Seeking advice on acid neutralizer system

[CablingPro]

A household of three adults in SE PA. Well water with pH of 5.8 and hardness of 14.97 gpg.

There’s a Whirlpool water softener and set of sediment filters: 50 and 20 micron.

The current problem is water acidity causing copper plumbing corrosion.

I’ve contacted several companies are I’m on the fence what type of system to get to increase the pH.

One company is adamant about getting a soda ash injection type of system over a Calcite Acid Neutralizer due to high hardness level.

Another one claims that I’d be perfectly OK with and wants to sell me Clack 2.5 upflow gravel bed with calcite.

I’m leaning toward a calcite type of neutralizer but not sure what type to get.

Any guidance is appreciated.

 

[ditttohead]

The soda ash with polyphosphate would be better but also more costly. Calcite systems are great but they do add an extra load to the softener. Upflow... not much of a fan, they can work but they tend to be a bit more problematic than downflow with backwash systems.

What is your current plumbing set-up? Standard well pump to pressure tank, then to the filtration/ house? Do you have any atmospheric storage or is it all pressurized? Are you planning on DIY?

 

[Sponsor]

 

[CablingPro]

The soda ash with polyphosphate would be better but also more costly. Calcite systems are great but they do add an extra load to the softener. Upflow... not much of a fan, they can work but they tend to be a bit more problematic than downflow with backwash systems.

What is your current plumbing set-up? Standard well pump to pressure tank, then to the filtration/ house? Do you have any atmospheric storage or is it all pressurized? Are you planning on DIY?

My current set up is as follows: New Franklin Electric submersible pump 1/2HP, 10gpm (just installed it), 62 gallon Amtrol tank set at 40/60 psi, 50 micron mesh sediment filter (iSpring WSP-50), followed by 20-inch 30 micron String Wound Filter 4.5, Whirlpool 33,000-Grain Water Softener.
I was looking to plumb the neutralizer after the filters and before the softener and let the backwash line connect out to septic. Plumbing aspect seems to be fairly simple. I just don't know much about the neutralizers to pick the right one for the use case.

 

[Reach4]

New Franklin Electric submersible pump 1/2HP, 10gpm (just installed it), 62 gallon Amtrol tank set at 40/60 psi

That implies your water surface is no more than 60 ft down as you pump.

 

[CablingPro]

That implies your water surface is no more than 60 ft down as you pump.

Correct. The surface is at 45 ft.

 

[ditttohead]

A backwashing neutralizing system with a modern Fleck valve would be adequate. I prefer dome hole tanks by USA manufacturers, we have had far fewer problems with them than the imported versions. Use calcite... you can always add corosex later if you need more neutralizing.

https://view.publitas.com/impact-water-products/2018-catalog-final/page/116-117

 

[CablingPro]

A backwashing neutralizing system with a modern Fleck valve would be adequate. I prefer dome hole tanks by USA manufacturers, we have had far fewer problems with them than the imported versions. Use calcite... you can always add corosex later if you need more neutralizing.

https://view.publitas.com/impact-water-products/2018-catalog-final/page/116-117

OK. Do you recommend a tank with gravel or vortech type? I'm told I need 2.5 cu ft. Does the size determine only how often one needs to replenish the media (calcite)?

 

[ditttohead]

Standard tank (with Dome Hole) 13x54 with a backwashing valve. A larger tank is fine, yo can simply adjust the calcite level by adding more. Many compaies start with the tank half full of calcite then add more if needed, and occasionally a little corosex can be added if calcite is not adequate.

 

[Reach4]

Usually you want a natural (tan) tank for this, because you can check the calcite level by backlighting in the dark. That may go without saying. I don't know if you might end up with a painted tank if you don't bring that up.

If the tank is going to be in sun, considerations can change.