Consequence of softening soft water

Water analysis, treatment, and mineral recipes for optimum taste and equipment health.
ken.rubin@live.com
Posts: 27
Joined: 8 years ago

#1: Post by ken.rubin@live.com »

I just received my Slayer--have not hooked it up yet. Along with the unit, I purchased Clive Coffee's water filter/softener system.

I measured my water with an electric TDS meter and found that my water is not hard: 57ppm, less than 4 grains.

The water filter/softener is intended to treat "hard" water. It consists of two parts: a softener cartridge and a filter cartridge.

The instructions in the Slayer manual say an install should always include a carbon filter, which I assume is the filter side of the filter/softener system.

I think the optimal hardness target is greater than 57ppm already. What would happen if I hooked up the system to my water line and connected it to the Slayer? Would it just produce poorly extracted espresso? Flat-tasting espresso? Should I disconnect the two cartridges and just run through the filter cartridge alone (can that be done)? Do I need to buy a separate carbon filter? Nothing on the product mentions that the filter cartridge actually contains carbon--I'm just assuming that the side that says it scrubs Cl and odors is a carbon filter. Is that an OK assumption?

I do have a plumber coming over to complete the install, but I'd appreciate any advice from this forum which surely knows more about this specific situation.

Thanks.

Zoey
Posts: 176
Joined: 8 years ago

#2: Post by Zoey »

I also bought the filter system, and have softened water for the house. One of the filters is for carbon filtration, and the other is a softening cartridge. I ended up going to a keg system to supply the machine (mixing my own water). I simply left the softening cartridge out of the filter housing and used the carbon filter in the other housing. IMHO, there's no point in softening soft water.

You could also completely eliminate the extra housing and softening cartridge. I chose to install the housing just in case I might need it for something at a later date.

ken.rubin@live.com (original poster)
Posts: 27
Joined: 8 years ago

#3: Post by ken.rubin@live.com (original poster) »

Thanks.

I just e-mailed with Ben from Clive Coffee who pretty much said the same. He also said that a softener won't do much to already-soft water so it doesn't really matter either way.

Why did you decide on a keg system? Did you notice flavor artifacts from the softness of your house water?

Zoey
Posts: 176
Joined: 8 years ago

#4: Post by Zoey »

My household water is softened by cation, which is wonderful for drinking/showering/doing dishes/etc. Despite using it in my La Spaziale for years, apparently it's not so good for coffee. Being that I dropped eleventy-kabillion dollars on a new machine and grinder, I thought I might as well just do it right and get with the water program.

I had intended on hard-plumbing the machine into the household water, and then using appropriate filters to make water corrections. But, the espresso repair/plumbing technician that was going to do the work flaked on me. Making the appropriate water line runs and figuring out the filter system was far above my pay grade, and I honestly just couldn't figure it out on my own.

So, I ended up creating my own system based upon photos of what others had done before me. I have no idea if it's optimal or even correct for that matter, but you do what you can when you don't have help. I knew I could punch some holes in a couple of walls, and run an electrical outlet without getting myself into too much trouble, so it just seemed like the best option.

I went with a 2.5 gallon stainless steel Cornelius keg for three reasons. 1) It fit within the allotted space. 2) It looks cool compared to a standard beer/fizzy drink keg. 3) It would allow me to change my water recipe at will. It seems like water knowledge in relationship to coffee continues to evolve, and this will allow me to keep up with the trends. I will say that there were a couple of people on HB who really helped me a lot to find a water recipe. I truly do appreciate their generosity in sharing information, and allocating their valuable time to help me.

Here's a photo of my setup before it was completed. I added a shelf cross-member to the rolling rack so the keg no longer sits on the floor (not in photo).