Grainfather App Water Calculator

[Binkie Huckaback]

Does anyone use the water calculator on the Grainfather G30 App? I've been brewing for years and the only treatment I've ever done is boiling water the day before use and then adding campden powder. It's about time I actually tried treating water properly as the water in my part of the country is terrible, but my knowledge of chemistry is non-existant. I've had a play on the app and is it really as simple as adding the various salts and acids in the quantities the app gives?

[f00b4r]

I have not used the app but if it follows American home-brew practices it might not be the best approach for UK beers; they are a little scared of minerals.
Do you have a water report? Water chemistry can be a complex subject when you dive deep but needn't be scary to get a reasonable handle on it.
We also have a water calculator on here that Graham Wheeler put together and people that would help you understand what to do in simple terms; there are also people like Eric and Aleman on here who's water knowledge goes way beyond that of most experienced homebrewers.

[f00b4r]

I will also shift this to the water section if you want?
Essentially though all you need to do is:

- remove chloramines/chlorine via e.g. a (part of) Camden tablet
- reduce your alkalinity (often using CRS but there are other ways too) to the level appropriate for your grist; this ensures that mash pH then falls in the correct range, which has a number of benefits and will likely improve some styles of beer (which styles depends upon your starting water as it may already be good for some styles)
- add salts to tweak your water make your beer sing a little more

I tend to do this the night before so it is all ready for brewing the next morning but it is not complicated once you have done it a few times.

[Binkie Huckaback]

Thanks f00b4r. Yes, I do have a water report (though it's a couple of years old). I'll take a look at Graham's Calculator. What you said about 'American home-brew practices' may I think be true, as when you enter a recipe into the app, it asks you to enter a style and the styles are based on the BJCP style guide. To be honest, that kind of suits me, at least until I'm comfortable with water chemistry.

[spook100]

It is worth getting water reports from your surrounding areas too, it is surprising what a difference there can be between neighbouring areas. My local water supply is ideal for London style ales but the water supply in the next village is so low in minerals that I brew Pilsners with it and do nothing more than adjust the pH.

[f00b4r]

I did miss one thing out and that is it is usually a good idea to do a quick alkalinity test (or TDS test). Some water supplies are consistent but some occasionally (or more regularly) get switched to a different supply, which can be different in composition. Your water report might give hints to this though.
Wallybrew on here is a water chemist and does water analysis for people on request, he does them in batches with a few people and the report will give you everything you need for brewing.

It is worth getting water reports from your surrounding areas too, it is surprising what a difference there can be between neighbouring areas. My local water supply is ideal for London style ales but the water supply in the next village is so low in minerals that I brew Pilsners with it and do nothing more than adjust the pH.

I know a few people who live in similar areas, filling up some containers when at a friend or family member's house nearby.

[Top Cat]

I have not used the app but if it follows American home-brew practices it might not be the best approach for UK beers; they are a little scared of minerals.
Do you have a water report? Water chemistry can be a complex subject when you dive deep but needn't be scary to get a reasonable handle on it.
We also have a water calculator on here that Graham Wheeler put together and people that would help you understand what to do in simple terms; there are also people like Eric and Aleman on here who's water knowledge goes way beyond that of most experienced homebrewers.

Agree with all this, I had recommendations from Eric on water treatment about 18 months ago. I use a basic procedure as follows:-

Initially Get water analysis from Wally brew.
Using Graham’s water treatment calculator select type of beer you wish to brew.
Put in data.
Adjust water with recommended CRS and salts.
Occasionally check alkalinity with salifert kit (mine doesn’t alter much).
Results Better beer!

[Eric]

It is always good to read of improvements by treating water for brewing, Top Cat. I don't know of any natural water that doesn't make noticeably better beer after suitable treatment, so first you need to know what you water contains, you have an old report, then what needs to be changed. Only then begins some chemistry, the rest is brewing.

B H, boiling your water to reduce alkalinity is OK, Graham Wheeler did, but it doesn't work with my water and it is expensive and time consuming. If you care to post that water report, it might be possible to give a basic idea of what treatment would be needed.

[Binkie Huckaback]

Thanks guys. I want to move away from boiling my liquor as it's expensive and not great environmentally, I also want to avoid using bottled water if possible.

[Eric]

Treating water can be done simply and is relatively inexpensive, but at first it is necessary to know what is in your water. What do you know about it?

[Binkie Huckaback]

water report

xHcSUOt.jpeg (86.55 KiB) Viewed 8444 times

MOD edit: I am not sure why your picture is not showing so have uploaded it directly.

The full water report can be found here.

I've entered information from my water report into Graham's calculator and I'm getting some warnings, but am unsure as to whether this is because I'm entering the wrong information or because my water is so hard. The things that have got me stumped are 'Hardness' and 'Carbonate'.

Are either of these Calcium Carbonate expressed as CaCO3 mg/l? And is 'Carbonate' calcium expressed as Ca mg/l?

[Binkie Huckaback]

Ah! thanks to the Mod who sorted this. It was driving me mad and then I got distracted and didn't have time to finish my post!

[Eric]

Yes, there's a bit of an imbalance in those figures, but that's not unusual when you get average readings.

Otherwise you get warnings because it isn't possible to accurately achieve desired profiles with your water seen below with greater chloride level.

G30.jpg (245.87 KiB) Viewed 8421 times

Hardness and alkalinity are confusing as they are often expressed in the same term, calcium carbonate, but in this report the alkalinity is expresses as (HCO3), bicarbonate.

Hardness is a measure of the quantities of calcium and magnesium present in the water, usually expressed in terms of the amount of calcium carbonate that would provide an equivalent hardness and in rough terms it is (2.5 x Ca) + (4.1 x Mg).

Your water's alkalinity is very high and CRS might not be your best option for controlling it. I use hydrochloric and sulphuric separately and in combination, but that's getting more difficult as time advances. All you can do is get as near as you can and while the resultant beer might not be exactly the same as it would be, that doesn't mean it won't be as good.

[Binkie Huckaback]

Thanks Eric. Should I be entering alkalinity OR hardness at the top, or both?

[IPA]

Thanks Eric. Should I be entering alkalinity OR hardness at the top, or both?

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