Brew_G
Well-Known Member
Hey all...I have a feeling these questions may have been asked elsewhere, so I apologize in advance if this has been answered many times before!
I'm just starting to think seriously about making amendments to my local water here in Fairfax County, VA for various kinds of beers. I think the water here is pretty good in general - the only thing I've done so far is use campden to get rid of chlorine (in the form of chloramine), and I've ended up with some pretty good beers. But now I'd like to start thinking about taking it up a level while still using the local tap water.
Fairfax Water provides a very comprehensive annual water analysis online; in this, it provides a month-by-month analysis of the various metals and inorganics, although many of the numbers are missing for certain months. That said, I've looked back over the last few years of analyses and noticed that, while the parameters rise and fall at certain times of the year (and those swings can be pretty big, especially late in the year), the numbers can vary pretty widely from year to year. Basically, I can't necessarily use past analyses to predict what my water will be like on any given brewday. I may be able to take a reasonable stab at it, but if I'm trying to get down and dirty with it, then I'd probably need a recent detailed analysis.
So...with that in mind, does anyone know whether water companies have recent analyses available, or do they really only test for certain things once every couple months? If so, what info should I ask for if I were to ask for a recent analysis?
I'm just starting to think seriously about making amendments to my local water here in Fairfax County, VA for various kinds of beers. I think the water here is pretty good in general - the only thing I've done so far is use campden to get rid of chlorine (in the form of chloramine), and I've ended up with some pretty good beers. But now I'd like to start thinking about taking it up a level while still using the local tap water.
Fairfax Water provides a very comprehensive annual water analysis online; in this, it provides a month-by-month analysis of the various metals and inorganics, although many of the numbers are missing for certain months. That said, I've looked back over the last few years of analyses and noticed that, while the parameters rise and fall at certain times of the year (and those swings can be pretty big, especially late in the year), the numbers can vary pretty widely from year to year. Basically, I can't necessarily use past analyses to predict what my water will be like on any given brewday. I may be able to take a reasonable stab at it, but if I'm trying to get down and dirty with it, then I'd probably need a recent detailed analysis.
So...with that in mind, does anyone know whether water companies have recent analyses available, or do they really only test for certain things once every couple months? If so, what info should I ask for if I were to ask for a recent analysis?