I am interested in getting an RO system. I only brew about once a month with about 10 gallons of water. My city water is good for brewing browns for example but for lighter beers I have been using RO to break down my city water using Palmers water profiles. For those with RO systems.
I would like to hear if I should just deep getting the water from Glacier sites or get an RO system. Also how much water is used to produce the RO water and maybe suggestions on one that wont cost too much and works good for you.
Is it worth my time and money to get one or not?
Following
Unless you have no other reasonable choice, an RO system can be more hassle than it’s worth.
I’m no expert but I did a fair amount of research a few years back on RO water.
An RO system can be pricy, probably hard to justify for 10-20 gallons a month.
Water usage depends on the configuration but generally you can assume 4:1 gal-in:gal-out, if I am remembering correctly. RO creates a ton wasted water that gets expensive if you are paying for water.
If you have a source of RO close by with a reasonable cost/gallon, I wouldn’t put one it. I’d never be able to make the costs work out from what I’ve seen.
Others on the board have RO systems and can likely correct any misstatements I may have made. 8^)
Paul
I’m not sure what your definition of pricey is but this is similar to what I use.
If you want to have almost complete control of your water profiles then I would buy a RO system. I don’t regret my purchase.
It seems that folks who have access to very soft natural water at home don’t fully appreciate how good they have it and how bad others’ waters might be. I was buying $4.50/5 gallon RO water at the store for several years before installing RO at my house. It paid for itself within a couple years. I have a well so my source water costs me nothing but electricity to pump it - the RO system was under $200. No brainer and never regretted it.
This thread made me check the availability of RO water near me and apparently I can get it right up the street 10 gallons for like 4 bucks. That is sweet. Think I’m gonna start messing with water now!
If you have the ability to check the RO water with an ion kit, I would do so. At the very least I would also check TDS so that when or if you use a online calculator for salt additions you can add the results to the program and that will give you better results. I use BeerSmith3. You can also use Brun’Water. Both are excellent
Thank you! I’m messing around with Beer smith right now
I have an RO system. Filters need to be replaced once or twice a year. I’m still on the original RO membrane. Get a TDS meter, they are in the $10 range. I see around 5-8 TDS so no reason for a test. If I saw numbers higher I would replace the membrane.
The water in my town isn’t cheap. I think that cost of the system, maintenance, and waste water is less than at a store. The store has the same water supply. I also save my old back by not wrestling the jugs in and out of the car.
We use the RO water for coffee, the resulting coffee tastes better.
With your home RO system how long does it take to gather total brewhaus liquor?
Careful with water chemistry additions. It can get in depth and eventually you can start looking for problems to fit your solutions.
After going down the rabbit hole I crawled back out and decided to use a more simple (simpler?) approach. Just because you can add a salt doesn’t mean you should.
Don’t let someone else tell you you should add something because that’s the correct way to brew X beer. Of course, there are principles and guidelines to follow but this can get to the Nth degree and suck the fun right out of what’s supposed to be an enjoyable past time.
Let your taste determine for you. For example: Just because Burtonization is how it’s done doesn’t mean it tastes better to you. This is like seasoning a soup or stew. You might like more/less X spice in your chili than someone else.
Palmer has his method(s), Strong has his, Brungard, and on and on. All upstanding pillars of the community but they aren’t you and don’t have your taste buds.
+1
I do the same even though I have an RO system for drinking water. I can get 15 gals of RO for $4.50
I always fill a 15 gallon tank that I have in the garage, so I haven’t actually timed it. The main RO tank in my basement is 20 gallons and it is connected to the garage by 3/8 inch tubing. At the garage end I have a simple valve. I think it can produce something like 9 gallons per day, but that is just a distant recollection.
I couldn’t agree more with all of this. I’ve played with water chemistry and decided I prefer beer brewed with relatively soft water. I have a target range that I shoot for as a base for all my beers, and I only tweak (if needed) on a rebrew.
Since I moved I’d like to contribute my beer getting better because of the water. But I can not because since then I’ve dialed in my fermentation temperatures and learned how to manage my PH and overall have gotten better at brewing.
Mine is rated at 100 gallons per day. I get more like 70 per day.
Our municipal water is absolutely horrible for brewing. I bought the slick and portable HBrewO system at a homebrew conference a number of years ago out of convenience… it and their cartridges are probably more expensive than is justified. But they were there, and I was there, and it’s very convenient for me because I don’t really have a good set-up for a larger home RO system. I connect it to the hose bib out on my deck, and let 'er fly. The discharge water goes into the back yard to water the grass and plants. I stopped capturing the discharge water for other uses, because it was more trouble than it was worth.
I make 15 or 20 gallons at a time, about once a month. For brewing water, I use between 1/3 and 2/3 of my RO water depending on the beer, and the rest is charcoal-filtered tap water to get rid of the chlorine. What I don’t brew with, gets used in the coffee maker, and to replenish my aquariums.
thank everyone for their input. Next question is how much water do you use to get one gallon of RO water?
Also I am looking Premium RO system from Buckeye Hydro, along with the cloragard stage, and using the 100 Gallon per day which is 4.2 gallons per hour as suggested from Buckeye Hydro person. Not really sure I need the 100 gallon per day because I figure I can save RO water in the 3 gallon water jugs I bought from Walmart many years ago that are meant for water. If I do that I would maybe only need the 25 gallon per day (1 gallon an hour)
But, they all combine and contribute to the final product.
Cheers!!