New to Wells. Want to get it right!

[TipsMcStagger]

I bought property in Florida and I'm planning to build a home. There is no city water available, so I'll have to have a well. I've never had a well but my parents did for many years (in the northeast) and though I know little about their setup, I hated showering at their place. The water pressure was anemic.

Many of the homes around my property have extensive rust colored staining on their concrete driveways, stucco and fences, etc. It's a huge eyesore. Although I see it often, I don't see it everywhere. I assume it's from high iron content and possibly other minerals?

My two questions:

(1) How do I avoid the staining issue? Can the water be tested as they're drilling? If so, and if they determine the water has high iron content, can/will drilling deeper likely be beneficial? Or should some kind of treatment system be installed to remove these minerals?

(2) What type of pump and tank setup is best to guarantee fantastic water pressure? I travel for a living and spend nearly half of my life in hotels. Much of the time, the enjoyment of the layover is impacted by something as simple as the quality of the water pressure in the shower!

Thanks!

 

[Reach4]

1. https://www.dripworks.com/blog/subsurface-drip-irrigation-for-lawns or buried soaker hoses would be one way to avoid concrete staining. Another way is to tint your concrete to match rust stains.

Ask a local well driller if there is probably a low-iron stratum available under your property. Your neighbors might be using sand points, which only go for shallower water.

2. Submersible pumps don't need priming, are quieter, and are more efficient than above-ground pumps. But above ground pumps can also provide as much water pressure as you might want. A submersible pump needs a 3-inch or bigger well. 4-inch would be more common. Above-ground pumps can use a 2-inch well.

Water softeners are nice for showers and washing.

 

[Sponsor]

 

[SuperGreg]

There are filters for iron. I have one of these: https://www.cleanwaterstore.com/pro-ox-iron-filter-5900-bt-10-cf-948-9x48.html

Good heavens, I paid literally half that price 10 years ago for the same filter.

 

[Reach4]

There are filters for iron. I have one of these: https://www.cleanwaterstore.com/pro-ox-iron-filter-5900-bt-10-cf-948-9x48.html

Good heavens, I paid literally a third that price 10 years ago for the same filter.

Not the same. Yours does not check into a server in China. (just guessing).

 

[SuperGreg]

Not the same. Yours does not check into a server in China. (just guessing).

Updated my message because I went through my old emails to find the order and it was more than I thought. PH neutralizer was $600, Pro-Ox filter was almost $900. It is exactly the same filter I bought from cleanwaterstore.com, and all three have been reliable for almost 10 years now. The control head isn't as nice as the 7500 series models, but I got it because it was much cheaper. Looks like the prices are on par now.

https://www.cleanwaterstore.com/pro-ox-7500-iron-filters/pro-ox-iron-filter-7500-rev25-10-cf-9x48.html

 

[TipsMcStagger]

There are filters for iron. I have one of these: https://www.cleanwaterstore.com/pro-ox-iron-filter-5900-bt-10-cf-948-9x48.html

The iron filters are effective? Just wondering if an iron filter would be the best plan or if drilling to various depths (deeper?) could yield water with a lower mineral content?

I know little about wells, so I don't know if it's realistic to expect water quality to vary with well depth.

 

[SuperGreg]

The iron filters are effective? Just wondering if an iron filter would be the best plan or if drilling to various depths (deeper?) could yield water with a lower mineral content?

I know little about wells, so I don't know if it's realistic to expect water quality to vary with well depth.

Yes, I used to get rust all over our stainless steel sink, which I thought was the sink rusting. Haven't had one single mark of it since adding the filter. Of course, your individual iron level and other factors will dictate what will be effective in your situation.

I just looked up my well tests for reference:

- Tested at the pressure tank, Iron is 30.6 ppm
- Tested at kitchen sink after filters, 0 ppm (not detected)

Lab tests done by https://gosimplelab.com/

 

[Valveman]

(2) What type of pump and tank setup is best to guarantee fantastic water pressure? I travel for a living and spend nearly half of my life in hotels. Much of the time, the enjoyment of the layover is impacted by something as simple as the quality of the water pressure in the shower!

Thanks!

I like strong pressure as well. It is not so much the pump that provides it, but rather the pump control. Any pump can give poor pressure as it is cycling on and off while using water. Simply adding a Cycle Stop Valve can make any pump deliver strong constant pressure while eliminating the cycling.