In the beginning - dihydrogen monoxide

[StillsNMash]

I figured as my first post, I would start at the tap and find out exactly what my water profile is from the source.

The Source: 154 year old bored well 25 feet into the ground [was hand dug by my great great grandfather in law]. Never has run dry and we think its close to a natural spring or very close to the natural water table. That said, when we moved in three years ago we installed a water filtration system with a 5 micron filter, activated carbon filters, and UV sterilizer. I've tested our water at a PH of 8 with no nitrates or nitrites, and obviously no chlorine [although we do manually maintain a small amount of chlorine in the system as a maintenance rule]. The water is hard, but there are no rust signs on any of the fixtures that would indicate the presence of iron.

I have three sources of water, tap, distilled, and dehumidifier condensation that I collect for bluing gun metals.

I read this post on RO water: Reverse osmosis water. but it didn't fit what I would like to know, so I chose to start a new thread.

How does one go about testing for various minerals contained in their water source such as magnesium and calcium? My evil twin has a brix refractometer, ph meter and TDS meter already.

I'm more of a Mr. Heisenberg wannabe and really like knowing the details of the chemicals with which I am mixing.

Thanks-
Stills.

 

[VikeMan]

To test for the ions of interest to home brewers, you're probably looking at sending a sample to a place like Ward Lab for analysis. They have a test called "Brewer's Test," or something like that. It costs about 40 bucks or so.

 

[Yooper]

You could even just get a "household minerals test" at Ward Lab (about $26) and get all that you need, but not iron or other things you may have in your water.

 

[StillsNMash]

I'll look into the ward test for sure. I know its been tested before for nasties like E.Coli, etc. but all was good there.

Thanks!
Stills.

 

[StillsNMash]

Checked Ward Labs. Here's the link for the test kit: WARD LAB WATER TEST KIT I checked the included tests with the article "THE IMPORTANCE OF BREWING WATER" and the mos inexpensive kit at $35.75 - "Livestock Suitability" contains all the minerals listed in the article. I compared this to the Brewers Test and it only adds Iron and Phosphorous to the tests.

Is the presence or absence of these two minerals important to brewing? Should I be concerned about any other contents such as ammonium nitrate or nitrites, metals, etc, that anyone can think of?

Stills.

 

[bracconiere]

Should I be concerned about any other contents such as ammonium nitrate

lol, just don't fall asleep during the boil, and let the pot go dry.....

 

[StillsNMash]

I did a little test on the water I get off of the dehumidifier. The PH settled at 6.2, the TDS [total dissolved solids] were 0019, temp was 66.2F. Tonight I will be testing the water straight from the well, then after the filtration system.

 

[bracconiere]

i don't know if i'd want water vapor collected from a room full of chemical vapors? or am i not understanding the dehumidifiers set up?

 

[rburrelli]

Yes. I seem to recall something about dehumidifier water that is not recommended for brewing.

 

[jschein]

i don't know if i'd want water vapor collected from a room full of chemical vapors? or am i not understanding the dehumidifiers set up?

Me either and bracconiere is cheap so I agree with him