Rain water and snow

[LWTCS]

I like the rain water. Don't get no snow

My results are less than scientific. I have read several posts here that can at least anecdotally suggest that rain water can bring a rum ferment to finish quicker or at least get the FG as low as can be expected with a rum wash.

I have also read (elsewhere) that rain water can play no part in assisting the fermenting process.

Can anyone chime in?
I believe (though not always available) that rain water is helpful.

[Kentucky shinner]

If i did not have a swimming pool I would build me a reservoir and use it for my condenser cooling water. Im talking like maybe a 50 gallon drum..

[Fastill]

Maybe it is acid rain that is correcting the Ph level to speed up the ferment??
How about acid snow?? I'll be getting plenty of snow over the next few months...

[LWTCS]

I'll be getting plenty of snow over the next few months...

Sure would preciate your thoughts on the matter when the time comes.


Been noticing (For a good long while) that my garden does so much better on rain water as well.........It's God, isn't it?

Man that dude knows how to cultivate a bunch of stuff. Amen.

[Ratabilly]

Well i might be mistaking here, but i was always told by older folks to use rain water to water your garden and plants. The reason being that theres a bunch of chemicals like chlorine in tap water, especially in town water.

And as for the snow, i was always told not to eat it, yellow or not, so i've never used it. I'm sure theres not much difference in snow water than in rain water considering it's comming from the same place... Maybe the cold air in winter time kills off some of the bacteria in the air, or changes the acidity of it, i dont know i'm not much on the scientific side of things.

Now i'm wondering about well water... Thats what i use for my washes. I'm no scientist, but im sure well water might have some minerals in it, since its comming from underground, that could maybe help your ferment in comparison to rain water which is basically distilled water. (even though it most probably catches acid, chemicals, bugs and birdshit on the way down.)

[rad14701]

As far as rain water and snow are concerned, using them for a wash is not a problem... Even if you didn't boil the water prior to using in the wash, and it actually only needs to be raised to above ~150F to kill virtually all pathogens, if the wash doesn't become infected you will end up boiling the hell out of it during distillation which will kill anything remaining viable... And even 20% alcohol will kill virtually anything that makes its way into the low wines or final product... Heck, even creek water is acceptable, if boiled, just as long as it isn't sourced downstream from a toxic waste dump...

[MuleKicker]

snow has alot of dirt in it. everysnow flake is formed around a dirt particle. as far as rain, the old boys did it before the days of pollution like we got now. rain filters the atmosphere. other than that, i know that alot of bourbon distillers use lime softened water from certain streams. rain water is as soft as yer gonna get. I would be currious to know what kind of shit shows up in todays rain water on a chemical analysis.

[batf]

i was just wondering about using rain water myself for the wash. my collected rain waters ph is 6ish with ppm's apx 35. i will strain and boil it before use thou. i only use rain water for my indoor garden, i got a green thumb for growing, hope it transfers over to brewing.

[rad14701]

When I was a kid we were told not to drink rain drops or eat snowflakes due to concerns over nuclear fallout from above ground atomic and hydrogen bomb testing... But that same snow and rain made it into our drinking water anyway, just like any pollutants do today... Our distilled spirits are still going to be cleaner than the water we drink every day, even if we use untreated water...

Heck, we still have folks around here whose drinking water comes from standpipes in the local lakes...

[The Baker]

i was just wondering about using rain water myself for the wash. my collected rain waters ph is 6ish with ppm's apx 35. i will strain and boil it before use thou. i only use rain water for my indoor garden, i got a green thumb for growing, hope it transfers over to brewing.

If you boil it you will have to agitate it vigorously for a while before using it for a wash, or bubble air throught the wash for a while at the start.
This is to re-incorporate oxygen that you wont find in boiled water.

[LWTCS]

If you boil it you will have to agitate it vigorously for a while before using it for a wash, or bubble air throught the wash for a while at the start.
This is to re-incorporate oxygen that you wont find in boiled water.

+1
And I was thankin that the rain water would be really well chaulked with O2

I have not been boiling and seem to think that the bit-o-heaven is what appears to help.

[Fastill]

If you boil it you will have to agitate it vigorously for a while before using it for a wash, or bubble air throught the wash for a while at the start.
This is to re-incorporate oxygen that you wont find in boiled water.

+1
And I was thankin that the rain water would be really well chaulked with O2

I have not been boiling and seem to think that the bit-o-heaven is what appears to help.

Snow could be the same way, I think freezing might do the same thing with reducing O2 levels in the water.... Could be wrong???

[batf]

thx Baker, i will bubble the water after i boil. i have a air pump with a hose an air stone that i can use.
my collected rain water come off a metal roof thou....kinda thinking about that being a bad idea now ...what yall think?

[LWTCS]

Sediment filter is all I'm doing. Can get a GE for 25 bucks and hook up to your recirc pump and just transfer from one bucket to the next.

[demonrichie]

metal roof shouldnt be too bad depending on what kind it is. most metal roofs are alumnum nowadays which shouldnt be too bad but d look into that... besides all the stuff you may have from animals or trees etc that would run into it.

[beelah]

I live on the rainy west coast and I have collected and used rainwater in my washes and to cut my distilate. Only once have I had a perciptate, and that was when I used straight tap water. Usuaally I use a brita filter and have had no more problems with cloudy/floaties.

We're just getting into the rainy season and have what they call a Pinaeapple express that brings up topical moisture from Hawwaii and dumps it as rain/snow an the coastal mountians. All I did last winter was to set out my plastic fermentation container and waited until it was full.

I guess I need to do some careful documentation and comparison to see if or what the differnece will be between tap water and rain water. Will keep you all posted

[batf]

i drew off about 10 gallons of my rain water and strained it thru a set of panty hose (used ), boiled it for 30 minutes..let stand and cool, then bubbled it with a air pump for 24 hrs. sound about right? i am starting a sweet feed brew with it, unless i get a no go from yall, later on today.

[Ayay]

Snow is frozen rain. Takein it from the roof is different to takin it from a creek, but both are better than what comes out the tap.

[docdave]

Guys,

It would be pretty simple to do an analysis of snow or rain in your area. In Canada,the public health labs do analysis for free. In the States, many community or public labsoffer the same service for no or low costs. Check on the net for the location of the state water testing lab. A sterile transport container is required for analysis.

Generally, an area with high industrial emissions such as coal burning power plants will produce rain with higher amounts of sulfuric acid (acid rain). Nitric acid can also be produced from excessive vehicle and industrial emissions. Pathogens shouldn't be a major problem if the water is collected in barrels or containers that are kept clean.

Snow kind of acts like a sponge for dirt and contaminants. Collecting fresh snow from the upper layers should yield a cleaner product. We're another month from snow here, but i'll check into this and possibly have some rain water and snow collected and analyzed by the public health lab.

DocDave

[Stupid?s]

snow has alot of dirt in it. everysnow flake is formed around a dirt particle. as far as rain, the old boys did it before the days of pollution like we got now. rain filters the atmosphere. other than that, i know that alot of bourbon distillers use lime softened water from certain streams. rain water is as soft as yer gonna get. I would be currious to know what kind of shit shows up in todays rain water on a chemical analysis.

I would have to disagree with the statement about snow being formed around dirt particles. I used snow for years in Hydroponics and after collecting a whole tub full..Around 35 gallons and melting it indoors I had nearly pure distilled water. My Tap water is at a hardness of about 175-225 ppm depending on the time of year. Snow from my yard in the dead of winter never went above 5 ppm even with a random pine needle or leaf floating around in there(rain gathered for that matter in Summer is of the same quality). I also test with a Hanna combo TDS/PH/PPM/EC meter.
I would assume it is nearly as pure as the driven snow year 'round...literally.
It is near or better than distilled/R.O. water. Assuming it is freezing it would also assumingly be free from pathogens and other nasties or at least very low in them. If in doubt boil first and use it then... even though distilling will do that for ya.
Also I am in a low pollution area right under the Jet Stream in Good old Iowa U.S.A. So in the world of L.A. and NY etc? the pollution might make this a absolute truth and an impossibility. Depends on location I guess first. Also maybe if you have a light snow cover... dirt might still be blowing around...here when we get it were covered by feet of white and I assume dirt is no longer in the air after a while?

Edit: Also just to add if someone wonders. The PH is always 7 here at least. It seemed stuck on 7. Sometimes 6.9 sometimes 7.1 which averages to 7. 100% absolutely neutral. Without any buffering capacity to mention. You PH adjust it and it pretty much stays there with little fluxuation.

[docdave]

It would be interesting if forum members from different locations including cities could test both rain and snow samples and post these results on the forum. It may be that for many members, rain and snow may be preferable over what's coming out their taps. I'll do the same here and let everyone know what the results are. I'm sure the local university could do it for me if the public health lab won't.

DocDave

[Stupid?s]

The nerd in me would be totally curious about that. Different regions natural water quality from the sky. I would be willing to bet a shot that unless you're in a metropolitan area or downwind from a big city you'll have acceptable quality from your collections.

[xjrockstomper]

these should get you guys going on some info on rain analysis.

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_o ... archtype=a" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

this is an old one to maybe show the differance of fifty years.
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1 ... 0236.x/pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

and one for the boys across the pond.
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_o ... archtype=a" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

[Stupid?s]

What I gathered from that last study from the Wales area is that the snow was cleaner in the same area than rain. I would assume this would be from the dirt theory mentioned earlier. When it's raining mud and dirt still can be blown into the atmosphere and find its way into the rain. Snow covered ground is a good protector against blowing dirt and with the free "distillation"/"condensation" going on by nature the water has no chance of getting polluted...It just freezes into pure driven snow whch is awesome for me in my area at least. I would hate it in a big city where it was actually polluted and unusable.
I would also bet the pollutants in the air are found in lower concentrations in winter too since some are probably condensed out of the air immediately upon release into the environment. I think this is another reason that snow is cleaner than rainwater in warmer climates.