FMF - Friends of Minerals Forum, discussion and message board

[Crusher]

Hello Rockers, I need some help from some qualified experts finding a source for a food safe rock that I can use to alkalize my drinking water. Lots of angles I`m unsure of...

I`m looking to get my water to about 7.4 PH, this is what our cells operate at so why not shoot for that... Any added mineralization is a BONUS !

Not sure what rock absorbs what from the ground and if parasites are inside, so I`m afraid to hike into the local mountain's and get a hand full from a local stream ...!

All I need is a handful really, not like they will wear out in a jar of standing water. Even if I made my own filter out of brass fittings they would out live me ????

I bought some crushed white rock from a plant nursery that is for decoration I guess, they had no idea what it was, and after some research I think it is white marble that does not have any glaze or added acrylic that I could tell anyway.

I boiled the rocks for 20 minutes before I used them.

This white stone raised the PH up to about 7.7, but when I used up the water and smelled the wet stone it has a strong almost perfume scent, only I`m sure it not artificial and is actually a natural scent of the stone. Is this normal for white marble ?

The taste it puts into the water is a little chalky with a hint of bitter, other than that it`s no so bad.

I read there is a rust danger when using marble, this is white marble and I pulled the discolored ones already so is the rust a problem ?


Rock I`m thinking of using:

Limestone, just hard to find a food safe one but willing to hike to get my own and boil.

Texas Holy Rock, for sale in salt water aquarium shops for raising the PH but it has many holes & pores like coral, so I`m afraid of it absorbing who knows what.

Maifan stone, made in china is popular in the water filtration industry but I`m always a skeptic when something has been tampered with by any man. I came up short when trying to find out just how this is manufactured and not sure if this stone contains more than one type?

Any other ideas would be awesome other than just buying a filter from the mainstream industry because I`m out of that game...

Thank you in advance for your time and help :]

Cheers,

Crusher

[Mark Ost]

Well this is a bit different. Maybe baking soda or lemon might be better? Easier anyways.

[Pierre Joubert]

[Mark Ost]

Oh seriously, a bit of caution. Many rocks are porous and are great at absorbing whatever goes into them such as Benzene, petroleum products, Volatile chemicals and so on; whatever may be out there. Also there are poisonous minerals to be had also. First lesson is don't lick or taste rocks, better methods to identify.

[Josele]

It is difficult talking about a spring water when one knows only the pH value and has no information about bacteria, dissolved salts, and elements present in water. That said, some comments:

- European normative for bottled spring water accepts pH values in a range from 4.5 to 9.5. Even values under 4.5 are acceptable in natural CO2 rich waters.
- After a couple of years working in the bottled spring water industry and having tasted a large variety of mineral water samples, my favorite is a slightly mineralized spring water extracted from siliceous rocks which have an acidity ranging from pH 5.8 to 6.2
- Boiling process at 100º is not an accepted method to guarantee water salubrity because this does not kill all organisms presents in water.
- The soup of water and rocks and subsequent cooling process is an excellent cultivation for bacteria.

My modest advice is to biologically analyze your spring water (following the proper method of sampling and analyzing) to assure that is free of pathogenic organisms. You can forget the 7.4 pH value, which is acceptable and does not need to be altered.
Less manipulations you do to water, more pure will remain. In fact, bottled spring water normative prohibits all kind of chemical processes before bottling.

Cheers!

[Mark Ost]

Man Josele
That is one big kidney stone. Maybe take it to Tucson? Oh I am sick!

[vic rzonca]

[Mark Ost]

in a cow perhaps

[Josele]

Eh, no joke, alkaline water (high pH) is perfect to feed kidney stones while lightly mineralized water (low pH) helps to dissolve them.

A human one: Whewellite