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Be cautious in using a carbon filter for whole-house use. Striping the disinfectant from the water can create the conditions in which biologic hazards can grow in the house's piping and faucets. It's better to remove disinfectants from water, just prior to use or consumption. With regard to...

As the OP surmises, their water is reasonably low in most ion species and its probably not a requirement to take the step to RO. The main thing that will need to be attended to is adjusting the alkalinity to suit the needs of the mash and the sparge. Having the results of that water test is an...

If you’re a BA or AHA member, you can search for calcium and magnesium requirements in brewing in order to find the articles in their respective magazines.

I use a closed cell foam that was originally a kids nap pad. It’s cut to fit my tun tightly. There’s a 90 degree hose fitting in the center of the pad that directs flow directly downward through the pad and I’ve bolted a thin sheet of aluminum over the fitting outlet to spread the flow...

It most certainly does matter!! Having enough calcium in the mashing water enhances oxalate reduction and enhances enzyme action. Having enough alkalinity from the baking soda during the mash helps prevent the mash pH from dropping too low and causing excessive proteolysis (which creates thin...

Often, the main difference is that a 2-row or Pale malt is kilned just slightly darker than a Pils malt. Pils malt is typically the palest of malts and has a color under 3L. A benefit of that slightly darker kilning is a reduction in SMS which is the precursor to DMS production. If you don't...

There is a Water Primer thread in this forum and it provides some general salt additions for brewing. Those are reasonable additions, but they don’t necessarily provide perfect guidance. Visit the Bru’n Water website and read the Water Knowledge page to gain a better understanding of brewing...

I agree! That water appears well suited as a starting point for brewing water. I don’t even see a reason for it to be softened. Learn to use a brewing water software and you should be good to go.

Anyone living in relatively mountainous areas is likely to have water with low mineralization since it tends to be runoff with little groundwater interaction. I'm not surprised with the content reported for Vancouver. That water is similar to Wicklow Mountain water which is the supply for...

The reason that boiling water causes the resulting water pH to rise, is that the boiling causes CO2 to leave the solution. CO2 is largely the compound that creates 'acid rain' by creating carbonic acid in the water. The boiling is essentially removing carbonic acid from the water and the pH rises.

There are 2 uses for softening in conjunction with RO treatment. The first is to provide gross softening of very hard water to help avoid having mineral deposits build up (scale) on the membrane and ruin it. This first step is typically performed with cation-exchange (salt) based softening and...

There have been many 'on-line' recipe servers that I'm aware of and some of them have shuttered and that leaves the users with no records. I don't think that's a wise way to handle your data. It's pretty bad that this one just deleted data because it was convenient to them. Keep your data to...

This is another example of the insanity that people place on “spring water”. That word is absolutely no indicator that the water is suitable for anything, including drinking. Thankfully, there’s a water report that confirms that it would make a poor candidate for brewing. Stick with a less...

Since you're using RO water, treatment isn't really required for extract brewing or steeping. But if you'd been using a more alkaline tap water, then there's a good chance that some acidification would be appropriate to reduce the alkalinity. Additions of any salts is debatable and dependent...

Probably, but not always. There are natural waters that have hardness with little alkalinity and there is chloride and/or sulfate that pairs with the calcium or magnesium. These are waters with high 'permanent hardness'.

Agree! Brewing water chemistry is similar to hand grenades and horseshoes. The term: 'close enough' should be in your mind. Don't sweat about minor differences in targeted and actual concentrations. The thing to pay attention to, is the pH prediction. I recommend targeting a mashing pH in the...

Flaked or raw barley is a great body builder, but it does have a very grainy flavor. That flavor is relatively unnotable in a porter or stout, but its very notable in pale beers. I tried using flaked barley in a number of pale beers and was consistently dissatisfied with the results, even at...

Yes, as long as you're still dealing with wort. But Bru'n Water can't be used to calculate acid additions for a finished beer. The buffering capacity of wort and beer differ significantly. With respect to acidifying wort to meet a pre-fermentation pH target, its safer to use the mashing volume...

You can definitely add gypsum to finished beer and it can make a notable difference. It sounds like the OP substantially missed the targeted goal and they can quickly assess the likely effect of the missing gypsum by adding gypsum directly to a pint of the beer and tasting. I can tell you...

Dry stout is a special case. Higher wort acidity is desirable for that style. For other stouts and porters, the higher wort pH is often preferable.