Collecting Snow To Use as Water

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fayderek14

fayderek14

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I was thinking next time we get a snow storm here in Boston to collect the snow as it falls and use it as our water for a batch. Any thoughts?
 
Yeah - I would be a bit concerned about the unknowns that would be in there. Plus, at 30 cents a gallon - RO water is a lot less work and messing around.
 
I don't know if anyone here has seen the show Brew Dogs but it one of the episodes they use water collected from the fog over the San Francisco Bay. I got the idea of snow from this.
 
Also, did anyone see the Discovery channel "how beer saved the world" video? They brewed with duck pond water and had random people at a bar try it. They proved it was safe in a lab first of course. The taste? Most people tended to give positive remarks.
 
You should probably purify it via a large filtration system. I suggest using the MWRA plant...

Seriously, it's a nice idea, but Boston water is pretty good for brewing. Consistency is important too. I'm not sure what you're going to get out of it.
 
I understand the worry over particulates, pollution and poisons in the air.
However, I would melt it down, get a rolling boil going for about 15 - 20 minutes then use it. If, you are still worried, then filter it before using it. It will still be from an interesting source. Remember it will take a lot of snow to get any volume of water.

It's what we do with the river, lake and snow melt up here when we're out in the bush. For most of my adult life (I'm 54) I have never had a bad reaction from any water I have treated this way, in any State I have lived in. Truthfully, I would have no problem using almost any water from outside, when treated as I said above.
No one can guarantee it's perfect but a simple Google search will pretty much back it up and of course there are going to be nay sayers, no matter what.
 
Agreed, boil it first then use it if you are dead set on using the snow. Might be interesting or at least a good story. Issues with it have already been mentioned.
 
You don't need to boil it before brewing with it. Its going to be safe to drink right after melting it. Im a survival instructor in the Air Force and have never and will never boil water from snow to make it safe to drink. If you still want to boil it, bring it to a boil, turn heat off and let it slowly cool for about 10 min. That will pasteurize the water. If your worried about pollution a reverse osmosis would help with that. If you want to do this you are going to need a lot of snow. Snow to water is about 10:1 with a little wiggle room depending on how wet or dry the snow is. I personally wouldn't be to worried about any contamination. I think it's a great idea. Maybe brew a high alcohol ice beer. Good luck.
 
I'm doing this today.....I think the contamination worries are silly....this hobby is all about experimenting... only one way to find out
 
I did it a few months ago from our first big snow. Cleared off the first few inches and scooped the fresh white stuff into my kettle. Boiled the melted snow, filtered, and brewed. It was delicious. Although I live in the Rockies and not near any metropolitan pollution. The snow had fallen the previous night too.
 
All these naysayers!

There is radiation all over Utah. There is tiny dust in snow. Who cares. The worst part is how much snow you will need to make any amount of water...

Go do it already and report back when it is ready. :D
 
fayderek14 said:
I don't know if anyone here has seen the show Brew Dogs but it one of the episodes they use water collected from the fog over the San Francisco Bay. I got the idea of snow from this.
Click to expand...

It's a marketing gimmick, nothing more.
 
bja said:
Using RO water works too, but that wouldn't entice as many people to buy their beer.
Click to expand...

Burning propane will boil the wort, but concentrated solar heat at 14,000ft is much more interesting. I have a faucet at my house with on-demand water, but I still melted snow to brew with.

Standing around in a garage making everyday beer with common ingredients is not a recipe for a TV show.
 
I used snow last year when i was brewing during a snow storm just for fun. I once substituted my striking water with yellow snow and ended up with PBR, so use caution.
 
The only problem I see with this is that there are not any minerals in snow. It would be like using distilled water. I use creek water I harvest from a mountain stream close to me for some if not all the water in my brews. Tastes Awsome and makes all my beer unique.
 
Braufessor said:
Yeah - I would be a bit concerned about the unknowns that would be in there. Plus, at 30 cents a gallon - RO water is a lot less work and messing around.
Click to expand...

This defys the whole point of what the post is about and home brewing is about. He is trying to be creative and think outside the box.
With your thinking, why not just take all the work and messing around out of it and pick up a six pack at the store. :/
 
Terek said:
The only problem I see with this is that there are not any minerals in snow. It would be like using distilled water. I use creek water I harvest from a mountain stream close to me for some if not all the water in my brews. Tastes Awsome and makes all my beer unique.
Click to expand...

Wouldn't the snow pick up trace minerals floating around in the atmosphere as dust? I'd be interested to see a water analysis on natural snow.

I think melting snow for brew day is awesome. It really sums up home brewing. Experimenting and having fun. Worst case you're out a few bucks and some time, best case you have a sweet new beer.
 
I too find it difficult to believe there are no minerals in snow. Go for it. I bet it makes beer but you are definitely going to need a bunch of it.
 
Interested in how this turns out. I would like to do a snow day beer sometime, and this would be just the ticket.

If I ever get the cabin and brew room built up at our lake, this would be good in the winter as our well water sucks. The only problem I see is needing to make about 10 trips outside to get the required volume of snow.
 
People, people, people. It doesn't need to be purified or filtered or anything like that. It's going to boil in your kettle for an hour... Using snow is not a gimmick. It's fun. Why not use it?

We have a guy in our homebrew club who uses snow in the winter and Lake Superior water in the summer. He goes right to the beach with 5 gallon buckets.

Seems to me he said the snow is better for something lighter like a wheat beer because it really doesn't have the minerals you'd want for other beers.

Brew with snow and/or lake water! It's fine. :rockin:
 
Token said:
People, people, people. It doesn't need to be purified or filtered or anything like that. It's going to boil in your kettle for an hour... Using snow is not a gimmick. It's fun. Why not use it?

We have a guy in our homebrew club who uses snow in the winter and Lake Superior water in the summer. He goes right to the beach with 5 gallon buckets.

Seems to me he said the snow is better for something lighter like a wheat beer because it really doesn't have the minerals you'd want for other beers.

Brew with snow and/or lake water! It's fine. :rockin:
Click to expand...

Funny comment for someone who's named their home brewery "worry wort"! :ban:
 
Touche! I'm slowly relaxing and am more comfortable with brewing. (Tho I still worry plenty!)
 
Token said:
People, people, people. It doesn't need to be purified or filtered or anything like that. It's going to boil in your kettle for an hour... Using snow is not a gimmick. It's fun. Why not use it?

We have a guy in our homebrew club who uses snow in the winter and Lake Superior water in the summer. He goes right to the beach with 5 gallon buckets.

Seems to me he said the snow is better for something lighter like a wheat beer because it really doesn't have the minerals you'd want for other beers.

Brew with snow and/or lake water! It's fine. :rockin:
Click to expand...

I use high mountain creek water in most of my brews. It's AWSOME! Also when I brew my snake river mud oat stout, I use water from the snake river, although I do run it threw a coffee filter to get all the particulates and dirt out of it. I used some snow in my last brew, but only 2 gallons in my mash. That's the most I could collect from the wussy snow fall we got. I should have brewed last weekend when I got 8 inches in my front yard over night. Then It rained all day the next day and melted it all. Gotta love idaho weather :) 8inches last weekend, and 55F this weekend. Then it's supposed to be in the twenties and more snow this week
 

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