malkore

Recipes 

I definitely wouldn't argue with that, and it sounds like the OP's tap water isn't real tastey. I thought he was just using it for brewing, but now I get it.

__________________
Malkore
Primary: English Mild
On tap: Pale Ale, Lancelot's Wheat, English Brown Ale, Steam Beer, HoovNuts IPA
Bottled: MOAM, Braggot, Raspberry Melomel, Merlot, Apfelwein, Pyment, Sweet mead, Cabernet
Gal in 2009: 27, Gal in 2010: 34, Gal in 2011: 13, Gal in 2012: 10

rabidgerbil

Recipes 

I am using THIS filter only for brewing, we use a Brita pitcher in the fridge for drinking water. The problem is the old galvanized iron pipes that the water runs through. Don't filter it, and it will have the occasional off color or taste, you might even find yourself with a nice little rust chunk for your troubles. I have to clean the aerator screens on the faucets on a regular basis.

__________________
What I do on the side for brewing money
My LHBS

BlindLemonLars

Recipes 

I've got the exact same problem. If I leave town for a couple days, the faucets run rusty for several seconds, and I constantly have to clean my aerators and shower heads.

I've been using my under-sink PUR carbon filter for brewing, but collecting the water took a lot of time and I was burning through the (expensive!) filters at a rapid rate. Now I'm using an RV carbon filter and hose that I picked up very inexpensively. Works great, and a lot faster.

Something along the lines of this.

TexLaw

Recipes 

That's true, but chlorine is never, ever good for water. You get all those nasty chlorophenols from the yeast!


TL

__________________
Beer is good for anything from hot dogs to heartache.

Drinking Frog Brewery, est. 1993

abracadabra

Recipes 

Hey Tex I actually do agree with you on this one.

And I like DIY projects as much or more than the next guy but some of them are IMHO basically reinventing the wheel. This is one of them especially when you can get water filters for less than $10.

http://www.amazon.com/TastePURE-40645-Marine-Water-Filter/dp/B000BUU5V8/ref=pd_bbs_sr_6?ie=UTF8&s=automotive&qid=119764852 7&sr=8-6

I may be wrong but I seem to recall that the culligan replacement filter was more than that.

The effects of chlorination on water:

http://www.homeenv.com/Art_Chlorination.htm

__________________
Do what you like!
Brew what you like!

rabidgerbil

Recipes 

You are correct, the culligan filter is $15, and since you know it is a culligan filter, you obviously already read the article, as I did not yet post the details of what I built myself.

If you would not mind, if you are going to throw out what you consider to be a better alternative, would you please provide the rest of the details that we will need to use your alternative?

What is the lifespan of this filter that you are recommending? The only thing that I have been able to find about this filter is the usual "Amazon blurb" and it says 120 days, but nothing about how many gallons. The culligan filter is rated at 10,000 gallons. As I have already stated, for a home user that is brewing five gallon AG batches once a week, that will be about 20 years of use. Lets see. One $15 filter every 20 years, or 60 of your $10 filters in 20 years. Seems like I have already saved about $585.

What other parts will be necessary to connect your filter to my home water system so that I can fill my water jugs? How much will those cost? My total build cost was $42. The writer of the BYO article stated that he also spent $40.

I will be the first to agree that there are always other ways to do things. Was it that bad to spend $30 - $40 a year on Brita filters, no... things could be worse, but they are some what pricey, and they are SLOW. My point was that this is a FAST system, compared to many other filters, and it is very inexpensive. In the long run, it is actually costing me more per gallon to have the city pump the water into my house in the first place, than it is to filter it.

__________________
What I do on the side for brewing money
My LHBS

BlindLemonLars

Recipes 

You don't need any parts, just screw it onto a hose or faucet bib. It has standard hose fitting threads. It's a good sized filter, and I'm sure it will last MUCH longer than any Brita filter, or my PUR under-sink cartridges. A bargain @ $10, I'm loving mine.

With a water filter, any kind of "gallon rating" is meaningless, because they don't know the quality of the water it will be used with. You and I won't get too many gallons out a filter, due to all the rust & junk in our galvanized pipes. With the one abracadabra suggested, you use it until the flow slows down.

rabidgerbil

Recipes 

Can you backflow that one to clean it? That is one thing that I like about the culligan is that I can simply reverse the flow and blow out the rust and crap.

__________________
What I do on the side for brewing money
My LHBS

BlindLemonLars

Recipes 

It seems likely, so long as you have the appropriate hose fittings to reverse it. I'm sure the manufacturer doesn't endorse the practice. I'll have to see how long mine lasts before I even consider it, if I can get several batches out of one filter I'll be happy to just buy a new one when needed.

abracadabra

Recipes 

Yes I did read the article and considered building it. I like doing things like that. And derive a great deal of satisfaction from building stuff.

I'm not recommending any filter just pointing out there are other alternatives for people that are thinking about filtration.

I'm also not trying to throw cold water on your filter. Just trying to get others to think about all the factors involved. Time to buy the parts and build the unit, gas to go to the store. Plus the intial and ongoing cost. For every person that posts here there may be 10 that just read the posts.

Like Lars pointed out many factors go into the useful life of a water filter. One of the factors for potable water is bacterialogical build up inside the filter. A dark wet surface is a perfect breeding ground for bacteria. Hence the 3 month time frame. But since we will be boiling our wort that is really not a concern for brewers.

Another factor in filter longvity is the flow rate. What happens in a fast flow is the carbon channelizes. Think of it as a river or creek channel and when that happens the filter loses effectiveness.

Here's the best way to test the effectiveness of a carbon filter IMHO if your water is chlorinated get a swimming pool test kit and test the chlorine level going into the filter and coming out. Write it down and the minute the chlorine level starts to rise coming out of the filter get another one.

Back-flushing the filter would probably work OK if it became clogged. Just let it run a few minutes in normal mode after you back-flush it.

But if you have a rust or sediment problem a sediment filter will do a better job and are cheaper than carbon filters. When I was on my well I used a sediment filter as a prefilter then a carbon filter as a secondary filter. IMHO carbon filters are too expensive to fill up with rust and sediment.

__________________
Do what you like!
Brew what you like!