Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I work in developing water treatment technologies at a university lab. Part of my work is geared towards disinfecting water, which I have been told is an issue especially for private water wells. Curious if people on this forum have bacteria, mineral, or chemical issues with their water and how y'all go about treating the water.
I work in developing water treatment technologies at a university lab. Part of my work is geared towards disinfecting water, which I have been told is an issue especially for private water wells. Curious if people on this forum have bacteria, mineral, or chemical issues with their water and how y'all go about treating the water.
I've had several private wells in CO and AK. All had mineral issues (ferrous iron, calcium, manganese) so I used household water softeners specifically calibrated to each well. One incorporated ion exchange to reduce iron. One also had tannins but not excessive. I keep iron-sensitive birds so I usually install a small capacity RO filter to produce their drinking water and use it myself for taste. No excessive bacterial concerns or chemical contamination to speak of...so far!
I work in developing water treatment technologies at a university lab. Part of my work is geared towards disinfecting water, which I have been told is an issue especially for private water wells. Curious if people on this forum have bacteria, mineral, or chemical issues with their water and how y'all go about treating the water.
I rented a rural house from 2006-2009 in Frederick, Maryland that had a private well.
The water was turning my wife's blond hair green(!), and pitting steel flatware in the dishwasher if it sat on it for a while before being unloaded.
I had the water tested via two reputable sources (including U of MD), and results showed the water was hard and quite acidic, but no other issues with the water than that.
I worked with the owner (I pointed out the acidic water was working on the copper plumbing joints in the house which motivated him), and installed an acid neutralizer system in the home. I did the labor of the install for free, he paid me via rent deduction for the cost of the system and materials.
My family lived there for 4 years, so it worth the effort in my opinion. Landlord was a decent man.
My water usually tests positive for total coliform, but has always been negative for E. coli. Some years ago, they put my neighborhood on city sewer due to groundwater contamination problems. The neighbors were demanding a solution until they found out they would have to help pay for the solution.
I have hard water, with both dissolved and undissolved iron. It also has shale particles. I have a strainer before the water meter (my sewer bill is determined by the amount of water I use from my well). I have a 5 micron water filter prior to the water softener, which I change every other month. I use iron removing salt in the softener. Since completely soft water is aggressively corrosive, I have a bypass valve on the softener. The water is kept at about 45 ppm hardness.
The kitchen cold water, along with the outside faucets, are not softened. I can provide soft water to the garage faucet by changing a couple of valves when I wash the car. I changed the sacrificial anode on the hot water tank a few years ago. This tank is 11 years old. Previous tanks lasted 7 years, so I seem to be on the right track.
I worked as a laboratory technician in the water & wastewater industry for nearly 40 years.
I have a strainer before the water meter (my sewer bill is determined by the amount of water I use from my well).
How does that work? Does the city come read your private well water meter? Did the city install it?
If it is based on meter readings, how does your sewer bill account for water used for things like irrigation?
We have a lot of iron bacteria and general hardness in our water. The bacteria isn't a problem to humans, but makes a mess of things. So we have a "big blue" prefilter, an iron filter, a backwashing carbon filter, and a water softener. Then, for drinking, I use an under-sink RO system with UV, just to be safe.
That equipment was probably really expensive when it went in but it came with the house and upkeep is very simple.
Also, I'll point out that the iron bacteria problem all but went away once the steel pressure tank rusted all the way through; ever since replacing it with fiberglass we haven't noticed the smell or color of the iron bacteria as much as we did before.
We have a lot of iron bacteria and general hardness in our water. The bacteria isn't a problem to humans, but makes a mess of things. So we have a "big blue" prefilter, an iron filter, a backwashing carbon filter, and a water softener. Then, for drinking, I use an under-sink RO system with UV, just to be safe.
That equipment was probably really expensive when it went in but it came with the house and upkeep is very simple.
Also, I'll point out that the iron bacteria problem all but went away once the steel pressure tank rusted all the way through; ever since replacing it with fiberglass we haven't noticed the smell or color of the iron bacteria as much as we did before.
Yes I have noticed that the water will corrode fawcets and leave water spots. It's hard water.
OP, you’ve asked some very broad questions. The short answer is that wells can commonly have issues with hard water, iron, iron-eating bacteria, coliforms, sulfur, radon, and arsenic, as well as other things. The treatment system is directed at the particular problem.
I can’t believe you're fishing for information here if you truly work in water treatment at a university lab. NH DES has a ton of detailed information about wells, drinking water quality, water testing, and treatment systems, and your state may have similar resources, not to mention a university library.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
