Water Quality/Chemistry Report Thread

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ArcaneXor

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This thread is intended to serve as a repository for water quality reports, enabling new brewers and brewers who have not had any luck obtaining this information from their local utility or bottled water provider to check their tap water for brewing suitability.

Please post information about your local water in this thread. If possible, follow the template provided below. Note that if your utility/bottled water provider switches between multiple water sources (e.g. a surface reservoir and ground water), your water chemistry may change frequently and unpredictably.

To maximize the usefulness of this thread, please post questions or discussions in a separate thread.

Useful resources:

How to Brew - By John Palmer - Water for Extract Brewing
How to Brew - By John Palmer - Understanding the Mash pH
Water and Homebrewing

Location: Gainesville, Florida
Utility: Gainesville Regional Utilities (GRU)
Water Source: Floridan Aquifer (rear-round)
Interannual/Intra-annual variability: low
Disinfectant: Chlorine (doubtful, it's more than likely chloramine)
Date: January 2009

All results in mg/L-

Calcium 27.0
Magnesium 17.0
Sodium 11.3
Chloride 27.1
Sulfate 71.8
Ammonia 0.24
Nitrite 0.03
Nitrate 0.02
pH 8.6
Hardness as CaCO3 132
Alkalinity as CaCO3 55
 
Location: Durham, NC
Utility: Durham County
Water Source: ?
Interannual/Intra-annual variability: ?
Disinfectant: Chlorine
Date: January 2009

All results in mg/L-

Calcium 4.6
Magnesium 2.1
Sodium 25
Chloride 10
Sulfate 41
Ammonia --
Nitrite <0.10
Nitrate <1.0
pH 6.8
Hardness as CaCO3 20
Alkalinity as CaCO3 17
 
Location: Lubbock, TX
Utility: Lubbock County
Water Source: Ground&Surface
Interannual/Intra-annual variability: ?
Disinfectant: Chlorine
Date: 2007
Source: Lubbock - Water Department - Water Quality Report
All results in mg/L-

Calcium 62.4
Magnesium 35
Sodium 232*
Chloride 319
Sulfate 215
Ammonia 0.49
Nitrite 0.13
Nitrate 1.01
pH ?
Hardness as CaCO3 283
Alkalinity as CaCO3 233

* This is an average over several years.

Note: Many of these levels were the maximum level detected. I am reporting them as they are more important to me than just daily average.

I made these graphs based on the water quality reports from Lubbock Water Dept. I will keep them up to date, but if they are too much I will take them down.

WaterReport.png


Chloramine.png
 
Sparta, Tn. (Bon Air Mt.)


TAP WATER
pH 7.9
Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) Est 28
Electrical Conductivity, mmho/cm 0.05
Cations / Anions, me/L 0.4 / 0.4
ppm
Sodium, Na 3
Potassium, K < 1
Calcium, Ca 4
Magnesium, Mg < 1
Total Hardness, CaCO3 14
Nitrate, NO3-N 0.1 (SAFE)
Sulfate, SO4-S 2
Chloride, Cl 4
Carbonate, CO3 < 1
Bicarbonate, HCO3 9
Total Alkalinity, CaCO3 8
"<" - Not Detected / Below Detection Limit


SPRING WATER (spring on old bon air rd.)
pH 5.8
Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) Est 40
Electrical Conductivity, mmho/cm 0.07
Cations / Anions, me/L 0.2 / 0.1
ppm
Sodium, Na 1
Potassium, K < 1
Calcium, Ca 2
Magnesium, Mg < 1
Total Hardness, CaCO3 9
Nitrate, NO3-N 0.2 (SAFE)
Sulfate, SO4-S < 1
Chloride, Cl < 1
Carbonate, CO3 < 1
Bicarbonate, HCO3 3
Total Alkalinity, CaCO3 3
"<" - Not Detected / Below Detection Limit
 
This is for Zephyrhills Bottled Water (two types):

Spring Water (ppm)
Ca - 58
Mg - 4
Na - 5
CO3 - 140
SO4 - 8
Cl - 11
pH - 7.7

Drinking Water (ppm)
Ca - 60
Mg - 6
Na - 7
CO3 - 190
SO4 - 21
Cl - 11
pH - 8.0

Perhaps a little pathetic that I knew those from memory.:eek:
 
Mesa Water District
Costa Mesa, CA

There aren't too many water sources here in CA, so this probably applies for large portions of orange county, too. All data taken from this page: http://www.mesawater.org/pdf/2008_WaterQualityReport.pdf

Calcium 50
Magnesium 10
Sodium 72
Chloride 62
Sulfate 72
Ammonia n/a
Nitrite 2
Nitrate 0.4
pH 8.2
Hardness as CaCO3 201
Alkalinity as CaCO3 93
 
For Denver and any suburbs taking water from the Foothills, Marston, or Moffat treatment plants. Data from http://www.denverwater.org/waterquality/pdfs/TreatedWQSummaryReport2007.pdf


Gotta love those cold groundwater temps!
Good Idea, arcaneXor

So when you have multiple water sources with differing degrees of hardness and no real way to tell how the water dept. is blending them how do you make brewing decisions regarding tweaking your water? Here in Omaha we have a similar situation and how they are blended varies over the course of the year depending on availability at the various sources.


Omaha Water Quality Reports
Code:
Mineral analysis (averages for 2007)
                                            Florence   Platte South   Peaking
                           Unit            Plant         Plant        Wells
pH (in pH units)                            8.72          8.79         7.20
Alkalinity(total) as CaCO3  ppm               94           140          264
Aluminum                    ppm             0.24         <0.03        <0.03
Calcium                     ppm               49            46           90
Chloride                    ppm               23            41          8.6
Color(in cobalt platinum units)  ppm           1             4            1
Dissolved Solids (total, calculated)ppm      457           411          574
Hardness(total) as CaCO3  grains per gallon   12            10           17
Iron                        ppm            <0.02         <0.02         0.03
Magnesium                   ppm               18            12           20
Manganese                   ppm           <0.002        <0.002        <0.02
Phosphate                   ppm             0.05          0.46         0.56
Silica                      ppm              9.9          25.4         32.1
Zinc                        ppm           <0.002        <0.002        <0.01
 
Location: Andover Minnesota
Utility: Andover Water Department
Water Source: Franconian Ironton-Galesville aquifer
Interannual/Intra-annual variability: low
Disinfectant: ?
Date: February 2009

Unsoftened tap water as tested by Ward labs.
pH 8.0
Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) Est 236
Electrical Conductivity, mmho/cm 0.39
Cations / Anions, me/L 4.1 / 4.2
ppm
Sodium, Na 7
Potassium, K 1
Calcium, Ca 55
Magnesium, Mg 12
Total Hardness, CaCO3 188
Nitrate, NO3-N < 0.1 (SAFE)
Sulfate, SO4-S 2
Chloride, Cl 9
Carbonate, CO3 6
Bicarbonate, HCO3 221
Total Alkalinity, CaCO3 191
"<" - Not Detected / Below Detection Limit
 
Champaign, IL

pH: 9.1
Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) Est: 204
Electrical Conductivity, mmho/cm: 0.34
Cations / Anions, me/L: 3.2 / 3.7

(ppm)
Sodium, Na: 39
Potassium, K: 2
Calcium, Ca: 10
Magnesium, Mg: 11
Total Hardness, CaCO3: 71
Nitrate, NO3 -N: < 0.1 (SAFE)
Sulfate, SO4 -S: <1
Chloride, Cl: 9
Carbonate, CO3: 22
Bicarbonate, HCO3: 166
Total Alkalinity, CaCO3: 173
 
Location: Honolulu, Hawaii
Utility: Honolulu Board of Water Supplies
Water Source: Palolo groundwater well
Interannual/Intra-annual variability: ?
Disinfectant: none
Date: ?
All results in mg/L-

Calcium 11
Magnesium 9.5
Sodium 21
Chloride 23
Sulfate 4.4
Nitrate 2.1
pH 8.15
Hardness 66
Alkalinity 74
 
Pflugerville, Texas (source: Lake Pflugerville, surface water)

Collected 3/31/2009, analyzed by Ward Labs


pH 8.3
TDS 322
Sodium 25 ppm
Potassium 3 ppm
Calcium 46 ppm
Magnesium 16 ppm
Total Hardness as CaCO3 182 ppm
Sulfate 12 ppm
Chloride 44 ppm
Carbonate 6 ppm
Bicarbonate 184 ppm
Total Alkalinity as CaCO3 161 ppm


* Chloramine is the primary disinfectant used, amount is unknown but chloramines are known to be a problem (especially after hard rains cause runoff into the lake) so I treat all brewing liquor as well as all water used for cleaning and sanitizing equipment with Campden 1/2 tablet to 10 gallons or filter with a ChlorPlus 10 filter.
 
Dekalb County, Georgia (mg/L or ppm):

Total Calcium (ppm): 4
Total Magnesium (ppm): 1.7
Total Sodium (ppm): 9.4
Total Sulfate (ppm): 7
Total Chloride(ppm): 5
Total Bicarbonate (ppm): 11.7
Alkalinity (ppm): 22.0
 
Wausau, WI

Calcium N/A
Manganese < .04 mg/l
Sodium 12.6 ppm
chloroform 1.6 ppm
Sulfate 14.10 ppm
Iron < 05. mg/l
Ammonia n/a
Nitrate .45 ppm
pH 8.5
Hardness 80 to 100 mg/l
Alkalinity 70-80 mg/l
 
East Dundee, IL

Ward-lab report so it is possible there was extra salt in the pipes even after I ran it for 10 minutes after bypassing the softener. That would partially explain the chloride and sodium levels.

pH 7.1
Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) Est 708
Electrical Conductivity, mmho/cm 1.18
Cations / Anions, me/L 12.0 / 12.3
ppm
Sodium, Na 93
Potassium, K 4
Calcium, Ca 90
Magnesium, Mg 40
Total Hardness, CaCO3 392
Nitrate, NO3-N < 0.1 (SAFE)
Sulfate, SO4-S 18
Chloride, Cl 171
Carbonate, CO3 < 1
Bicarbonate, HCO3 383
Total Alkalinity, CaCO3 314
 
Louisville, KY

pH 8.2

Sodium, Na 30
Potassium, K
Calcium, Ca 47
Magnesium, Mg 12

Total Hardness, CaCO3 165
Nitrate, NO3-N 1.0
Sulfate, SO4-S 59
Chloride, Cl 47
Carbonate, CO3 < 1
Bicarbonate, HCO3 78
Total Alkalinity, CaCO3 78 mg/l (ppm)


Any one care to offer an opinion? I usually use 5.2 Buffer.
 
Municipal Water Data
Cleveland, Ohio and Vicinity
(Data from Cleveland Water: 2008 Annual Report and Phone Communications)

All values are in ppm (mg/L). Hardness is mg/L as CaCO3

Calcium: 33
Magnesium: 8.8
Sodium: 7.7
Sulfate: ranges from 30-60 (seasonal, varies with Lake Erie levels)
Chloride: 33
Total Alkalinity: ranges from 72-84
Hardness: 122
pH: 7.4
 
They are missing a few that seem relevant to brewing but does anyone see anything wrong with this water for general brewing purposes.

Listening to John it seems like the Sulfate could be a little higher.

Fresno, CA


Aluminum (ug/L) 2.18
Chloride (Cl) (mg/L) 8.65
Iron (Fe) (ug/L) 13.73
Manganese (Mn) (ug/L) 0.10
Sodium (Na) (mg/L) 19.56
Sulfate (SO4) (mg/L) 10.07
Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) (mg/L) 220.56
Total Hardness (as CaCO3) (mg/L) 127.12
Turbidity (Lab) (units) 0.29
Zinc (Zn) (mg/L) 2.55
 
Water Test Sample B COLD 6/23/09-Ward Labs
Private Well- Perry, MI

Ph 7.6
Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) Est. 482
Electrical Conductivivty mmho/cm 0.80
Cations/Anions me/L 7.2/8.3




ppm
_____________
Sodium, Na 20
Potassium, K 2
Calcium, Ca 71
Magnesium, Mg 33
Total Hardness, CaCO3 315
Nitrate, NO3-N 0.1 (SAFE)
Sulfate, SO4-S 25
Chloride, Cl 16
Carbonate, CO3 <1
Bicarbonate, HCO3 384
Total Alkalinity, CaCO3 315
Fluoride, F 0.62
Total Iron, Fe 0.10


“<” Not Detected/Below Detection Limit
 
Water Test Sample A SOFT HOT 6/23/09 Ward Labs
Private Well- Perry, MI.

Ph 8.1
Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) Est. 508
Electrical Conductivivty mmho/cm 0.85
Cations/Anions me/L 8.7/8.5




ppm
_____________
Sodium, Na 194
Potassium, K <1
Calcium, Ca 2
Magnesium, Mg 2
Total Hardness, CaCO3 13
Nitrate, NO3-N <0.1 (SAFE)
Sulfate, SO4-S 23
Chloride, Cl 15
Carbonate, CO3 15
Bicarbonate, HCO3 372
Total Alkalinity, CaCO3 330
Fluoride, F 0.60
Total Iron, Fe 0.02


“<” Not Detected/Below Detection Limit
 
Location: Long Beach, CA
Utility: Long Beach Water Department
Water Source: Blend of local and imported water
Disinfectant: Chloramine
Date: 2008

http://www.lbwater.org/pdf/longbeachccr.pdf

The report states that there are two zones in LB (check the report to see which zone you are in), and that MWD water is used in winter/spring (October-April) while blended water is used in summer/fall (May-September).

MWD Water:
All results in mg/L-
Calcium 63
Magnesium 23
Sodium 97
Chloride 96
Sulfate 207
pH 7.9
Hardness as CaCO3 252
Alkalinity as CaCO3 112

Blended Water:
All results in mg/L-
Calcium 37
Magnesium 9.4
Sodium 77
Chloride 52
Sulfate 79
pH 8.1
Hardness as CaCO3 131
Alkalinity as CaCO3 129

The report doesn't state if hardness and alkalinity are measured in CaCO3, so I'm making an assumption here.
 
Location: Durham, NC
Utility: Durham County
Water Source: ?
Interannual/Intra-annual variability: ?
Disinfectant: Chlorine
Date: January 2009

All results in mg/L-

Calcium 4.6
Magnesium 2.1
Sodium 25
Chloride 10
Sulfate 41
Ammonia --
Nitrite <0.10
Nitrate <1.0
pH 6.8
Hardness as CaCO3 20
Alkalinity as CaCO3 17

Does anyone have an update on the Durham water? Currently the water report available online. is a 2008 report and does not list magnesium levels. KingBrian... if you are still reading this, where did you get the water profile you posted here.
 
Does anyone have an update on the Durham water? Currently the water report available online. is a 2008 report and does not list magnesium levels. KingBrian... if you are still reading this, where did you get the water profile you posted here.

That report is remarkably similiar to mine. I just got the results back from Ward Labs. It lists my Mg as 2 ppm. My water comes from the Cape Fear River, and I assume most of Chatham Co.'s does too?
 
Did you have to order the water report or did you just pull one off the internet? So this water is just really that soft?

I live in the southpoint area. I would guess that our water comes out of Jordan lake. During the drought locals officials kept refering to the Jordan lake level in regards to our water usage/restrictions.

The PH of my first all-grain batch turned out surprisingly low. Below 5. As best I can figure I am going to have to get the Calsium and Magnesium levels up, but the sodium is already high so I don't want to add too much there. I am kindof at a loss on how to do that.

Ordered my analysis from Ward Labs, they're on the interwebs. Cost $20.00 (including shipping). Yes, I have extremely soft water too. I think that Jordan Lake is fed by the Cape Fear.

Check out this thread. I'm using TH's spreadsheet for adjustments. My sodium is also at 25 ppm, so baking soda is out of the question. Although some profiles have sodium in the 80's, like London.
 
Cool, let's try to keep this thread to only posts with data on a specific location's water data.

Date tested: July 2009
Actual City: Piscataway, NJ
Other Cities on same system:

Raritan, Readington,Tewksbury,Manville,Millstone, Montgomery, Hopewell, North Plainfield, Lawrence, Peapack-Gladstone, Princeton, So. Bound Brook
West Windsor, Somerville, Cranbury, Warren, Dunellen, Watchung, Edison, Clark, Middlesex, Cranford, Piscataway, Fanwood, Plainsboro, Garwood, South Brunswick, Hillside, South Plainfield, Kenilworth, Chester, Linden, Bedminster, Mountainside, Bound Brook, Plainfield, Branchburg, Roselle, Bridgewater, Roselle Park, Franklin, Scotch Plains, Green Brook, Union, Hillsborough, Westfield

User/In Home Processing? Post Carbon Filter
Lab Used: wardlab.com

Ca: 30
Mg: 10
Na: 28
Cl: 53
S04-S: 15 (SO4 is 45)
Total Alk (CaCO3): 59
 
Holland & Zeeland, Michigan:
(Source: Holland Water Filtration Plant, 5-6-09)

Ca: 44
Mg: 12
Na: 13
Cl: 18
SO4: 32
HCO3: 116
 
San Jose, CA
12/21/09
Ward Labs

pH 7.8
Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) Est 357
Electrical Conductivity, mmho/cm 0.60
Cations / Anions, me/L 6.0 / 5.6
ppm
Sodium, Na 79
Potassium, K 4
Calcium, Ca 23
Magnesium, Mg 16
Total Hardness, CaCO3 124
Nitrate, NO3-N 0.5 (SAFE)
Sulfate, SO4-S 17
Chloride, Cl 101
Carbonate, CO3 < 1
Bicarbonate, HCO3 96
Total Alkalinity, CaCO3 79
"<" - Not Detected / Below Detection Limit
 
I would love for someone to post the results for Chicago's water. I know it is the same water for all the suburbs as well.
 
Location: Moore County, NC
Water Source: Cape Fear River, Lillington, NC
Other Cities on Source: Any city served by Harnett County Water System
Date Tested:1/26/10
Lab: Ward

pH 7.3
[FONT=TimesNewRoman,Bold][FONT=TimesNewRoman,Bold]ppm[/FONT][/FONT]
Sodium, Na 25
Potassium, K 3
Calcium, Ca 8
Magnesium, Mg 2
Total Hardness, CaCO3 28
Nitrate, NO3-N 0.9 (SAFE)
Sulfate, SO4-S 11
Chloride, Cl 15
Carbonate, CO3 < 1
Bicarbonate, HCO3 25
Total Alkalinity, CaCO3 20

"<" - Not Detected / Below Detection Limit
 
Minneapolis, MN (according to the city website, this should also apply to Golden Valley, Crystal, New Hope, and Hilltop)

Ward Labs
pH 9.2

(ppm)

Na 16
K 3
Ca 22
Mg 10
Total hardness CaCO3 97
NO3-N 1.0
SO4-S 9
Cl 30
CO3 12
HCO3 40
Total alkalinity CaCO3 54
 
San Jose, CA
12/21/09
Ward Labs

pH 7.8
Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) Est 357
Electrical Conductivity, mmho/cm 0.60
Cations / Anions, me/L 6.0 / 5.6
ppm
Sodium, Na 79
Potassium, K 4
Calcium, Ca 23
Magnesium, Mg 16
Total Hardness, CaCO3 124
Nitrate, NO3-N 0.5 (SAFE)
Sulfate, SO4-S 17
Chloride, Cl 101
Carbonate, CO3 < 1
Bicarbonate, HCO3 96
Total Alkalinity, CaCO3 79
"<" - Not Detected / Below Detection Limit

Reading and extrapolating from the 2009 Water report, I get the following:

Sodium, Na 33
Potassium, Not reported by city
Calcium, Ca 116
Magnesium, Mg 71
Total Hardness, CaCO3 292
Nitrate, NO3 19
Sulfate, SO4 48
Chloride, Cl 48
Carbonate, CO3 not reproted
Bicarbonate, HCO3 356
Total Alkalinity, CaCO3 not reported

Which makes me think that this water sucks for brewing day to day!

If anyone wants to chime in with a better interpretation, that would be great. I do get ground water in my area, and will be sending some water to wards for detailed analysis.

Cheers
 
Camano Island, Washington
Driftwood Heights Community Well system

pH 7.9

Sodium, Na 16ppm
Potassium, K 2
Calcium, Ca 34
Magnesium, Mg 19
Total Hardness, CaCO3 164
Sulfate, SO4-S 10
Chloride, Cl 18
Carbonate, CO3 < 1
Bicarbonate, HCO3 155
Total Alkalinity, CaCO3 127

Gives a Residual Alkalinity of 92 and a Cl/SO4 ratio of 1.8
 
My current home of Waukegan, IL posts their water quality report on-line, but it doesn't include any of the mineral content information. So I called the Waukegan Water Plant this morning and they were more than happy to give me the following information:

Alkalinity: 96 mg/L
Hardness: 110 mg/L
SO4: 30 mg/L
Na: 10 mg/L
Cl: 15 mg/L

They didn't give me exact numbers for Ca, Mg, or HCO3, but said that those numbers could be derived from alkalinity and hardness. After some digging, I've estimated (although realize I could be totally wrong) those numbers to be:

Ca: 38 mg/L
Mg: 11 mg/L
HCO3: 66 mg/L

For anyone in Chicago or in Chicago suburbs that draw their water from Lake Michigan, these numbers seem to be pretty consistent (Chicago, Evanston, and Kenosha all have water reports on-line with numbers very close to Waukegan's).

Jason Smith
 
Numbers from Montgomery, IL tap water (as reported by the water company upon request):

PH 7.51 S.U.
Calcium 20.7 mg/L
Sulfate 35 mg/L
Magnesium 9.59 mg/L
Sodium 107 mg/L
Chloride 13 mg/L
Carbonate 0
Bicarbonate 290 mg/L
Alkalinity 288 mg/L
Hardness 108 mg/L
 
Here are the numbers for Henrico County, Virginia. The first set is what the county gave me, the second is from Ward Labs, enjoy!

Ca - 19.2
Mg - 16.3
Na - 23.2
SO4 - 40.6
Cl - 12.4
HCO3 - 52.1
Ave PH = 7.7

From Ward Labs:
CA - 28
Mg - 7
Na - 37
SO4 - 27
Cl - 24
HCO3 - 64
Ave PH = 8.0
 
Data from North Texas Municipal Water District (serves suburbs north and east of Dallas.

For more info on sources and areas served:
http://www.ntmwd.com/watersystem.html

There is no good info online from my city (Richardson) water department, other than the normal "quality" report, but one member city (Wylie) of the NTMWD has good info in monthly reports going back several years. I assume that Richardson water would have the same mineral profile as Wylie, since they come from the same sources, and confirmed this by talking to someone at the Richardson water dept. (though I'm not sure how knowledgeable he was). I have no idea how much the treated water from different treatment plants would vary, even if they start with the same water.

The original reports are here:
http://www.ntmwd.com/water_quality.html

and I have made a spreadsheet from all reports back through 2007, just so you can see how much variation there is over time.

Spreadsheet is here:
http://www.mediafire.com/?vnq41ene3z1ek5m

One thing I don't understand is that up through August of last year, the values for HCO3 and "Total alkalinity (as CaCO3) were always different numbers and seemed to correspond to the values in Palmer's nomograph, but from Sept. 2009 to the present, these two numbers are equal. How can that be?

EDIT 9/18: Added graphs below the tables to make it clearer (don't know what happened to the x-axis labels when I converted from Open Office to .xls)

I think the total alkalinity values from Sept. 2009 to the present are actually ppm, even though they are listed "as CaCO3" in the reports. Someone forgot to multiply the HCO3 values by 50/61 ?

So now my question is: With this much variation in mineral content, should I even try to use this water, or would I be better off using RO water and building the profile from scratch?
 
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