Ro Filter Reservoir

[kook]

A little tip for anyone thinking of purchasing an RO filter system. Most of these tend to come with a 12-15L tank, which for brewing is rather inadequate. They also take hours to fill a HLT, as the flow rate is usually less than 8L / hour.

So why not use your HLT as the reservoir



I have a standard hose connector on one side of a 24v AC irrigation solenoid. From there, the water travels into the sediment and carbon filters, then through the RO membrane. Waste water goes into the pool, "pure" water into the HLT.

There is a float switch on the HLT mounted near the top. Once the float rises to the top, the solenoid switches off and the water stops.

This saves having to purchase a large reservoir, or estimating the time to fill the HLT and remembering to go and turn the tap off.

 

[Goat]

NIce work there Kook - what sort of costs are you looking at with this setup ? So, does that mean you are now using mineral additions to replicate target water specs ?

I used a burton tablet and some CaSo4 ( IIRC ) and the taste on the final product is quite different (in a good way) from the non treated version of the same recipe

 

[kook]

As I already had the water filter gear - it was just the cost of the membrane/housing, fittings and hosing. All came in at around $200 with all the fittings / electronics.

There were two main reasons for doing this. First is due to the local water here being quite variable. Second reason is the high sodium and chloride.

I can now build water with a much lower level of sodium, and choose whether I want higher levels of sulfate or chloride depending on the recipe (bitter vs malty).

 

[Online Brewing Supplies]

As I already had the water filter gear - it was just the cost of the membrane/housing, fittings and hosing. All came in at around $200 with all the fittings / electronics.

There were two main reasons for doing this. First is due to the local water here being quite variable. Second reason is the high sodium and chloride.

I can now build water with a much lower level of sodium, and choose whether I want higher levels of sulfate or chloride depending on the recipe (bitter vs malty).

Its a good idea given the state of Perth water, yet you can still brew good beers with out having to RO.A sediment and carbon filter will do the job.Historically: this is what happened , brewers adapted their beer to suit the local water.
GB

 

[kook]

Its a good idea given the state of Perth water, yet you can still brew good beers with out having to RO.A sediment and carbon filter will do the job.Historically: this is what happened , brewers adapted their beer to suit the local water.
GB

Totally agree - there is no reason why you can't make brilliant beers without RO. If you look at all top beers at WASABC last year, none used RO as far as I'm aware.

But I want that extra control over the process, rather than having to work around the water I have, I can just strip the minerals out and add them back as needed

 

[kook]

Could you give some details re the float switch and what you are using to power the solenoid?

It's just a 24VAC plugpack, and a floatswitch from Altronics (http://www.altronics.com.au/index.asp?area=item&id=S1160). The switch can tolerate the temperatures of the HLT, and can switch the solenoid without any need for relays/ssrs.

 

[Online Brewing Supplies]

Totally agree - there is no reason why you can't make brilliant beers without RO. If you look at all top beers at WASABC last year, none used RO as far as I'm aware.

But I want that extra control over the process, rather than having to work around the water I have, I can just strip the minerals out and add them back as needed

Water chemistry was never my favourite subject.I guess with Ro you dont have to try and balance one against the other and end up with to much of what you dont want. :huh:
GB

 

[sinkas]

It's just a 24VAC plugpack, and a floatswitch from Altronics (http://www.altronics.com.au/index.asp?area=item&id=S1160). The switch can tolerate the temperatures of the HLT, and can switch the solenoid without any need for relays/ssrs.

Bulk Buy?