Beginner...with soft water question

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markley

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So i am about to attempt my first home brew and had some questions regarding water chemistry. I have searched and searched this topic and became way more confused as a result...overwhelmed with calculators, etc. Anyway, I have well water that is naturally very soft. My total alkalinity (as CaCO3)and Calcium Hardness is less than 10 ppm. I am guessing that my pH is around 6 (based on what i know about the groundwater quality of the area).

So should I further test my water before beginning? Or should I just bump up the hardness to start?

Any help would be greatly appreciated:mug:
 
There is tons of books and lots of people with tons of knowledge on Water profiles, even though your water is like 95% of a beer its not everything and there are far more things to worry about before you stress about your water profile; Your mash temperatures, Fermentation temperatures ETC. If your water is too hard add Gypsum if it is to soft add Calcium Carbonate.

But if the water profile is something you really want to push then I say go for it. I am not your man with a wealth of knowledge on Water, I just know the basics of how to get the water where I want it. I would suggest trolling through this part of the form for more water information (https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f128/)

Best Regards,
Shawn Kemp
 
I'm 100% rainwater, so, very soft, no minerals at all. The beer turns out fine, but I think it is missing something, so a nearby well with very hard water can supply it for me.

Water is a 2nd order effect, though. Fermentation temp, yeast type, etc, etc are far more important.
 
skemp45 said:
If your water is too hard add Gypsum if it is to soft add Calcium Carbonate.
Click to expand...

This doesn't really make sense and is not the right advice to follow.

OP, as was mentioned if you are brewing extract then this is much less of a concern, and low alkalinity/soft water like yours should be fine if you are not chlorinating it. You may want to make some minor adjustments for flavor (for example adding a little gypsum to bring out the bitterness in hoppy beers if your water is low in sulfate) but you likely won't need to worry much about this now.

If you are doing all grain it's a good idea to learn about water at some point. Palmer and Jamil have a good series of podcasts on water on the brewing network. Bru'n water has a good water knowledge page as well as software for download (Martin Brungard frequents this forum especially the brew science section). I actually use EZ water because it's what I started out with.
:mug:
 
Our tap water comes from Lake Erie,so it's pretty soft most of the time. But the chlorine levels change with the seasons. Sometimes like flat Alkaseltzer. So I started going to artisan springs for local spring water from the source. I use it for AE to PM & it works quite well. So soft water seems to work quite well for most ales.
 
chickypad said:
This doesn't really make sense and is not the right advice to follow.

OP, as was mentioned if you are brewing extract then this is much less of a concern, and low alkalinity/soft water like yours should be fine if you are not chlorinating it. You may want to make some minor adjustments for flavor (for example adding a little gypsum to bring out the bitterness in hoppy beers if your water is low in sulfate) but you likely won't need to worry much about this now.

If you are doing all grain it's a good idea to learn about water at some point. Palmer and Jamil have a good series of podcasts on water on the brewing network. Bru'n water has a good water knowledge page as well as software for download (Martin Brungard frequents this forum especially the brew science section). I actually use EZ water because it's what I started out with.
:mug:
Click to expand...

I don't want to be giving wrong info so I will check my source for that part when I get off work. Thanks
 
Thanks for the replies!! I think I'll just roll with what I have for this first batch...looking forward to getting started this weekend! Have a feeling this is gonna turn out to be quite a hobby!
 
Yeah,try that soft water as is this time. Soft water is generally better. Depending on the style,you can add things to it later. Burton ales are made with harder local water in Burton Upon Trent. Thus Burton salts being sold in small packets to simulate the water. And then there's Burton ale yeast,for example. So you can experiment with water chemistry & yeasts for particular styles. But that soft water will be fine for Americanized ales & such.
 
Well..first batch is in the bucket! Had one minor hiccup when I realized after 15 hrs that I forgot to add water to the air lock:drunk: Added a little vodka and instantly seeing a bubble every second or so...so I am guessing that everything is OK.
 
One other question...The temperature strip on the outside of my fermenting bucket is holding at 72. I -used a White Lab California Ale yeast WLP001 which states to keep at 70-75 until fermentation begins, but does not state what temperature to keep after that. Will I be fine at 72 for the duration?
 
72 is the upper edge but yeast will be happy with that.
I like to pitch few degrees lower and let it rise to fermentation temperature, for wlp001 that would be:
pitch @60
let it rise and ferment @65

Reason for lower temperature are byproducts that yeast produce in early stage of fermentation (due to intensive growth) like diacetyl, fusel alcohols, esters etc.

Fermentation temperature is a compromise between yeast needs and brewers wishes.
 
markley said:
One other question...The temperature strip on the outside of my fermenting bucket is holding at 72. I -used a White Lab California Ale yeast WLP001 which states to keep at 70-75 until fermentation begins, but does not state what temperature to keep after that. Will I be fine at 72 for the duration?
Click to expand...

Do you have a way of controlling the temperature? Temperature control during fermentation can be one of the biggest factors in producing great beer. As the last post stated if it gets too warm most yeast start producing less than desirable flavors. Active fermentation can warm a brew as much as 10 degrees above the surrounding air, so some form of temperature control is a great way to improve your results. Many, including myself ferment in an extra fridge with an external thermostat...

Welcome and enjoy this awesome hobby!
 
Thanks..would it be too late to attempt to control the temperature now? It's been about 36 hrs.
 
It's never too late, though early in the ferment is most critical. At this point I wouldn't try and cool it off too much, but definitely don't let it get any warmer. For subsequent brews try and pitch at the bottom or even a few degrees cooler than the yeast's recommended range. That way if it drifts up on you there's some buffer. Plus you generally get the "cleanest" ferment at the cooler end of the spectrum. You can really alter a beer's flavor with temperature changes; it's really amazing how much effect it has.
I highly recommend the book titled "Yeast", by Chris White and Jamil Z. Brew on!!
 
So I was able to get the temperature strip on the bucket down to 68 deg by placing the bucket on the floor. The bubble rate slowed significantly..not sure if its coincidence or not?

Sure is smelling good out of the airlock!! This patience thing is tough, especially on the first batch...
 

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