DIY water and espresso machines?

January 4th, 2016, 12:13 pm

Would this be practical to use for my GS3?

https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com ... recipe.pdf

I haven't had enough time or brainpower to make it thru the 'Water for Coffee' book. I have been using volvic to get me by until I can really start experimenting and taking readings of cheaper waters. I can't plumb in and Philly water seems to be extremely hard....

#2: Post by **brianl** » January 4th, 2016, 12:44 pm

Why wouldn't it be practical as it's designed with coffee in mind? It's easy once you get the ingredients. I would look into a flojet as it can be a pain making the water and I prefer to do it in large batches.

#3: Post by **homeburrero** » January 4th, 2016, 1:01 pm

The online La Marzocco water recommendation calls for something with a little more total hardness, but I think that 70/30 should be fine. It would not scale. La Marzocco wants a chloride level below 30 ppm, but does not specify a max level for sulfate. The 70/30 has no chloride, but it does have sulfate, which is similar to chloride in sometimes being a corrosion concern. But because the sulfate level in that 70/30 works out to only 23 ppm and because the water has an adequate alkalinity I think there should be no concern about that.

#4: Post by **RyanJE** » January 4th, 2016, 1:09 pm

thepilgrimsdream wrote:Would this be practical to use for my GS3?

I was recently in the same situation as you. Maybe I can save you some time on other water options. I have found that Gerber Pure nursery water is a great option. I tested hardness and alkalinity at home and my results we a tad bit higher than they report, it appears still a great option. Currently at my Walmart it's 0.98 per Gallon jug. Th same price as distilled and I don't have to add any solutions or do any mixing. This is assuming you'd be buying distilled water for your 70/30 water.

#5: Post by **Bill33525** » January 4th, 2016, 4:31 pm

The definitive paper on water for Espresso http://users.rcn.com/erics/Water%20Qual ... %20FAQ.pdf

Check at the grocery store for RO water machine @ .30/gal.
Might want to consider boiling carbon filtered tap water.
See page 11 for Jim's evaluation on various water samples.
Have fun!

#6: Post by **homeburrero** » January 4th, 2016, 5:21 pm

Bill33525 wrote:The definitive paper on water for Espresso.

+1
Jim's Insanely Long Water FAQ has been around since the alt.coffee days, but is still a must-read if you want to get a fundamental understanding of hardness and alkalinity measures, and of issues like scale, corrosion, and treatment options. There are newer books and booklets out there, but in my opinion none of them really cover the subject as clearly as Jim Schulman did.