Practices and Ideas for Conservative Water Use

[Pappers_]

Like many people, I strive to live conservatively, re-using items, fixing instead of replacing, limiting consumption, being reasonably frugal.

One area of my brewing practices that I've not paid much or any attention to is limiting or re-using the water I use in brewing. For example:

1) oxiclean water to soak bottles in (about 10 gallons per batch)
2) oxiclean water that I use to wash brewing equipment (about 5 gallons each batch)
3) rinse water for both bottles and equipment (no idea how much)
4) water from the immersion chiller (no idea how much)

Am I missing any big uses? The only thing I really do at this point is re-use my chill water by putting it in the washing machine.

I'm interested in hearing how people conserve their water use in brewing, either by reducing the water they use or by re-use.

 

[ACbrewer]

I don't recycle/reuse my water... Haven't figured that one out - my low water front loader doesn't make the washer easy for that, and I use an ice bath.

Out of curriosity, why don't you use your #1 and #2 water into the washing machine?

 

[Pappers_]

I don't recycle/reuse my water... Haven't figured that one out - my low water front loader doesn't make the washer easy for that, and I use an ice bath.

Out of curriosity, why don't you use your #1 and #2 water into the washing machine?

Mainly because I just haven't paid much attention to how I use water in brewing, but I also wonder about using 'grey' water in the washing machine. Do people do that?

 

[bob1852]

I don't soak bottled in oxy any more. I just make sure they are well rinsed off after use. then they get a few squirt of iodophor solution from the vinator on bottling day.

I gather my chill water from my CFC in 2-3 15-gallon plastic tubs. I use the water 1) for clean up during that brew day, 2) mash/sparge water if I'm brewing the next day, 3) mixing up some sanitizer for bottles/kegs whenever, or 4) watering plants if I don't use it for brewing related activities...

 

[Pappers_]

I don't soak bottled in oxy any more. I just make sure they are well rinsed off after use. then they get a few squirt of iodophor solution from the vinator on bottling day.

I gather my chill water from my CFC in 2-3 15-gallon plastic tubs. I use the water 1) for clean up during that brew day, 2) mash/sparge water if I'm brewing the next day, 3) mixing up some sanitizer for bottles/kegs whenever, or 4) watering plants if I don't use it for brewing related activities...

Kind of like the rain barrel idea (only indoors) - save all the water and keep it for some future use, even if its days away. That's an interesting idea.

 

[Teromous]

My plants drink it when it comes out of the wort chiller.

For cleaning, I just fill my MLT rectangle cooler and wash everything in there. I'm not overly concerned with water because I probably use more to shower with than making beer.

 

[bob1852]

Kind of like the rain barrel idea (only indoors) - save all the water and keep it for some future use, even if its days away. That's an interesting idea.

I run a long hose from my CFC on the front porch to the containers in a corner of the garage. They're out of the way.

Sure, ~40 gallons of water is pretty insignificant, but especially in Arizona I hate to see any just run down the storm drains...

I last brewed on 3/20 and am still sitting on about 12 gallons; I'll use that this weekend on some plants.

 

[Seven]

I plan my brew day so I can collect water from the immersion chiller for sanitizing the fermentor, carboy, and other related equipment.

I use a spray bottle with a star san solution to sanitize as much as possible which saves water since I don't need to make big buckets of the sanitizing solution.

Making only 1-gallon amounts of star san solution at a time and splashing it around inside kegs, etc., instead of making a full 5-gallon batch every time also helps.

 

[TheBeerNerd]

My buddy I used to brew with down south would divert his IC water into a rain barrel (or his dog's "swimming pool" horse trough) I plan on picking up a rain barrel here myself.

Switching to kegs can save a lot of bottle washing water... and washing bottles sucks (I'm taking a break from washing about 300 empty DFH bottles I scored off FreeCycle at the moment)

I don't soak bottled in oxy any more. I just make sure they are well rinsed off after use. then they get a few squirt of iodophor solution from the vinator on bottling day.

I do this unless the bottles are really nasty.

 

[Reelale]

Water ain't going away. You're really conserving the energy to make water available. I recycle as much as I can, due to cost. But the water that is down the drain is eventually recycled anyway. We're kinda locked in as far as that resource. Water conservation is really a misnomer. Water for human consumption is another matter.

 

[TheBeerNerd]

Water ain't going away. You're really conserving the energy to make water available. I recycle as much as I can, due to cost. But the water that is down the drain is eventually recycled anyway. We're kinda locked in as far as that resource. Water conservation is really a misnomer. Water for human consumption is another matter.

It's a different story in the southwest... I lived in Santa Fe for 6 years. Water rights and conservation is a VERY big deal.

Plus if you're on city water or a community well, you have to pay for it.

 

[northernlad]

I make 1 gallon batches of Starsan and mostly use a spray bottle to apply.
My cooling water goes into the washer except when I have saved a large quantity of bottles to delabel, then I fill my soak container first.
The only water i truly mismanage is in rinsing bottles.

I gather my chill water from my CFC in 2-3 15-gallon plastic tubs. I use the water 1) for clean up during that brew day, 2) mash/sparge water if I'm brewing the next day, 3) mixing up some sanitizer for bottles/kegs whenever, or 4) watering plants if I don't use it for brewing related activities...

I am curious why it takes you as much as 45 gallons to cool your wort. I chill 10 gallons with a 25' IC in 25-30 gallons.

 

[TheBeerNerd]

Oh yeah, starsan. I usually mix up a 5gal batch and save it for 2-3 batches.

 

[bob1852]

I am curious why it takes you as much as 45 gallons to cool your wort. I chill 10 gallons with a 25' IC in 25-30 gallons.

It doesn't. I just have 3 15-gallon tubs I have available to capture run-off from my CFC.

I haven't overflowed them...

 

[bob1852]

Water ain't going away. You're really conserving the energy to make water available. I recycle as much as I can, due to cost. But the water that is down the drain is eventually recycled anyway. We're kinda locked in as far as that resource. Water conservation is really a misnomer. Water for human consumption is another matter.

It may not be going away; but it may not return to the same place you got it from in the first place; at least in Arizona...

So while it is true it's not "wasted" - it just may not be able to used again by anyone near my community...

 

[passedpawn]

Interesting thread.

I use a submersible aquarium pump to move pool water through my plate chiller, then back to the pool. So, in theory, zero water was killed cooling my beer. Am I saving the planet yet?

 

[TheBeerNerd]

^ great idea

Is the chlorine harming your chiller at all?

 

[Reelale]

Am I saving the planet yet?

Yes. And they're all dropping by for a swim. As soon as you burn those fossil fuels and/or nasty electrons to heat the pool.

 

[vinyl_key]

Tip I learned from a brewing buddy: take the first ~10 gallons of water from your wort chiller, and put it in the washing machine. Hot water for nice clean whites!

 

[Pappers_]

The only water i truly mismanage is in rinsing bottles.

For rinse water (bottles and brewing equipment that have been washed in oxiclean), maybe instead of having the water go down the drain, I could put a big rubbermaid thing in the utility sink and collect the rinse water, then either put it in the washing machine or in the bottle soaking bin. The water would be 'clean' in that whatever gunk I'm washing off would already be gone, this rinse water would be mainly just water with a little oxiclean. Does that make sense?

 

[Pappers_]

I don't soak bottled in oxy any more. I just make sure they are well rinsed off after use. then they get a few squirt of iodophor solution from the vinator on bottling day.

That's probably a good move - I've just been taking all the bottles and treating them alike, but if they are homebrew bottles that I'm reusing (as opposed to craft beer bottles I'm reusing for the first time), I already rinse them when I use them.

 

[SwampassJ]

Yes. And they're all dropping by for a swim. As soon as you burn those fossil fuels and/or nasty electrons to heat the pool.

You're just upset it's warm enough to swim.

I do the same thing with my pool but instead of the submersible pump I put a garden hose adapter onto my dishcharge line and let the pool pump do the work since it's already running the pool anyways. The only downside is in another 2-3 weeks the pool water will be warmer than my tap water and for he rest of the year it will be at or around 90-95.

 

[rico567]

I have also eliminated bottle cleaning after the initial soak in PBW to remove the label, apparently to no ill effect. However, this must be accompanied by thoroughly rinsing the bottle immediately after pouring the beer. I use Star San & a vinator prior to bottling.

I use our well water to chill my wort, and the only use I make of the water is to dump it on the garden or the hops. I have considered using the water in a large cistern near the house to do the chilling, and simply recirculate that water back into the cistern. There is always several hundred gallons in the cistern, and this water is at ground temperature (ca. 55F), making it great for chilling. I would have to buy a submersible pump to do this, and I am concerned about the pressure / rate of flow having a significant impact on my chilling times.



{Note: OT, but this discussion invites it. IMHO, this is a big area of concern. Everything done with fresh water will come under increased scrutiny and regulation in this century. While it is a renewable resource, the amount available for use is fixed within certain limits, and we are dipping into the bank (underground aquifers) in a way that is analogous to petroleum. We focus on oil so much that I believe that we will be blind-sided when the water issues finally become critical. This is already becoming clear in certain areas of the U.S. like the Southwest, and even more so in Australia. From my reading, I believe that the whole "No Chill" technique was invented in Australia, large part to respond to water conservation needs. The water conservation rules employed now when water supplies run short -as in Atlanta a while back- will become universal in the future, and it's naive to think homebrewing won't be affected.}

 

[ACbrewer]

For rinse water (bottles and brewing equipment that have been washed in oxiclean), maybe instead of having the water go down the drain, I could put a big rubbermaid thing in the utility sink and collect the rinse water, then either put it in the washing machine or in the bottle soaking bin. The water would be 'clean' in that whatever gunk I'm washing off would already be gone, this rinse water would be mainly just water with a little oxiclean. Does that make sense?

If the water is 'grey' but ins't full of crap (mold, labels, just looking nasty) you could do that. But add more oxiclean before you reuse it for whatever. Oxyclean creates O2 in the water and eventually it diffuses out. The oxyclean is good for about 4 to 6 hours. Although it leaves you with whatever the rest of the oxyclean salt is made out of...

 

[passedpawn]

Yes. And they're all dropping by for a swim. As soon as you burn those fossil fuels and/or nasty electrons to heat the pool.

I use a nuclear reactor to heat my pool. It's called the G2V Yellow Dwarf fusion reactor. I'm sure you've seen it At the moment it is leaking quite a bit of radiation, so if you are within its reach you might consider some sort of protection.

 

[Pappers_]

If the water is 'grey' but ins't full of crap (mold, labels, just looking nasty) you could do that. But add more oxiclean before you reuse it for whatever. Oxyclean creates O2 in the water and eventually it diffuses out. The oxyclean is good for about 4 to 6 hours. Although it leaves you with whatever the rest of the oxyclean salt is made out of...

right, I know about oxyclean's effective life, didn't mean to imply I would re-use the oxyclean, but rather the water

 

[passedpawn]

Urine is sterile, so if you really into conservation you can rinse your bottle a few hours after it's emptied, using it's original contents. Yea, I know gross.

if you read a lot of true-life survival books, you'll hear quite a bit about bottled urine. Try Skeletons on the Zaraha for a good one.

 

[Pappers_]

Urine is sterile, so if you really into conservation you can rinse your bottle a few hours after it's emptied, using it's original contents. Yea, I know gross.

if you read a lot of true-life survival books, you'll hear quite a bit about bottled urine. Try Skeletons on the Zaraha for a good one.

In another thread, I said you were a fount of useful information; today, I think you're just a fount

 

[SwampassJ]

Urine is sterile, so if you really into conservation you can rinse your bottle a few hours after it's emptied, using it's original contents. Yea, I know gross.

if you read a lot of true-life survival books, you'll hear quite a bit about bottled urine. Try Skeletons on the Zaraha for a good one.

Yeah but who needs all of that extra sodium in their brew?

 

[passedpawn]

In another thread, I said you were a fount of useful information; today, I think you're just a fount

I'm still flattered. I get called worse all the time.

One off the things I love about this forum is that, while it is the greatest living compendium of useful brewing knowledge anywhere, it doesn't take itself too serious, and there is always a little room for fun.

 

[ReverseApacheMaster]

I try not to use a lot of water, but what I do use I try to dump into the lawn so we have to water less. Now that I have hops growing it will probably go into the hops.

I was using baths to cool wort and letting it go down the drain but then I realized it was just as easy to siphon it into a bucket and dump outside.

 

[greenfrog5]

Many things I do to save water have been mentioned:

- Hot IC discharge water goes into 5-gal bucket for label-stripping bottles
- This water can be reused many-many times as long as more Oxy is added
- My used bottles get quick rinse immediately after pouring and drip-dry
- Sanitizer is made is relatively small amounts and sprayed/sloshed for maximum efficiency

Another area I'm working to conserve is cleaning carboys:
Cleaning ASAP after bottling is key, and avoiding filling it fully with Oxy water.
I've had some success using about 1.5 - 2 gal of water. I can lay it on its side in a rubbermaid dish-bin and can submerge ~1/6 of the side where the krausen ring is without the water spilling out of the mouth (which is just high enough). Have to rotate it periodically though.

Another idea I have is using the carboy drip-stand to invert it with a drilled stopper with a gas-vent (racking cane and vinyl hose) to relieve any pressure that develops. Similar to on its side, but you can clean the whole ring at once with minimal water.

Aaron

 

[northernlad]

Water ain't going away. You're really conserving the energy to make water available. I recycle as much as I can, due to cost. But the water that is down the drain is eventually recycled anyway. We're kinda locked in as far as that resource. Water conservation is really a misnomer. Water for human consumption is another matter.

While I agree that the idea that running a tap while you brush your teeth does not "waste" water, if you live in a hot or arid climate spilling your IC water onto the hot pavement or lawn at noon is indeed wasting water.

For rinse water (bottles and brewing equipment that have been washed in oxiclean), maybe instead of having the water go down the drain, I could put a big rubbermaid thing in the utility sink and collect the rinse water, then either put it in the washing machine or in the bottle soaking bin. The water would be 'clean' in that whatever gunk I'm washing off would already be gone, this rinse water would be mainly just water with a little oxiclean. Does that make sense?

It does make sense, but the rinse I was talking about is after decanting. IDK if the missus would want that in the laundry and i don't want yeasty dregs in my soak bin.

 

[Pick]

I water the lawn with my chiller water.

 

[Spintab]

Gonna bump this puppy because I was about to post something similar.

While watering the lawn may be a "good" use of extra water, you're still dumping the water. I'd be interested to see just how little water can be used to begin with. To me, it's more of a challenge than saving the planet but dolphins are cool. No harming in saving a couple for karma's sake.

My best solution to conserving water is ice. I've managed to cool and perform a certain amount of cleanup with about a gallon or two of water and a 20lb bag of ice. The gallon or two of water is the starsan solution from my primary then dumped onto ice in a separate vessel with a aquarium pump pumping ice water through my immersion chiller. Once the ice has melted, there is enough water left to do the initial "big gunk" cleaning when brew day is over. Still need to clean a little extra and rinse to get to that final stage of clean where you are ready for the next time you brew.

I'm going to try to take this a step further and use tap water in place of the sanitizer solution. I'll put oxi into the cooling water then use the sanitizer solution to do the final rinse with a sprayer attached to the aquarium pump.

I'm not big on saving solutions from batch to batch but if I could get from start to cleaned up in under 10 gallons of water (including the melted ice) I'd be happy.