Garden Hose Water?

I did my first AG over the weekend and hauled water out to brew. The garden hose is right there. My gut tells me not to use it. Can you? I know California has some silly rule about drinking from a garden hose but the rest of us do it all summer long. What do you think?

Get yourself a garden hose suitable for potable water (they're usually white, sometimes labeled as RV water hose) and you're good to go.

Regular garden hoses are not food grade - they leech chemicals into the water. I have nothing to back this up than what I've been told by different sources for a long time, but I think that you are better safe than sorry.

That said, I used to drink from the hose when I was a kid.

IIRC, the danger is lead - apparently non-potable water hoses usually contain lead and when water is left sitting in the hose for a while, very high levels can leech into it.

Funkenjaeger said:

IIRC, the danger is lead - apparently non-potable water hoses usually contain lead and when water is left sitting in the hose for a while, very high levels can leech into it.

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That's right - I knew there was something - the heavy metal count in my blood has unfortunately made me unstable and forgetful

















j/k - but it is bad

Yep...get an RV hose and while you're at it, pick up a charcoal filter for the hose:

http://www.amazon.com/TastePURE-4004...11945&sr= 8-2

Ditto on the regular hose. I also use an in-line filter like the link below. Beats hauling water in/out of the house.

http://www.rvwholesalers.com/catalog/product.php?productid=2297

Any camping/RV store will have all that you need.

EDIT - BM beat me and he has flashy pics too . Thats my exact setup.

home depot has "recreational" hoses which have a liner inside them that make it safe for drinking out of.

I just bought some hoses for my house this weekend, and also read the warnings against drinking from hoses. The lead content is at the top of the list, but another reason to avoid using a regular garden hose, is that when used for landscaping, these hoses often come into contact with chemicals such as fertilizer and pesticide. Also, warm water left in a hose is not sanitary, and can breed the little critters like petri dishes!

I use something like this attached to my tap outside.

Unlike the one pictured below i have more hose and no hard pvc so i can just put the hose into my 5 gallon jugs. I also have an adjustable valve. I keep it around 3/4 gallon per minute, supposedly this will filter chloramine, and the charcoal filter is good for .5 micron.

Hopefully this is good enough for all-grain brewing.. i've mainly been using for it extract and the couple partial-mashes i've done.

I use a 5 yr old regular old garden hose. Have for 2 years and my beers turn out fine. Adds to my unique flavor profile

I have been drinking water from a garden hose my whole life and except for this d@mned tail I am fine.

I've plenty of toys for myself but the camper is my wife's.

Things for her toy that will actually be mine. Brownie points and beer equipment.

Lead in a rubber hose? What good would that do the hose?
Even if there are chemicals leaching into the water in the hose surely running the hose for a few seconds and putting new water in it would get rid of that problem.
The problem I have is the mud stuck on the nozzle!

I use my hose to rinse out the MLT & brew pot before washing them like a regular person. Much easier than using the sink for this.

I used a reg garden hose for my first all grain beer. It tastes like the garden hose. I'll let it rest another week, but hopes aren't very high.....

In my experience, the garden hose "taste" doesn't go away. I used a new RV hose for a batch without running a lot of water through it first and got a strong garden hose taste in the finished beer. I let it ferment and then sit for 2 weeks in the kegerator, but you could still taste the hose in the aftertaste. It was pretty depressing to pour 5 gallons down the drain...

dibby33 said:

Lead in a rubber hose? What good would that do the hose?

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actually, lots of plastics have lead in them - helps keep them flexible. Check out christmas tree lights. I don't let my kid touch them anymore due to lead in the plastic.

GilaMinumBeer said:

I have been drinking water from a garden hose my whole life and except for this d@mned tail I am fine.

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are you sure of that?!? I think this is going to be in my sig...

I got a pottable water hose for about 12 dollars. They are much cheaper than the water hoses I bought.

Is there any worry about using a regular garden hose nozzle? It seems like you would not to minimize the lead if you're using a r/v hose.

I did this set-up. Hose >> springy-thing >> filter >> brass nozzle.

I ran the water ~ 5 minutes then tasted it, it tasted like water w/o any plastic after taste.

You have to flush carbon from these first. I saw a lot black junk come out immediately as I turned the water.

BierMuncher said:

Yep...get an RV hose and while you're at it, pick up a charcoal filter for the hose:


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