Newbie needs guidance

[Kirkridge]

Moving out to the country and the place has well water. I need to replace the system as it is worn out-12 years old and doesn't work well. These are the values as reported to me.
PH 6.0
Mag/Cal 3-4 grains(?)
Iron 2.5 PPM
solids(?) 91 PPM

What is required to correct this water problem?
Which system is the best ?


Any advise from the "water gurus"

Kirkridge

[ditttohead]

If you are buying the house, many municipalities require a full water test. You should do that regardless to test for other potential problems. That being said, considering the low pH, low calcium, high iron... I assume you will have a high LSI. I would need the HCO3 number to really know, but... it looks fairly obvious.

A properly sized backwashing calcite filter, and you may want to chase that with a softener to remove the added harness. Iron removal equipment is highly recommended as well. Any bacteria tested? Oxygen level of the water? We need more informatin to make a proper recommendation. What equipment is currently in place? most iron removal medias need a higher pH, than 6.8, and some oxygen in the water. What is your current water well system? Atmospheric storage? Pressurized storage? pump capability, etc...

[Kirkridge]

If you are buying the house, many municipalities require a full water test. You should do that regardless to test for other potential problems. That being said, considering the low pH, low calcium, high iron... I assume you will have a high LSI. I would need the HCO3 number to really know, but... it looks fairly obvious.

A properly sized backwashing calcite filter, and you may want to chase that with a softener to remove the added harness. Iron removal equipment is highly recommended as well. Any bacteria tested? Oxygen level of the water? We need more information to make a proper recommendation. What equipment is currently in place? most iron removal medias need a higher pH, than 6.8, and some oxygen in the water. What is your current water well system? Atmospheric storage? Pressurized storage? pump capability, etc...

I'll see if I can obtain the additional information. You are asking an uninformed to provide technical information (LSI) .Got no idea what this is nor how to obtain the information. I'll have more information on the existing system by Saturday.

[ditttohead]

Sorry about that, it didnt quite come across properly.

I was running a LSI calculation, it is a formula used to determine how corrosive your water is (in the simplest terms).

I need more infomratin to do an accurate test, but even without those numbers, I can assume your water is corrosive and should be corrected. A simple correction method is to use a calcite filter. Adding a calcite filter can raise your hardness to undesirable levels so a softener may be desirable afterwards. The iron levels are very high and should be treated. A softener is not the recommended method atthis high of a level thought many companies do it in order to save a few dollars. it is highly inefficient to use a softener for iron removal compared to other methods. modern iron removal systems use a manganese dioxide coated media, or pure manganese dioxide and sometime air or chlorine injection, contact tank, etc to remove the iron.

Let us know what your current configuration is so we can come up with a good design for you.

[Kirkridge]

Thank you for clarification. I'll post info later this weekend as I'm going to the place on Sat. Would pictures of the system help? I believe it is a Culligan water softening system with no other filter or equipment in the configuration.

[ditttohead]

Pictures of the pump, storage, distribution, etc would be very helpful. The more information, the better.

[Kirkridge]

There will be 2 adults in full time residence and 2 additional adults on occasion. Plumber had water turned off to replace a toilet,so additional samples for testing were not available. I'll try next weekend. Please tell we what additional information is critical.

Mike

[Kirkridge]

There will be 2 adults in full time residence and 2 additional adults on occasion. Plumber had water turned off to replace a toilet,so additional samples for testing were not available. I'll try next weekend. Please tell we what additional information is critical.

Mike

The system is a Culligan Mark 49. Salt set at 10 lbs. Don't know the interval of regen 7-8 days,maybe? First tank on the left has no sticker on it --filter maybe?

[ditttohead]

First tank is an exchange tank, but whats in it? Calcite to raise the pH?

[Kirkridge]

No label on it ,only a hand written -C612

[Gary Slusser]

The acceptable pH range is 6.5 to 8.5 so you need treatment.

The LSI was invented to determine IF cement distribution water lines were going to be dissolved by the water run through them. It is not to be used to establish corrosion of metal or other types of water line material.

You can disregard the iron content until you run of the well some (with a hose on the drain of the pressure tank going outdoors), by pass both pieces of equipment and drain and then flush the pressure tank a few tines until the water runs clear. Don't run water on anything you don't want rust stains on. Only then do an iron test.

Otherwise you will be measuring the iron in the stagnant water in the well, the rust in the pressure tank and the equipment. Even then you may have plumbing that is loaded with rust so take the water sample from the drain valve on the pressure tank after draining the tank for a few seconds.

On a side note, you may want a camera inspection of the well casing before deciding on buying the place or not. The iron may be due to the acidic water eating the steel casing and a camera can determine any holes in the casing. You may have IRB (iron reducing bacteria). If there is any clear to black slime buildup in the toilet tanks, that will be IRB. IRB is a group of harmless bacteria that can be controlled by 'shocking' the well with non scented regular bleach as needed.

You should test for Coliform bacteria, nitrite and nitrate.