Thanks for the great tips and discussion, all. I've been using BH recipes for over a year. I like the results but two bottles in the fridge at all times is a bit tedious. I will now simplify my approach.

We recently got a post from sweaner in another thread: Surprised and Troubled by Water...

He simply buys potassium supplement gel capsules that have 800 mg of pure potassium bicarbonate in each capsule.

I just found this product, 800 mg in capsules, so 1 capsule in 2 gallons, DONE!

https://smile.amazon.com/Bicarbonate-Ea ... 628&sr=8-9

Wow that's easy. Thanks Pat for posting here. I normally use 2gal jugs for filling up at my water supplier. Using 1 capsule per jug could not be simpler.

Perhaps this has been answered but I was curious today when making up some water.... sodium bicarbonate would be lighter than potassium bicarbonate (sodium element is lighter than potassium.). Would this change the mass I should be using compared to potassium bicarbonate if I use sodium bicarbonate? I don't mind the additional sodium as long as it is safe for the espresso machine.

I happened to come across a video from one of the espresso machines retailers (1st line) that claims adding mineral packs such as 3rd wave causes the of oxidation (film) on the metals in the boiler and PID sensors causing overheating situations. I personally use rpavlis. This is all confusing to me. I thought minerals added to RO water avoided oxidation? Any advice is appreciated!

Some packets are intended for brewed coffee and include salts that we'd rather not have in a boiler, or exposed to water level sensors, or thermowells (what surrounds the thermocouples or RTD's used in PIDs). We can't expect a retailer to figure it all out, which is good and which is bad, and there's nothing preventing packet makers from changing their formulations. Some packet companies also do not disclose what is in their packets, so nobody knows what's in the resulting water.

In addition, there is no control over what source water is used. If maintained improperly, RO systems can have faults that you'll never know unless you test every time you buy RO water from a supermarket. (You are responsible for testing/maintaining your home RO system .) Even after RO, water can still have chemicals in it, e.g., if your water source uses chloramine. The same thing applies to distilled water unless it is certified for medical use. If your source water after RO or whater has a pH too low for, say, bicarbonates in RPavlis water to buffer, then yes, the resulting water can be corrosive.

All that to say is a vendor like 1st-line needs a solution that will work, and that is softening the water. Salt softeners have been around for years and are proven in the land of hard water, Italy. Is the resulting espresso going to taste good? With traditional Italian roasts, sure. With light-roasted beans, well, I'm not so sure ...

Getting ready to try this myself for my new Micra. I think I'm doing the 1L concentrate in the fridge and then mix 38ml into each gallon of RO water.

Question however: leaving a 1L bottle of chemical concentrate in an area where someone might accidentally consume it is a bit concerning. Of course I will label it, but you always have to expect people to do stupid stuff. Would the concentrate be in any way toxic if ingested (not chronically of course, but a single oopsie)?

It's called "soda loading" and is used by some athletes. The practice can have side effects. It does seem to depend on dose.

... One of the more common side effects is gastrointestinal distress in the form of cramping, vomiting, and diarrhea. ...

- https://www.trainingpeaks.com/blog/boos ... da-part-2/

There are more serious side effects possible. These are also given in the link.

Main thing is to keep children away because they don't have the size of adults so the impact is much greater, pregnant women, etc.

belegnole wrote:Mark, I am one of those who mixes my water by the gallon. What I do is very close to that above, but my final mix is in a gallon jug.

Here's what I've gotten from Dr Pavlis' posts.

My concentrate recipe; same ratio, smaller volume.

10 grams potassium bicarbonate
100 grams distilled water

That's it done.

Now here's where the Dr's 50-100 gram variable comes in. He stated that he would vary the strength based on the type of roast coffee. For dark 50%, for light 100%.

So worth that in mind. As I use gallons I add the following concentrate to a gallon of distilled water.

1.9 grams for a dark roast.
3.8 grams for a light roast.

Most people just use the 100% (3.8gram) recipe. Obviously you could adjust this to your taste. Others have added other minerals to do this or that. I'm not sure if there's a perfect recipe. But I like it simple, and this one is.

So just to be 100% idiot:

1. Ill take a container place it beside my scale.
2. Then I'll measure 10 grams of potassium bicarbonate: add that to the container.
3. Then I'll measure 100 grams of distilled water: add that to the container.
4. Now I've my mix. 110grams in total.
5. Then I'll take 1 gallon of distilled water and add 3.8 grams of my mix to this 1 gallon. Shake and done.
6. Use this for my machine. When my 1 gallon is empty, I'll buy a new one and repeat step 5.

Is this correct?