Thursday, October 31, 2013

Removing Iron, Manganese, and Odors from Well Water

Dear sir,
I have both iron levels of iron and manganese. I was also told I have iron bacteria present.  Our water not only stains fixtures but also leaves a slime in the toilets.  The water has a very strong metallic odor.  What can be done?  We recently moved into this house and all they had was a water softener.  The water is not hard as far as I can tell. Originally our water also tested positive for e.coli bacteria and we worry about the area we live in, which is surrounded by cattle ranches.  We shocked the well with chlorine but want to make sure our water is safe as we have children.  
Leona R.
Alberta, Canada

Wednesday, October 30, 2013

What is a Reliable but Low Cost Chlorination System?

Gerry,


I have hard, smelly water.  I do not have much iron, but the water is hard and has a very bad sulfur smell.  I think I want a chlorinator system, whole house filtration (active carbon with backwash), water softener, and an under sink RO system. I am on a budget and plan to install it myself.  I noticed when I add chlorine bleach to my well, the sulfur odor is gone for a week, but then it comes back.
Rod S.
St Helena, CA

Tuesday, October 29, 2013

Installing a Chlorinator for Use with a Storage Tank

Do you have a diagram showing how to install a chlorinator for a storage tank?  We want to install a 1500 gallon storage tank and chlorinate the water between the well and the tank. We have rotten-egg odor and some iron.

Fred L.
Anchorage AK

Monday, October 28, 2013

How Can I Reduce or Eliminate Chloride in My Water?

Hello,


My well water has a chloride level of 941.5 mg/L.  What is the best way to reduce or eliminate it?



David

Colorado



Hi David,



It's good that you're looking into reducing the chloride level of your water: chlorides can cause serious damage when left untreated, not only to plumbing and appliances but also to people - especially those with heart problems like high blood pressure.  The good news is that chlorides can easily be removed from water with either a reverse osmosis system or a distiller.  

Wednesday, October 23, 2013

How Much Clorox Is Needed to Disinfect My Pipes?

Gerry,

How much Clorox per gallon of water is needed to disinfect house piping?  

Susan G.


Hi Susan,

The exact amount of chlorine bleach needed to disinfect your pipes depends on the size of your house and plumbing/treatment systems. As noted on our website, proper and effective shock-chlorination requires:

Tuesday, October 22, 2013

Put a Stop to Stains by Removing Tannin from Your Water

Hello,

We have recently moved into a home with a water well. The property is surrounded by a river but the smell and taste of the water is not good. The water is leaving yellow stains on our appliances. We have the results of water tests for the past several years but it doesn't seem to contain most of the data you are requesting.

Jim G.


Hello Jim,

Thanks for contacting us.  The yellow stains on your appliances might be caused by

Monday, October 21, 2013

Why Use Chlorine, Ozone, or Peroxide vs. Aeration for Smelly Well Water?

Folks,
We have a type of iron filter that uses an air compressor which aerates our water in order to kill the sulfur odors.  It does work, and we were happy with it, until recently when we had to start to travel for work.  My wife and I are away for 3 – 5 days once a month, and when we return, the first 10 minutes or so of water in our house is almost unbearable with a very bad rotten egg smell.  I am looking into alternatives, would a chlorinator work for us?
Jimmy S.
Fayetteville, NC


Hi Jimmy,
Odors are often the result of sulfur and/or iron bacteria.  As your water sits in your pipes, bacteria are converting sulfates in your water into odorous hydrogen sulfide gas.

Friday, October 18, 2013

A Short Q&A About Greensand Filtration and Chlorination

We recently received an e-mail from a reader who had some great questions about Greensand filtration.  We wanted to share our response here, in the hope of answering some frequently asked questions for the rest of our readers.  If you are considering Greensand filtration, or are just curious about how it works, read on:

Thursday, October 17, 2013

What Is Causing The Blue-Green Stains In My Bathtub?

Dear sir,
We have blue green stains in our bathtub and fixtures and are trying to find out what is causing this problem.  We ordered the Ultimate Well Water test which is the National Testing Lab WaterCheck Test.
Carolyn
Vancouver, WA

Hi Carolyn,
Please take a look at your water test results from the National Test Lab.  (Click the image to enlarge.)

Wednesday, October 16, 2013

Designing a Whole House System With Chlorinator, Softener, Carbon Filter, and Reverse Osmosis System

Hello,



I need a chlorinator system, active charcoal w/auto backwash, water softener, and an under sink RO system.




Rod




Hello Rod,




Thank you for contacting us.

Tuesday, October 15, 2013

How Can I Remove Fluoride for My House Water?

Hello,

I would like to find a system that reduces fluoride from 2.0 mg/L.  We are happy with all other aspects of the water.  I would prefer something that would be compatible with the existing plumbing.  Laundry supply can be easily split off. I already have a Fleck water softener, but now we are looking for something to remove fluoride for the whole house.

Larry

Monday, October 14, 2013

Do I Need A Water Softener?

Hello,


Had my well water tested:


Calcium Hardness = 135mg/l
Magnesium Hardness = 38.7mg/l
Total Hardness = 173mg/l
Calcium = 53.9mg/l
Magnesium = 9.39mg/l

Do I need a water softner? What is considered hard water? Can I drink soft water?

Steve
Naperville, IL


Thursday, October 10, 2013

Advice About Black/Green Algae in Irrigation Well

Hello, 

Looking for recommendations for my client's well. This is used for irrigation only, in Northern California. A well head approximately 400' deep pumps 5gpm to a 10,000 gallon cistern tank to hold water for irrigation. I noticed a slight odor to water and there is a black/green algae slime in some of the pipes. Thanks in advance for your time.

Sam

Sam,

Thank you for contacting us.  One very effective way to treat this water is to inject a small amount of chlorine, then filter it with a MangOX iron filter and fill the storage tank with clean water.  See the diagram below:

Wednesday, October 9, 2013

Whole House Water Filtration System for Iron

I have a softener, but since adding a resevoir, my water has turned yellowish with precipitated iron. Currently, well goes directly into 1100 resevoir, from the resevior it goes to a 80 gallon pressure tank, from tank into the softener and the softener into a 20 carbon filter. The carbon filter plugs up quick and the softener doesn't deal with the iron well. I am new to this and tired of dealing with flakey water companies and want to go on my own. What would you recommend for a system using what I already have but ideally getting rid of the 20 inch filter?

Louie F.

Tuesday, October 8, 2013

Which Filter is Best For Removing Chloramines?

I am looking for a filter to remove chlorine and chloramines for our home. We have an aquarium and my fish are sensitive to our water now.  Our local city water department has recently started to use chloramines.   We have 2 bathrooms, 3 kids, 5 people totally in our home. 

Susan L.


Hello Susan,

Chloramines are disinfectants used to treat drinking water. Chloramines are most commonly formed when the water utility adds ammonia and chlorine when treating drinking water.

Monday, October 7, 2013

How Can I Eliminate Odors and Bacteria in My Water?

Having odor problems with my water (rotten egg smell) whats the best best way to handle this? We have a water softner and a small in line carbon filter. 

Raymond S.


Hello Raymond,

Thanks for emailing.  One very effective and low-cost method of removing odors is to chlorinate and then filter your water with activated carbon. 

Thursday, October 3, 2013

Should I Use Reverse Osmosis with Hard Water or Soft Water?

I am thinking of getting a reverse osmosis system to improve the taste of our water.  Our water has a total dissolved solids level of 450 ppm.  Our water is also hard, should I put the RO on hard water or soft water?

Should I Install an Ultraviolet Light System Before or After a Water Softener?

I have a water softener and whole house sediment filter I bought from Home Depot.  Recently our well water tested positive for coliform bacteria.  I shocked the well with bleach and waited a few weeks and retested our water, and now it came out clean, no bacteria.
However, my wife does not trust the water and we want to install a UV filter so all our water is always disinfected.  If I get one, should I install it before or after our water softener?

Wednesday, October 2, 2013

The Difference Between Salt-Based and Salt-Free Water Softeners

I live in the Los Angeles area and our water was tested to be about 170 mg/L (about 10 grains per gallon).   We have some dark ceramic tiles in our bathroom and glass doors, and my wife is interested in water conditioning or softening as our old softener has died.   

What do you think about the salt-free water softeners, do those work? What is the main difference in softening with a standard salt-based water softener as opposed to salt-free type?  

Tuesday, October 1, 2013

Well Water Sanitation

Hello,

I'm interested in buying a property that's listed as having well water and I was wondering which system could sanitize the water to city water standards?" 

Brian


Brian,
Thanks for emailing.  For your application we recommend a Chlorinator, Contact Tank and Carbon Filter.   The chlorinator will automatically inject a small amount of chlorine, and the water will be sanitized just like city water. 

Here is more information: