Recommendation for Sand or Spin-down filter?

[craftech]

Hello again,

I don't have a lot of water pressure and am tired of losing 7 PSI from the 5 Micron whole house filter. I understand that a sand filter or spin-down filter would not cause such a loss.

Any recommendations?

John

[speedbump]

If your getting a lot of sand, a filter the size of a standard water softener works well. You can either backwash it manually or you can put an automatic head on it. Simple swimming pool sand (silica sand) will trap smaller particles that can be backwashed out to drain.

These so called whole house filters are not what they claim to be. They are one faucet filters and shouldn't be used in any other way.

bob...

[BluesMan]

Speedbump....how do you feel about spin-down filters for lesser sand problems? I get some sand, but don't think I need a big backflushing sand filter. These can be manually flushed out.

[Gary Slusser]

I have a sand trap tank that traps sand and you simply drain it once in awhile to flush the sand out a garden hose.

[speedbump]

I like them as much as I like the cartridge filters.

bob...

[BluesMan]

Do you dislike them because they need attention from the homeowner? Or do they cause a substantial pressure loss? Don't filter well enough?

Just trying to figure out why you think are a poor choice for minor sand/grit problem. They seem to be a better solution than cartridge sediement filters....no replacement filters to buy. I have never used one before, I'm just trying to see what the options are.

Thank you

[speedbump]

I'm sure that in a basement or garage out of sunlight they might last a few weeks under normal conditions. They filter out nothing that is harmful to you and really serve no purpose in my opinion.

For some reason the water industry has scared the hell out of homeowners about their tap water. I guess it sells filters, but is that a good thing? Here in Florida and other warm climates these things are installed outdoors. They fill up with algae in a few days. Algae is not harmful to you and it wouldn't be there anyway if it weren't fo the filter in the first place.

If you really have a problem with bacteria, nitrate, nitrite, chemicals, or any other contaminants that could be harmful to you, these filters are useless. So if you really have these concerns, get your water tested and treat it accordingly. Not with a false security. If you really have sand (most people who say they have sand; don't) then filter it with a sand filter. There are several good ones out there. I build my own here and they work well.

The reality is; people buy these inline filters because they are cheap. They seem to be a good deal. Just because some sales genius decided calling them "Whole House Filters" would be a great way to market them, half the population of the United States has one hanging somewhere in their plumbing.

There I feel better now!

bob...

[sammyhydro11]

If you want a spindown filter you will want to do a jar test with the material to see if it will remove all of it. Get a good sample of the material by running a garden hose into a bucket. Position the hose on the inside of the bucket so the water will be filling it in a spiral motion. This will allow the material to settle downward into the center of the bucket. Get enough of the material so you can fill an 8 0z. jar 1 third full. Slowly empty the bucket so the material doesn't empty with the water and scoop it form the bucket. Place the material in the jar,fill it with water, cap it, shaket it up real good, and let it sit. Whatever material doesn't settle out of the water after 3 minutes, the spindown filter will not remove.

sammy

www.tylerwellandpump.com

[BluesMan]

My water is clear, not cloudy at all. No bacteria, nitrate, or nitrite. (It was tested by a lab recently) So I'm not looking for a whole house filter...other than reducing sediment. I have 105 ppm of hardness, and 1.2 ppm of iron.

But we do have a bit of sand or grit in the water. But, it would take me a long time to get enough to fill up 1/3 of an 8oz jar. We do notice it in the dishwasher every now and then....and I can see a few small particles in a glass of water. I am just concerned about valves and seals being damaged. I am also going to install a softener at some point...and wasn't sure if the dirt, sand, grit, sediment, or whatever should be removed from the water prior to entering the softener. I will most likely purchase a clack control valve, as that is what I am installing at my parents house, (but they are on city water and have no sand)...and it seems to be a nice unit.

I have no problem spending money on a larger sediment filter if that's whats actually needed, I'm just not really sure I need one. If a spin down filter, or a 20" big blue housing with something like a 30 micron cartridge would suit my needs...thats fine too.

[Gary Slusser]

From what you say now, you don't need a filter of any kind.

The guys you are buying from should go over all this with you. Who you buying the softener from? I ask because about every 10-15 days I am contacted by a competitor's customer asking me for help.

I just spent 41 minutes on the phone with a guy from FL that bought from Affordable Water. He has resin throughout his house, a real bad thing, he called wondering if I could help; it's Saturday and they don't answer their phone on weekends.... I ran through every possibility and he started tearing into it.

He says their instructions are very sparse and I know from asking some questions that they are incomplete. They told him how and what to program but, they are wrong on the salt dose for the K of capacity they gave him. OH Pure Water, Water Value and Quality Water Treatment are not so good either. Some of them don't offer any info on sizing and establishing the K of capacity or salt dose and tell their customers to use the default settings! They don't give the customer the instructions for the dealer side of the programming and their other instructions are fairly poor. So beware.

[BluesMan]

Gary, I have not purchased a softener for myself yet....just looking for inforamtion.Next week, I am helping my father install his softener that he purchased.

I may not be buying my softener for a few months...probably after the holidays, but I was thinking of dealing with the minor sediment issue before then. Will a softener filter out what minor sediment that we are getting?

[Gary Slusser]

It depends on what brand of control valve you go with but yes it will.