Is it necessary to filter my water?

[JNish]

I live in the San Francisco bay area, so my water is very soft. I don't filter my water, I use it directly out of the cold tap. I did at one time, but then did a blind taste comparison of the tap and filtered water and noticed that I couldn't tell the difference. I don't treat it either for chloramine. I think my beers taste great and didn't really taste any difference once I stopped using filters or treatment. Am I being too naive about it? I haven't done a split batch to truly compare, but honestly I like to vary my styles and am still in the process of nailing down my procedure, so I won't be doing this in the near future.

Has anyone notice a significant flavor difference between filtered and non-filtered water? Did you do a side-by-side comparison? Does chloramine really affect yeast?

 

[MalFet]

Are you sure SF uses chloramine? If it does, you definitely want to filter (or use campden, etc.). Free chlorine + yeast = sweaty bandaid flavor.

If SF doesn't use chloramine, then it's just a matter of taste. If it tastes fine, no worries.

 

[brewmonk]

if ya can't taste it, don't waste it.

 

[MalFet]

if ya can't taste it, don't waste it.

(...unless it's got chloramine)

 

[brewmonk]

then you will probably taste it. ytbmv
hell, alaska is probably closer to frisko dan i iz, so your chloramine may vary. (and taste buds)

 

[ellicit]

EXCESSIVE free chlorine + yeast = nasty flavor. Not all but most cities treat their drinking water with chlorine. Free chlorine is best filtered out of your water for brewing, filtered is best. Not sure we have the same idea on Chloramines though, let's say you take a whizz in a cup of water and then you add chlorine to the same glass, when the chlorine consumes the whizz enzymes and basically die they create Chloramines. The only way to remove Chloramines is by super chlorination. Hope this useless bit of information helps.

 

[MalFet]

EXCESSIVE free chlorine + yeast = nasty flavor. Not all but most cities treat their drinking water with chlorine. Free chlorine is best filtered out of your water for brewing, filtered is best. Not sure we have the same idea on Chloramines though, let's say you take a whizz in a cup of water and then you add chlorine to the same glass, when the chlorine consumes the whizz enzymes and basically die they create Chloramines. The only way to remove Chloramines is by super chlorination. Hope this useless bit of information helps.

Active carbon removes chloramine as well. Free chlorine is typically not so much a problem as it boils off, no?

 

[bgrayson726]

You want to remove the sulfates and chlorine from the water. If your local water has a high amount of these (in some places here in AZ, the water is almost undrinkable), then you want to filter it. If it is in the "drinkable" range (I can't remember the numbers off the top of my head), then it is okay.

If you think about it, using unfiltered tap water is a way to add local identity to your beer. You can add certain salts, etc. to imitate other types of water (for example, london well water). However, if you use the local tap water, you have a relatively true "local" beer.

Have you noticed that beers taste different from different states/countries? It's because of the water that they use. It's all about finding the right tone of minerals in your water.

 

[passedpawn]

My water has chloramines, I use it, and I don't have any problem at all.

 

[MalFet]

My water has chloramines, I use it, and I don't have any problem at all.

I wonder why the difference. I've seen a dozen or so brewers have batch after batch ruined by chloramines.

 

[passedpawn]

I wonder why the difference. I've seen a dozen or so brewers have batch after batch ruined by chloramines.

No idea. I don't think it boils off. But it also seems to be flavorless in my water and my beer. I regularly submit beers to competition, so I'm sure it isn't detectable.

Maybe the levels are much higher elsewhere.

 

[pfooti]

Chloramine does not boil off. It also (according to the stuff I've read in aquarium forums) doesn't drop out with the dechlorination drops used by fishkeepers.

On the other hand, I live in SF and brew with municipal water. The taste does not show up in my beer. Dunno why, the municipal water report clearly indicates chloramines in the water. The only problem I have with SF is the single-digits levels of calcium and magnesium in the water. It's like brewing with RO water.

 

[JNish]

. The only problem I have with SF is the single-digits levels of calcium and magnesium in the water. It's like brewing with RO water.

I second that! Although it makes nice for light lagers and I find it easier to add minerals than dealing with RO rigs or buying distilled water.

My water report says:
Chlorine (including free chlorine and chloramine) Avg 1.81 ppm

Is that normal, low? I've also never detected band-aid flavors, so I'm guessing that if chloramine was an issue, I would know.

I do have potassium metabisulfite (IIRC that's what campden tablets are made of) because at one point I was paranoid about this, then shrugged it off. Does anyone know how much I would need to add per gallon to treat my level of chlorine?

Edit: Nevermind, found a BYO article that states 1.47 mg of sodium metabisulfite to reduce 1 mg of free chlorine, I'm assuming potassium metabisulfite will be close to the same ratio. So for 10 gallons of water with 1.8ppm chlorine, I think it comes out to 0.1g needed. Guess I'll start adding this just to be safe (now I'm imagining sweaty bandaids in my beer).

 

[Indyking]

I never tasted Band-Aids before, especially sweaty ones , but high levels of chloramines will definitively impart an undesirable flavor to your beer. Not noticing it when present can likely be explained by its occurrence in low concentrations, or perhaps some people are just not able to detect it. I always found amazing what off-flavors can go unnoticed by the less privileged palates, including mine, though I think I'm getting better.

 

[hopalotamus]

the biggest improvement in my beer was when i started filtering the water darker beers were not so bad but lighter beers tasted nasty made a filter from walmart similar to this https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f51/water-filter-setup-29145/ for about 50bucks and its worth it no off flavors at all

 

[Indyking]

I use distilled water (dH2O) in my brews and add salts. RO water can be used too with identical results with the advantage of being cheaper. Water is by far the most prevalent ingredient in beer and it is also probably the most underrated one.

The use of dH2O allows me to replicate a certain style as close as it can ever be done because no matter what ingredients you use, if the main purpose is to reproduce a specific style, the first and most important ingredient to master is the water. A lot of people don’t care about strictly reproducing a specific style and for most of those cases, the composition of the water is much less important.

The other reason I like to use dH2O with added salts is that the mash pH is always right on where I want it to be. Here in the Midwest, tap water is too hard in most places, and its high bicarbonate concentration makes it difficult to bring the desired acidity for optimal mashing.

 

[hopalotamus]

i just filter and add alittle mash 5.2 ph stabilizer and dont have to buy water

 

[rockfish42]

I used to brew in SF (need to update my location info), the chloramine in the water there is a non-issue. On the other hand, due to the softness of the water I always had to add gypsum, CaCl or use acidulated malt to hit the right mash pH.

 

[pfooti]

Yeah- my general strategy is to add about 5g of either gypsum or CaCl2 and check my mash pH after mixing. If it's low, I add a small amount of baking soda. If it's high, I add a bit more gypsum. Depending on the maltiness of the beer, I'll prefer CaCl2 over gypsum in the mix, but I typically try for a mixture.

5-7g of a calcium salt is a good start because there's not nearly enough calcium in SF water, which helps yeast flocculate (or so I'm told, I have changed too many parts of my brewing process in addition to the water to definitively say that this is the reason my beer is dropping clearer than it used to). I originally had this big complicated water salt plan with a spreadsheet and all that jazz. Now I just go minimalistic, measure pH and adjust on the fly. I put a lot less stuff in my beer that way (older brews of mine had upwards of 15g of salts in a 5gal batch), which seems easier.

The color spreadsheets in particular seem to over-emphasize the amount of residual alkalinity necessary to attain a certain color. I'm not sure if that's because of a flawed model in the spreadsheet or for some other reason, but I definitely find that even with really dark beers my pH doesn't drop that far below 5.2 with my basic setup. A teaspoon of baking soda and things are up to the 5.3 range and we're fine.

The only side-issue is that this means I need to mash a touch warm, as I'm usually figuring on stirring my grist, taking a measurement, adding the salts, and stirring again. The second stir ends up dropping a degree or so off my temps, so even if I don't need the adjustment, I'll just stir a bit longer until I'm at the proper starting temp.

 

[kansasbrew]

I just bought an RV water filter at Walmart. You attach it to a garden hose outlet and it filters out most of the bad stuff but leaves minerals. You get a lot of filtered water fast and cheap and no fear of chlorine or chloramine when you're done.

 

[jlpred55]

I never filter my water. I do use potassium metibulsulfate to rid it of chloramine but other than that, nothing. I can brew anything across the spectrum of colors and styles so long as I keep my mash PH in line. It all comes out good with some precise water adjustments, etc. You can use pond water for brewing beer and the beer will turn out fine- my not taste the best but surely tap water if it is relatively tasteless will be great.

 

[JNish]

Yeah- my general strategy is to add about 5g of either gypsum or CaCl2 and check my mash pH after mixing. If it's low, I add a small amount of baking soda. If it's high, I add a bit more gypsum. Depending on the maltiness of the beer, I'll prefer CaCl2 over gypsum in the mix, but I typically try for a mixture.

Yup, I always add a mix of gypsum and calcium chloride to get the salts up to brewing range. I also add a mix of chalk and baking soda the mash for darker beers. Perhaps I'll stick with only baking soda, as I've read it dissolves more readily than chalk. I agree that the brewing sheets can tell you to add an absurd amount of salts, I once added 18g of combined chalk, baking soda, gypsum, and calcium chloride to mimic Dublin water. It was sad because I could taste the chalk in the finished beer (or perhaps it was my perception). Now I know to just add half of what is suggested, test the pH, and see if I need to any more.

In my water, I suppose the chlorines are low enough to not to have noticeable flavor effects, but since I have it might as well add the K-metabisulfite. The water here is clean enough that I don't think a filter is necessary, but might as well treat those chlorines.

 

[JNish]

I always found amazing what off-flavors can go unnoticed by the less privileged palates, including mine, though I think I'm getting better.

I know just what you mean, I think my greatest weakness as a brewer is not having quite a refined palate. Basically I enjoy 95% of whatever is in front of me and I find it difficult to pick out the different flavors. Keeping tasting notes on my brews is so difficult! It usually amounts to: "Amber color, nice head retention, malty balanced with lingering hops. Some nutty flavors detected." and that's about the most detailed I can get.

I'm considering starting to submit my beers for competition, though the only one in my area is not until June (too late for the Berkeley competition). I've never submitted my beers for competition, and don't really have much of a competitive spirit, but really could use some educated feedback on my beers.