Do I need a water filter?

[jamorgan3777]

Have not used onein the past. We have generally okay water, but am starting to build a permanent brewery space (eBIAB) and want to fit a water filter if you think its needed (will I notice the difference). We drink RO water but dont use it for cooking.

Beer is mostly water so I can see that it could have a large effect? All the beer I have made to this point has been really good (at least I think so). Does that mean I will notice it less/not at all? I know its a subjective thing. Just wondering if there are many who said "my water is fine" and then put in a filter and said "how did I go without this before?"

 

[soccerdad]

Got chlorine in your water?

 

[Dcpcooks]

Lots of open ended questions in your question.
Have you had the water tested? Do you know what's in it?
Sounds like you haven't experienced any off flavors in the past so why do you want to change?
Is your water source stable or seasonal?
Why are you drinking RO water at home?
If your on Lake Michigan water you have pretty great water for brewing. A charcoal filter with a slow flow would pull out and chloramine or chlorine if your water dept is treating it. You can request a water report from the city if your on muni water.

Do you want to go with an RO system and then build your water up with CaCL and or gypsum? I went that route because it was easier to treat RO water for style than to build a water profile on top of an existing water profile. (At least it was easier for me

I'm on Lake Michigan water and it's great for brewing. I started with just a charcoal filter but eventually went to an RO set up from buckeye hydro. I'd say my beers are better after the switch but I think that has more to do with knowing more about ph of the mash and building water profiles for styles. I usually just follow the water primer in the brew science section of hbt but I have taken it a bit further with software that estimates mash ph and salts additions. As AJ states in the water primer many people like softer water with less mineral additions which is what an RO system will provide. But I'm more than happy to get a little heavy handed or blocky for certain styles like NEIPA as an example.

You need to find out what's in your water and decide what you want from your water to answer your questions. But I wouldn't say adding a charcoal filter will make your beer awesome sauce.

 

[jamorgan3777]

Thanks Dcpcooks and Soccerdad. All great questions. Sounds like I need to do some reading on water in brewing.

Any book recommendations (beyond the primer)?

 

[soccerdad]

I cannot claim to be a water expert, but from what I have read, simple carbon filters will reduce the taste and smell of chlorine and chloramine, but they do not remove all chlorine and very little chloramine. Removing the taste and smell is good enough for many folks. And simply adding campden (sodium metabisulfate ) may indeed eliminate residual chlorine and chloramine. Apparently LODO brewers also use campden to reduce dissolved oxygen levels in brewing water. Oh crap .. more reading and studying! Probably math too dammit.

 

[Dcpcooks]

Thanks Dcpcooks and Soccerdad. All great questions. Sounds like I need to do some reading on water in brewing.

Any book recommendations (beyond the primer)?

I started with the primer and then read "water". It's pretty dry reading unless you have a chem type brain. I don't so I found the primer to be very practice and informative.

I'd start by finding out what's actually in your water and then form a plan.

 

[SpeedYellow]

General consensus is that yes you need to filter your water. This is inarguable.

I've long had a working hypothesis that unfiltered tap water will ruin every beer, and it seems to be holding up. Of course, "ruin" is subject to personal standards, and mine are very high. Not long ago, I tasted a beer at our brew club and immediately guessed correctly that the brewer used unfiltered water. Tasted bad to me, but he liked it. ha ha.

 

[Kent88]

Is your water free of things like Lead, Arsenic, Mercury, Rust, Chlorine, etc.?

Then you probably don't *need* a filter.

If you have an RO filter for other areas of the house, just collect that for brew days and dilute your other tap water with that.

Edit: Hey, you're in Appleton, didn't see that. I've been to a couple breweries in Appleton, they seem to have decent beer. Not sure what they do to treat their water, though. Might be worth a call?

 

[Brownalemikie]

I started using a Brita filter a few months ago and noticed much better tasting beer. You have to replace the filter every 40-50 gallons.

 

[jalc6927]

Any filters that fit the end of a garden hose out there

 

[mdscole]

I used to use RO water. It was a PITA due to the limited storage capacity of my undersink system and the slow rate of generation. Then I'd have to build up the Calcium and Sulfates with chemicals.
My tap water tastes terrible due to the chlorine/chloramine content. Those things are pretty easily pulled out with a carbon filter. They make them for the RV community and you can get them from Amazon. They attach directly to the hose. Just don't flow greater than about 1 GPM through the hose to allow enough retention time to absorb the chlorine.

See: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000BUU5V8/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

[Buckeye_Hydro]

Any filters that fit the end of a garden hose out there

Sure - you can use a "hose bib adapter" to go from garden hose threads to a quick connect fitting for 1/4" or 3/8" or 1/2" tubing for instance.