On-Site Water Options

[JayColli]

Hey Folks,

For those of us on wells, what’s everyone using for brewing water? RO, distilled, Big 8, local spring?

I’ll try out my well water eventually (hard, lotsa gypsum around) and see what styles it fits but I’m looking for some direction on where to go with my first BIAB - Black IPA. I’d like to try using water from my local spring (Ardoise) but I figure that’ll be nearly as hard as my own water.

[McGruff]

I cut mine 50/50 RO/Well for stouts etc. I cut it 75/25 RO/well for pale beers. I was using all RO with water salts for pale beers, but they just never tasted as good as when I simply cut them. I do use 2% acid malt in all recipes. This may not be for everyone because all of brewers go with brewing salts and all RO water.

[KB1138]

Did you know what the water profile is you're starting with?

[know1]

I'm on a well in middle sackville and we had the water tested when we moved it. It was a bit high in alkalinity but otherwise low in other stuff. Its great for malty/dark brews. For lighter styles I sometimes get RO water but I normally just use it straight and add phosphoric acid for pH adjustment.

[JayColli]

I cut mine 50/50 RO/Well for stouts etc. I cut it 75/25 RO/well for pale beers. I was using all RO with water salts for pale beers, but they just never tasted as good as when I simply cut them. I do use 2% acid malt in all recipes. This may not be for everyone because all of brewers go with brewing salts and all RO water.

Drilled well or dug? Mine is dug so the water isn’t as hard as drilled wells nearby but there is more variation in the quality of the water throughout the year.

[jacinthebox]

we are on a well...so we use 100% RO water (Canadian Tire), and just build the profile to the style

[amartin]

My darker beers were always better, so I assume that my water is somewhat hard. I’ll just use a bit of acid malt for anything pale, it works fine.


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[JayColli]

Did you know what the water profile is you're starting with?

Hardness: 18 GPG
Total Iron: 0.03 mg/L
Manganese: 0.045 mg/L
PH: 7.1

TDS: 278 ppm

Those numbers came from Evolution Water when they did a test prior to having a water softener installed.

[JayColli]

My darker beers were always better, so I assume that my water is somewhat hard. I’ll just use a bit of acid malt for anything pale, it works fine.


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Around 5%? I thought I had seen that estimated somewhere else online. I like mostly dark beers but a Kveik lager is on the roster for sometime this winter for me.

[JayColli]

we are on a well...so we use 100% RO water (Canadian Tire), and just build the profile to the style

Luckily I have RO on tap so it’s nbd for me to use that. I’ll have to do some googling for a beer water calc.

[jacinthebox]

we are on a well...so we use 100% RO water (Canadian Tire), and just build the profile to the style

Luckily I have RO on tap so it’s nbd for me to use that. I’ll have to do some googling for a beer water calc.

For most of our brews, we only adjust with Calc Chloride, Calc Sulfate & Phosphoric acid.
5g of calc chloride & 5g of calc sulfate per 5gal mash water is a good starting point for balanced beer. and acid to adjust ph.

We use Brewersfriend mash water chem calculator ...

[JayColli]

For most of our brews, we only adjust with Calc Chloride, Calc Sulfate & Phosphoric acid.
5g of calc chloride & 5g of calc sulfate per 5gal mash water is a good starting point for balanced beer. and acid to adjust ph.

We use Brewersfriend mash water chem calculator ...

Thanks Jac. I’ll check that calc out.

[joe_r_harvie]

I had my drilled well water analyzed several years ago and I just add the minerals I need to bring my water to the level I need for the style. For a pilsner my water is fine as is but for my bitters I add a few minerals.

[JayColli]

I had my drilled well water analyzed several years ago and I just add the minerals I need to bring my water to the level I need for the style. For a pilsner my water is fine as is but for my bitters I add a few minerals.

How in-depth was your analysis? Who did it?

[JamesM80]

I'm about 15 or 20 min to the Ardoise well, I'm not 100% sure, but I think the person who has the well needs to get water testing, and if you could figure out who it is, they might share the info from the well. Here's the $160ish dollar solution from NS Health Authority with what you could expect on a water test. This is basically the straight water test from our well before adding the RO to clear up the Lead and Arsenic (I want to do another soon to see if the Lead or Arsenic was just erroneous, but I'm suspecting not since we are near an old gold mine...).

Basically you just go to the Cobequid medical centre and get a vial for testing and return it to them with what you want tested. The NS Health website shows a few of the prices, but I believe it is a bit more detailed when you get the sheet from them and you might be able to get just the variables for brewing a bit cheaper than the full test.

Cheers!

Edit - I just attached the photos instead of linking them.

[JayColli]

I'm about 15 or 20 min to the Ardoise well, I'm not 100% sure, but I think the person who has the well needs to get water testing, and if you could figure out who it is, they might share the info from the well. Here's the $160ish dollar solution from NS Health Authority with what you could expect on a water test. This is basically the straight water test from our well before adding the RO to clear up the Lead and Arsenic (I want to do another soon to see if the Lead or Arsenic was just erroneous, but I'm suspecting not since we are near an old gold mine...).

Basically you just go to the Cobequid medical centre and get a vial for testing and return it to them with what you want tested. The NS Health website shows a few of the prices, but I believe it is a bit more detailed when you get the sheet from them and you might be able to get just the variables for brewing a bit cheaper than the full test.

Cheers!

Pictures aren't working for me unfortunately but the info is useful - thanks! IIRC the Ardoise well owner charges folks now to cover the cost of testing and gov-mandated facilities for filling so I'd imagine it wouldn't be hard to get. I'm only 10 mins away myself so I ought to know someone that can tell me who owns it. Buying the water from Sobeys costs about as much as the grains for a 5% beer so there's a bit of money to be saved if I went to Ardoise.

[joe_r_harvie]

I had my drilled well water analyzed several years ago and I just add the minerals I need to bring my water to the level I need for the style. For a pilsner my water is fine as is but for my bitters I add a few minerals.

How in-depth was your analysis? Who did it?

It was done by dept of agriculture, 176 college road in Truro in 2011. The measured PH, nitrate, conductance, alkalinity, total hardness, calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, sodium, sulfate, zinc and potassium. I took a sample of my water in a sterile jar. It costed around $40 i think.