reverse osmosis water

[ZombiezBrew]

I have a reverse osmosis water system in my house I have been told 2 things 1 I can use my water and to know I can't because there is no minerals im it is not good for the beer so I need to know what do I need to add or can I just use my reverse osmosis water

 

[mjohnson]

You can use it. Depending on the style of beer, it may not be ideal, but you will still make beer. Many people use RO and add minerals to match their beer styles.

If you look in the brewing science section, there is a water primer. In that thread, they recommend starting with very soft water, such as RO. There are some very simple directions on what to do add for different styles of beer. Basically, add a bit of calcium.

Monkeying with water is considered an advanced technique. It can be intimidating. Go easy if you decide to try it. I'd err on the side of not adding to much.

RDWHAHB

 

[JohnTheBrewist]

As stated, you can use it. At the simplest level just add some calcium chloride, but you can get more complicated than that. The water primer mentioned above is a good read.

 

[Quadrupled]

I'm guessing that your extract brewing - if so, yes you can use RO and not worry about adding minerals to the water. Malt extract has been produced by the manufacturer by first mashing grain - hence, there are plenty of minerals already present.

 

[jonmohno]

Get some brewing salts and ph papers.Learn which brewing salts raise ph and lower ph.I check mine at the beginning and adjust to lower or raise the ph. I would get some yeast nutrient or energizer also. Especially if you have a quasi-ok aeration system.

 

[Slyko]

I live here in Sacramento California & the tap water is horrendous! We bought a 2 filter reverse osmosis system 10 years ago & wouldn't even THINK of drinking the swill out of the tap.

My wife won't even give it to the dog!

The one draw back is................................... it takes a little while to get 6 gallons out. But it's worth it!

 

[jvp1]

The tapwater in BC, Canada is excellent. I have heard people recommend using bottled water, though.

 

[ericdante]

Download the ezwatercalculator.com calculator. Its free.... But you need to do the research to figure out what your doing. There is no easy answer. There's a couple YouTube videos that talk about mash ph. John palmer is the man giving a lot of answers but it can get complicated really quick.