# Well Water problems



## Mrschasintail (Dec 8, 2004)

I need advice from the 2cool brain trusts! We have well water. Our well is deep, most of our area has this same issue. Our water is iron rich. Water smells, especially when it gets warmer. It corrodes everything, grout, fixtures, electric toothbrushes.....you get the idea. My question is what do we do? If filtration is the answer, what kind?? How do we make sure we are doing the right thing for our problem? Thanks for the advice in advance.

MCT:question:


----------



## bg (May 21, 2004)

You can either chlorinate it to make the iron non-soluble and then filter it out or install a water softener. I'm not sure where you are but around Houston, all the water has high calcium content, which also causes problems. If you've got high calcium or lime in addition to your iron issues, I'd install a softener.


----------



## TooShallow (May 21, 2004)

You need to have your water analyzed and then develop a treatment plan based on the analysis. The iron is a symptom of the corrosive water. I suspect your water has a low pH and can probably be treated with carbonate but this will increase your hardness and could cause other problems (scale deposits). You will probably need to adjust pH and then use a water softener to get good water. This best left to a professional that is experienced in water treatment.


----------



## dwilliams35 (Oct 8, 2006)

Get it tested:

http://soiltesting.tamu.edu/files/waterweb1.pdf

http://www.dshs.state.tx.us/lab/mic-cm_home.shtm#w4

Then you can know whether you just need filtration, chlorination, whatever.

It's a good start, so you don't start chasing problems that you don't have.


----------



## therealspeckcatcher (Mar 7, 2006)

I just added one of the water softeners from Lowes and it seemed to help a lot as long as i use the iron fighter salt. Probably not the best solution but the complete systems can get mighty expensive.

http://www.lowes.com/SearchCatalogD...Id=10151&N=0&langId=-1&catalogId=10051&rpp=24


----------



## Hotrod (Oct 11, 2006)

Call Gary's waterwells. He sold me a system installed for $1600 that pretty much took care of all that. I had those problems. 713.305.9784


----------



## Bull Fish (Nov 15, 2006)

Aquatex in Alvin told me how to fix mine. All I needed to do was to "Airiate" the water no more smell or stain.


----------



## Mrschasintail (Dec 8, 2004)

Someone told my husband we need a media filter. But I don't want to spend that money, and still have the same problem.


----------



## Crow's Nest (Dec 4, 2009)

Where are you located?

In Central Texas, Tommy Dorsey is the best around.


----------



## Mrschasintail (Dec 8, 2004)

No, I'm in Ft Bend Co. By BBSP


----------



## trodery (Sep 13, 2006)

Bull Fish said:


> Aquatex in Alvin told me how to fix mine. All I needed to do was to "Airiate" the water no more smell or stain.


How do you airiate the water? Mine gets a bet smelly in the bathroom farthest from the well in the summer, it's weird but only the water in that one bathroom has issues!


----------



## Bull Fish (Nov 15, 2006)

If you are on a well you use a purge valve with a slip stream that injects air into the velute/ impeller. If you are on city water you will use a pressure tank and a small compressor that will periodically vent off and re-compress the tank with air. 

I am only running the slip stream on my well. About ever 6-8 months my water will get funky to say the least. That is when I will drain the tank and re fill it. This will "kill the smell" and I'm good to go for a few more months. I would work on a more permanent solution but I'm planning on building a new house in a year or so.


----------



## swglenn (Sep 20, 2009)

I agree on getting the water tested and addressing the issues found. That being said a friend had success installing a small air compressor and bubbler in a 200 gallon tank. This precipitated out the iron which settled in the bottom of the tank and was periodically drained off. It also requires another pressure pump to pump from the storage tank to the house.


----------



## Soapeddler (Jun 18, 2006)

Installing a softener where iron content is high will only shorten the life of the resin beads in the softener tank. Softeners work by ion exchange. Iron has a stronger magnetic bond to the resin than calcium and magenesium, and is not stripped off by the brine rinse so the life of the resin is shortened dramatically.

There are systems that will deal with iron, but before spending money on all that, you really should have the water analyzed to determine what direction you need to go. I'm in the industrial water treatment business. Get your analysis done and if you want me to look at it I'd be happy to. May be able to make some recommendations.

Another thing that destroys the resin in softeners is chlorine. Resin replacement costs about $100 - $150 per cubic foot plus labor, so if you've got a 1 cubic foot tank, it could cost up to $200-$300. 

I've never heard of "iron figher" salt, but will definitely check into it.

The pictures below are of resin beads, just in case you ever wondered what was in a softener that makes it work.

Top pic is of new resin. The beads are extremely hard.
Middle pic shows both new and old
bottom pic shows old resin - you can't crush new resin nearly as easily as old stuff.

Oh, and NEVER spill resin on a solid surface floor... Traction goes right out the window. Imagine a billion tiny ball bearings under your shoes.


----------



## Mrschasintail (Dec 8, 2004)

Will the water tester you see at Home Depot or Lowes work to see what the problem is? Or is it necessary to send it off?


----------



## Bull Fish (Nov 15, 2006)

It may work or may not. I'm not sure what the current rate is for the water to be tested by a professional. I don't think it could be too much as they are going to want to sale you something on the backside of it. I have a couple of friends that have worked for the AquaTex for years and they Serivce most all of the Houston Area. I think that it would be worth a call and cee what the say. Sometimes it willbe an easy fix and they will just tell you what to do.


----------



## Soapeddler (Jun 18, 2006)

It depends on what the tester is testing... It's probably not as accurate as would be needed for a thorough analysis, but I've never looked for a tester at home depot or lowe's. My test equipment and supplies comes from 2 main sources; Taylor and Hach.

http://www.taylortechnologies.com/

http://www.hach.com/

They are pretty much who everyone uses in the water treatment world; everyone from water utilities to pool places like Leslie's to guys like me. Those test kits ain't cheap.

I think you can get the testing done by the extension agency. Someone posted links earlier in the thread.


----------



## Hotrod (Oct 11, 2006)

Tina, call that guy Gary


----------



## Old Whaler (Sep 6, 2005)

Soap and Hotrod are correct I have 20+ yrs in filtration/separation. Call a well company or Aquatex. The softeners and test kits you get at the big box stores are junk. Have it professionally analyzed. Iron removal is a problem, but can be done. When it comes to good residential water treatment equipment, cheap is not good and good is not cheap.


----------



## Hotrod (Oct 11, 2006)

This is what I have in the pic. It has a timer and purges itself daily. 4 years ago it was $1600 for this installed

http://www.cleanairpurewater.com/well_water.html


----------



## twoZJs (Jul 23, 2008)

Professional testing is the shorted route to peace-of-mind. I'm thinking TAM does these test??


----------



## Soapeddler (Jun 18, 2006)

dwilliams35 said:


> Get it tested:
> 
> http://soiltesting.tamu.edu/files/waterweb1.pdf
> 
> ...


That first link is the form you fill out to send in with the samples.

You want to choose #2 - the $35 test.

See the pic below.

There are a couple of ways to collect samples:

1.) Turn on the faucet, fill your bottle, seal the bottle and mail it in. This is what most people would do and is not the right way to collect a water sample.

2.) turn on the faucet and let it run for several minutes to make sure that you are getting fresh well water and not water that has been sitting in your pipes (The water chemistry can change just by the water sitting still in the pipes for a couple of hours) 
- After letting the water run several minutes, fill and dump your sample bottle several times to rinse out any residue that may be in it. Then fill the bottle and immediately cap it. Label it correctly, then mail it in.

It would be a good idea to send in a sample for both your indoor water, and maybe an outside faucet that is directly connected to the well. The sample from the well would act as a baseline, then the house water can be compared to that. Believe it or not, there could be enough of a difference in the results that a trained eye can read the analysis and tell you what's going on.

Anyway, that's what I would do if it was my place.


----------



## tdgal (Jun 16, 2009)

*Water issues*

After 3-4 months of research I went with the Kinetico System. I tested my own water with a kit from the pool store. I then called AquaTex in Alvin, who came and tested my water, which matched my own test. 

I delt with John and there was no pressure to buy from them after coming out to Dayton just to test my well water. 

The tech that did the install was Jesse and after he was done he completely explained everything to me.


----------

