Water Profile Question

Hello all:

I just received my water profile from Ward Labs, and in research a little on-line I have a few questions. I have included my water profile below.

1) Your general thoughts on this profile? I am not quite sure what I am looking at.

2) In the reading I have done, all seems to be ok, except that my calcium level seems very low. I read that the lowest amount of acceptable calcium levels should be 50 ppm. Is this true? If so, what is the best method to add calcium to my water?

3) Any additional thoughts and suggestions would be great! I intend to brew with my tap water for the first time next week and would love to know if this is a good move.

Profile:

pH 7.5
Total dissolved solids 150
Elec. conductivity, mmho/cm .25
Cations/Anions, me/L 2.1/1.9

Sodium 22 ppm
Potassium 3 ppm
Calcium 14 ppm
Magnesium 3 ppm
Total hardness, CaCO3 48
Nitrate .2 (safe)
Sulfate 11 ppm
Chloride 27 ppm
Carbonate <1 ppm
Bicarbonate 25 ppm
Total alkalinity, CaCO3 20
Total phosphorus 1.67
Total iron <.01 ppm

Thanks for the help!

That water looks like a fine starting point. Its relatively soft and low in other ions. The sodium is very slightly elevated, but not excessive. I see that you may not have converted your Ward result for sulfate into the proper units. For the water profile to balance reasonably, the sulfate would actually be 33 ppm.

Do plan on increasing the calcium to at least 40 ppm for any brew and bring it to at least 50 ppm in most cases. Either calcium chloride or gypsum are good choices for adding calcium. The selection depends on what your beer style is. Read the Water Primer in the Brewing Science section for a preliminary education to get you started. Read Bru'n Water to move forward from there.

Martin:

Thanks for the info! I really appreciate it. I will try adding some calcium carbonate first and see where I go with it. I am quite excited to try out my new water. The water primer sticky is great info.

Everything else looks good to you? Want to make sure I am on point for a good beer. I am going to brew a spiced winter ale next week, so I will research a bit on exactly how much I should add for this type of beer.

Thanks again.

Haldedrums said:

Martin:

Thanks for the info! I really appreciate it. I will try adding some calcium carbonate first and see where I go with it. I am quite excited to try out my new water. The water primer sticky is great info.

Everything else looks good to you? Want to make sure I am on point for a good beer. I am going to brew a spiced winter ale next week, so I will research a bit on exactly how much I should add for this type of beer.

Thanks again.

Click to expand...

No! No calcium carbonate! That's chalk. You want calcium CHLORIDE! Or, for a hoppy beer you could use calcium sulfate (gypsum). But I'd start with the calcium chloride (CaCl2).

Opps! Thanks for the catch. Can you tell I am new to adjusting my water profile?!

Thanks again!