# learning the difficult thing we call water



## LittleBrewer (8/1/19)

Hello all,
just trying to figure out water and setting up a profile for a double IPA.
I'm in the hunter and use water from Grahamstown.
I want to do a Double IPA around 15 EBC and 9% 
This is what i have so far:
6kg Ale malt
0.27kg CaraPils
0.27kg Caramalt
0.1kg Maramunich 2
0.34kg Dextrose 

20g chinook @ 60 
20g Chinook, citra, cascade @ 15
30G chinook, citra cascade @ 0
and 20g of each for a dry hop

Current water PH 7.4
11ppm ca 24.2ppm Na
5.3ppm mg 30pppm SO4
42ppm Cl 27.3ppm Bicarbonate

22 alkalinity; 11 Effective hardness; 11 Residual alkalinity 


my problem is that when i add the salts to get a sulfate to chloride ratio of about 4, the residual alkalinity becomes too low making for a water suitable for a much lighter colored beer than i am after. But when i add the salts to raise the alkalinity such as chalk and baking soda the PH gets to 5.71 and would require 11ml of lactic acid to drop to 5.3.
Any help would be appreciated. I'm kind of lost in this whole world of water chemistry at the moment 

Also the water program i am using is the one built into BeerSmith 3.
Also i am a rookie in making the recipes so any guidance in the way of the recipe i am making would also be helpful. 
Cheers


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## The Brewing Auditor (8/1/19)

I found this guide helped me understand the basics and then got straight into Palmer's How to Brew with far better understanding.

http://howtobrew.com/book/section-3/understanding-the-mash-ph/what-kind-of-water-do-i-need


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## philrob (8/1/19)

Here is a link to your definitive guide to Hunter water !

https://aussiehomebrewer.com/threads/hunter-water.93154/

Also, I invite you to come along to Hunter United Brewers club meetings. Every 3rd Friday at 6:15pm for a 6:30pm start at Hamilton North Bowling Club. You will learn lots and get all the help you need. We're a friendly bunch.


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## Kev R (8/1/19)

This is a free and user friendly. You can put the hunter water values from the link in philrods post http://www.ezwatercalculator.com/


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## LittleBrewer (8/1/19)

thankyou all, i have read through all the documents you's have posted and they are all very helpful in getting my head around it all. Does anyone just follow what beersmith spits out in the way of how much of each chemical you should put in your mash? Or is it best to go off on your own and try and tailor it to how i want the beer. 
cheers


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## razz (8/1/19)

Hi LB. I have enjoyed looking through the new water tools/calculator in Beersmith3. I haven’t used it yet as my brew controller is off for repair. So, I plan to follow what BeerSmith spits out for my next brew.


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## LittleBrewer (8/1/19)

So hen i use ez water calculator to get a desired mash ph and chloride/sulphate ratio, i then punch it into beersmith and have the same results, except that beersmith looks at the water color range and stares it as 1-5ebc as the color of the brew recommended for this water profile. 
and thats good to know razz i might follow the amounts that beersmith recommends for this brew and see how it goes from there


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## LittleBrewer (8/1/19)

another question, is the sulfate/chloride ratio more important or how much of each additive more important? for example would it be better for me to have a ratio of 5 or a sulfate level of 300? for a hoppy ipa


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## razz (9/1/19)

I have found that looking at Brunwater, Beersmith3 and the EZ calculator that I can reverse engineer the water profile. So check the colour beer I want in the end and work backwards. Not that you can do the inputs in reverse order but you will get my drift. I found doing it that way that I better understood the calculators. I think the level of sulphate is more important than the ratio in your example as if you had a ratio of 5 but only 50 sulphate then you are getting bugger all sulphate compared to 300.


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## LittleBrewer (9/1/19)

Okay I'll have a go at doing it in reverse. Cheers, 
Also do you know of any risk of adding say 13g of gypsum. It seems allot to me (this is what I require for 300ppm sulfate along with 6g MgSO4)


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## wide eyed and legless (9/1/19)

I use Brewers Friend and found that the predictions for pH come out pretty much spot on, using your local reservoir readings along with the grist will calculate what you need, I presume BeerSmith would be the same. Highest gypsum addition I have used is 12 g.


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## LittleBrewer (9/1/19)

Okay awesome! And the 12g gypsum brew turned out good? No flavour issues from the addition?


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## shacked (9/1/19)

In the first instance, just go easy on your salts mate. Far better to undershoot (a good beer that could be better) then overshoot (an undrinkable beer). 

Think of them like salt and pepper. The right amount can make a great dish awesome and too much can make a great dish inedible. 

I'd be focusing on getting your mash pH right with acid or acid malt and then introducing a small quantity of salts. You can always micro-dose salts into a glass of finished beer to get an understanding of the impact.


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## wide eyed and legless (9/1/19)

LittleBrewer said:


> Okay awesome! And the 12g gypsum brew turned out good? No flavour issues from the addition?


Yes it did turn out well Fullers London Pride clone, but as shacked mentioned above better to learn to walk before you run. Most brewers would be starting off with just a campden tablet as a water addition, before getting into the nitty gritty of salt additions.


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## LittleBrewer (9/1/19)

No worries, I'll be starting small then and focus mainly on the pH. 
Cheers for all your help guys


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