Phenolic bombs!!!

[DannyD]

So I could for my life not understand way my beer is getting worse and worse, first it was subtle but on the last brew I could definitely describe Band-aid /rubber, smell and taste. So it turns out it is due to my lack of sanitation, sort off. So I quickly learned it is hard to infect beer, but that was my problem. In the beginning I use to boil every thing (EVERYTHING) not so later on …..Needed too top-up……do it strait from the tape, rinse equipment ….strait from the tap. But I also think the chlorine level of my tap water changed with time. So did a batch now where I: carbon filtered the water, left it in the sun for two days and treated with peroxide (and then the boil with lid off) (I am having problems with getting nice boil with lid off .....but anyway)
hope this takes care of my chlorine problem!

 

[ChaosStout]

Im a big fan of distilled water. Afterall why would a person want chlorine, Floride, Pesticides and Herbacides in their beer?

 

[jrg42]

make sure you use distilled water for your starter (if you make on). I was running into the same problem before i corrected that. Have not had a Band-aide taste one since.

 

[DannyD]

interesting thing I read here a few days back is the "Speisgabe" (or any malt based fermentables for conditioning) might aslo cause it (cant find the tread?)
and it was exactly the two batches I tried this (speisgabe) with that ended up like a whole hospital full of bandaid?

thoughts?

 

[thegerm]

you don't need distilled water. you can use water from a brita filter for starters. you can also use campden tabs (half of one per 5 gallon batch) to get rid of chlorine. distilled water might be ok for extract beers and starters, maybe... because extracts have minerals from the batches they were produced from in them. but with AG batches especially you need minerals in your tap water to support yeast growth.

your phenol problem is most likely a fermentation temperature and/or pitching rate issue, not chlorine related.

 

[Hoodweisen]

you don't need distilled water. you can use water from a brita filter for starters. you can also use campden tabs (half of one per 5 gallon batch) to get rid of chlorine. distilled water might be ok for extract beers and starters, maybe... because extracts have minerals from the batches they were produced from in them. but with AG batches especially you need minerals in your tap water to support yeast growth.

your phenol problem is most likely a fermentation temperature and/or pitching rate issue, not chlorine related.

yes to this

I find it odd how the water breaks after i put a campden tablet in it. Kinda fizzes and bubbles and pops hahaa I imagine thats the campden working. But of course I never montior large pots of water to an exact temp. unless i have dropped a campden. SO i guess ill never know.