making beer with rainwater

[Tom Summers]

I have just made two batches of Cooper's Lager using water from my rainwater tank, I live in Everton Hills in Brisbane. It looks to have brewed OK but I have to wait a few weeks to drink it. I filtered the rainwater through a pair of women's stockings(washed of course!!) to get rid of the mossie larvae. Has anyone done the same and can they say how the beer turned out. I used the same amounts and procedure as I had done for all my previous beers. I have been making it for the last 20 years.
Tom Summers

[drsmurto]

I use my rainwater (adelaide hills) for my pilsners but it gets boiled in the process (AG). If its infested with mossie larvae i think you should be using something more than 'filtering' it. Boiling it up the night before maybe?

[earle]

I let the frogs and tadpoles eat all of the mossie larvae in my tank.

Seriously though, I always use rainwater for my beers, much better tasting than the townwater here, and perhaps where you live also. I do wonder if the mozzie larvae are a concern though. I suppose that as long as your fermentation kicks off quickly, infection shouldn't be a concern.

In my old house I used the bore water (not the sulfury artesian stuff, just underground water high in calcium) for my brews. The water didn't taste very nice but it was much improved by turning it into beer. A good reason to drink beer over water.

[Neil]

I have used rainwater for virtually all my brewing over many years; from K&K, extract brewing, partial mash to now all-grain. As Dr Smurto says, water impurities aren't that much of an issue in all-grain but I've never boiled the full volume for extract or partial mash brews. The beers have always been fine, i.e. the various 'issues' that I've had with my beers couldn't be sheeted home to the rainwater. That said, I'd say two things: 1) I did have some serious problems a few years ago when my rainwater got contaminated with some wattle leaves and other junk which, not surprisingly sent a couple of batches off ; and 2) I guess us rainwater brewers are missing out on the magical effects that particular water types (e.g. Burton-on-Trent, Urquell) impart in certain beers. I haven't used salts, etc. to try and adjust for this, and I'm not sure if I should. In summary, providing the rainwater is obviously clear and clean you shouldn't have any problems, and the beers should be fine.

Slainte

Neil

[Kevnlis]

I agree with Doc here, best to boil the full volume of water you plan to use.

[Ross]

I agree with Doc here, best to boil the full volume of water you plan to use.

absobloodylutly.... Never use tank water thats not been treated by either boiling or some other treatment. The surest way to an infected brew.

cheers ross

[earle]

60+ brews from the rainwater in my tank, never boiled or filtered, no infections. I would add that I don't have temperature control for my brews and am hardly ever concerned about yeast lag. When I get the fridge/freezer and fridgemate (hopefully soon) I may think about boiling as the yeast will take longer to get going, perhaps giving anything else in there a chance to get a foothold.

[Kevnlis]

60+ brews from the rainwater in my tank, never boiled or filtered, no infections. I would add that I don't have temperature control for my brews and am hardly ever concerned about yeast lag. When I get the fridge/freezer and fridgemate (hopefully soon) I may think about boiling as the yeast will take longer to get going, perhaps giving anything else in there a chance to get a foothold.

I have heard this before, and I have met many people who had infections in ALL their beers, and this is why they did not notice them. Everyone has different thresholds for these sorts of things. Just because you cant see or taste it does not mean it is not there.

Unless you are pitching massive amount of yeast, you can be relatively certain that anything in the water was given time to grow. Why take the chance? Boiling the water is not much work!

[Longwood-65]

I only use tank water, it is pumped through a Reverse Osmosis Filter, into a .5 micron carbon filter then out the tap.
the water is nice a clean and and has no taste, Not like the 15ltr Bottled water used at work.
I chill the water in the fermenter overnight before brewing my K&K. I only boil the water to dissolve the Sugar and Malt.
Cheers
Ron

[Kevnlis]

Obviously the RO filter is sterile so you have no worry

Though if you do decide to go all grain you will want to make salt additions to get the right flavour profile, yeast nutrient, and pH in the water. It is quite easy to do and well worth the effort IMHO.

[earle]

I have heard this before, and I have met many people who had infections in ALL their beers, and this is why they did not notice them. Everyone has different thresholds for these sorts of things. Just because you cant see or taste it does not mean it is not there.

Point taken, I should say that I have had 2 batches of ginger beer infected but the source of that was a leaking fermenter tap and not the water.

[bensfarm]

i use rainwater,no filters,no boiling no problems

[Longwood-65]

Obviously the RO filter is sterile so you have no worry

Though if you do decide to go all grain you will want to make salt additions to get the right flavour profile, yeast nutrient, and pH in the water. It is quite easy to do and well worth the effort IMHO.

Well If i do AG's I'll can always get the water directly from the tank

[Kevnlis]

And you will still need to add salts...

[James L]

R/O filters arent sterile.. they are teeming with bacteria... what you are doing is forcing the water through holes that are too small for bacteria to get through so they are left in the filter, and the water comes out nice and clean...

But i'm just being pedantic... sorry Kev... its the microbiologist in me....

[drsmurto]

Did i hear someone say pedantic? My middle name...

James - they aren't holes, they are called pores! See what working at CSIRO is doing to you!

Sorry Greg, havent had my coffee yet

[lethaldog]

C'mon boys why dont we just flop em out and measure, im not good at arguing all this techo shite

[Tipsy]

C'mon boys why dont we just flop em out and measure, im not good at arguing all this techo shite

I already had my pants off

[KEG]

[mikey]

The creepy crawlies don't worry me as much as the pollution you might be drinking. There are good reasons why they recommend we don't drink rainwater in urban areas.