnesium as CaCO3 149 mg/l
Sodium as CaCO3 42.1 mg/l
pH 7.2
Turbidity 0.19
Alkalinity, Total as CaCO3 297 mg/l
Alkalinity, Bicarbonate 297 mg/l
Chloride as CaCO3 80.5
Sulfate as CaCO3 46.2

pH of Saturation 7.37
Langelier Index @ 8.8C -0.17
Free CO2 45 mg/l
Total Hardeness as CaCO3 20.9 gpg
Non-Carbonate Hardness as CaCO3 59.8 mg/l

[uthristy]

There are typically no toxic effects in adult humans, just in young infants.

My concerns are pretty well expressed here..

http://www.ehow.com/how-does_4914598_do-nitrates-food-do-body.html

And especially if I'm getting nitrates through sources such as vegetables, why on earth would I want to knowingly consume more of them?

I'm with you 100%

Anybody  old enough to recall the X-Ray Shoe Fitter ?  They were said to be perfectly safe .... yrs later we know better.

[tomsawyer]

They shrank your feet too?

Darn Kit thats some hard water!  Is it still liquid?

[Kit B]

Darn Kit thats some hard water!  Is it still liquid?

You should see what it does to water heaters, sinks, stovetops, kettles & plumbing fixtures...It's pretty harsh.
Now...I mentioned the magnesium, but really everything is severely high.
Maybe if I diluted it by half it would be almost workable, but it's pretty bad.

[mabrungard]

Diluting by half is not near enough.  The Mg is way too high. 

A lot of the hardness is temporary, so softening by boiling is a possibility as is lime-softening.  But that is still going to leave a lot of Ca and Mg in the water. 

Does this water taste gritty when you drink it?  Just kidding.

[Kit B]

Diluting by half is not near enough.  The Mg is way too high. 

A lot of the hardness is temporary, so softening by boiling is a possibility as is lime-softening.  But that is still going to leave a lot of Ca and Mg in the water. 

Does this water taste gritty when you drink it?  Just kidding.

I totally agree that half is not enough, but it would be "safer".
Actually, it almost does seem gritty.
It's very strange  water.
But...At least it's not full of iron or sulfur!

I just use bottled water.
It's much easier.