water
Erik
I should probably avoid using water from the tap when making mead, right?
Should I go to the store and buy some Zephyrhills or something like that?
regards,
Erik
Joel
>I should probably avoid using water from the tap when making mead, right?
>Should I go to the store and buy some Zephyrhills or something like that?
I would avoid using straight tap water due because
the chlorine/chloramines in most city water will have
a negative impact on your finished mead. However, you
also don't want distilled water, since the trace minerals
in "normal" water are essential for the yeast to be
healthy. So either buy some sort of "spring water"
that has minerals, or use distilled water and add back
minerals and nutrients. (Google homebrew sites for
more details.)
--
Joel Plutchak "If you got the grits, serve 'em!" - Stanley Crouch
plutchak at [...]
Droopy
sulfite to the must and let it sit a day before pitching yeast.
Joel
>Nah, just go ahead and use the tap water, either boil it, or add
>sulfite to the must and let it sit a day before pitching yeast.
Boiling doesn't remove chloramines.
Droopy
brita type filter, you need a longer contact time)
Since I do not bother with removal of chloramines I do not pay much
attention to removing them. To tell the truth, most people do not
remvoe them and never have a problem.
Joel
It could be that I'm just sensitive to chlorophenols;
my homebrew tasted like crap until I simply started
filtering the water. I can still easily identify
chlorophenols in other people's homebrew.
Either way I suggest removing sources of chlorine
from anything that gets fermented-- especially if there's
even a slim chance I might be tasting it. ;-)
Dick Adams
With all sue respects, mi amigo, "most people" do not have chloramines
in their water. And then there's College Station, Texas where the
water is unfit for brewing anything.
Does anyone have a list of locations with chloramines in the water?
Dick
Droopy
Most large metro areas do use chloramines to keep microbial growth down
in the water mains. Here in Linclon, they disenfect the water in the
city resivoir with chlorine, treat it with ozone and then before piping
it out with chloramine.
Maybe that is why it is not a problem here, since it is jsut a
treatment to prevent growth and not the only microbial treatment maybe
they use a lot less. But be assured, if you get your water from the
city, it most certainly has been treated with chlorine in some fashion.
how much is a different issue.
Dick Adams
> I should probably avoid using water from the tap when making
> mead, right? Should I go to the store and buy some Zephyrhills
> or something like that?
Before you buy Spring Water, call your County Water Department
request a list of what chemicals are in the water. As long as
chloramines are not on the list, it is probably ok to use your
tap water.
Chlorine can be eliminated by letting pots of water stand for
24 hours, 48 hours if you have the time and space.
If you have any questions on specific chemicals in the water,
post them here.
Dick
Droopy
that 20% are most liklely large metro areas (due to costs involved in
installing such systems) I would think that there is agood chance there
are clhoramines in most peoples water.
Water derived from underground wells is almost certain to have fewer
chemical additives than water taken from surface sources as well.
Always contact your local water company when dealing with brewing
water...if only just to know the water hardness. With mead, I would
say it is not as important, esp if you come from the winemaking side
and use sulfites.
DMS
and starting to be used in the US in some places, Disney, the Navy, and
a few towns) use very little to no chlorine in the water. It is hardly
needed at that point.
One thing that you would want to note is that ozone treatment generally
lowers the pH of the water.
Joel
>With all sue respects, mi amigo, "most people" do not have chloramines
>in their water. And then there's College Station, Texas where the
>water is unfit for brewing anything.
My understanding is that more and more cities use
chloramines. "Most people" may include everybody that
uses a well, but for us city folk, I'd be cautious about
making any assumptions wrt chloramines.
>Does anyone have a list of locations with chloramines in the water?
Your water provider will (or should) be able to tell
you your status.
Charlene
smells from the water. I have one and it's fabulous. It also removes
giardia from the water, if that's a problem where you live, but it
doesn't remove minerals. Your mead will be better, but so will your
tea, your coffee, your drinking water, your pasta, etc.
It costs about $250 here; the filters only need to be replaced every
few years.
Dick Adams
Steve Thompson
news:11tibtr...@corp.supernews.com...
I installed a RO filter at our home as it removes Flouride as well as
cloride componds and agents that keep pipes from rusting! After researching
the internet, I settled on www.freedrinkingwater.com, I've been very happy
with our unit. And, I've had samples tested to confirm purity. It's a 5
stage unit, it was ~$300.
Steve
Steve Thompson
Bottled water tends to be the least regulated item in the grocery store.
Steve
DragonTail281
Boy am I glad I still have well water. :)
--
Michael Herrenbruck
DragonTail Ale
Drunken Bee Mead
Ray Calvert
want to use it for brewing. My area does use chloramines but it has not
seemed to inhibit my yeast.
Ray
"Erik" <koehl...@bellsouth.net> wrote in message
news:Ge5Cf.4058$eY5...@bignews7.bellsouth.net...
Joel
>"Erik" <koehl...@bellsouth.net> wrote:
>> I should probably avoid using water from the tap when making mead, right?
>> Should I go to the store and buy some Zephyrhills or something like that?
>First rule: If you don't like the taste of your water, you probably do not
>want to use it for brewing. My area does use chloramines but it has not
>seemed to inhibit my yeast.
It's not yeast inhibition that's the concern. It's
that the chlorine will react with phenols during
fermentation to form chlorophenols. The average human
palate is sensitive to small amounts of chlorophenols,
and trust me, it's not a pleasant flavor. I've tasted
homemade beer and mead that had what I considered
very unpleasant amounts of chlorophenols. Invariably
when asked about process the brewer/meadmaker said
they used straight, unfiltered city tapwater.
Droopy
Besides some amino acids, there really are not any. In beer and wine
there is a lot in the proteins and tannins. But honey really does not
have that problem. Mels and such could be a problem, but if you add
fruit in the secondary, I doubt it. Chloramines do fade away over time.
Joel
>Where do the phenols come from in mead?
>Besides some amino acids, there really are not any. In beer and wine
>there is a lot in the proteins and tannins. But honey really does not
Yes.
>fruit in the secondary, I doubt it.
As long as there's fermentation...
>Chloramines do fade away over time.
Chloramines in water will break down into free chlorine,
and then dissipate, or so I hear. Chlorophenols won't.
Joel
>Where do the phenols come from in mead?
>Besides some amino acids, there really are not any.
From the honey. A PubMed search yielded some tests for
phenols in honey that gave a range of 0.05-5.88 ppm in the
subject samples. Chlorophenols can be detected by humans
in the ppb (parts per billion) range.
Droopy
Do not make the mistake in assuming that because you have 50 ppb of
phenols in honey thatif you add chloramine that you will end up with 50
ppb of chlorophenols. It does not work that way. The reaction will
reach a point of equilibrium with all three species being present. The
realitive quantites of each is determined by a equilibrium constant.
With chloramine I do not know that the constant will be all that high,
chloramines are used BECASUE they are relatively stable. It it was
hypochlorous acid, then I would be more apt to believe that the water
could cause ppb level with that level of phenolics in honey.
Like I said. We have chloramine in the water here. I have never
tasted bandaids in my beer, wine or mead. Nobody else has either.