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Water Test from Ward Labs

 
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KES




Joined: 13 May 2011
Posts: 472
Location: Iowa


PostLink    Posted: Tue Oct 09, 2012 2:22 am    Post subject: Water Test from Ward Labs Reply with quote


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Here's my results from Ward Labs. I've been reading in 'How to Brew' that I may need to dilute with distilled water to get the Bicarbonate down to below 50 for the Electric APA I plan to brew. Looking for input. Am I on the right track, or am I missing something? Confused




pH 8.8
Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) Est, ppm 148
Electrical Conductivity, mmho/cm 0.25
Cations / Anions, me/L 2.4 / 2.6
ppm
Sodium, Na 54
Potassium, K < 1
Calcium, Ca 1
Magnesium, Mg < 1
Total Hardness, CaCO3 3
Nitrate, NO3-N 0.2 (SAFE)
Sulfate, SO4-S 7
Chloride, Cl 7
Carbonate, CO3 9
Bicarbonate, HCO3 97
Total Alkalinity, CaCO3 95
Total Phosphorus, P 0.50
Total Iron, Fe < 0.01
"<" - Not Detected / Below Detection Limit

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Ben58




Joined: 14 Aug 2011
Posts: 409
Location: Hamilton, Ontario


PostLink    Posted: Tue Oct 09, 2012 9:44 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Actually, that is pretty soft water. The first thing to do is download ez-water calculator from http://www.ezwatercalculator.com/ and plug in the values from your water report. Enter your volume of water and your grain. After that, adjust your water with the addition of brewing salts to meet the profile you intend to use. Make sure you check the boxes for boil/sparge additions. You will see your Ph change as well as your mineral profile. The only thing I see in your report that may be of a concern is the Na ( sodium ) may be a bit high. Was this sample taken downstream of a water softener?
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kal
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Drinking: Pub Ale, Electric Creamsicle, Mild, Pliny the Younger, Belgian Dark Strong, Weizen, Russian Imperial Stout, Black Butte Porter


PostLink    Posted: Tue Oct 09, 2012 1:01 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Sodium does seem oddly high when you consider how low everything else is (example: Ca = 1).

Kal

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huaco




Joined: 05 Apr 2012
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Location: Burleson Texas


PostLink    Posted: Tue Oct 09, 2012 1:35 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

So how does one go about getting this test done? I checked with my water department and they did not have the report I needed. They could give me the "Safety" report that lists all the levels of bad crap in the water, but not a dissolved solids list like this... How much does a test cost? I assume since you said you sent it to a lab, it will be pricy...
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mvakoc




Joined: 19 Sep 2011
Posts: 152
Location: Evergreen, CO


PostLink    Posted: Tue Oct 09, 2012 4:53 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

huaco wrote:
So how does one go about getting this test done? I checked with my water department and they did not have the report I needed. They could give me the "Safety" report that lists all the levels of bad crap in the water, but not a dissolved solids list like this... How much does a test cost? I assume since you said you sent it to a lab, it will be pricy...


http://www.wardlab.com/

$20-36 depending on the test chosen.
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huaco




Joined: 05 Apr 2012
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Location: Burleson Texas


PostLink    Posted: Tue Oct 09, 2012 6:02 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

And which test would be best to perform for our needs?
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mvakoc




Joined: 19 Sep 2011
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Location: Evergreen, CO


PostLink    Posted: Tue Oct 09, 2012 8:28 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

When in doubt go with their homebrewer's option.
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huaco




Joined: 05 Apr 2012
Posts: 1506
Location: Burleson Texas


PostLink    Posted: Tue Oct 09, 2012 8:36 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

mvakoc wrote:
When in doubt go with their homebrewer's option.


Ahh...
I was looking under their "Test packages / pricing" page and saw nothing specific to homebrewers... After looking at other pages on their site, I now see the "homebrewer" test! Thanks for the tip...
boy, I feel like an internet NOOB right about now! haha!
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mvakoc




Joined: 19 Sep 2011
Posts: 152
Location: Evergreen, CO


PostLink    Posted: Tue Oct 09, 2012 9:30 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

huaco wrote:
mvakoc wrote:
When in doubt go with their homebrewer's option.


Ahh...
I was looking under their "Test packages / pricing" page and saw nothing specific to homebrewers... After looking at other pages on their site, I now see the "homebrewer" test! Thanks for the tip...
boy, I feel like an internet NOOB right about now! haha!


No worries. If you are going to use the EZ water calculator spreadsheet as Kal recommends you will notice that it does not require all that the beer test provides so there may be a cheaper option. That said I did the beer test. In fact I plan to do it several times a year as I have well water that can change seasonally.
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KES




Joined: 13 May 2011
Posts: 472
Location: Iowa


PostLink    Posted: Tue Oct 09, 2012 11:56 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

at Ben58 & kal: Was this sample taken downstream of a water softener? Answer = yes Will that be a problem?

I've been playing with the ezwatercalculator. Can't say I understand it all that well.

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Ben58




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PostLink    Posted: Wed Oct 10, 2012 12:25 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

In reality no. You would only notice the sodium above a certain level, as we all have different thresholds for certain tastes. If you notice, on EZ, Palmers recommendations for sodium is up to 150 ppm so you are a third of Palmers threshold, to which I would hold stock to. As to your other mineral contents, they are easily adjusted to give you a very good shot at different water profiles for a multitude of beer styles. Thumbs Up
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KES




Joined: 13 May 2011
Posts: 472
Location: Iowa


PostLink    Posted: Wed Oct 10, 2012 1:47 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

OK, punched my water report numbers into ezwatercalculator. Punched in grain bill numbers. What numbers do I use for mash and sparge water volumes? I used 13.25 and 20. Steps 4a and 4b show all zero's. Step 5 shows sodium and chloride in the green and the others in the red. Would be nice if there were instructions with ezwater! Confused
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Ben58




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PostLink    Posted: Wed Oct 10, 2012 9:43 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

How big of a batch? Step 4a is for adding typical brewing salts and bringing your mash ph down. Step 4b is for bringing your mash ph up. With your water report, you will probably need to lower your ph. We will need to know what calculations were used to determine the water volumes you are using, as the numbers you posted are pushing the boundaries for what even my 30 gal boil kettle will hold.
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KES




Joined: 13 May 2011
Posts: 472
Location: Iowa


PostLink    Posted: Wed Oct 10, 2012 10:24 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Looking for a final 12 gallon batch size. Thanks Ben
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Ben58




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PostLink    Posted: Wed Oct 10, 2012 9:22 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

From Beersmith. Note these numbers are from my profile, which is all Blichmann pots. These volumes include cold break, trub and bottling losses. Salts to follow this post.

Recipe: Electric Pale Ale
Brewer: Ben and Heather
Asst Brewer:
Style: American Amber Ale
TYPE: All Grain
Taste: (30.0)

Recipe Specifications
--------------------------
Boil Size: 14.92 gal
Post Boil Volume: 13.00 gal
Batch Size (fermenter): 12.00 gal
Bottling Volume: 11.50 gal
Estimated OG: 1.055 SG
Estimated Color: 5.0 SRM
Estimated IBU: 38.7 IBUs
Brewhouse Efficiency: 92.00 %
Est Mash Efficiency: 95.8 %
Boil Time: 60 Minutes

Ingredients:
------------
Amt Name Type # %/IBU
15 lbs 8.0 oz Pale Malt (2 Row) US (2.0 SRM) Grain 1 78.5 %
3 lbs 8.0 oz Vienna Malt (3.5 SRM) Grain 2 17.7 %
12.0 oz Caramel/Crystal Malt - 40L (40.0 SRM) Grain 3 3.8 %
1.00 oz Amarillo Gold [8.50 %] - Boil 20.0 min Hop 4 8.1 IBUs
1.00 oz Centennial [10.00 %] - Boil 20.0 min Hop 5 9.5 IBUs
2.40 Items Whirlfloc Tablet (Boil 15.0 mins) Fining 6 -
2.00 oz Amarillo Gold [8.50 %] - Boil 10.0 min Hop 7 9.7 IBUs
2.00 oz Centennial [10.00 %] - Boil 10.0 min Hop 8 11.4 IBUs
2.00 oz Amarillo Gold [8.50 %] - Boil 0.0 min Hop 9 0.0 IBUs
2.00 oz Centennial [10.00 %] - Boil 0.0 min Hop 10 0.0 IBUs


Mash Schedule: Temperature Mash, 1 Step, Medium Body
Total Grain Weight: 19 lbs 12.0 oz
----------------------------
Name Description Step Temperat Step Time
Saccharification Add 6.39 gal of water at 163.3 F 152.0 F 60 min
Mash Out Heat to 168.0 F over 30 min 168.0 F 10 min

Sparge: Fly sparge with 11.12 gal water at 168.0 F
Notes:
------
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Ben58




Joined: 14 Aug 2011
Posts: 409
Location: Hamilton, Ontario


PostLink    Posted: Wed Oct 10, 2012 9:46 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

The following mineral additions are for a ph of 5.39
Mash Salts
CaSO4 - 9 mg
CaCl - 2.2 mg
MgSO4 - 4.5 mg
Lactic acid - 4ml. Careful here add a ml at atime and check the ph after a good stir / short rest
Sparge Water Salts - I find this works best here as the HLT is circulating mixing in the salts.
CaSO4 - 15.7 mg
CaCl - 3.8 mg
MgSO4 - 7.8 mg

This will give you the following mineral profile in ppm.
Ca - 110, Mg - 18, Na - 54, Cl - 51, SO4 - 301
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KES




Joined: 13 May 2011
Posts: 472
Location: Iowa


PostLink    Posted: Wed Oct 10, 2012 10:04 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thanks Ben! I'll try those additions on the first brew day.
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