Cedar Rapids Brewing Society

I have started using charcoal filtered tap water. I have noticed that my beers , while not "bad" have a noticeable off flavor. I suspect the water doesn't have the right ions etc. If anyone is good at reading water profiles and correcting obvious deficiencies or excesses I would really appreciate your help.
Here are my numbers:
Chloride 30
Ca hardness 50
[Ca+2] 20
Mg hardness 50
[Mg+2] 12
Total hardness 100
Sulfate 50
Total alkalinity 140
Residual alkalinity 91.4
Na (calculated) 62.1
pH right out of the tap is 7.76
I use the 5.2 buffer in my mashes
Again thanks for any help. JB
PS These are in ppm.

Have you tried using RO water?

If you ran a batch with Reverse Osmosis water (it is cheap at HyVee - take in your buckets and get what you need for a 5 gallon or 10 gallon batch) and the off-flavor disappears, you will have at least nailed it to the local water (or the 5.2 buffer, haven't used it, but I am using RO and additives recommended by Gordon Strong).

What is the pH after you "buffer" it with the 5/2 gimmick? (It has a lot of salts in it)

andrewmaixner wrote:What is the pH after you "buffer" it with the 5/2 gimmick? (It has a lot of salts in it)

5.2

daryl wrote:Have you tried using RO water?

If you ran a batch with Reverse Osmosis water (it is cheap at HyVee - take in your buckets and get what you need for a 5 gallon or 10 gallon batch) and the off-flavor disappears, you will have at least nailed it to the local water (or the 5.2 buffer, haven't used it, but I am using RO and additives recommended by Gordon Strong).

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I am using the same recipes and procedures that I have used before except I wanted to use my tap water and treat it if needed.

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jjbuck wrote:I am using the same recipes and procedures that I have used before except I wanted to use my tap water and treat it if needed.

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Closest HyVee is 20 miles away , my local grocery store has gallon jugs of drinking water that I have used but I want to use my tap water.

jjbuck wrote:

andrewmaixner wrote:What is the pH after you "buffer" it with the 5/2 gimmick? (It has a lot of salts in it)

5.2

daryl wrote:Have you tried using RO water?

If you ran a batch with Reverse Osmosis water (it is cheap at HyVee - take in your buckets and get what you need for a 5 gallon or 10 gallon batch) and the off-flavor disappears, you will have at least nailed it to the local water (or the 5.2 buffer, haven't used it, but I am using RO and additives recommended by Gordon Strong).

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daryl wrote:Have you tried using RO water?

If you ran a batch with Reverse Osmosis water (it is cheap at HyVee - take in your buckets and get what you need for a 5 gallon or 10 gallon batch) and the off-flavor disappears, you will have at least nailed it to the local water (or the 5.2 buffer, haven't used it, but I am using RO and additives recommended by Gordon Strong).

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John, I've always used Cedar Rapids tap water (which is decent), but run through a PUR filter in my brew room (before the brew room, I used the filtered tap in the kitchen with runs through a double filter GE system). Main goal was to remove the chlorine, and any trace industrial chemicals (pesticides, herbicides, etc.). I rarely add anything back into the water, except when doing English styles, where I'll harden up the water a bit with Camden salts. YMMV

Thanks for all the alternatives guys but I'd really like some input on my water profile.

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Looks pretty soft to me. Maybe the Magnesium levels are a bit high. Can you describe the off-flavor?

I have found J. Palmer's water calculator on line. You are right Lee, calcium is below style guidelines and magnesium and chloride are barely in range. I am going to add about 20 grams of gypsum and about 4 mL phosphoric acid to my water along with the 5.2 buffer and see if the pH comes down and the hop and malt balance come out better. I'm doing a 3 step infusion mash for a saison (Tank 7 clone from latest Zymurgy issue.

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When I use RO, I've always just put my recipe and style into EZ-Water spreadsheet (http://www.ezwatercalculator.com) and adjusted my mineral additions and acid to be in range as per the sheet. It's a lot easier than bru'nwater, and my stuff has turned out well. Can't advice much beyond that.

I've also had completely acceptable results using chlorine-filtered softened Marion water when I am in a hurry.

jjbuck wrote:I have found J. Palmer's water calculator on line. You are right Lee, calcium is below style guidelines and magnesium and chloride are barely in range. I am going to add about 20 grams of gypsum and about 4 mL phosphoric acid to my water along with the 5.2 buffer and see if the pH comes down and the hop and malt balance come out better. I'm doing a 3 step infusion mash for a saison (Tank 7 clone from latest Zymurgy issue.

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Seems like a good plan. You might just need to make a few batches of cream ale or kolsch to try and pinpoint the off-flavor.

Just a couple of thoughts: nothing terrible about that profile. Sodium is a touch high, but I doubt it's causing a noticeable off flavor. Maybe in combo with the 5.2 though. I don't use it and have not heard good things about it.

Is chloramine used in your water supply? Many household carbon filters won't remove all of it as it takes a longer contact time compared to chlorine from what I've read.

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And don't forget to trust your taste. Your water supply can look fine on paper but still taste bad.

Good call Matt. Not all parameters can be characterized in the same test, and non-standard tests get pricy quick

Is the best place to get water tested Ward Labs? I'm debating if it's worth getting mine tested or just put the $ toward a slightly better RO system.