How to Order a Water Analysis Report

[MSK_Chess]

If you have relatively soft water you guys should consider deionised water. Its way less expensive than the set up you need for reverse osmosis and produces water that is even more free from ions than RO. All you need is a resin like Tulsion MB-115 and a filter housing. If you are using it for brewing a 25KG bag would last forever.

 

[TwoTonTed]

I don't know if this tells me anything about my water from my supplier here in Wales UK. Is there anything in here that you 'experts' can comment on?

I didn't pay for this, it came straight off my water company's website, as applicable to the town where I live.

I'm, very new to brewing so this is of just a passing interest.

 

[VikeMan]

I don't know if this tells me anything about my water from my supplier here in Wales UK. Is there anything in here that you 'experts' can comment on?

Unfortunately, that report doesn't include most of the the ions that are useful to brewers...

Ca: not specified
Mg: not specified
Na 6.5-6.9 ppm
Cl: not specified
SO4: not specified
Total Alkalinity : not specified

It's because the ions important to brewing are not particularly important from a health/safety standpoint.

 

[TwoTonTed]

ok thanks!

 

[LBussy]

Ward now offers a W-501 Brewer's Test (which is the same exact thing as the W-5 Household Complete Mineral Test from what I can see) for $27.25, which includes:

• Bicarbonate
• Calcium
• Carbonate
• Chloride
• Iron
• Magnesium
• Nitrate
• Phosphorus
• Potassium
• Sodium
• Sulfate
• Total Hardness (Lime)
• Total Alkalinity
• Electrical Conductivity
• pH, Est. Total Dissolved Solids

The following would be extra:

• Aluminum $5.50
• Fluoride $6.00
• Silica $6.00
• Zinc $6.50
• Chromium $20.00
• Cobalt $20.00
• Nickel $20.00
• Copper $6.50
• Arsenic $20.00
• Selenium $20.00
• Cadmium $20.00
• Lead $20.00
• Manganese $6.50

I don't think any of those extras would be of any help for a homebrewer with municipal water, would they?

 

[mabrungard]

Ions like manganese and iron are likely to be apparent to anyone drinking the water when they're present in excess.

Ions like nitrate and phosphorus are not typically problematic in brewing and may not be worthwhile testing for.

The heavy metals might be a worry if you're on your own water source but those WILL NOT be a problem in the US if you're on a municipal water source.

Testing for silica may be a good idea if you are in a desert area where that ion can tend to concentrate, but it's not typically a problem in other parts of the world.

Zinc is typically present in most water at very low concentration and the testing method might not be sensitive enough to pick it up, so it might not be worth testing for. Confirm with Ward that they can detect to between 0.1 mg/l (aka: 100 ppb) and 0.5 mg/l, since that's the minimum and maximum zinc you want in your water.

 

[LBussy]

I'm on KC MO municipal water - by all accounts pretty soft and generally very good tasting. The current report shows Zinc at ND - 0.006 which is pretty low. At those reported levels, it may not be worth it to pay for it from Ward. The water here is from the Missouri River.