Help With Water Softening System/Filter Set-up

[Beckadawn]

I am set to close on a house the end of this month but the well water is creating a bit of a problem and I'm trying to figure out how much it will cost and how to remedy it. I'm also interested in brand suggestions.

TDS: 850ppm
Hardness: 31 gpg
Iron: .8 ppm
Manganese: 0
pH: 5.6
Nitrites/Nitrates: 0
Bacteria: Negative
E. Coli: Negative
Lead: Negative
Pesticides: Negative

Family Size: 2
Bathroom(s): 1

I've been told I will need an acid neutralizer to raise the pH and a softener to treat the hardness. I've had recommendations to place the neutralizer before and after the softener, so I am not sure which option makes the most sense. I have one person pushing for a Canature system and another pushing for an Alpha system. I am also within the service area of Culligan but have not priced anything with them yet. I have been researching the US Water Systems Matrixx Softener but have not actually spoken to a rep there yet.

Any suggestions or recommendations would be greatly appreciated.

 

[ditttohead]

Run away from a couple of the units you mentioned, basically knock offs of good equipment. I wont mention names but I am sure you can figure it out. Stick with a Fleck or Clack. One of the units you mentioned appears to be an Autotrol. These are excellent valves but they have a few quirks I wish they would work out. I don't see this product line getting much love or development money but who knows what the future holds for it. It is a flapper disc design, highly reliable especially in sandy water, but if you have sandy water install a sediment filter and go to a Fleck or clack Piston design. With your high hardness and TDS, a calcite filter should work just fine, you don't need to get the pH above 7, you just need to get it higher than it currently is in most applications. I don't want to write a tome, so I will simply say you are trying to get the water out of a corrosive state, pH is only a part of that equation.

 

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[Beckadawn]

Thank you for the quick reply! Can you help me figure out how many grains the unit should be? I read that it was best to get a little larger than you need so you use less salt but too big makes it inefficient. Based on everything, how many grains would you recommend?

 

[ditttohead]

I would recommend a 1.5 ft3 softener minimum, if you plan on any additional people in the house, the next size up would be even better.