Paper Sediment Filters...

Does anyone have any advice on using paper sediment filters as opposed to the ones that look like wound string or activated carbon? Today I moved my sediment filters from their prevous location, between the well and the pressure tank, to their present location, between the pressure tank and the faucets. I installed two paper filters, a 5 micron and a 1 micron respectively, after the "cartridgeless" filter. The 1 micron filter stopped up the canister so badly, that we lost all pressure at the faucet. I jacked up the pressure switch from 30/ 50 to about 40/ 60, pumped the pressure tank up to 38 psi when empty (meaning no water), and replaced the paper filters with a 5 micron "wound string" filter and a 2 micron activated carbon filter. The water is still cloudy this evening, but figure there's still probably some sediment in the lines, and still some stuff coming through because the well got stirred up a lot today. Am I on the right track to solving my "flourlike" sediment problem? If an explanation of the problem is needed, please see my previous post below. Any ideas, thoughts, or comments would be greatly appreciated.

Carbon filters are for dealing with chlorine, so you can set those aside altogether.

I have two "whole house" filter housings, with a 10-inch, 5-micron element in the first, and with a 20-inch, .5-micron element in the second. Depending upon what kinds of deals I can find online, some of my elements are wound and some are poly. But, the issue here is more about microns than about "plastic or paper" or whatever.

Jobu said:

I installed two paper filters, a 5 micron and a 1 micron respectively, after the "cartridgeless" filter.

Click to expand...

Is that "cartridgeless" filter a centrifugal filter? If so, it might not be doing much about your "flour" problem. I think those kinds of filters are for much bigger particles.

If I had your situation, I would put something like a 20-inch, 10-micron filter right after your tank, and I might add a 20-inch, 5-micron filter just ahead of the water heater. Then, I would use whatever I was willing to change regularly for drinking and ice-cube water in the kitchen and just get used to whatever comes out anywhere else. I do not know much of anything about even my own well, but it sounds to me like yours is the best you are going to get there where you are.

Is the floury stuff why you installed the filters? You should have posted this in your original thread... Based on my 21 years in the water treatment business, those types of filters don't work well on a POE problem. Although once in awhile someone will get them to work that doesn't mind the constant pressure reduction over time and the repeated change out of the cartridges.

BTW, there are two types of cartridges, absolute and nominal. And then pleated paper, spun or wound.

Okay Gary, What should I do?

You sound like a guy who has encountered this sort of thing before. I'd love to get your take on the situation. What I have encountered, here where I live, is a lot of head scratching, off the cuff ideas, and plain, old, flat out "I don't know's." In addtition to the filters, I've tried running the heck out of the well from the outside spickets, though not yet from the adaptor (which I'm told is the preferred method of some). I've had the water tested for bacteria, iron, alkalinity, and turbidity, with the turbidity number being the only one we can't live with. The guy who tested the water said that our turbidity level, when it was much worse than what's coming through the faucet now, was about 5x greater than our local creek water. Any advice will be greatly appreciated.

One more thing...

For whatever reason, I do seem to get better results when I add a carbon filter to the arrangement?