darkside501st
New Member
Hello All,
I hope to find some confirmation and perhaps advice. We moved into our house a couple years ago and water pressure/flow was not bad when we first moved in but not quite what we were used to on city water. We figured it was just something we had to get used to living off of a well. However, it has slowly gotten worse and it is to the point now where it takes 45 minutes to fill up a bathtub. Anyway, I had a plumber come out to figure out what the issue is and it got narrowed down to iron build up. The unions were packed full of iron build up and only a small hole of about 3mm was left on the 1" pipe. They said the aeration contact tank was also clogged with iron build up and they seem to think that the iron filter is not backwashing like it should if it were working properly. They talked about the restricted water flow not allowing the backwash to clear out the iron particles and they would stick together with the media and cause problems. Sorry if my explanation is not the best... I don't know much about water filtration and this is the first time we have lived on a well. Anyway, they ballparked me about $11,000 to acid wash the iron out of the aeration tank, replace the media in the iron filter, and replace the media in the water softener or a rough estimate of about $12500 to replace everything with new equipment. The aeration tank is from 2010 and the iron filter is from 2016. They also want to move the iron filters to an adjacent wall behind me in the pictures so there is more room to do future maintenance... I believe that was included in the rough estimates. He also tested the iron content while he was here and it was a 2.5 on his little scale think (in between a 2 and 3). So he said the iron content in the well is not too bad.
One guy said that the way my aeration tank is set up is antiquated and there are better options out there now. I took a look to see what I could find and I see some systems like mine and others that have a combination iron filter and aeration tank. I was also told part of the problem is that the aeration tank doesn't have a backwash function and so there is nothing to keep the iron buildup from occurring unless somebody takes it apart every year or two and does an acid bath on it. In that case it seems like a combination unit might be better because the backwash would keep the iron build up to a minimum and you just need to worry about replacing the media every 10+ years. There is no sediment filter before the iron filter.
So what would you all do? Would you suggest a different setup? Which equipment would you put in? I saw this post by pcmeiners in another thread about iron clogging filters but the OP in that thread has a different setup and situation... would you suggest something like this before the iron filters? It sounds easier to clean once a year instead of doing an acid bath in the aeration tank.
"As to high iron content clogging filters I suggest getting a filter similar to the link below, Pentair ES2.....
https://www.pentair.com/content/dam...heets/english/4003089-e-series-spec-sheet.pdf
Purchased a 316 stainless unit on Ebay for a really low price. Theses have a removable perforated basket inside in which I have "filter balls" media with a PVC 1" pipe, with approximately 40 holes down the center of the basket so water gets to most of the filter media. At the top of the filter basket I have a tee off the 1" pipe, above that a coarse filter media (cut from a floor scrubbing pad). The coarse mesh filter is there to catch any possible large masses of iron or iron bacteria. Amazing how much iron these filters remove, on my high iron well I can go a year before cleaning. Cleaning involves removing the filter balls from the basket, initially cleaning the media in a 5 gallon bucket with plain water, then running through a wash cycle in a washing machine only with water. I initially clean the filter balls in the bucket as the iron content is so high I do not want to add the iron laden water to may septic system. Suggest installing a bypass piping and purchasing enough filter balls so when you clean the media you can install a previously cleaned batch of filter balls so you have water to clean the removed batch of filter balls. The media is reusable many times, I would definite add a very small amount of Clorox to the wash and after installing the filter balls. The 316 stainless version is more expensive but 304 stainless is just fine. Suggest purchasing a unit with a long basket, mine is at least 30 inches."
I hope to find some confirmation and perhaps advice. We moved into our house a couple years ago and water pressure/flow was not bad when we first moved in but not quite what we were used to on city water. We figured it was just something we had to get used to living off of a well. However, it has slowly gotten worse and it is to the point now where it takes 45 minutes to fill up a bathtub. Anyway, I had a plumber come out to figure out what the issue is and it got narrowed down to iron build up. The unions were packed full of iron build up and only a small hole of about 3mm was left on the 1" pipe. They said the aeration contact tank was also clogged with iron build up and they seem to think that the iron filter is not backwashing like it should if it were working properly. They talked about the restricted water flow not allowing the backwash to clear out the iron particles and they would stick together with the media and cause problems. Sorry if my explanation is not the best... I don't know much about water filtration and this is the first time we have lived on a well. Anyway, they ballparked me about $11,000 to acid wash the iron out of the aeration tank, replace the media in the iron filter, and replace the media in the water softener or a rough estimate of about $12500 to replace everything with new equipment. The aeration tank is from 2010 and the iron filter is from 2016. They also want to move the iron filters to an adjacent wall behind me in the pictures so there is more room to do future maintenance... I believe that was included in the rough estimates. He also tested the iron content while he was here and it was a 2.5 on his little scale think (in between a 2 and 3). So he said the iron content in the well is not too bad.
One guy said that the way my aeration tank is set up is antiquated and there are better options out there now. I took a look to see what I could find and I see some systems like mine and others that have a combination iron filter and aeration tank. I was also told part of the problem is that the aeration tank doesn't have a backwash function and so there is nothing to keep the iron buildup from occurring unless somebody takes it apart every year or two and does an acid bath on it. In that case it seems like a combination unit might be better because the backwash would keep the iron build up to a minimum and you just need to worry about replacing the media every 10+ years. There is no sediment filter before the iron filter.
So what would you all do? Would you suggest a different setup? Which equipment would you put in? I saw this post by pcmeiners in another thread about iron clogging filters but the OP in that thread has a different setup and situation... would you suggest something like this before the iron filters? It sounds easier to clean once a year instead of doing an acid bath in the aeration tank.
"As to high iron content clogging filters I suggest getting a filter similar to the link below, Pentair ES2.....
https://www.pentair.com/content/dam...heets/english/4003089-e-series-spec-sheet.pdf
Purchased a 316 stainless unit on Ebay for a really low price. Theses have a removable perforated basket inside in which I have "filter balls" media with a PVC 1" pipe, with approximately 40 holes down the center of the basket so water gets to most of the filter media. At the top of the filter basket I have a tee off the 1" pipe, above that a coarse filter media (cut from a floor scrubbing pad). The coarse mesh filter is there to catch any possible large masses of iron or iron bacteria. Amazing how much iron these filters remove, on my high iron well I can go a year before cleaning. Cleaning involves removing the filter balls from the basket, initially cleaning the media in a 5 gallon bucket with plain water, then running through a wash cycle in a washing machine only with water. I initially clean the filter balls in the bucket as the iron content is so high I do not want to add the iron laden water to may septic system. Suggest installing a bypass piping and purchasing enough filter balls so when you clean the media you can install a previously cleaned batch of filter balls so you have water to clean the removed batch of filter balls. The media is reusable many times, I would definite add a very small amount of Clorox to the wash and after installing the filter balls. The 316 stainless version is more expensive but 304 stainless is just fine. Suggest purchasing a unit with a long basket, mine is at least 30 inches."
