Hi lads, I have a nuova simonelli Oscar brand new which I haven't used much yet. I've been trying to find some information about which water is better for my espresso machine.
I've read somewhere that if you use bottled water the machine will last longer. But I read as well that maybe it won't work properly..
So, can I use bottled water?
It is better?
It is any difference between bottled water and filter water with my brita jug?
Thanks

Brita is sometimes responsible for strange metallic taste of the coffee.
Bottled water can be used for sure. I usually do it.
Mineral content should not be too low, though.
Alberto

Bottled water can be great, but it depends on the bottle, you should check with the manufacturer and ask for a water report.

For the long story see Jim's insanely long water faq http://users.rcn.com/erics/Water%20Qual ... %20FAQ.pdf

A slightly shorter story:

very pure (distilled/DI) water can corrode your machine, and in extreme cases may cause autofill sensors to work improperly.

Water that is too hard will require frequent descalings and cause trouble with your machine.

Water that is soft enough to never need descaling does not make for optimal espresso flavor (although many operate this way anyway so they don't have to deal with scale).

Brita pitchers filter out chlorine and sediment and thus can improve water taste, but they do little to reduce hardness. I am fortunate in that my tap water is of fairly good quality, so I use a brita pitcher to remove chlorine and use that. I do need to descale periodically, I keep an eye on my mushroom looking for buildup and descale as needed (see Checking an E61 Espresso Machine for Scale for instructions).

I have this in my notes as "ideal" coffee water, think it was something Jim posted.

Total Dissolved Solids 150 ppm
Total Hardness 3-5 gpg (51-85ppm)
Total Alkalinity 80 ppm
pH 7.0 gpg
Calcium Hardness 3-4 gpg
Total Chlorine <0.1 ppm
Free Chlorine <.05
Total Chlorides <30 ppm
Total Iron 0 mg/L
Silica not more than 5 mg/L
Sulfate 25-50 mg/L
Hydrogen Sulfide 0 mg/L
Manganese 0 mg/L
Nitrate 0 mg/L

Check out this thread for some (shorter) guidance from Jim Schulman: Water Water Everywhere, but is Crystal Geyser too hard for espresso?

Thanks for that [creative nickname], I missed that one. After reading that I may grab one of those zero water systems and start blending with my tap water. I didn't realize they were so inexpensive.

I use poland spring myself...seems to work well for me

For brewing, I use bottled drinking water or spring water (in the 2.5 gallon size), rather than filtered tap water. Different stores carry different brands, and they are generally comparable/interchangeable as far as I am concerned. (I've never done side-by-side testing, in other words.) I also keep a 2.5 gallon container of distilled water on hand and use this in the boiler of my HX machine.

Our local specialty coffee roaster, Cuvée Coffee, will be opening its first retail shop this spring or early summer. They plan on selling their specially formulated brewing water in bulk. It will be interesting to see how that specialty water compares to general-purpose bottled water.