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I am for 5.2-5.3 for pale ales and slightly higher for dark beers. I always take the reading at room temperature

Thanks Martin. I find the Bru'n'Water spreadsheet an invaluable tool and I'd like to nail this down. Can acids lose strength over time? The bottle of phosphoric acid is about 3 years old now. I thought they were probably quite stable but that was just an assumption. I'll check out the...

Different markets I guess. It's available in 75% strength in the UK http://www.thehomebrewcompany.co.uk/phosphoric-acid-75-250-ml-406-g-p-2852.html

I use London tap water for brewing and have always had good success with this. I had a full water report done a while ago and regularly check the alkalinity and calcium hardness values before brewing. I use Bru'n'Water to adjust my water using 75% phosphoric acid and usually calcium sulphate...

Thank you, this is really useful. What is the smallest mash you could get away with when doing this procedure?

Is there a simple way of assessing individual grains for there contribution to mash pH and can the Bru n' water spreadsheet be adjusted on the basis of an findings? I find that the suggested pH is usually too high for pale beers and too low for dark beers. For instance the last two beers I...

@ajdelange Thanks for the information about pH meter calibration and the detailed run through of the different variables. I did quite a bit of research before buying the pH meter. It received good reviews from people who seemed to know what they were doing and were using it for field science...

I didn't check the alkalinity before hand as it had been stable for the last three times I'd checked it. I did check it afterwards and this gave a reading of 3.95 meq/L. I was lat back from work and brewing in the evening so just wanted to get on with it. The original figures I was working...

I finally picked up a decent pH meter, having used the nearly useless pH test strips so far. I brewed my first beer with its assistance last night and despite careful planning my mash pH was way out and I can't make the numbers add up. I wonder if anyone can help me understand what is going...

I'm certainly not aware of changing anything to recalculate manually. Some cells update automatically but the bicarbonate level in the adjustments sheet doesn't change.

I have just purchased a Salifert carbonate hardness / alkalinity testing kit. I have a detailed water report but wanted to check my alkalinity before each brew. When I checked my alkalinity for the first time it was quite a lot higher than the report. When I plugged the new numbers in to Bru N...

I recently discovered that the Journal of the Institute of Brewing is freely available with only a one year embargo http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1002/%28ISSN%292050-0416. The journal goes right back to the late 19th century but is also bang up to date with brewing science. Most...

Thank you for the very detailed reply. When I'm not at work I will have a proper read through this and see if I can get my head around it. The water report that I've sent off for says that it provides the following analysis: pH Alkalinity (as CaCO3) Nitrate Calcium Chloride...

The report has total hardness as CaCO3 at 251ppm. This was the figure I used in Bru'n Water. I was using BIAB so my mash volume was 25L. To this I added 22.5ml of CRS solution and 13.75g of Malic Acid, targeting a mash pH of 5.36. In my 12L of sparge water (I only used 6 in the end), I...

The water report is here https://secure.thameswater.co.uk/water-quality-reports/2014%20WQ%20Report_Z0113_putney%20heath.pdf (pdf). It is provided by my water company based on post code. The recipe is at the top of this thread http://www.thehomebrewforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=59315. I ended...

I did take the pH at mash temperature so maybe it isn't quite as bad as I thought. I was using Bru'n Water after seeing it recommended so highly on this forum. I think the problem is that I was using a generic water report for the local area. The source was given and it isn't too far...

I got my first AG brew under my belt yesterday. My attempt at a clone of Wild Beer Co Bibble (my recipe can be seen here http://www.thehomebrewforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=59315). It seemed to go well. I got 80% efficiency so it will be a bit stronger than I had planned. One thing that...

What effect does lime softening have on the calcium levels of the water? My calcium is about 100 ppm. If the lime soft precipitates calcium carbonate how much will this lower my calcium levels? Sorry, chemistry is my weakest science and I don't even pretend to understand the numbers behind...

Thanks everyone. Lime softening does seem like an interesting option. I see that it can also reduce magnesium levels if you get the pH high enough. My magnesium level is 61ppm an I just figured I would need to live with this. I will try brewing just with acid additions and see if I can...

This is good to hear. The total phosphate is 567ppm so hopefully it won't impact on the flavour. If it does I will see if I can find some Malic acid which might work too. Pale hoppy beers are definitely my preferred style so this is also good. I know the traditional approach to this type...