Brown rusty water after chlorination

[Pat OT]

Hoping someone can help. We are selling our house. Water tested + for coliform. Followed directions to chlorinate our well and then dechlorinate. It took a very long time before the chlorine washed out. Now our water runs brown or is rusty. Without use (a few hours) it seems to clear up temporarily only to run discolored again. We have a drilled well. We have always had a little rust in the water that was corrected with a cartridge filter. Could we have run the water too long and we're 'at the bottom of the well' and it's not rust but dirt? Could the chlorine somehow damaged our plumbing? The problem started last thursday. We called the water testing company and they suggested we try not using too much water to' let things settle.' Hoping someone has some encouraging words.

[nhmaster]

Explain how you went about chlorinating please.

[cacher_chick]

It's not uncommon to need to run a hose continuously for several days before the well runs clear.

[Pat OT]

We poured about 2 quarts of bleach diluted in about a 2 gal bucket down the well. We opened 4 faucets in the house for about 20 minutes. We went to the store, bought pool chlorine test strips. Tested the water...no chlorine was showing as present. Added 2 more quarts of bleach, followed by letting the water run from 2 faucets for about 20 minutes. We could smell the bleach and it tested as being present. We did not use well water the rest of the night. In the morning (about 9 hours after bleaching) I opened the faucets to start the dechlorination step. At that point the smell was pretty overwhelming...to the point where I opened the windows. After running the water in 3 faucets about 30 minutes, the water had a strong odor and was testing 'high' on the dip strips. We ran the water every 1 1/2 hour in 2 faucets for 15 minutes until early afternoon. Just to complicate the matter, our septic had been inspected the week before and we were told that our leaching fields were flooded. We were expecting the town and an excavating contractor to come out in two days so I was getting concerned about letting all this water go through our system. In the afternoon, we hooked up a garden hose and let the water run into the lake (about 100' away). We ran the garden hose 4 more times for about 30 minutes (spaced about 3 hours apart). The chlorine tested as clear, however I could still detect a 'bleachy' smell. The next morning I noticed the water wasn't clear. From then on it's been intermittent somewhat not clear to so brown you can't see through the water. Any thoughts?

[nhmaster]

The well casing and the pipe all accumulate rust over the years. When you poured the 2 gallons down there you knocked a bunch of it off. It can take several days to clear it up. Try running a hose for about an hour twice a day.

[Pat OT]

Thank you. Will try your suggestion.

[GrantK]

The well casing and the pipe all accumulate rust over the years. When you poured the 2 gallons down there you knocked a bunch of it off. It can take several days to clear it up. Try running a hose for about an hour twice a day.

I'm having the same exact problem after chlorinating my well, I've done this before but never had a problem with the water clearing up.

Where do you recommend hooking the hose up to run the water?

[Peter Griffin]

How about the sillcock that you water the lawn with

[Allen Meyers]

I'm having the same exact problem after chlorinating my well, I've done this before but never had a problem with the water clearing up.

Where do you recommend hooking the hose up to run the water?If you have a sample tap at the pressure tank that is the first choice. It is code to have one in most states. If not as close to the tank as possible. Let it run at least all night. Do not turn it on and off.

[GrantK]

If you have a sample tap at the pressure tank that is the first choice. It is code to have one in most states. If not as close to the tank as possible. Let it run at least all night. Do not turn it on and off.

I do have a tap at the pressure tank, I'll hook up there and let it run.

Thanks!

[Gary Slusser]

If you have iron in the water, it is normal to cause rusty water when shocking a well because the chlorine oxidizes the ferrous iron into ferric iron which is rust.

In many instances it is best to not run any more water than you have to to get rid of the chlorine. That allows the rust particles to settle to the bottom of the well, below the pump's inlet. That's if you have a rock bore well and not a screened well.